World Wide

Last week we were doing our last bit of official MAF training. Something we started 4 years ago when I was 7 months pregnant with Abigail! How time flies!

MAF have been amazing in the amount of preparation and time they put into each of their individuals and families that are going overseas. Our week was full of information and practical advice both about MAF itself and about living in a different culture.

Internet was elusive, as was phone signal ... and in some ways it was nice to be a little bit 'out of touch' with the real world but also ironic that once we get to Dodoma, contact will be much easier and more straight forward!

During the week we had the privilege of spending time with a few others who will also be heading out with MAF over the coming days weeks and months. It was great to be at a similar stage in the process of moving overseas as a few other people ... as we could relate to each other in a much more understanding way, even than those with the best intentions who aren't just starting service with MAF.

Below was our team, from England, Scotland, the Netherlands and Canada ... heading to work for MAF in the UK, Chad, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. No doubt you'll hear from the other two 'Missionary Mum's', over the coming months with a guest post here (if they agree!).

I find it totally mind blowing when I consider all the people that we have spent time with and trained with, either through MAF or before hand at All Nations. The impact of just our circle of friends on the world is staggering when I think about how many countries they are either from and/or are now living in ... working both in everyday jobs and within the missionary world, in every continent (except maybe Antarctica!!). We could probably visit most countries of the world without having to stay in a hotel right now ... and that's no exaggeration! 

It is a real privilege to have such an amazing and widespread group of friends and exciting to hear all their stories, pray for them, receive encouragement from them and from time to time even get to see them ... if we ever get to travel through countries at the same time ... which actually, this visit to the UK we have managed to do a couple of times! 

Last week, it was nice to add a few more friends to that circle and I'm really looking forward to hearing about how they're all getting on in the months to come!

The Journey so far ...

I often think that God has a sense of humour! As a child I was quite shy and even managed to avoid school trips as I didn't want to spend time away from home. I really wanted to study languages ... but the thought of spending a year of my course living in another country and culture, speaking another language was just too much! At Uni I grew in confidence but when I told my mum I was planning to spend a month in Tanzania, East Africa after my second year of study, working with street children and on a building project she was still a little surprised!

That trip in 1997 totally changed my focus and my vision ... I was challenged by God that if I was going to do this 'Christianity thing' there was no point unless I gave it 100% ... it was all or nothing ... I chose ALL and have never looked back! It also opened my eyes to the possibility of full-time mission work and resulted in another 2 short term trips in Kenya and through contacts I made on that first adventure, a role teaching for two years back in Tanzania (1999-2001). Now all I want to do is live within and embrace new cultures and languages!

Halfway through my time in Tanzania, in the summer of 2000, I experienced one of the most amazing moments of my life ... after 4 days trekking, I was standing at the top of Kilimanjaro ... the highest point in the whole of Africa!

I'd like to say it was memorable and etched into my mind for all time ... but honestly I've never felt so exhausted in my whole life and all I really wanted to do is get back down the mountain and sleep for a week!!! Given that only 1 in 10 people who climb Kilimanjaro make it to the crater rim, let alone the summit ... it's something I'm really proud of. Sadly it all happened before camera's went digital and the one I had stopped working because it was freezing cold before I got to the top. Thankfully one of my climbing companions did capture the moment for me!!

Over a decade later with some more study under my belt both in missions and teaching English I find myself as a missionary with MAF UK (Mission Aviation Fellowship UK), living in small town America while my husband who is an Aircraft Design Engineer is two thirds through more training at MMS Aviation (Missionary Maintenance Services) ... not quite what you envisage for your life when you attend career workshops at school ... but way more exciting than I could ever have imagined!

We also have a family blog www.beckwithsbigadventure.blogspot.com which chronicles our adventures together.