Budget and staffing needs are central issues in ministry’s relocation.

USA (MNN) — As Mission Aviation Fellowship plans their headquarters relocation from California to Idaho, they are facing some critical needs.

While the move to Idaho will greatly reduce overhead ministry costs, two years of budget shortfalls have left MAF well below their budgeting needs. The high cost of fuel recently has also played into budget issues.

Kevin Swanson is the President of MAF, “We acknowledged early on that unless the Lord provided the funds to cover the expenses of this move, that we would not be able to do it. We don’t have reserve funds set aside for this type of thing. So we are definitely looking to the Lord to provide the resources needed so that we can actually make the move in the summer of 2005.”

In addition, the headquarters in California staffs around 120 people, and just over half will make the move to Idaho. That leaves quite a number of open positions that will need to be filled once the headquarters relocates.

One major prayer concern Swanson expressed was the desire that the relocation of headquarters not negatively impact the overseas ministry work. He wants the field missionaries, the mechanics and pilots overseas, to be basically unaware that the move is taking place, that MAF’s support and backup of those field missionaries would continue to happen uninterrupted.

But Swanson trusts God’s plan and leading, “We see the Lord’s hand in it, and we see the bigger picture. And we want to be obedient to follow Him, even as our overseas staff follows Him literally to the ends of the earth. If He’s calling us to move to a different state right now, we certainly want to be willing to do that.”

Even as the plans are made to move, MAF’s ministry work and expenses go on, and they need the support and prayers of faithful friends so that they can continue getting the Gospel out to some of the most remote parts of the world. Swanson says,
“We’d really encourage people to just continue to pray for the ongoing ministry of MAF, for God to provide the right staff at the right time and the funding that we need, just that He would continue to resource this ministry.”

Remember Mission Aviation Fellowship in your prayers as they make this significant transition in the coming year.