August 2026

Life in the Northeast

“I could hold your hand if you like.” This is not the first time I have asked this question to another alpha male, but my macho coworker declined, choosing to suffer alone. We were both going through hand-holding-withdraw after spending a week in the Northeast of Zambia. While there, every nearby child iron gripped my hand, walked beside me, and gleefully smiled. Silver and Gold have I not, but a clammy, pasty white hand have I.

We were at Lake Tanganyika up in the Northeast corner of Zambia. My pastor here, Caleb, organized the whole trip. After some embarrassing levels of begging, I was able to come along if I promised not to flufferdoodle in the airplane. I was mostly able to keep to that promise.

Caleb has a big heart, and he wanted to do a pastoral-focused training trip; a way to walk beside the churches in that area. The 750-mile trip to Tanganyika by road would be at best a 22-hour drive, but road travel here is rarely an “at best” situation. Car breakdowns, truck crashes, and bad roads often mean that plans A, B, & C rarely work out.

Besides the many driving woes, my pastor was very busy at church and was unable to miss a Sunday, so he reached out to Flying Mission!

I knew that air travel here is important… or else we wouldn’t be here, but this is the first time I saw it in the flesh. The smooth flight there only took 3 hours, and Caleb was so refreshed he even taught the afternoon we arrived. Look, it is hard for folks in the States to understand what 750 miles of travel is like here. When I travel just 30 miles to the international airport, my Christian acts of mercy are often put on trial; but after 750 miles, my soft, merciful heart would be turned to diamond.

The churches in this region are led by great brothers’ in the faith, but access to Bible training is limited. The internet has done wonders to make even this area more connected, but access leads to unbiblical ideas springing up in that fertile soil. Caleb was there simply to point back to the Bible and trim some weeds that have started to grow. Sometimes we forget that Paul wrote multiple letters to Corinth.

The hunger for the Word and its application to the local body was not lost on me. These men traveled for a great deal of time to arrive for this conference. They sat there and took notes for 8 hours a day as Caleb spoke on 1 Timothy. Several, and I mean several, passionate discussions broke out in the language Bemba. I found myself not knowing a single word, but blankly staring at extreme facial expressions as discussions flowed around me. What I was left with was a deep sense of excitement for the churches in that region. These men cared for the Word of God and would passionately discuss its work in their ministries and daily lives. How many Bible conferences have you been to where no one was yawning?

The trip up there was soul refreshment. So often, living in the convenience-rich Lusaka and moving paperwork from one side of the desk to the other,  makes you question why God has us 7000 miles from home. This trip left me in a renewed state of urgency, a sense that what is happening here is worthwhile, and that shiny metal flying boxes are extremely useful in this work.

And it left me holding Maria’s hand more, to help with the withdraw.

Other news since last newsletter.

MY SISTER CAME!!! It felt so surreal to see my family on this side of the planet! My sister, brother-in-law, and niece came to visit us. You don’t really think about just how impactful it is to have visitors until they are standing right in front of you. Just the fact that they came was so touching and special. While they were here, we saw baby orphan elephants getting bottle-fed, Rhinos 30 feet away with only grass in between, and probably my sister’s favorite thing, a fabric shop.  Yes, you see, a fabric shop stop is a must for any Anabaptist visiting new lands😊. After several hours in the fabric shop, we went to a souvenir market. My heart did burst with pride as my sister bartered at that souvenir market like a seasoned vet. The droves of sellers promising the superiority of their identical wares had no bearing on my sister’s deal-making prowess. Their suitcase-bursting haul, I believe, cost my sister somewhere in the $20 range. Proverbs 31 anyone?

We had an absolute blast having my family here. They are welcome back anytime as long as they bring scrapple and Hershey’s chocolate.

We also went to a local farm show. We were excited to discover that a local club has an annual farm show. This was like the “Aldi” of farm shows; just the right amount of fried foods, animals, and tractors. There is just something American about standing in front of a Case tractor, holding a deep-fried artery-clogger, and being surrounded by pickups. I got the same experience 7000 miles away. The love of heart disease and mechanical donkeys is worldwide. 

I think I took my last test here for a while. Becoming a Zambian-recognized aircraft fixer dude is proving to be a marathon vs a sprint. Last week I took a two-day-long test that will be the last needed test before I become a fully licensed “Aircraft maintenance engineer.” There will be more tests in the future, but that is a problem for future Bryan.

Paryer

Please pray for Zambia right now as we go into elections. The elections are either happening right now or just recently by the time you read this. Please pray for peace.

Pray for my test results. Pray that you see my handsome face holding a Zambian AME license soon!

Pray for the churches and their leaders up at Lake Tanganyika. These men were passionate and care deeply for their flocks.

Praise

Praise that I believe I have completed the steps to become an AME. They were a little vague at the end of the test, but I believe I’m good to go! PTL!!

Praise that we had a safe, busy season. No broken airplanes or pilots, which means reduced whining from the flyboys, which is always praiseworthy.

Praise that my sister (and family) could come spend time with us. Honestly, that was so encouraging.

Mowneda bwino,