A trip to Jersey

I (Gavin) had a good trip up to New Jersey last week for the Missions At the Airport (MATA) at America's Keswick.  I didn't know anything about it before I went but did wonder why it was called "America's" Keswick.  This unique place is a Christian addiction and abuse recovery program modeled after the one in Keswick, England.

Many years ago, a man broken by addiction humbled himself and accepted Christ as his Savior.  From that point on, he was free from his addiction and he started what is now called the Colony of Mercy at America's Keswick.  It is a 120 day program that helps men out of their addictions and bondage as they meet Christ and are immersed in His Word.  

It was a pleasure to meet many of these men of "the Colony" over the weekend and hear their testimonies.  Many of them are still broken, having lost their families and friends and so much more due to their poor choices.  It was humbling for me, though, to see their zeal for the Lord and His transformational power in and through them.  

The helicopter stayed here during the evening-- a wonderful setting at a really transformational place.

I and the other pilots had the pleasure of giving the men from the Colony of Mercy free rides in the helicopter.  It was a blessing to see the smiles on their faces, since many of them had never been off the ground before.  

In addition to flying these men, we also gave rides to a few hundred others over the Memorial Day weekend who drove by.  We were flying out of a field right next to a busy highway, so lots of people saw the signs and stopped by for rides.  We then were given the opportunity to share with these people about Christ, missions, mission aviation, and Bible translation and how they might even become involved.  Only the Lord knows what may come of the contacts we made that weekend.   

Many children come to these events and are so excited to get to ride a helicopter.  Some of them really light up when they hear about how they might be able to serve the Lord in ways they've never heard of before and that is really fun to see!

Thanks for your prayers for safety for  for Isaac and Carrie at home.  They did well while I was gone, but Carrie and I both realize that will need to be the last time, since she really needs to minimize her activity-- which is quite hard when being a single mom.