The influence of a conversation

Simon and Joseph ended up at the same airstrip together and Joseph took the video below of Simon coming into land. (Thanks Joseph :) Simon did training with Joseph a few years ago and its good to see  them catch up again in PNG. These two have fun together.  Can you tell?

Simon flying Joel and his family back to their MAF base in PNG. 

Here’s the short version of a much longer story and thanks for the reminder Andrea :)

Twenty-one years ago, Simon and I were in Bern, Switzerland for MAF Tag (Day). While we were there, Joel reached out to Simon. It didn’t seem like a big moment at the time, but it turned out to be significant.

That connection (among others) led Joel to volunteer with MAF in Madagascar for four months. From there, the journey continued, eventually leading both Joel and Andrea to join MAF. We are glad they did :)

Simon later played a role in some of Joel’s training in PNG, and now, years on, they’ve been able to continue that connection in person in PNG. It’s one of those full-circle moments that traces all the way back to that first conversation.

It’s a reminder that small steps matter. You never really know where one conversation might lead and the dreams that get realised. Another reminder that God works through these moments in ways we don’t always see at the time.

 





Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Struggle Season update

I wish I had better news to share but the health issues continue for Zara and me. We are hoping that the meds will kick in especially for Zara so she can be relieved of the pain and fatigue she is experiencing.  This has affected her ability to work and study but we hope to see change soon. I will have surgery in September so prayers for that to go well would be appreciated. As we said before our plans for going to PNG have been disrupted and there are no plans for me to go before the new year with everything that we have going on.  We are in consultation with MAF about Simon going earlier so we will see what happens. We are thankful that we are together as a family as we go through this season and look forward to being on the other side of it. We did manage up to Cairns earlier in the month as we had to go through our belongings that we had stored there. We are thankful for those who hosted us and offered their car to enable us to get this done. It was also a blessing to catc...
Read more

J has a job!

We are so thankful that Joshua finally has a job. He applied for around 250 roles without much success, which was tough at times. In the middle of that, he offered to help MAF on a short-term basis but in the end it wasn't needed. However, his CV was in the system and matched a new role that was coming out and the rest is history.  He had an interview a couple of weeks ago and was offered the position. He started this week and is currently in Cairns for an induction.  The role is Digital Learning and Content Coordinator and is under the Learning and Organisational Development Department. We’re really thankful to those who have been praying. It is a big answer to prayer, and a reminder that things don’t always come together in the way—or timing—we expect. It’s also pretty special that his first job after university is with MAF.  Who would have thought?
Read more

Family update

Update from Our Family It’s been a little while since we last shared an update — we’ve been waiting on some test results for Zara. She’s improving slowly and continuing to manage her fatigue levels as best she can. Please continue to pray for her full recovery and complete restoration. I returned to work at the beginning of September, and it’s been good to be back with the People Care team, supporting MAF staff around the world. As many of you know, we were originally meant to be in PNG by now, but due to my surgery and Zara’s ongoing health challenges, our plans have had to change. The hope is that I’ll be able to travel to PNG in the new year, depending on how Zara’s health progresses. Simon is waiting for confirmation of his training in Mareeba later this month, and then plans to head to PNG in November for about three weeks. His time there will include both training and programme flying. Joshua is in his final weeks of university — it’s hard to believe how quickly these pas...
Read more