Backhoe and Tractor Proposal

For years I have operated different types of machinery and it is really true what they say about backhoes, that they “are well known for their versatility and maneuverability” and that “for every 20 acres of property you need at least one backhoe”.

For years Daniel Lui and I moved every rock and lifted every shovel full of dirt by hand, all the while praying that God would send us a backhoe for our extensive operations around our base here locally and into the surrounding communities beyond. Oh, it was a happy, happy day when an older Case 580 backhoe arrived in a container!

We used it for everything; digging foundations, new irrigation for our farm, runway maintenance, doubling as a crane for setting trusses, community maintenance of roads and waterways (cleaning out large irrigation ditches) and as I said, “everything”, until it left our airbase over four years ago. Now it’s back to shovels and man power which means a lot of wasted time. For four years my prayer has been, “dear God, please bring back a backhoe”.

Machinery here is used either politically or privately, which means on going and much needed road maintenance is almost completely neglected and everyone suffers because of it. As we worked on our neighborhood roads in the past the people would come out with big smiles on their faces and wave as our machine would create drainage for the massive puddles that form during the Rainy season and then fill them with gravel making everyone’s commute more pleasant. It’s not just us that misses it. Even our local government officials who often called us to assist on projects when their own machines weren't available wish it was still here. Yes, a backhoe can even be a witnessing tool!

What’s that “&” in our title above? It’s the response I get from our workers on our ever growing PAMAS farm when I talk about how much we need a backhoe. They always reply, “and don’t forget how much we need a tractor!”. We have a cute little 22 horsepower Kubota which we use for way more than what it was designed to be used for, but our farm could greatly use a 57 horsepower Kubota.

We stopped planting rice, let the land lay fallow for one year and now we are starting to plant different crops (eggplant, Adlai, peanuts, corn, squash, okra etc.), but the barrowed tractor we had for a short time had to be returned so over half the farm land is now a wildlife sanctuary/grasslands which is drawing in all kinds of interesting birds and people sneaking around hunting them, but since we don’t eat the birds we are looking forward to transforming this land also into an active, productive farm.

The food that we now grow in our gardens goes straight to our missionaries and Indigenous students, but the food we hope to produce on the farm will also supply our soon-to-open lifestyle center and bring in an income to allow us to be more self-sustainable. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or suggestions for the immediate needs we have mentioned above. Thank you so much for your prayers and support that will help us to find the right equipment for our growing needs.

“...The best test of their ingenuity is visible in the labor-saving machinery with which they are filling and transforming the world" ARSH July 28,1863 pg 66.8.

Runway Extension Update

"Revise" are not my favorite words to hear from ATC when I am preparing to land at a airport. After receiving my clearance I can visualize my intended approach; everything is programmed in and from my current position I can plan each step ahead, all the way to my touchdown and then it happens, ATC comes back and says "revise" and everything I just planned gets changed. God has completely revised all our plans to buy the land to the South.

Everything on was set, the negotiation process was going along fine and then everything fell through; in the end selfishness and overreaching won the day and our agreement to purchase the land to the South of us completely fell through. The price we settled on was high, but it was well worth the opportunity to add 500ft to our existing runway, but when they requested us to pay 3 times what is was worth, we had to walk away, it was too much for us.

Back on our knees praying we decided to reconnect with our neighbor to the North and see if their offer to lease the land (they refuse to sale) was still good and we were praying that the price didn’t double or triple since we last talked to them. We were so happy when they didn't change their minds and so we quickly moved forward with the deal.

It was going to cost us $6,000 for the first five years out of a 20-year lease agreement and upon checking with Angel One we discovered there was EXACTLY $6,000 that had come in, amazing! We arranged the contract, paid the money and started clearing brush and trees off the north end and marking out the 500ft extension.

There’s only one big hurtle; it’s now ours to use, but it’s all mud and it will take an estimated 60 dump truck loads of rock and gravel to bring it up to a useable grade for landing on. This is way better than the situation we were facing on the south side which was diverting a small river and building a canal for it to flow through and then having to bring in lots of rock so that those rice fields would be brought up to grade.

God's revision of all our plans hurt at first, but has worked out far better in the end. Please pray for us as we try to find the cheapest fill/gravel possible because right now the lowest prices that we are getting quoted will cost us an estimated $10,000 for those 60 dump truck loads of rock. Is it worth it? For those of us who land here on a regular basis we agreeably say, YES! That extra 500ft will make our runway many times safer and allow for larger and faster aircraft to operate here. Thank you so much for helping!

“The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps” Proverbs 16:9