What does it take for someone to leave the security of job, family and friends, and step into the unknown? After leaving the comfort of the UK to raise my four boys in Papua New Guinea, living there for 25 years, the answer remains evident to me – it takes a very clear sense of what God wants you to do. While human enthusiasm may subside over time, God’s calling does not.
Though my husband Michael and I had strong family ties in the UK, he had a well-paid job as a veterinary surgeon, and we had four happy, energetic boys, we had sometimes wondered whether God would call us elsewhere. That question found an answer after we attended, in 1987, a friend’s commissioning service for Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF) – the Christian humanitarian aviation charity which is celebrating its 80th anniversary this year.
Michael had always wanted to fly, but he had given up that dream because of the cost. However, in the weeks and months after the MAF event we grew in our conviction that God wanted him to take up flying in the service of MAF. Friends, family, and ‘God instances’ strengthened that feeling. Despite knowing what we would be leaving, and potentially putting our boys’ futures at risk, we took a leap of faith and put our, and our boys’, lives in God’s hands.
The boys, then aged 10, 8, 7 and 3 saw this change as an adventure, while occasionally concerned about losing and finding friends. They adapted quickly as we moved through Michael’s flight training and assessments in the USA and Australia. God always provided us with new friends, kind teachers, and financial security.
Culture shock and spiritual warfare
Despite completing an overseas departure briefing and other aspects of cross-cultural orientation, there was still a measure of culture shock when we finally made it to our new home in the Highlands of Papua New Guinea in 1994. Fear of spirits, curses, and sorcery often underlie even Christian belief, especially in rural areas, and seem socially accepted in a culture that does not separate the spiritual from physical aspects of life as Western cultures do. I saw this most clearly through a small fellowship group of local women I got to know. The stories they told me helped me to understand cultural ways better.
We were advised to be proactive in spiritually feeding ourselves early on because we were more likely to be asked to preach than be able to follow sermons in the Tok Pisin language at first. We took plenty of Christian books, sermons, and videos with us from the UK, and we had to be disciplined in finding new ways to connect to God.
Most Papua New Guineans we met were very kind, generous, and welcoming, but living in that country, as in some other countries where MAF operates, does require a certain amount of resilience. In our 25 years we experienced some security incidents but God always kept us safe, and our sense of being where God wanted us, the safest place to be, never faded. As a pilot God used Michael to transport hundreds of tons of building materials for rural health centres and schools and later the supplies they needed to run; to do medical evacuations for often desperately ill or injured people; take national pastors to minister in remote areas; take bible college and school students to and from school, and so much more.
There are always things for the non-job holder to do and I found flexibility vital. Initially I was involved in the boys’ local school, teaching computer skills, then helped with the cultural and Tok Pisin language orientation for new international staff. Offering hospitality and supporting out-of-town families helped us to get to know others. In our last ten years I was involved with the safety systems of MAF-PNG and was trained as Safety Administrator. Over the years I found these roles variously very enjoyable, challenging and very fulfilling.
Our boys attended the local school at first, then went to Wycliffe Bible Translators’ boarding school where many of their friends had gone. In due course, they travelled to the UK and US for further education, with one following in his father’s footsteps as a vet. Their cross-cultural experiences have helped shape them into the young men they are today.
After 25 years of service Michael and I moved back to the UK in 2019. We recently had the honour of shaking hands with the King as he commissioned a new aircraft for MAF’s service in Papua New Guinea and celebrated MAF’s 80th anniversary and Papua New Guinea’s 50th anniversary of independence.
Following God’s calling requires a great leap of faith, putting our lives into God’s hands. It is easy to doubt and feel weak when we face challenges, but trusting His plans and purposes for our lives is always worth it. William Carey experienced tremendous hardships after he sailed to India with his wife and four sons, and it took seven years before he saw someone who he ministered to become a Christian. Today he is regarded as one of the greatest missionaries who ever lived.
If you feel that God is calling you overseas but are unsure whether mission is possible with a family, let me encourage you by saying that it absolutely is. The best place to be is where God has put you, and He will use you to do incredible things. It just takes a leap of faith.
Nicki Duncalfe is a retired member of the MAF staff. To find out more about Mission Aviation Fellowship’s Future Pilot Programme, visit: www.maf-uk.org/maf-future-pilot-programme.
