Mapping the Work

Recently, during a game of RISK, my good buddy Dan would occasionally turn to another player and warmly say, "Steve... this is how I see the world..." Then, he would appeal for that person to join him in viewing the world (and the battles to come) in the same way he does, resulting in shared conquests and/or defensive/offensive postures against another player. He was very good at this. He did it in such a way to make one feel as though we were not opponents and as if one would not need to fear him, but accept him as a an ally.

Well, here is a map of Gabon. So, you can hear me say, "Hey everyone, here is how I see the country..." (I hope you can make out the details)

You can see the three red lines and circles indicating the three villages that have airstrips that need a little TLC to get them back up and running. There we want to encourage local communities to take up the work to keep their airstrips in good shape- ready to facilitate arrivals and departures. Airstrips mean better access to education, health, employment, etc. For our program, Aviation Medicale de Bongolo, it means linking these villages to air evacuations, mobile medical clinics, health education events and more. Bottom line- it's a link to hope.

So, my view of the country is this (to borrow Dan's line)... Great opportunities exist for the Glory of God to be displayed to the nations here. Strategically, we set our aim to express God's love to each and every person through the tool of aviation. We take a progressive stance to partner with local faith communities and people of compassion who will lead these efforts. Will you move to partner in these efforts? Will you move your resources into place alongside ours? As local, Gabonese partners rise up to respond, I hope to tell them of international responses that stand ready to assist and facilitate their efforts. Please email me of your ideas/comments/questions/etc. at gabon.pilot@gmail.com.

In our match of RISK, I have to report that, even though Dan was, at one point, the weakest adversary on the gameboard, he used his power of persuasion to last longer than me- I was the first to be ousted. In the end, Sam and Joe, my sons, battled it out for world domination (Joe won). On a positive note, I was later acquitted of all war crimes!