(Faith Telegraph, July 22, 2009)  A missionary pilot in South Africa was forced to shut down the left engine of his plane and make an emergency landing because of a broken wire on a switch that is supposed to confirm that the landing gear is fully down and locked.
 
"When you select gear down you are supposed to get three greens to indicate that each wheel is down and locked," Paul Middleton, a pilot with Mercy Air, explains. "Meatloaf might believe that ‘Two Out of Three Ain’t Bad’, but in aviation, three out of three is immeasurably better."
 
Paul flew the plane past the airport tower several times for them to examine the landing gear with binoculars. Although the tower reported that the gear looked safe, Paul shut down the left engine rather than take the chance of the gear collapsing and the prop striking the ground upon landing.
 
The plane landed safely and was met by fire trucks and a support vehicle, while the airport was shut down for about ten minutes.
 

An examination of the landing gear revealed that a wire connecting a switch on the landing gear had broken off. "A spot of solder and a few test gear swings back at the Mercy Air base only 8 miles away and we were on our way again to fuel up at the start of our ten day missions' trip," says Paul.  "Safety was not an issue with this incident at all and we are thankful for the high level of maintenance we get from the staff at Mercy Air that inevitably helps avoid far more consequential adventures."

 

Paul believes this experience is a good example of what missions is often really like.  "Missions is not always about big victories and breakthroughs," Paul explains.  "A lot of missions stories focus on the successes and the battles won, which is fair enough.  However, on the field there are many battles not necessarily won or lost, but more drawn."
 
Mercy Air is an independent Christian-humanitarian aid aviation service that provides missionary transport, medical support flights as well as evacuation and supply flights during disasters

Read More: Links

Paul and Cathy Middleton: A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Airport

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The International Faith Telegraph
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The latest and most unique Christian news stories from around the world. Bizarre, groundbreaking, worldchanging. Exclusive stories from a wide variety of sources. Missions news directly from missionaries and numerous denominations and organizations.

 

 

(Faith Telegraph, July 16, 2009)  A missions team from Sugar Creek Baptist Church in Houston, Texas, recently returned from a trip to Zimbabwe and Mozambique where they distributed food, facilitated health and hygiene classes, drilled a water well and showed the "Jesus Film" to over 400 villagers.

 

Due to the travel schedule required to do all of this in a two week period, it made logistic (and economic) sense to use the services of Mercy Air, based in White River, South Africa   Mercy Air is a missions oriented organization that provides aviation services throughout Southern Africa.  The two pilots met the group in Johannesburg, South Africa, and first flew them in small planes to Bulawayo, Zimbabwe.

 

There, the missions team worked with African Outreach Ministries, an organization whose objectives in Zimbabwe include a ministry to orphans.  The group played games with the children, offered health and hygiene programs, and helped distribute food.

 

The team then flew to Inhambane, Mozambique, and drove by 4 wheel drive vehicles to the small village of Masavane where they participated in drilling a water well. "Being from Houston, a number of the group knew a thing or two about drilling wells," reports Paul Middleton, a missionary aviator that piloted one of the group's planes.  "The group hit water at about 36 meters."

The team had previously raised funds to purchase and transport the necessary equipment to drill the well and install a hand pump.  Many of the team have drilled wells in Central America working with another organization, Living Water International, a ministry that provides clean water and medical attention to third-world countries.  To date, Living Water International has drilled over 7,000 wells around the world. 

 
Some team members also gave health talks and, one evening, showed the "Jesus Film" to over 400 villagers on a big screen under the stars. 

 

On the final day, team members and villagers stood hand-in-hand around the well and took part in a dedication ceremony.  Several of the villagers were baptized later in the evening.

 

Paul Middleton and his wife Cathy work in South Africa for the organization Mercy Air, an independent Christian-humanitarian aid aviation service that provides medical support flights as well as evacuation and supply flights during disasters.  You can follow their adventures, and track Paul's latest flights around Africa, at http://pcm-mercyair.blogspot.com.

 

Links: Read More

PCM News: Paul, Cathy and Matthew Middleton News

Sugar Creek Baptist Church

Mercy Air

Living Water International: Providing A Cup Of Water In Jesus'  Name

African Outreach Ministries

 

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The International Faith Telegraph
http://www.faithtelegraph.com
The latest and most unique Christian news stories from around the world. Bizarre, groundbreaking, worldchanging. Exclusive stories from a wide variety of sources. Missions news directly from missionaries and numerous denominations and organizations.

 

Missions News: Outreaches

 

 

(Guatemala City, Guatemala, June 3, 2009)  A Youth With A Mission ("YWAM") team from Chico, California recently spent 10 days in Guatemala City, Guatemala visiting local orphanages and reaching out to local communities.

 

"It was an amazing ten days in Guatemala City," reports Greg Gilpin, a member of the team.  "We stayed busy with ministry the entire time we were there, and we all felt blessed by the ministries that had been prepared for us to participate in."

 

The team visited several orphanages, including the "Hogar Luz Maria" Orphanage, which rescues children left in dumpsters and garbage dumps.

 

"The staff was amazing but you could feel the wounds of the children," says Greg.  One little girl in particular did not want to get too close to anyone.  "It was like she didn't want anything to do with people.  As a matter of fact, it felt this way with most of the kids here at the orphanage."

 

The team later ministered at the dump from which many of the orphans were rescued.  Each week, a local YWAM base conducts an outreach program at the dump.

 

The team also visited the Guatemala City Orphanage, which was similarly heartbreaking.  "When we were upstairs in the girls dorm, a few of the girls were dancing for us," says Greg.  "My heart was broken because in the spirit I could feel them say, 'Am I pretty enough for you to take me home?'  I wanted to take all the kids home!  I'm going to need a really big house!"

 

The YWAM Chico team finished its outreach to Guatemala on Monday, June 1, and returns to Chico on Thursday, June 4.  To read more about their trip visit YWAM Chico - CDTS Outreach In Guatemala.

 

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The International Faith Telegraph
http://www.faithtelegraph.com
The latest and most unique Christian news stories from around the world. Bizarre, groundbreaking, worldchanging. Exclusive stories from a wide variety of sources. Missions news directly from missionaries and numerous denominations and organizations.

Missions News: Outreaches

 

 

(Cape Town, South Africa, May 30, 2009)  A Youth With A Mission ("YWAM") team in Cape Town, South Africa recently led over 150 young people to the Lord by sharing the gospel while working as teachers in a local High School.

 

Landon Furgason, a YWAM missionary student participating in the outreach, explains:  "Every day we would teach classes in the High School and were fortunate enough to be able to share with the youth anything we wanted.  So we thought, why not accept that and fully blast the gospel into the youth of Cape Town!"

 

The team split up into groups of four.  Landon's group was assigned a class of Eleventh Graders.  "Every day my group shared testimonies and preached about God fully being the leader of our lives, and how if you let God lead your life then you won't regret it because God wants the best for us."

 

At first the students were like "deer in headlights," Landon recalls.  "Not making a move, nor talking amongst themselves like I would have back in the day." 

 

However, as the days progressed, the students began to show an interest in the gospel.

 

The first breakthrough came in Landon's class.   "I sat down with some boys that I knew were up to no good.  The kind that came in late and looked like they were into drugs -- they even told me so themselves."

 

"I told them about God's love and to my surprise they wanted Jesus in their lives.  So I took them outside so they could fully understand what it meant to have Jesus in their lives and to be led by Him." 

 

"As I prayed for one student to have freedom from his addiction to drugs, he let out a big sigh.  I asked him what that was about.  He said he felt free and felt a huge weight off his shoulders and like he was floating.  I told him that only God could forgive and set him free, and that's when he wanted to accept Jesus."

 

As the week progressed, so did the salvations.  "In one case, 22 students in a class gave their lives to the Lord," reports Landon.  "In the end, 153 young people accepted Christ." 

 

Landon was amazed at what God was able to do through him and the other students:  "Praise Jesus!  It was amazing to see how much the students changed once they accepted Him." 

 

"All the pain seemed to leave their bodies.  They all burst into the 'Jesus Salvation' song.  Most of the girls teared up as some of the guys walked around hitting their hearts saying, 'The hole -- it is now filled!  The hurt is gone!'" 

 

"I just sat there dumbfounded and in awe of what God was doing."  

 

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The International Faith Telegraph
http://www.faithtelegraph.com
The latest and most unique Christian news stories from around the world. Bizarre, groundbreaking, worldchanging. Exclusive stories from a wide variety of sources. Missions news directly from missionaries and numerous denominations and organizations.