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In the attic, Mike found a diary and old map
With the story of how MAF began.
Mike decided, for his Christmas mission,
He had an exciting plan!
Each page was filled with pictures and tales,
One for each country in which MAF flies.
From the first of these nations until the last
He’d provide much-needed supplies.
Now, jump inside Mike’s MAF plane,
There’s so much to learn and see;
Though Christmas is fast approaching,
There’s still space for you and me!
Diary checked and journey logged,
Mike folded the old map away.
As his plane took flight, soaring high,
He wondered who he’d meet today!
Mike’s little plane touched safely down
In the jungles of Ecuador.
He stepped out of the cabin and looked around
It’s a great place to explore!
Up to the aircraft came a smiling man,
Jaime Saint was his name.
Many years before, his grandfather Nate,
Had visited this place in his plane.
Some violent men from the jungle
Had killed Nate and all his friends.
But their story’s inspired many folk since,
Because the warriors made amends.
‘There are snakes in this jungle,’ said Jaime,
‘They’ll harm you if they bite.
Is there anti-venom in your plane,
So our nurse can make things right?’
Mike had just the thing in his plane,
So Jaime smiled at the sight;
Happy the villagers would be okay
Whenever they got a snakebite.
Mike climbed back into the pilot’s seat
And began his important checks.
He turned to the next page of the diary
To see where he’d be flying to next.
Diary checked and journey logged,
Mike folded the old map away.
As his plane took flight, soaring high,
He wondered who he’d meet today!
Mike touched down at the next place on his map:
South Sudan – a dry, dusty place.
A family of six was waiting for him,
Each had a big smile on their face.
‘We’re here to help the Laarim people,
But we can’t buy fresh food, you see.
We must get our fruit and veg flown in,
If we want to have them for tea!’
‘No problem!’ said Mike, as he opened the hold,
‘You can have the fruit, cabbage and beans.’
‘Thank you, Mike!’ the mother said,
‘We’ll stay healthy by eating our greens!’
Mike climbed back into the pilot’s seat
And began his important checks.
He turned to the next page of the diary
To see where he’d be flying to next.
Diary checked and journey logged,
Mike folded the old map away.
As his plane took flight, soaring high,
He wondered who he’d meet today!
Landing in a place called Wanakipa,
Mike found himself surrounded
By friendly Papua New Guineans,
Looking astonished and astounded!
A lady called Harriëtte called up to him,
‘We were praying you had Bibles in your hold.
My friends want the Scriptures for themselves,
But my very last copy’s been sold.’
‘Let’s take a look,’ said Mike, looking around,
Before emerging with a crate.
It was full of Bibles in the Tok Pisin tongue.
‘Thanks,’ said Harriëtte, ‘Now that’s really great!’
‘Thanks!’ said the villagers crowding around.
‘Now we all can read of God’s love.
We hoped you’d be able to help us,
When we saw your plane flying above.’
Mike climbed back into the pilot’s seat
And began his important checks.
He turned to the next page of the diary
To see where he’d be flying to next.
In the early days, MAF helped to set up a radio network so churches in remote villages could talk with each other. The radio was so popular other charities started using it too!
It’s very difficult to travel around, so MAF flights provide the answer to many problems. Many people are desperately poor, and children can’t learn because there aren’t enough schools. MAF has helped fly materials and tools to build schools, and transports Christians so they can tell people about God’s love. Medical clinics are often far away, so patients fly with MAF to see a doctor whenever they are ill or injured. There are four big rivers in Kalimantan, and one way of reaching people is by water. Because MAF has a floatplane that can land on rivers – it always attracts a crowd!
Kalimantan covers three-quarters of the island of Borneo and shares borders with the countries of Malaysia and Brunei.
9:54pm, 3rd March 2021
UTC +8
Kalimantan makes up 70% of the island of Borneo – the third largest island in the world. It’s divided into North, South, East, West, and Central Kalimantan. The rest of the island is shared by two other countries: Malaysia and the small Kingdom of Brunei, which makes up only 1% of the island.
Heavy rain falls throughout Kalimantan in December, with frequent intense downpours. But the rains are not as heavy as they are on nearby islands such as Java. Average temperatures are between 27-28°C.
Kalimantan has very high mountains in the north, covered with tropical rainforest. Photo by Mark Hewes.
MAF Kalimantan have a base in Palangkaraya for their two Quest Kodiak 100 floatplanes. Photo by Rebecca Hopkins.
Perks of being in the aircraft are that you can see beautiful full rainbows! Photo by Sean Cannon.
The floatplanes can land on both water and land, making them ideal for a wet country like Kalimantan! Photo by Isaac Rogers.
Villagers wearing traditional colourful caping hats at the airstrip. Photo by Mark & Kelly Hewes.
Windy rivers can be seen from the air in Kalimantan. Photo by Mark Hewes.
Cargo being unloaded at the runway.
During the coronavirus outbreak, MAF Kalimantan flew a teenage girl was having heart problems and needed to be taken to hospital. Photo by Tyler Schmidt.
MAF Kalimantan hangar at the base of some hills, shrouded in misty clouds! Photo by Tim Maynard.
Last Autumn, MAF Kalimantan’s team based in Tarakan, an island city in northern Kalimantan, found out about five language translation projects that had begun in their area.
‘I knew that the Indonesian language is often people’s second language here,’ says MAF missionary Lindsay Bilimek. ‘Indonesian people mainly speak their tribal tongue whenever possible. The Indonesian Bible is not understood by many of the population.
‘In many villages, the only time the Indonesian language is spoken is when the church sermon is given. Everything else is given in their tribal tongue. The MAF team learned that five groups of Indonesians are each tackling the tribal languages of Agabag, Bulusu, Kenyah, Lundayeh and Punan.
‘An organisation called Kartidaya is overseeing the translations, with the first project aiming to translate the book of Luke from the Bible, along with the Jesus film.
‘In November 2019, a group of the translators came through Tarakan and invited us to join them for workshops to help the translators learn English. I may not be able to do much ministry in Indonesian, but I can speak English!
‘In February, 2 other MAF ladies and I took a 30-minute MAF flight to Malinau, where the language translators were meeting. We spent three days with them, getting to know them and their stories.
‘It was great to see their passion for their people to be able to read the Word of God in their heart language. We learned through reading, songs, games, chatting during meals and praying together.
‘We are so excited that doors have opened for us to be involved in this project, and that these people can be encouraged; knowing that people around the world are praying for them as they translate!’
Translation is the process of translating words or text from one language into another
Someone’s tribal tongue is the language which their tribe speak, which is unique to their community
The Word of God is another way of saying the Bible, which Christians believe contains words from God
An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.
Dear God, we pray that work continues on the translation projects so that everyone can read the Bible in their own language. We thank You for the passion of the MAF ladies in Kalimantan who are helping in this work. Amen.
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