Dear friends,
Hello from Kentucky!
I’m writing this on a beautiful Tuesday afternoon. Today felt like real Spring day, which felt really great after seeing snow three times since the first day of Spring and a ton of rain besides.
I was able to take advantage of the beautiful weather last Sunday and fly N81708, the mission plane that’s going to the Philippines, down to AWA headquarters in North Carolina. I was praying that everything would work out for a smooth delivery so the plane can be there for its dedication by the local conference president on Sunday. The weather was basically perfect, but the dilemma was getting back home to Kentucky.
I left in the afternoon for the two-and-a-half-hour flight not knowing exactly how I would get back. The flight over the Appalachian Mountains was gorgeous, as always. There was a bit of turbulence at 7,500 feet, so, with the permission of the air traffic controller, I climbed up to 9,500 feet where the air was a lot more stable, with only the occasional “sky pothole” as I like to think of them. The freshly overhauled airplane ran like a top all the way there.
Once on the ground, Pastor Ric, the president of AWA, greeted me with the good news that he had found me a ride home. Praise God! A pilot friend of his was free and willing to make the trip to fly me back home and then return that same night. We would fly AWA’s Piper Comanche, the Toku Hana, which had crossed the Pacific Ocean in 1964. We were going to ask a little less of the plane on this trip. Just a hop over the hills to Kentucky, but still an adventure for me to be flying such a famous plane.
On the return trip, Ric’s friend, Bob, showed me the ins and outs of piloting a Comanche, letting me fly the whole trip as he guided me through the plane’s idiosyncrasies. When we landed in Kentucky, I opened the FBO, or main office, on the airfield to let Bob and his friend, James, who also rode along, grab a snack and use the restroom. I called my wife, Yosi, to let her know I was back on the ground and would be home soon. What a day!
So many times I have been in situations where I wasn’t sure how they were going to work out. I’m a bit pessimistic usually, but God is teaching me to rely on Him and have more faith. Keep our family in your prayers as we’re striving to not only meet our funding goals to finish my flight training and be deployed, but also as we are striving to become the kind of Christians that God needs on the front lines of service to humanity. We can’t do it in our own strength, “but with God all things are possible” (Matthew 19:26).
I hope all things are well there where you are and that your faith is also growing stronger. “Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit” (Romans 15:13).
Josh and Yosi Fix
