Checklist: Clothes for a week, shoes, socks, water filter(in case they don’t have clean water), laptop, memory cards, cameras, lenses, batteries, battery banks(in case they don’t have power), hammock, tent, sleeping bag, toiletries… check. All packed to go and capture content.
I was unsure of what to expect when I boarded the plane, headed for Lake Turkana. AIM AIR was flying a number of Kenyans to a conference in Northern Kenya. On the flight we had an AIC pastor, a Kenyan media guy and several Bible translators with boxes and boxes of audio Bibles.
We flew up to Eliye Springs, on the western shore of Lake Turkana, to kickstart a pastoral conference. We intended to land at the airstrip near the lake, but after a low-level flyover to ensure the runway was fit to land, our pilot made the judgement call that it didn’t look safe and diverted to Lodwar, an hour drive away. So, a short drive through some very sandy and nearly non-existant roads, we arrived at the conference.
Attending the conference were pastors from the Didinga, Pokot and Toposa people groups. I was told that they are normally very weary and hostile towards each other, but the whole time I was there, I saw them interact and fellowship as if they were good friends. They were, after all, brothers in Christ.
I was expecting to sleep in a tent, or hammock, but was given a hut to stay in. The first night, I discovered I had a roommate. A bat. He greeted me every evening by flying around and divebombing my head whenever I would come in around dark. I jokingly named him Bob and just got used to the idea that he was there first and would probably just keep the bugs from bothering me.
The conference kicked off and went really well. Each morning, each group would lead songs of worship in their own language and sometimes in English.
The pastors learned new methods of starting bible study listening groups, as a way of distributing audio Bibles. They didn’t want to just hand them out to anyone, and have it gather dust. They wanted the pastors to start small groups, who would listen to chapters of the bible, then discuss what they learned. Each member would eventually receive their own audio Bible and start their own group, repeating the process over and over, to ensure disciple making was effective.
The pastors also learned how to operate the solar powered devices, so they could in turn, teach their groups. The pastors soaked in the knowledge, with a passion that was awe-inspiring.
They also discussed challenges and hurtles that might present problems and how to approach those issues. The pastors were truly desiring to see their churches and communities to grow closer to the Lord.
On the second day, I was speaking to the manager with one of the leaders of the conference. She said that she was a Christian, but none of the other staff were. The owner of the retreat center was also not a Christian. Business had been struggling and the owner had brought in a witch doctor to make sacrifices to improve business, but nothing had worked. The manager asked us if we would share the Gospel with the staff before we concluded, and we gladly agreed.
After dinner, on the final night, the manager gathered the staff, and the Gospel was shared with everyone at the retreat center. It was an amazing thing to witness.
People sometimes think that AIM AIR is only about flying. The reality is that AIM AIR helps make events like the conference possible. If the group from Nairobi had driven, it could have taken days, over very rough and possibly dangerous roads. AIM AIR helped the staff at a retreat center along Lake Turkana receive the Gospel. The effects of the flights are felt long after the plane lands or takes off. AIM AIR is about more than just the flights. AIM AIR is about the Gospel reaching hard to reach areas, because of flights.