April 2017

Coffee: Each morning Ryan and I wake up, make coffee, and discuss what how we are going to navigate the day’s tasks. Christian sits, or runs around rather, in his walker pulling things off shelves, and his sisters straggle in one at a time for their morning bowl of oatmeal with brown sugar. Eventually, we have our plans in place and we scatter hoping to get some things done.

This morning, I wish you could join us for a cup of coffee (or tea if you prefer), so that we could update you on all that the Lord has allowed us to be a part of. 

We would talk about:

• Easter Sunday’s Resurrection service and bar-b-Que that we had a blast hosting at our house. There were probably around 40 people crowded into our living room singing to Jesus and celebrating His resurrection from the dead that proved power over death and the grave.

Bible lesson in Toussi

• We would tell you about our continued discipleship with the Gnamssa family, how one recently changed his name to “Redeemed of God” rather than “Sold to the spirits.” How we hope to deepen the level of discipleship we’ve been doing with them, and to possibly prepare them for baptism.

• We would tell you about the project in Toussi, where the chief is already searching out land for a church even though we’ve only had the chance to show the Jesus film and start lessons in The Story of Hope.

• Ryan would tell you about how he’s been teaching guitar lessons, but it’s been a challenge trying to teach new rhythms to young people who basically know one rhythm and have a very hard time learning how to break out of the old in order to learn something new.

AnnMarie is our fashionista.

• He would tell you about the drama of trying to teach people about airstrip safety, and trying to explain to them why they can no longer cross the runway even though they don’t see an airplane and can’t understand why their pathways in the airstrip are dangerous for pilots and airplanes. How our makeshift bamboo barriers have been vandalized EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. for the past several weeks; how one government-hired scout has been beat up trying to keep people off the runway, and the perpetrators sent to jail; how Mr. Gnamssa might have been one of those perpetrators before he was saved, but has now become extremely helpful to us. I will say, however, that given his handicap from his stroke, it has been difficult for him, too, to walk the extra 4,000 feet to get around the runway. God has allowed his salvation and discipleship to help us in communicating with those who live around the airstrip that we are not here to just be big meanies who don’t want to share our land, but that we really do have a life-saving message to share.

• We would tell you about how the airplane is scheduled to begin test flights THIS WEEK! And how it actually is truly likely that we will have it back here on Togo soil THIS SUMMER!

• We would tell you about how homeschooling has its ups and downs, but how we are pleased that a teacher has agreed to come out and teach the missionary kids next school year!

• How God has allowed us to be part of the lives of woman and her 5 kids while her husband is away searching for work.

Leslie got her hair done in braids.

• We’d tell you about some of our frustrations with learning this culture, and even some of the Kabiyé language.

All of these things we would love to tell you in great detail in person, and we would want to hear your stories, too. We want to hear about your family, your busy schedule, what God is teaching you, and about what God has allowed you to be a part of. We would share life with you, all over that hot coffee (or iced if you were here and don’t want to begin your day drenched in sweat).

For now, we will resort to communication by email and social media. I'm so glad that for those of you with whom we share a common bond in Christ Jesus, we have a future hope of spending eternity together sharing our stories and glorifying God for all he has done in, through, and for us. I can't wait! Until then, I’ll leave you with three specific prayer requests. 
 

•  Please pray that our mission will be able to get NGO status before the airplane arrives. NGO status is granted by the government of Togo to non-profit organizations and it gives us certain tax cuts that will make it much easier to get our airplane back into the country without having to pay astronomical taxes. 
•  Please pray that God would help us to grow in grace so that that grace flows through us as we handle all of the different challenges that come our way each day; be it within our family, with our neighbors, or with the one who would like to see us fail.
• Pray that God would continue to guide us in wisdom as we work in Toussi and Agamé to share the gospel and disciple new believers.

We are ever thankful for you and for your support of God’s tasks for us here in Togo. May God bless you as you learn more and more about His grace today and into the future.

In Christ,

Ryan, Stephanie, Leslie, AnnMarie, & Christian

January 2017

We’re getting back into the swing of things with our life here in Togo. Thank you for praying for our hot water situation. We were pleased to have had our first warm showers on Christmas Day!!! Our water flow is good now and soon we will be installing a good water filtration system for the entire house.

We have been praying about what ministry paths we should follow for this term. The Lord has been pressing on our heart for some time to begin learning the Kabiyé language. We have found a curriculum created and used by the Peace Corps, and we have started using it with some of our Kabiyé friends here. We have also requested a teacher who could come to our house once a week to tutor us. Please pray that the Lord would bring the right person along to help us.

There is a small village not far from us who has asked us to come and teach the Story of Hope. Ryan will begin visiting this village in the next week or so to survey this possibility. Please pray that the Lord would open those paths if He would like us to pursue this ministry.

We continue our work with the Gnamssa family. We met last night with the pastor and pastor-in-training we have been working with about working further back in the Agamé region where the family lives. Please pray as certain obstacles have presented themselves. Please pray for wisdom on the patience for all those involved. We believe that the people in this region are open to learning the gospel and that God has a plan that involves using us and these two pastors there. We also intend to use this as a discipleship tool with the family to train them in evangelism.

We had the privilege of visiting Ghana earlier this month to lay down the rough draft for the West African Aviation Policy Manual. Those meetings went very well. We are pleased with what was accomplished and thankful for an encouraging time with our teammates. On another aviation note, our airplane is scheduled to be shipped out to us by the end of this month. Please pray for its safe passage. Please also pray that when it arrives in the port here, that the container will not be tampered with and that the taxes to get it released from port will be straight and reasonable.

The girls are doing well. Leslie is about to finish 2^nd grade and AnnMarie is plugging along at learning to read. They enjoy playing together and visiting and playing with other missionary kids their age. Christian eats well, sleeps well, grows well, and smiles well. He’s a joy to have around. Please always pray for us as parents that we would have what it takes to disciple our Children’s hearts to love and follow after Jesus. Just because we fall under the title of missionaries does not mean that these things come easy for us.

There are other ministries that present themselves to us frequently. Please pray that we would balance our time wisely and always seek to honor the Lord first in our lives. We chose the word “serve” as our family’s theme for the year, 2017. Please pray that we would have servant hearts like Jesus and do all of these things for His glory alone.

We love you. Thank you for sending and keeping us here. We love our job!

In Christ,

The Buczaks

PS. Our internet connection is SOOO slow. To see recent pictures, visit us on Facebook.

December 2016

Replacing the old with the new

We arrived in Togo on December 2^nd and are happy to be back where we believe we truly belong at this stage in our lives. While life is certainly different, what is foreign to us is also becoming more familiar. So thank you for helping us, preparing us to get back to Togo. We feel stronger and more equipped for the work that the Lord has sent us here to do.

There are many tasks on our house we have come back to. Our water system is still a confusing issue with the hot water heater working, but hot water not coming out of the faucets. We hope to fix the issue with the pressure system we got in the capital. Setting up our internet is also in the works. Thank you for being patient with us as we have not been able to communicate as much as we would like. Word has it we should be back online today (this message was sent from outside of our home. There are other minor projects that we work on as time allows so that we can start focusing more on work outside of our gates.

We have been twice to visit the Gnamsa family and plan to visit again today. On Sunday, Pastor Ali taught out of 2 Corinthians 5:17. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” When asked, they explained that the old for them is animism and the new is Jesus and His teachings. Our friend Yawovi also reminded them, that the old includes our daily bad habits such as bickering, complaining, etc. This passage in Corinthians is very familiar and I’ve heard it a thousand times, but hearing it taught to new believers reminded me that I, as a longer standing believer still have old that is being worked out of my life. I’m so thankful Jesus doesn’t just get rid of just the big and obvious old and leave the less obvious old in our lives. No, Jesus is still removing the old from my life and molding me more into the likeness of Himself.

We were privileged last week to attend the marriage of two very special friends. We met Komi on our first trip to Togo in 2007. He was the one who first put us in contact with the Gnamsa family. Upon our second arrival here, we met his beautiful fiancé, Essohanam. Words cannot express our joy for them as these two godly friends start their life together. Unfortunately for us, they are moving far away up north to be missionaries of sorts at the new hospital there. Though we are sad to see them go, we know that God has wonderful plans to use them up there. God bless you Komi and Essohanam, and God bless the North Team. You guys are getting some quality gems!

You have been in our thoughts and prayers as well as we contemplate how incredibly strange it is that just a few weeks ago we saw the beginning of a “normal” cold Christmas with you all and now we are about to celebrate our very first Christmas in a very hot climate. We want to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Blessed New Year as you seek to serve the One who “came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Matthew 20:28b

In Christ,

The Buczaks

October 2016

Birth Announcement: Our little BOY, Christian Tate Buczak, was born September 7th. He weighed 7 pounds 7 ounces and was 19.5 inches long. It has been three weeks since his birth and he has already reached 8 pounds 11 ounces. Talk about growing fast! This week we submitted his first passport application as we look to moving back to Togo in the near future. Thank you for your prayers for a safe delivery.

Thank you for praying for nice weather and safe flights throughout the summer as Ryan has been furthering his training to become a Certified Flight Instructor. He has just a few flights left and a check ride (practical examination) before he receives his license. We'd appreciate your continued prayers for blue skies and safety as he finishes this training.

Loved by his sisters.

Next week Ryan will be taking a quick trip down to North Carolina to see the progress on the airplane and to meet with the West Africa aviation team about policies and procedures. Please pray for safety and for open, God-honoring communication among the team members.

As we look to heading back to Togo, our goal is to return in November. We are still under supported and ask that you pray with us every day through the month of October that God would bring along the right people to back the ministry both with prayer and with financial support. We are short by $525 per month.

Other miscellaneous needs:
For travel - Visas, airline tickets, a few heavy duty black with yellow lid storage containers (preferred for lightweight luggage), window and porch screening to keep mosquitoes out of our house, malaria medications.
Upon arrival - Water pressure tank for our water system.
In the near future - A large (500 gallon) poly tank for our water system.

Low-wing Piper Arrow

We look forward to getting back to "our family" in Togo. We hear that the ministry begun with the Gnamssas is going well, but we are dying to see for ourselves. Please pray that we and those working with the family will have vision and direction for the future. May God's name be glorified in the Agamé region!

We met with a few good prayer warriors last week. You folks keep us going and we are ever thankful for you. One highly respected friend humbly asked us to pray that God would keep him from presumptuous sin. What a great way to ask for prayer! We, too, ask that you would pray that God would keep all of our family members from presumptuous sin, and that God would ultimately be glorified as He shapes us to be more like His Son.

"Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me! Then I shall be blameless, and innocent of great transgression. Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer." Psalm 19:13-14 ESV

May our God bless you all as you honor Him in the "little" things.

In Christ,
Ryan, Stephanie, Leslie, AnnMarie, and Christian

June 2016

Thank you so much for being patient with us and continuing to pray for us these last six months. Ryan and I can say that we are in a much better place than we were in December. The Lord has taught us and grown us. Though life's problems never cease from testing us, we are learning to find the joy in the various trials that the Lord allows into our lives in order to sharpen and make us more into the likeness of His Son (James 1:2-4; Romans 8:29). Many thanks to all of the people who have counseled and encouraged us with God's Word both formally and informally.

Looking forward, we are ready to go back to Togo. But before I get too far ahead of myself, we should finally announce that we are expecting another little bright eyed wonder into our family this coming September. We've decided to stay in the States for the birth of the baby and then, Lord willing, go back to Togo as soon as we can secure Little B's passport. To our joy, the gender of the baby will remain unknown until his or her sweet arrival. Sorry about that, but not really.

While we wait for the arrival of Little B, Ryan is studying and flying to improve his pilot ratings. Until recently, it had been three years since he had been in the pilot seat of a working airplane. He has been dusting off the cobwebs and increasing his knowledge in order to be ready for our Togo team's aircraft to arrive in Togo around December or January.

Speaking of the airplane, a little over a year ago, the 1964 Cessna 206 was sent back to the States for some much needed tender love and care. We are pleased to report that N5180U is in the last stages of her total refurbishment, and she is looking good! Through many of you and friends of the Togo Aviation Team, almost all of the funding has come in to complete this project. Ten thousand dollars is needed for its completion and to finally get the plane back to Togo. Contributions can be made to account number 0763033 at www.abwe.org/give.

Since we left for France 100% supported in 2013, we have been truly blessed by the prayer and financial partners the Lord has brought to partner with us. Two thousand dollars per month was initially raised in ministry/aviation funds. Part of this has been used to cover ministry expenses, part for language school, part for travel expenses to and from Togo, part to get our vehicle out of port last year, part to keep Ryan proficient as a pilot, and some of these funds have been used to cover our support deficit. In short, we are doing our best to be wise stewards with what has been so graciously and sacrificially given to the work God has called us to in Togo.

I mention the above to note that we have always had everything necessary to do what we have needed to do over the past three years. However, I also mentioned above a support deficit. This deficit has slowly accumulated to $900 per month. What this means is that as we anticipate finally having a functioning aviation ministry shortly after our arrival back to Togo, we are going to need to re-raise this monthly support in order to fully participate in the aviation ministry. Once again, we are asking you to join us in praying that the Lord would supply this need before our return this November. Those interested in partnering with this work can go to www.abwe.org/give and use account number 0134443.

On the Gnamssa family front, studies continue with Pastor Ali. Their group has grown to the point that more seating was needed! Please continue to pray for God's protection over the teaching of His Word and for Spiritual growth in the family and the surrounding Agamé region.

It has been a blessing and joy to meet with many friends here in the States. Catching up with friends face to face is always best. It has been fun to see how God has worked in and through you and your churches. Our invitation to meet over coffee remains open to whoever wishes. We are always happy to see you. Honestly though, we usually walk away from our meetings with friends as if we get the better end of the bargain. You guys are all truly wonderful!

Many blessings to you and the work our Creator has called you to.

December 2015

We were gearing  ourselves up to spend our first Christmas in a hot climate when circumstances pleasantly brought us "home" for the holidays. Now, we are cold which makes it a little easier to identify with what we consider a normal Christmas.

We have come home in agreement with our team, our church, and our board to allow time for refocusing, strengthening, and spiritual growth as it relates to our family health. We believe and have been encouraged by those who surround us that this time in the States with godly biblical counselors will produce long-term results that will allow us to be more effective ministers in general, but will also give us the tools necessary to be what the Lord would like us to be in Togo for the long haul.

Please understand that this time is only temporary and that we are in no uncertain terms giving up on what we know the Lord has called us to in Togo. God has allowed us to be a part of things in Togo that our wildest dreams never could have imagined and we look forward to getting back stronger than ever.

Under the proper context, please know that we are willing to answer questions you may have in person, but please do us a favor and get your information "from the horse's mouth." We are pretty open around a cup of coffee or a dinner table.

Please do pray for us. Ask the Lord how to best pray for us and His Spirit will let you know. We know this because you have told us about times when you felt lead to pray for us and were able to identify that those prayers came at just the right time.

Please also continue to pray for our ministry in Togo. We feel that the Gnamssa family has been left in good hands under the guidance of two pastors, one pastor in training, and one female friend to help with the wives. After the recent fetish burning, the family is likely to come upon some hard times. Please pray as Paul encouraged the Colossians in Colossians 2:6-10 (see below).

Col. 2:6-10 (NKJV)
As you have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving. Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ. For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power.

Thank you for your faithfulness to us. The encouragement we have already received since these things have revealed themselves has been truly overwhelming.

Yours to Togo,
Ryan, Stephanie, Leslie, and AnnMarie