Participants: John Lomacang (Host), Tony & Darah Varga, Jackson Varga
Series Code: TDY
Program Code: TDY014102A
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00:01 I want to spend my life
00:07 Mending broken people 00:12 I want to spend my life 00:18 Removing pain 00:23 Lord, let my words 00:29 Heal a heart that hurts 00:34 I want to spend my life 00:39 Mending broken people 00:45 I want to spend my life 00:51 Mending broken people 01:07 Hello, friends and family, and welcome to 3ABN today. 01:10 If you've been here before, you know my name John Lomacang. 01:13 Thank you for tuning in. 01:15 And if this is your first time, remember this channel. 01:18 This is the channel that God has ordained to carry 01:21 the gospel to the world, 01:22 and we thank you for taking the time to tune in 01:25 and join us today. 01:26 Now some of you are involved in ministry, 01:29 some of you are just between where you were 01:31 and where you're headed and I believe that today, 01:34 this program is going to inspire and challenge you, 01:37 for every one of us has a purpose 01:39 and calling in our lives. 01:40 And our guest today 01:41 which you'll meet in just a moment 01:43 are here to share how God found them where they were 01:46 and how God is leading them to where 01:48 He always knew they would be. 01:50 And I know this is going to be a profound program filled with 01:53 testimony of God's transforming grace 01:56 and God's call upon their lives. 01:59 So I want you to stay tuned for that. 02:02 Some of you, I would like to thank those of you 02:03 who have come to 3ABN to volunteer, 02:05 those of you who pray, 02:07 those of you who support us financially. 02:09 Thank you for all that you do to keep us going 02:11 and growing as we get ready for the coming of the Lord. 02:16 Now today our program-- if I could choose a topic, 02:19 a singular word would be Missions. 02:21 Every one of us is either a missionary 02:24 or we are a mission field. 02:26 Well, today you're going to meet 02:27 those who are headed to the mission field, 02:29 which legitimately qualifies them to be missionaries 02:33 in the making. 02:35 But as you know, before we introduce our guest 02:36 we always have music. 02:38 And today Steve Darmody and Jaclyn Pruehs 02:42 are going to lead by singing a wonderful song 02:45 "Vision of Tomorrow." 03:07 Doors close in front of me 03:11 That were once familiar paths 03:15 Routine slips away from me 03:19 That I thought would always last 03:23 But here I stand at this crossroad 03:28 Unsure what God has planned 03:32 A whisper to my heart is heard 03:36 And by faith I understand 03:40 God doesn't let the sun set 03:44 Without a vision of tomorrow 03:48 And you'll never seen a shadow fall 03:53 Without Him knowing all 03:56 And If He should choose to close the door 04:02 Somewhere there's a window 04:06 'Cause God doesn't let the sun set 04:10 Without a vision of tomorrow 04:20 I've been feeling a new direction 04:25 Calling for some time 04:29 Walking toward the great unknown 04:33 I feel as though I'm blind 04:37 But I know that You're leading me 04:42 My destiny You hold 04:46 A new horizon waits ahead 04:50 Full of promise untold 04:53 God doesn't let the sun set 04:58 Without a vision of tomorrow 05:02 You'll never see a shadow fall 05:07 Without Him knowing all 05:10 If He should choose to close the door 05:15 Somewhere there's a window 05:19 'Cause God doesn't let the sun set 05:23 Without a vision of tomorrow 05:28 So I'll walk on 05:32 Though this road may be ending 05:36 And there's a brighter dawn 05:40 There's a brand new beginning 05:46 'Cause God doesn't let the sun set 05:50 Without a vision of tomorrow 05:54 And you'll never see a shadow fall 05:59 Without Him knowing all 06:03 And If He should choose to close the door 06:08 Somewhere there's a window 06:12 'Cause God doesn't let the sun set 06:16 Without a vision of tomorrow 06:19 And If He should choose to close the door 06:25 Somewhere there's a window 06:29 'Cause God doesn't let the sun set 06:33 Without a vision of tomorrow 06:59 Thank you so much for that wonderful song, 07:01 "Vision of Tomorrow." Steve and his daughter, Jaclyn, 07:07 what a wonderful song, I enjoyed every bit of it. 07:09 And it is time to meet our guest today. 07:12 We have the Varga family Tony, Darah and Jackson. 07:15 I want to reach out and shake your hand, 07:16 since you're close to me. 07:17 Welcome to 3ABN. 07:18 Thank you John, good morning. 07:20 And Darah, welcome to you and Jackson, 07:22 also welcome to you. 07:24 Hi. 07:26 I know, I mentioned your first name, 07:27 but tell our viewing and listing audience 07:29 who you are, where you're from 07:31 and actually what you do right now? 07:33 Okay. 07:35 Tony Varga it's my nick name, full name's Anthony. 07:39 We are from New Mexico, we are in transition 07:43 and we are going to our first full-time mission assignment 07:46 in Papua New Guinea. 07:47 Wow. 07:48 Okay, okay in a nutshell and Darah? 07:52 Darah. Darah. 07:53 Darah. Yes. 07:56 I'm Tony's wife and Jackson's mother 07:58 and like he said, we're just in transition 08:01 and at this point, we're just so excited to see 08:03 what God's gonna do with us. 08:05 Okay. 08:06 And we are excited to be here too. 08:07 Well, good have you-- Thank you, for having us. 08:08 Have either of you been to New Guinea before? 08:11 I have once. 08:12 Okay, all right. So you have some idea. 08:13 Short trip. Short trip. 08:15 You had, so it's your first time? 08:17 No, this is sight unseen for me. 08:18 Okay. So-- 08:20 And, and Jackson, good to have you here. 08:22 You glad to be here? 08:23 Yeah. Good, good. 08:25 Jackson's gonna meet a lot of people in New Guinea, 08:27 they're about his height. 08:30 We've been to New Guinea a number of years ago 08:32 and it's quite a country, 08:36 and one that really fits into 08:37 what we're gonna be talking about today. 08:39 Mission, you know, I mentioned just a moment ago, 08:41 we are either a mission field or we missionaries. 08:44 Amen. 08:45 Well, you're transitioning from mission field to mission, 08:47 missionary. 08:49 Kind-- let's start with your early beginnings. 08:51 Tell us about God leading you, finding you, where you were 08:54 and kind of leading you where you are today. 08:56 Sure. 08:57 Well, you just kind of, kind of got me along as 09:00 I'm talking about it, I was very fortunate, 09:03 I grew up in a home that, 09:05 they're strong Christian family. 09:07 Although it, it had issues, 09:09 it broke apart early on in my life that the home did 09:14 and I was brought up going to church, 09:16 I was brought up going to Christian schools, 09:18 you know, I had good education, 09:20 had a-- I was taught who God is. 09:23 Okay. 09:26 But, and one thing that I was taught also 09:29 was the understanding that 09:32 Jesus is gonna come back some day. 09:34 Okay. 09:35 And He is gonna come back to take us to heaven. 09:39 And that was a thought that was implanted in me 09:41 so deep that it was always there. 09:44 My life strayed greatly, 09:50 after, through the teen years and after the teen years. 09:53 I eventually got to a point in my life after high school, 09:56 where I had to make a decision. 09:58 I was thinking, you know, I can't really follow God 10:01 and have everything I want in the world. 10:04 And so I basically had to made a decision okay, 10:08 God I'm not gonna follow You, 10:09 because I can't struggle with my conscience 10:11 for my whole life. 10:12 I don't-- I'm putting You aside 10:14 and I'm gonna live my life to the fullest 10:17 and I want to achieve what I want to achieve. 10:20 Okay. 10:22 And so that's how, that's how felt for a quite long, 10:26 for most of my adult life 10:28 up until just about three and half, four years ago. 10:31 And what are some of the avenues that you went on? 10:33 Lot of times we like to declare our liberty. 10:36 When, in fact, we don't really realize 10:38 in declaring our disconnect from God, 10:40 we're actually declaring our bondage and-- 10:41 Yeah, absolutely. 10:42 I've been there, I know what you are talking about. 10:44 Yeah. 10:45 But what are some of those avenues that you went down 10:48 that God actually followed you down, 10:51 as we can see today? 10:52 Oh, wow. 10:56 Let's see there were-- for the most part I was, 11:02 I was fairly protected. 11:04 I didn't, I didn't get involved into a lot of drugs, 11:09 a lot of crime, 11:10 you know, I've heard some incredible testimony 11:12 and so how God has pulled people out of crime. 11:14 I was pretty, pretty, pretty fortunate. 11:17 I had a nice middle-class upbringing, you know, 11:22 but I think that 11:24 wanting to achieve what I wanted, that I, 11:27 you know, things started coming into my life at an early age. 11:31 Let's, we call adult material. 11:33 Things that, things that we shouldn't be looking at 11:35 came in at an early age in my life 11:38 and it implanted the wrong seed, okay. 11:43 As I, as I got through college 11:48 I was doing the typical things that you'll do in college, 11:50 you know, at a where you are not 11:53 in a Christian school or anything, 11:54 You're, you are drinking, 11:56 you doing those things on the weekend. 11:58 That whole free spirited... 11:59 Yeah, yeah. 12:00 I was, I was following my passions, 12:06 I got-- I found a previous marriage and, 12:11 and this is little bit hard to talk about. 12:13 All right. 12:14 But-- and that was quite a ways back 12:18 and it-- that marriage ended really bad through, 12:23 through adultery and that it was you know, 12:26 my misunderstanding of how a relationship should be 12:30 and seeking something in my heart 12:32 that just was gonna lead down the wrong path 12:34 and it destroyed that relationship. 12:36 And for about 10 years after that, 12:39 just give or take about 10 years, you know, 12:41 I had a lot of guilt, a lot of sadness, tremendous, 12:46 you know, and I was always trying to fill my heart 12:49 with the things that would take me out of that. 12:52 You know, I was responsible for destroying 12:54 that relationship. 12:55 And so I filled my heart with my sports, my activities, 13:02 you know, with anything that would take my mind off of it. 13:05 So were you one of those outdoors guys, 13:08 get involve in risky spots? 13:09 Absolutely. 13:10 I loved as a little kid jumping off things, 13:14 I think my son loves jumping off things. 13:16 We got to go rock climb-- 13:17 we went to rock climbing gym the other day. 13:18 He climbed right up 25 feet 13:20 and on those one of those self repelling ropes 13:23 and they let you swing down so. 13:25 So he doesn't believe in lowing with you always, 13:27 okay. 13:29 But as you, as you begin to take this journey 13:32 and you shared something's there 13:33 that are quite telling in the sense that, 13:36 what I want to highlight in that is that 13:38 the Lord and I have this phrase that I use, 13:41 I've heard it growing up, 13:42 the Lord reaches to the gutter most 13:44 and saves us to the uttermost. 13:46 So there's no path that we can go down 13:49 that the Lord will say Tony, you're on your own, 13:52 I wait till you come out of that. 13:53 Amen. 13:54 You know, He sends His spirit after us 13:57 and in the midsts of our breaking poin, 14:00 and in the midsts of our tumbling's and assembling 14:02 God's call in our lives still remain 14:06 and I'm hearing that. 14:08 Yes. 14:09 Yes, I-- 14:13 God had always, and the really fantastic thing about God 14:17 is that just exactly what you said. 14:19 He is with you, staying with you 14:21 even when you're turning your back against Him. 14:24 There's a verse in the Bible, I'm gonna paraphrase it that 14:27 Jesus died for us while we were yet still sinners. 14:29 Right. 14:33 He, He did that ultimate price and we didn't even want it. 14:36 You know, we are much more content 14:38 what will we have here. 14:41 I understand that. 14:42 Yes, I'm sorry. That's okay, 14:44 I never use to get choked up 14:45 and now I get choked up all the time. 14:46 That's okay. 14:47 You know, when we think about what God has done for us, 14:50 it should bring to hearts this deep sense 14:53 of appreciation and gratitude 14:55 that it would move us some times. 14:57 And that's okay, that's okay to be moved. 14:59 But I know that some where along the way in your journeys, 15:02 not rolling too far forward, 15:05 the Lord brought you out of that life 15:07 and brought someone else into your life. 15:09 Oh, praise God. 15:11 Darah, may be you want to ask, 15:12 may be you want to kind of put something in here 15:14 right now I say? 15:15 At what point did you meet Tony? 15:17 We met about four years ago 15:20 and I think we both knew right away that 15:23 we had been looking for someone 15:25 and that the, for me I felt it was the God, 15:28 that God was bringing someone to me. 15:29 At that point Tony didn't have faith 15:32 and we were dating and so when the question came from me, 15:35 do you know the Lord and he said no, 15:38 we hit a crossroads. 15:39 Wow. And he started changing. 15:42 The Lord started and not because of me 15:44 but the Lord started touching his heart 15:46 and we often say of that, that I brought him to the Lord 15:51 and then he brought me to some specific truths. 15:53 Okay. So-- 15:54 Well, give us a peak into your background 15:56 because you know, God is putting this is a family 15:59 that God is putting together. 16:00 He has. 16:01 And Jackson is the great benefactor of, 16:04 of God this union that God has brought together. 16:07 But just kind of give us a peak into your, into your journey. 16:11 Well, I was brought to the Lord when I was 15 16:15 from a friend who had had some terrible trauma in her life 16:19 but she was so happy and I just thought, 16:22 you know, I want what she has. 16:24 And so I-- I came to the Lord but I didn't follow the Lord. 16:29 I came to the Lord, was baptized 16:31 and then lived my life away from the Lord 16:33 for a very long time. 16:34 I didn't know the full extent 16:36 of what was giving her that peace, 16:38 you know, reading the word, praying to God, 16:41 I was just in church when I could be and-- 16:44 and so, through some hard times and some broken marriages. 16:50 I was a single mother and then when Tony came along, 16:54 he just was-- he was just a breath of fresh air 16:58 because I had never experience someone with, 17:02 even though he didn't know the Lord right away, 17:05 he had responsibility, he had love for my son. 17:11 So I began to change and grow closer to Lord too. 17:15 So, the Lord really orchestrated 17:16 a lot in bringing us together, I think. 17:18 Now the reason why I deicide to peek 17:20 somewhat into the background, 17:21 lot of times when people hear about some one 17:23 going to ministry, they say, yeah, surely. 17:26 Christians all their lives they come from these great homes, 17:28 you know, probably Adventist schools all their lives, 17:30 you know, clean kids and never done anything wrong. 17:32 That's not the case. No. 17:34 God looks at us and as you said that text is so beautiful, 17:38 in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us 17:41 and as a pastor, you know, that speaks volumes 17:43 because I know, that where I'm is not where I planed on being. 17:47 And as you mentioned at the beginning of the program, 17:49 at the top of the program you're in transition now, 17:52 from Albuquerque, New Mexico to New Guinea, 17:55 and I think next stop, New Jerusalem. 17:59 I include that. Amen. 18:00 See, all these new things in your life. 18:02 New Mexico to New Guinea to, 18:04 and then I always say to people 18:06 I'm from New York to New Jerusalem. 18:07 But I want to peek now into your life 18:10 because we're talking about piloting here 18:12 and while you are not a, 18:14 presently a missionary pilot having flown many 18:18 missionary pilot 18:21 whatever phrase I can use here, 18:22 missions, you have a quite an extensive pilot background, 18:27 just tell us about that. 18:30 I had been flying as a commercial pilot 18:32 for 17 or 18 years. 18:33 Ever since I was a lot younger to him 18:35 I dreamed of flying, ever since I was three or four years old 18:38 and when I was little, I'd dream about, 18:40 we would go to Lookout Mountain and I'd see the hand gliders 18:43 and I'd go home and I'd read the brochure and for years, 18:45 I'd would say how can I get $300 if I can learn 18:47 how to hand glide and I was nine years old and that's. 18:49 So I just wanted to be in the air 18:51 and I had astigmatism in my left eye 18:55 and they said and I was told early on well, 18:57 you won't you, won't be pilot. 18:58 You won't be in the military 19:00 and I think that was a blessing. 19:02 I was in the military for sure, but not in the flying sense. 19:08 As I-- as I got into college, 19:12 I went to a small local state college 19:15 and there's an airport 19:16 in New Hampshire, King New Hampshire 19:18 and I wanted to start taking flying lessons. 19:20 And my mother helped me out for little bit of money 19:22 and from that point, for next five years, 19:25 I was working odd jobs and working at the airport 19:28 and just kind of built this career up 19:30 and I learned everything that what I could do 19:32 how to make a job out of flying an airplane 19:35 and I kind of narrowed it down to well, 19:38 most interesting type of flying 19:39 looks like may be flying in the airlines, 19:41 you get to go to training and work in simulators 19:43 and you know, looks very professional 19:46 and its got a pretty good schedule may be, 19:48 but I was, I was, I wasn't so much interested 19:50 in the money as I was just how that would be. 19:52 That whole experience. Yeah, that experience. 19:55 And so God-- even though, 19:57 at this point of my life, 19:59 I really was not living with the Lord at all. 20:02 I mean, not at all. 20:03 There were times later my life 20:04 where I was praying to the Lord, 20:06 as I started experiencing some difficulties. 20:10 And I suppose I worked my way up 20:12 the typical civilian route, you start out, 20:15 you know, get all your experience 20:17 and you start teaching people to fly, 20:18 you can build a little more flight time 20:20 and then you want to look for job, 20:22 where they, they will hire you 20:23 with still fairly low hours as a commercial pilot, 20:25 you'll find jobs flying banners. 20:27 I flew checks at night for a year 20:28 all through our New England every night. 20:30 What's checks? Bank checks. 20:31 Oh, bank checks. 20:33 These days it's digital but in 1997, 98 it was still, 20:38 you actually had the, there is a company that took checks 20:40 to the Federal Reserve that would-- 20:41 Okay. 20:42 You had to be there at a certain time. 20:44 So it was just like a mini FedEx that would fly 20:46 these bank checks all around the nation at night, 20:48 take smaller planes to bigger planes. 20:50 That was, you know, so I was that was 20:52 one of my first commercial jobs. 20:54 It was an all night deal, every night. 20:55 Flying checks. 20:56 So you are the part of the check republic. 20:58 Well-- No pun intended. 21:00 Yeah, could be and then, 21:05 went on from that, you know, flying is, 21:08 it's one of these careers where you could do really well, 21:11 you could not be that great, you could do really well 21:13 with just the right timing or you could be a great pilot 21:15 and you could never really succeed, 21:16 because you hit it at the wrong time. 21:19 It is almost like riding a wave, so to speak. 21:21 Yeah, exactly, exactly. 21:22 And there was a big wave at the end of the '90s 21:24 and I was able to kind of one job after the other, 21:27 I never had a bad job. 21:28 They just kind of stair stepped up and up. 21:31 You know, it took a lot of time and had to move a lot. 21:35 I remember when I went to my 10 year high school reunion, 21:38 my-- a teacher saw me and I was really excited. 21:43 I was so proud and I was, you see how you do? 21:45 What you're doing? I'm a pilot. 21:47 I work for such a-- I'm sorry I touched the microphone. 21:50 I work for suchand such airline 21:51 and the first thing he said to me is, 21:53 oh, that's not a very good family job, is it? 21:55 You know, my-- 21:57 My bubble just my bubble just burst you know, 21:59 I couldn't, I couldn't-- 22:03 Couldn't recover from that comment at the time. 22:05 Yeah, yeah, and but you know, what he was right. 22:07 Its not-- and you know, in some situations 22:09 it's not the best family job 22:11 because you can be gone, you may be moving a lot 22:13 you know, I was moving to a different area 22:16 to get a better job. 22:18 But God did bless, that was, 22:20 He allowed me to go from there to working 22:23 for US Air Express for seven years 22:26 and then on to a larger company. 22:30 That's where things started to change. 22:31 Wow. 22:33 So the schedules increased tremendously 22:35 and the demands increased. 22:37 They could it just depends what your seniority is. 22:40 If you are, if you have fairly good seniority 22:41 you can hold a fairly good schedule. 22:44 You know, and from most of my life 22:46 I really, I wasn't trying to honor the Lord, 22:48 so schedule didn't matter. 22:50 And once the Lord came into my life, 22:52 schedule became a completely different thing. 22:55 And so when you met Darah, am I saying that correctly? 22:58 Yes. 22:59 Were you still connected to these, 23:01 any one of these flying jobs? 23:05 That's a, that's a loose phrase there, 23:06 flying job, 'cause I'm trying to honor that 23:09 you did mentioned the airline, 23:11 but was he flying when you met him? 23:13 Yes, yes. 23:14 He was flying and which worked out wonderfully 23:17 because I lived in Tennessee and he could come and visit 23:22 whenever he wanted to. 23:23 So that was with the schedules he had at the time, 23:26 it was a huge blessing because, 23:28 you know, it might take many people, 23:30 many, many years to get to know each other, 23:31 we got to know each other much quicker 23:33 because of the availability, 23:35 so-- 23:36 Okay, that was good. 23:37 So you're not really afraid of flying? 23:39 I could just use that phrase loosely. 23:40 No, no. 23:42 More comfortable on an airplane that I am standing 23:44 on a little like a 20 foot staircase 23:46 looking down, you know. 23:48 And just to put the qualifications together, 23:49 we're not talking about your limitation 23:51 being a Cessna 210 or a Cessna 182, 23:54 but you flew actually jets. 23:56 For several years, 23:58 I have, I have several in positions, yeah. 24:00 Like some of-- just because I'm flight enthusiast, 24:03 I just love that, just kind of give me some, 24:05 humor me come some-- 24:06 what are the types of airlines like, seven-- 24:09 Yeah, well, lot of us now are gonna be-- 24:12 if you go to the airport, 24:13 you're gonna fly in the smaller jet. 24:14 So I was in the regional airline industries, 24:16 so I have flew a CRJ200 and 700, 50 seats, 24:19 70 seat regional jet for a couple of years. 24:22 And when I went to their larger cargo airline, 24:25 I was a flight engineer on 727. 24:28 A older aircraft and at that point, 24:30 you actually come out the pilot seat 24:32 and you know, you just running the gauges. 24:33 Its like, it's like you are in a time warp 24:35 that goes back 50 years you're looking at this 24:36 old piece of equipment-- 24:37 727? 24:38 Yeah, but it's-- Workhorse. 24:40 It is, yes, and so I got to sit there 24:44 for quite of few years but I had good schedule 24:45 so I stayed right there. 24:46 It allowed me to do what I wanted to do in my life. 24:48 I could have a week on, week off, 24:50 it was a good schedule so, and the last couple of years 24:54 I was in a 757 24:56 in the right seat as a co-pilot. 24:57 Okay, yeah, I like this 757's. 25:00 I just like that getup and go it has. 25:01 It does. It goes up like an elevator. 25:03 It's the airplane that you want to be in. 25:07 I'll tell you after about my joys of flying 25:09 but this is your program. 25:10 Tell me, at what point the transition of phase 25:13 because you go from flying in the midsts of heaven, 25:16 you know, really I'm looking at the three angels 25:18 messages here, now God is preparing you for, 25:20 to proclaim a message 25:21 that is flying in the midsts of heaven. 25:23 Tell me about that transition, 25:24 where the Lord took you from that 25:25 and began to put in to your heart this desire 25:29 to kind of move your life in a different direction? 25:31 Absolutely, that's a pretty big question, 25:33 so please help me here guide me along 25:36 if I get off-course here. 25:37 But like I say, it started about, late, 25:39 about four years ago, 25:40 you know, through that through that period before that 25:42 where I was mentioning earlier, that I prayed to the Lord 25:45 but there was-- 25:46 because I would hit deep parts of depression in my life, 25:49 you know, I would just anything calling out, calling out 25:52 but I had a lot of sin in my life 25:54 that was kind of blocking me 25:56 from fully connecting with the Lord. 25:58 He would reach out to me but I would turn from Him, 26:00 as soon as I was done praying 26:01 and get right back in the same lifestyle, 26:02 I was at, you know, that the next hour. 26:05 And so, for a while I had, I had told, 26:11 I was looking to meet somebody to-- 26:16 that would may do the types of things that I was doing. 26:19 And when I met my wife, 26:22 I'd always told myself in my mind 26:23 said, you know, you may have to change 26:25 what you're doing in your life. 26:27 You may have to give up some of the-- 26:28 your passions and lifestyle things that you live for 26:31 if you meet the right person, if you ever really want to be, 26:34 you know, find the right person. 26:37 And when I met Darah she was just, 26:41 although, although her lifestyle 26:43 was different than my lifestyle, 26:44 I saw something in her that you know, 26:47 I just I wanted in my life. 26:50 She had peace, she was happy, 26:53 she was sincere and she has a sense of adventure 26:57 like we both have a sense of adventure. 26:58 Hand gliders. 27:00 She's done it a few times yeah, that how we met actually, 27:03 and, so, as Darah said earlier she had asked me that question 27:08 and she says that, are you Christian? 27:10 I said, well, I grew up as a Christian 27:11 but no, I'm not living as Christian. 27:13 And I want Darah to chime in on that 27:15 because you get this intersection 27:17 and I briefly asked you, how did you guys meet? 27:20 You said it was how you met, online? 27:23 Right, we did. 27:25 In that profile. 27:26 We met online and it was, it was a fitness site 27:30 for who were interested in adventure activities. 27:34 And so Tony was very big into hand gliding 27:38 and had flown solo, 27:40 I had not but was running out of things to check 27:43 and I had checked hand gliding 27:44 because I had taken one flight tandem. 27:47 You know, I didn't jump off by myself 27:49 but when he went to search for a female 27:52 that might be interested in hand gliding as he was, 27:54 he only came with three and all of the eastern US. 27:57 So-- That's a quick narrow down. 27:59 Right, God just narrow down the choices for him. 28:02 But what he didn't know is your connection with God. 28:04 That's right. Okay. 28:06 And so that has now we talked about this briefly 28:09 but the Lord is still working in your life. 28:12 Bringing you to that place where 28:14 He knows you're going to be. 28:15 Yeah. Amen. 28:17 Now what I want to do because we have this seven minute roll, 28:19 I want you to get us ready for that. 28:21 What are we about to see? 28:23 Okay, this is a video about friends that we have made 28:30 in that Gary and Toni Lewis. 28:32 It's about the beginning of their mission work 28:34 in Papua New Guinea in the north, western part 28:38 where there is not a lot of mission activity going on. 28:41 And my wife made the video for them and it will-- 28:46 as we got to meet them, we got to see what they were doing. 28:49 God had led different missionaries into our lives, 28:52 to kind of show us what it was like. 28:54 And so we got involved with them a little bit 28:58 by helping to help them in things 29:00 that we might be able to help them with. 29:01 Darah was really excited to help them with making video 29:05 and we just want to share it so, 29:08 our audience could see what this, 29:10 this particular mission is about. 29:12 Okay. 29:13 A preview into where you're headed actually. 29:14 Sure. Okay, enjoy. 29:45 A land where things can change rapidly and suddenly, 29:48 Papua New Guinea has aptly been named Land of the Unexpected. 29:52 With lush jungles, rivers and ocean shores, 29:55 this is a country full of beauty, 29:57 however it is also a country riddled with struggles. 30:00 In the Sandaun Province of Papua New Guinea, 30:03 in the northwest corner, 30:04 lay some of the most remote areas of the country. 30:07 In this region are thousands of small villages 30:09 that are inaccessible except by a 25 hour canoe trip 30:13 up the Sepik River or by air. 30:15 These areas are plagued with low literacy rates, 30:18 extremely low income levels due to lack of resources 30:21 and commerce opportunities 30:23 and the health of the people here remains poor 30:25 from lack of health workers and access to healthcare. 30:33 From years past there are many airstrips 30:36 scattered about this region 30:37 but currently, only about a quarter of those 30:40 are in operation today due to lack of funding 30:43 and economical air transportation. 30:45 However just beyond the town of Vanimo pass the mountains 30:48 to the south is the Rima Valley which lays Bhavani. 30:52 In Bhavani is an airstrip. 30:54 It is the closest airstrip to the upper Sepik region 30:57 that is accessible by road 30:59 and is where the Jungle Mission Aviation Project 31:02 will setup base operations. 31:04 From there, they will be able to reach out 31:06 to the remote areas and provide not only emergency evacuations 31:10 but also take in medical supplies, 31:12 medical personnel and then Bible workers. 31:45 The need here is great. 31:47 We have talked with 31:48 the provisional health director here 31:52 who is the director for the whole state of Sandaun Province 31:58 and he's excited that we are here 31:59 because he has many health posts 32:02 that he has no way of reaching, 32:05 other than somebody packing in supplies 32:08 for several days walk or via canoe. 32:11 And in fact, yesterday, he was telling us that 32:14 half of the aid stations or clinics 32:17 that he is in-charge of do not even have an airstrip. 32:23 But could be made accessible to helicopter 32:26 if we had helicopter here to work with us 32:30 but, he did make it very clear 32:32 and so did the district administrator that 32:35 once there is a plane here and it's flying, 32:38 they will do everything possible to encourage people 32:40 to get the airstrips opened up. 32:43 The government has some funds to help with that, 32:45 to get the strips opened, 32:48 to make an accessible and to keep it maintained. 32:50 And they are just exited that somebody is willing to come 32:53 and help in these areas. 32:55 The district administrator-- the provincial health worker 32:59 the day he was here, 33:01 did mention that that day 33:04 he had a request for two Medavax 33:06 from remote villages 33:08 but there was nobody to go get them, no airplane to go. 33:11 There are some planes that do some flights for them, 33:14 they are very expensive and so they can't do too many of them 33:19 and often they're not available to go do that. 33:22 So he's excited about the possibility that 33:24 there would be actually some air support 33:27 that's focused on health for the region. 33:31 And we spoke with some, some of the medics 33:34 from the Sepik area further south of us 33:38 and they are excited to have us come in 33:40 to the May River, Ama area 33:43 and help some of those villagers there 33:45 with air support. 33:46 We can put a house up, get a hangar up, 33:50 get things fixed up so we can bring the plane in 33:52 and begin flight operations. 33:54 Get some trans-- some communication. 33:55 And we have to have transportation 33:58 and there's a problem of communication 34:00 and water and power. 34:03 So there's lot's of things to work on, 34:06 we have lot's of needs 34:07 for people who would like to come down and help. 34:09 And if they can't come, financial help of course 34:12 is greatly needed things are extremely expensive here, 34:16 but we have seen that God is able 34:19 to provide what is needed, when it's needed. 34:22 The people here have brought us food, 34:25 more than we can eat sometime-- 34:26 Just been overly generous, 34:28 they're excited to be a part of the program. 34:30 The lay people here, the lay church workers 34:33 are excited to go out in the bush and do evangelism. 34:37 They want to do education, 34:38 they want to reach their people. 34:40 And so, they're excited that we are here 34:42 to help them accomplish that 34:44 and are joining the team just to, to be a part of it. 34:48 My name is Pastor Gamundegera, 34:51 I work at the local mission here in Sepik Mission 34:55 as a personal ministry and Sabbath school director. 34:58 Geographically, Sepik Mission is very big. 35:03 We have Sepik around the coast, 35:06 we have in land and then we have Sepik, 35:09 mighty Sepik River and upper Sepik River 35:11 where we have so many people 35:14 who needs the gospel to be spread to them 35:22 and then they need to know about Jesus Christ. 35:25 It's very big, the work is very, very big 35:28 and without service here, we don't have enough, 35:32 enough manpower 35:33 and we need people outside to come and help us, 35:39 I believe by then we should all be ready 35:41 to meet the Lord Jesus when He comes. 35:44 So, despite all the obstacles, 35:47 despite all the mountains that are in the way, 35:52 there's a lot of good things happening, 35:53 there's a lot of enthusiasm. 35:55 And so, as we just press forward a day at a time, 35:59 and see how God continues to open doors, 36:01 how He's gonna send us the right help 36:03 at the right time. 36:04 But the harvest is ready, 36:06 we're just looking for a few reapers 36:07 that are willing to come 36:09 and serve the Lord in this part of the world. 36:48 As you can see, 36:49 New Guinea is place of mystery as well as a lot of mission 36:53 and what you just saw was very significant to Tony 36:57 and that he cooperated with the couple 36:59 and the ministry that was highlighted 37:02 so that they could participate in their pilot missionary work. 37:07 Tell us about that 37:08 because that plane wasn't waiting for them. 37:10 I want you to kind of, in a nutshell summarize 37:13 how that plane got there, actually? 37:14 Sure. 37:16 Well, the Lord worked in many different miracles 37:18 to have the airplane, they had to take to-- 37:19 disassemble the airplane in Arizona 37:21 put it in a container, it was shipped overseas, 37:25 a company donated the shipping cost 37:29 and so its like 15 to $20,000 fee they had to pay, 37:32 but the closet thing they can get to is the Guam. 37:33 So we had to get the airplane from Guam to Papua New Guinea. 37:36 Guam is about 1,100 miles over the ocean 37:39 from Papua New Guinea. 37:41 So we had to reassemble it and fly it. 37:43 Our friends, the Lewis, Gary said would be interested 37:46 in flying the airplane over for me? 37:48 And I thought that's a great adventure 37:50 but Darah was not so excited about it. 37:53 And we had just a series of miracles 37:55 that the Lord provided 37:57 so that we could actually help them bring the airplane over. 38:00 Darah, why weren't you excited about that? 38:02 Well, I'm not as knowledgeable in flying as Tony is obviously 38:07 but I do know enough to know that a single engine plane, 38:09 1,100 miles over the ocean and sharks and what not, 38:13 you know, as a wife it didn't sound, 38:16 it didn't sound as exciting to me 38:18 as it sounded to him so-- 38:19 Yeah, adventures to him but cautious to you. 38:21 Right. 38:22 And I had prayed, I had asked the Lord, 38:25 I said Lord, we can't do this 38:27 and because we were gonna 38:28 owe some money to be able to do this 38:31 and we prayed and we cleared 38:32 the Lord sent us the exact amount of money 38:34 that would have taken to do this. 38:36 So that's when I was on board. 38:37 And so now just give me a peek into this journey 38:41 because I know what a Cessna 182 is, 38:45 having flown in one that you know 38:47 that is quite a distance, when you think of well, 38:50 if I want to, if need to land, 38:52 let me see what's the depth of the ocean before, below me. 38:56 Right, it could only fly so far 38:58 but it did have enough fuel on board to take us 39:00 a pretty long distance. 39:01 It couldn't go straight across 39:02 the 1,100 miles straight journey 39:03 so we kind of had, kind of island hop, 39:06 we could actually do with just one landing. 39:08 And so we-- the first leg we flew 600 miles, 39:10 I say we the Lord and I, the Lord flew with me 39:14 and 600 miles the first day, 39:17 the next day was about 900 miles. 39:20 And you're here, here you are, 39:21 but now so they have their ministry 39:24 because of God opening the doors, 39:27 really and providing whatever you financially needed. 39:30 The skill that the Lord had 39:32 prepared you with was already in place, 39:34 but then it takes a lot of faith 39:35 to accept a mission like that. 39:36 It was. 39:38 It was a great faith building experience 39:39 because there were things after the first flight 39:41 things didn't work out very well. 39:43 The radio didn't work, the plane got diverted, 39:45 at the island I was landing at causing the president 39:47 of the island to be delayed three hours or so. 39:49 There's a hundreds of people at the airport waiting there 39:51 and I when got there, it's a small island. 39:53 They said, you know what happened? 39:54 I said no. 39:55 They said, you made the airplane with the president 39:56 turn around because they couldn't 39:57 get a hold of you on the radio. 39:59 And I was thinking oh, no, you know, I'm done. 40:01 They are gonna violate me 40:02 for this breaking this rule and that rule. 40:03 How are we gonna fly the airplane tomorrow? 40:05 The next day the airplane was going slower, 40:08 the next day came about 40:09 it was, it was-- 40:10 when I woke it was thunder storm and raining 40:11 it's not where you want me to go flying. 40:13 And I called Darah, told her all the problems. 40:15 She said you know, just like when the Israelites, 40:18 when they got to the river Jordan 40:19 they had to step into the water for God to do something. 40:22 And so, I was so, so thankful for her encouragement 40:25 because I was a little discouraged, 40:28 and here kind of in the middle of the Pacific, you know, 40:31 and God was taking care of me the whole way 40:33 and that day He through a series of one event 40:36 after the other, just kept leading step by step 40:40 as I took off the radio worked the whole day, 40:42 the air speed that-- the tail wind that I needed 40:45 to get to my destination on time, 40:48 there was a long flight 40:49 and there was no really alternates 40:52 once you got close enough to that spot you know, 40:55 you had to make sure that 40:57 as you got closer to once you pass to last alternate-- 41:00 Point of no return.. 41:01 Yeah, you are kind of going to where you going 41:04 but, you know, 41:05 we were doing everything as cautiously as we could. 41:07 we had all the safety gear and a back up GPS, 41:10 the weather was fantastic. 41:12 Man, when I have left Guam, 41:13 I have never seen the weather over Pacific look this good. 41:15 So evidently God was looking at everything. 41:16 Wow. 41:17 And that second day as I took off 41:19 the air speed built up, the radio worked just fine, 41:21 the weather was good the whole way, 41:23 I made it to our destination about an hour before sunset. 41:27 Praise the Lord. 41:28 And just on, just on time 41:29 and it was such a wonderful feeling. 41:31 We worked on that for about two months, 41:33 you know, like Lord, how is this gonna work out. 41:35 How are you-- I don't, I've never done this, 41:37 yeah, I fly airplanes over here, 41:39 but its totally different. 41:40 You know, a lot of people do all kinds of things for me. 41:43 And the Lord was saying to you, 41:44 I'll part the water when you get to it, 41:45 I'm not gonna do before that time. 41:47 Exactly, exactly. 41:48 So now take us to the transitioning point 41:50 and give us some insight into where you're headed now. 41:52 We talked about, lightly, 41:54 you've been to New Guinea to scout it out, one time. 41:58 Tell us what we could, what we need to pray about 42:02 and what we need to partner with you on as you prepare 42:04 for this new beginning. 42:07 Well, we certainly appreciate the prayers for us 42:11 but we, our friend the Lewis's, they are looking for support. 42:17 Anybody that's interested in mission 42:20 or would like to help spread the gospel 42:21 in that part of the world, 42:23 they are looking for others to come out there to partner 42:26 with them to work. 42:27 If you have any type of skill or no skill at all, 42:30 just to willingness that you want to serve a God 42:32 and that then that something about this touches your heart. 42:36 They are specifically they are in need of another pilot 42:39 and a mechanic, an aircraft mechanic to work 42:42 where there are at. 42:43 Okay, and so now when you go to New Guinea which, 42:47 which organization are you gonna be working with? 42:50 Well, we are going to work with Adventist Aviation Services, 42:54 it's a different organization than the Lewis have. 42:59 It is a mission that works in a slightly 43:02 lower part of the country, different part of the country, 43:04 doesn't quite reach up 43:05 as far as where there are at all the time 43:07 and, but it's a very establish mission. 43:09 Its been there for about 50 years 43:11 and I will be-- 43:13 they have two aircrafts right now 43:15 and I will be there as one of their pilots 43:18 learning to fly in that environment 43:20 and using the airplane 43:21 to drop off supplies and commodities 43:24 for all the villages that don't have roadways. 43:25 Most of the villages in the mountains 43:27 don't have roadways. 43:28 So the only way to get things in and out, 43:30 medivacing individuals that need medical attention 43:34 if they don't get to the hospital soon enough, 43:35 there is there is no way get him their quick enough. 43:37 So the airplane is useful for that 43:39 and specially doing church work. 43:41 You know, flying pastors, 43:44 other missionaries to their locations, 43:46 Bible workers, 43:49 so these are just a few of the things 43:50 that I will be able to do on there. 43:53 Now, Darah, how are you helping to contribute to this mission 43:56 because I know you are not a pilot 43:57 but he surely is your husband, are you planning 44:00 on some of the mission trips with him? 44:03 Well, you know, because I have an adventurous spirit, 44:06 that would be nice 44:08 but truly, the Lord's working on my heart to realize 44:09 that the role I have in life is important and young women, 44:13 it's sometimes hard for us to take the backseat 44:15 and it's not a backseat, it's huge. 44:17 I'm a mother, I home school, 44:19 I make sure everything is gonna be functioning 44:22 and we're just excited to go 44:24 and just make friends for Jesus, 44:25 to go and meet people 44:28 that we can just share what little we do know, 44:30 right from our home there. 44:31 So that's that is the mission that God is given me 44:34 wherever I'm at. 44:35 And you know, sometimes the Lord has, 44:37 He has done here for my wife 44:38 when we first came to 3ABN but she is doing 44:41 now, she had no clue that she'd ever be participating in that. 44:43 And so as is the case of the Lord opening the waters, 44:46 parting the waters, 44:47 He'll do that for you too when you get to New Guinea 44:50 and you'll say God always saw that 44:52 this is what I would be involved in. 44:53 And Jackson, I tell you, 44:54 he's gonna be one of those young, 44:56 adventurous young man in New Guinea 44:58 and he's gonna grow up with a lot mission stories. 45:00 God is gonna surely develop his life there. 45:03 But I know that those of you who are watching the program 45:04 are probably saying,well, now how could we participate. 45:07 As Tony mentioned, Lewis Jungle Ministry is-- 45:11 that's the information that's gonna be on the screen, 45:13 you may be praying and asking God 45:15 what you can do to impact and support missions 45:19 in that region of the world. 45:21 Here is the information that you need to participate. 45:28 If you would like to know more about this ministry 45:30 or what you can do to support it, 45:32 then you can write to Mission Projects Inc., 45:35 Post Office Box 504, 45:37 College Place, Washington 99324. 45:48 You can also visit them 45:50 online at www.lewisjungleministries.com, 45:55 that's www.lewisjungleministries.com. 46:01 Call or write to them today, 46:03 they would love to hear from you. 46:10 Well, friends, as you've heard, 46:12 often where we end up is not where we planned to be, 46:15 but God is the one who has the vision 46:17 long before the vision comes to fruition. 46:20 The Lord sees and understands what He's qualifying us for. 46:23 Now Tony and Darah, 46:25 they are those watching and listing to the program, 46:27 some on television, some on radio, 46:29 what challenge would you leave to those 46:31 who are listening to this program 46:33 about God's leading in your lives. 46:36 I would-- as I'm learning each day to have more faith 46:40 and to trust the Lord, 46:41 I would challenge each person 46:43 to trust the Lord with all your heart. 46:45 You know, as in the Proverbs trust, 46:47 "Trust the Lord thy your heart, 46:48 lean not unto thy own understanding, 46:50 acknowledge him on all thy ways and He will direct the paths. 46:54 " God's been so faithful, 46:55 I have seen His faithfulness in always help me in my life 46:59 and I would challenge each person to follow 47:01 Jesus all the way. 47:03 And He's partnering with us 47:06 and He gives us those things that we need, 47:08 on each day, day by day basis. 47:11 That's right and the Lord is given you a wonderful wife, 47:14 God has given you wonderful husband 47:16 and together God is gonna be giving you 47:20 additional instruction and direction. 47:22 I like that you are pilot that's a perfect text. 47:25 He will direct your paths 47:27 and they are many paths in your future 47:28 surely in the country of New Guinea. 47:30 Just a bit of news, when I come back in few moments 47:33 after this news break, but once again, 47:36 Steve Darmody and his daughter Jaclyn Pruehs 47:38 is gonna sing a song for us entitled "Time" enjoy it. 48:09 If all the world's a stage 48:17 And life is but a page 48:24 How do we make it last 48:31 The moments fly so fast 48:37 It's not for us to know 48:44 How long until we go 48:51 But while here on this earth 48:58 We must learn what time is worth 49:06 Time is too slow for those who wait 49:13 Time is to swift for those who fear 49:20 Time is too long for those who grieve 49:30 But for those who love and those who are loved 49:36 Time is eternity 49:45 Those who are loved like He loves me 49:55 And so the story goes 50:02 A tale of joy and woe 50:09 It's up to us to find 50:16 The reason and the rhyme 50:23 Time is too slow for those who wait 50:30 Time is to swift for those who fear 50:37 Time is too long for those who grieve 50:48 But for those who love 50:50 Those who are loved 50:55 Time is on our side 50:57 Time is on our side 50:59 Like the ocean wide 51:01 Like the ocean wide 51:03 A never ending wave upon our shore 51:09 And where our heart begin 51:11 And where our heart begin 51:12 And when our lives will end 51:14 When our lives will end 51:16 It doesn't really matter anymore 51:31 Time is too long for those who grieve 51:43 But for those who love 51:46 And those who are loved 51:50 Time is eternity 52:00 Those who are loved like you and me |
Revised 2015-07-13