October 2018

Thank you for your patience with us as it has been a few months since our last letter.

Our family recently visited the magnificent
Kpimé waterfall.

Ryan has had the privilege of flying about twice a month or so up to Mango. He carries mostly medical professionals seeking to view and/or participate in the ministries of both Hôpital Baptiste Biblique in the south and Hôpital de l’Espérance in the north. Last month he got to fly the founder as well as the new president of World Medical Mission division of Samaritan’s Purse. Next week, he will get to fly the president of ABWE, Paul Davis. It’s a privilege to get to fly and serve all of God’s servants great and small. He has also recently joined the church facilitation and leadership committee which allows him to see and participate more in our mission’s many church plants around southern Togo.

I, Stephanie, served as our guest house interim manager while the long-term manager was on furlough for seven months. I am thankful that our manager is back, as she had big shoes to fill and I am happy to give them back to her. I also serve as the guest house housing coordinator, which basically means I assign rooms to short-term missionaries who come to serve on our field. Most short-termers are medical professionals who come to work in our hospital.

I have also had the privilege of bookkeeping in our Christian Resource Center (CRC). The CRC makes available Bibles, books, videos, audio Bibles, etc., to ministry groups and individuals. I love being a small part of this work as it serves as a practical way of getting the Word of God into the hands of people; especially to people who might not otherwise have access to it. It is God’s Word by His Holy Spirit that does the work at saving and changing lives for His glory.

By now, many of you have heard that Leslie fell and broke her arm a couple of weeks ago. I posted pictures of the x-ray on Facebook and many people have shown concern that it looks like it might not align correctly. However, I would like to assure you all that God is a great healing God and he has orchestrated this event perfectly for His glory. We praise the Lord for:

Don't be alarmed. God has Leslie's arm in his hands.

•  A recently arriving physician’s assistant who has contacts with both a well-known sports team’s orthopedic surgeon as well as a pediatric orthopedic surgeon who have both viewed the x-rays by email and have given advice to let the bone heal on its own with a sling. Without the inroad through this missionary friend, these same consults would cost a WHOLE lot more than most orthopedic consults.
• Our own missionary surgeons and doctors who not only know what they’re doing, they also do it daily with hearts of prayer seeking God’s guidance for each case they encounter.
• God’s design at quickly healing children. As you know, Leslie is a very active little person. God is pulling that bone back into place and creating his own miraculous glue in her arm to put our little girl back together. Long term, it may take many months for Leslie to heal, but we know that God will do it.

AnnMarie is doing well in school and has recently enjoyed learning to knit. Christian is following in Leslie’s footsteps and proving to be an active little boy. Please pray for all of us as we grow in the Lord. Please pray that we would be faithful at viewing all things with our “gospel glasses” on, that we would glorify God in our conversation with our children, the Togolese, and our teammates. He is worthy.

May our God continue the work He is doing in your heart wherever He has you on your path to discovering and learning about Him.

May 2018

Photo Credit: Judy Bowen

Going about daily routine, there’s something rather thrilling about hearing that distinct buzz of that white and blue bird flying over the house as Ryan orients himself with flying in Togo. The kids and I drop everything and run out to wave at Daddy. Kids around town can be heard calling out “Avion! Avion! Avion!”

Yep, the 206 is flying beautifully (To see videos and pictures of our first flights, see our Facebook profiles.). Ryan is just 1.2 flight hours from reaching his allotted pilot break-in period and should complete it later this week. Permissions have been granted to fly about the country, and contacts are being made in various places to be able to land. Ryan and Jason will soon be venturing out on cross country-flights to survey the landing sights currently available to us. Please pray for us in the coming months, that God would make it clear to us exactly where and how he would like us to use this great tool to bring the Gospel for evangelism, discipleship, and church multiplying churches in Togo.

This past month has been a busy one in our home. Since April 1st, we have hosted an Resurrection Day potluck, ladies' conference, and a Labor Day celebration for our employees at our home. It has been a special blessing for all of us that our home can be a place where people can come to celebrate our Lord Jesus and the blessings his grace brings to our lives. Thanks to our friends at EBC for sending out collapsible tables and chairs on our December container.

We have two matters of fund raising to discuss in this letter, but first, we are thrilled to report that the Lord has provided $13,000 toward our home electrical system!!! The generator is hooked up and functioning wonderfully. The purchase of the generator is working out so nicely for us as well as our teammates, the Lairds. They brought out the generator and system here to Togo, but are selling it to us because they don't currently need it. What they do need, is a car. So by us purchasing this from them, they are able to put those funds to a new car, and two families are being greatly helped. All that to say, there is still $7,000 left to buy the complete automatic switch and battery backup system from them. If you are interested in helping two families at once, you can give to our Outfit & Passage fund at www.abwe.org/give and be sure to put Buczak O&P or 0134441-002 on the giving line.

The second matter of fundraising is concerning our housing. We have been approved to begin fundraising to build a house near the hangar for $80,000. We feel that we need to be closer to the hangar in order to keep a closer watch on the goings on there. Currently, we have guards at the hangar 24/7. Also, though we love our current home, it is rather old for a Togolese house, and it is in need of constant repairs. Rather than putting money toward this house, we feel it would be a wiser use of funds to put them toward something that will be better built to last. To participate in this project, please be careful NOT to give to our Buczak account, but to give to Togo Aviation 0763031 and carefully specify that your gift is for 003 Buczak Housing.

Our God is wonderful and he has done and will do great things! As we all anticipate and work in the hope of his return and restoration, I thought I'd share this beautiful verse I recently found from Isaiah 61:11. "For as the earth brings forth its sprouts, and as a garden causes what is sown in it to sprout up, so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to sprout up before all the nations." Whether it be a vegetable garden or a fruit garden, may our Lord bless the fruit of your labors for His glory.

January 2018

Happy New Year! The last time we wrote to you, we left you all hanging with the airplane floating in a shipping container somewhere over the Atlantic Ocean. As the story continues, the airplane was released from port with some expected difficulty, but arrived at its home hangar on Thursday, December 7^th. If you could have been there, you would have felt excitement in the air as everyone from those on the aviation team, to our employees, to missionary kids, to medical personnel from the hospital rejoiced together. It was a great event long anticipated.

Just four days later, our family boarded a jetliner for a time at home for Stephanie’s sister’s wedding. It was a good month home, and we are now back in Togo and already submersed in our regular life and schedule.
 
Last week, Ryan and Joe, a missionary colleague working in Ghana, were able to put the airplane back together and perform its first run-ups. For some short video clips of the run-up see Ryan's Facebook wall. Yesterday, Ryan and Joe took a trip down to Lome  to meet with aviation officials in order to obtain permission to fly in the country. The results of that trip were promising and we hope to be allowed to begin break-in flights later this week or early next week.

Somewhere in the midst of all of this, a special time and meal to thank and honor the officials in country who have helped us along the way will be necessary. Please pray that we will plan that well, and that God would ultimately be honored through that occasion.

Prayer Requests:
Please pray for safety on the first flights, that the airstrip will be smooth and the air clear. Most importantly, please pray that this ministry would be one that honors and glorifies the name of our God; that it would be a tool that magnifies Him alone.

Please pray for Stephanie as she balances normal mom life, unexpected Togo life, and now as she co-leads the guest house team for the next five months. Pray that she would value her time alone with God higher than check marks on a list.

Please pray for Leslie, that she would be able to focus at school, but mostly that her head knowledge of God would grow into a heart that loves and honors Jesus.

Please pray for AnnMarie, that God would call/guard her heart for Himself. That she would know Him for who He really is; that she would love Him.

Please pray for Christian, that he would stay healthy and out of danger, and of course, that his parents would be faithful to teach him, even at only 17 months, the love of our Father.

We thank you always for your prayers.

In Christ,

Ryan, Stephanie, Leslie, AnnMarie, and Christian