Ministry comes full circle in Ecuador.

Ecuador (MNN)–The ministry of Mission Aviation Fellowship is now directly supporting the indigenous tribal church.

MAF’s Kevin Swanson says it all came about when the national Schuar (shwar) church decided against using MAF services to get to a remote area. He explains that the leadership team thought it would be a better use of resources to divert funds away from transportation and more into evangelistic programs and resources.

However, that changed with the welcome the evangelists got from the residents when they arrived at the villages on foot. “They were met with suspicion. The leaders of that village leader said, ‘We don’t know why you’re here, and please keep on moving.’ But what they found was that when they came in the MAF airplane they were welcomed. What had happened was that over the years, the MAF airplane has developed this reputation for only bringing good things.”

That stems from decades of the MAF planes bringing in doctors, dentists, teachers, and responded to emergency calls. Swanson says they will continue their support because people are ready. “When these evangelists came in the MAF airplane, it was like they had instant credibility, and the people in the village welcomed them and said, ‘Come and stay with us. We want to hear what you have to say.'”

The church leadership role is now key. Swanson explains hat is also one of the more urgent prayer needs developing as the Gospel spreads. “One of the biggest prayer requests would be that God would raise up more church leaders such as these Shuar men and women that are willing to go out like this. We’re seeing a huge need for church leaders, not just in Ecuador but around the world, but there is just not the training available for church leadership.”

Mission Aviation Fellowship is a team of aviation and communication specialists working together to assist believers laboring in isolated and remote regions. MAF provides support to more than 300 Christian and humanitarian organizations around the world.