A Good Man

Hello All,

I am headed back to the states tomorrow. I feel as if it is a good time

to be leaving Kabul. Things have been pretty crazy here.

I have a quick story to share with you before I go. It is not related to flying, but is still good. You may or may not remember I have been friends with a man here for a while. He is an Afghan security officer name Colonel Aziz. Anyway, we have spent quite a bit of time working together on various things. Over the many discussions and cups of tea we have become really good buddies. His wife and 7 children made and gave gifts for my entire family. It was a extremely nice to which Hollie and the boys and I responded with numerous small gifts back to him.

This last sixty days we have spoken together numerous times but today was the most significant. As I said he is a security officer. Actually he is in charge of security on the base that I live while I am here. Colonel Aziz has always made me feel as if he really cared about keeping me and my team safe. Today he explained why and it was very humbling.

As I was thanking him for his hard work and dedication to the safety and security of our team, Colonel Aziz told me how he has lost four brothers in this war and he was very tired of the fighting. One brother was very recently. He explained that sometime before the US showed up he and his father were captured and beaten by the Taliban. He explained how after being beaten unconscious he awoke to see his father's finger nails being pulled out. Very long story short; both he and his father were let go. Sometime later after the US had arrived Colonel Aziz had been involved in many battles, and on one particular day he actually captured the two men that had beaten him and his father. Aziz carried the men to his house and offered them up to his father to be killed. These men had no shoes and were close to 17 years old. His father instructed Aziz to let them go, but before they were allowed to leave Aziz's family clothed them, gave them shoes, gave them chores, and kept them fed. Finally the two boys did leave. Amazingly the two boys quickly returned and asked to stay and serve the Aziz's family; he indicated that they stayed and did chores for nearly two months before finally leaving again. In that two months they adopted Aziz's mother as "mom".

Many months later the Taliban moved back into that village and were destroying people and homes. When the Taliban arrived at Aziz's home it was the two boys. The Aziz home was not harmed and "mom" was actually somewhat reunited with the boys. Pretty amazing story.

Aziz shared many other stories of different battles dating back to the Russian wars. He is very clearly tired of fighting and wishes for peace in Afghanistan. Colonel Aziz has attended training in the USA a couple of times over the years. He mentioned how it is so quiet and peaceful in our nation and how he hopes his nation will someday be like this.

Trust me, Aziz is a good man. What we are doing here matters? When we do leave a huge gap will be left that is why it is so important to do all we can why we are here.

Finally, we have so much to be thankful for in our country. While sometimes things seem grim, and actually may be, we still live in the greatest country on earth. Thank God for that.

God bless and fly safe.

Matt

ARE WE REALLY THAT DIFFERENT?

Hello Crossroad Afghanistan!

I have been so busy over the last couple of weeks I can't even describe it. So much going on in Afghanistan. For those of us in Kabul the word of the day is "Transition". All efforts towards getting the Afghans in front of everything. I guess we have always had that mission, but there seems to be a renewed emphasis with this. Finally!

I have been flying quite a bit. Every time I see a Black Hawk flying by I wonder if it's someone I know; I wonder if it's one of you. I trust you are flying safe and "keeping your head on a swivel".

Raise your hand if you have done any snow landings. I had alot of fun flying from Kabul to TK. Everything above about 10,500 ft was snow, so we took the opportunity to discuss the differences between "white out" landings and "brown outs". Pretty cool. Unfortunately the snow covers the "red rocks", so landing off-site is a bit more tricky. If you don't know, red rocks indicate an old Russian mine field, so....don't land on those. They paint the rocks white when the area has been cleared by US or other coalition forces. Anyway, good luck with the cold weather, remember to review icing and other limitations you may not have looked at in a while.

Here's a quick word of encouragement for you.

This week I was doing some reading and thinking about Christians throughout the entire world. How it was amazing that what started out as a small "fringe religion" more than 2000 years ago is now holistically looked at as a "Christian Movement", and has literally spread across the globe.

How did this happen?

I believe that this happened because of the commonalities found within God's human creation. Put another way, one reason Christianity has grown over the past 2000 years, to nearly all peoples of the world, is due to our God given commonalities.

The fact is that God placed inside His creation (all humans) the longing to know more about eternity with Him. You can see this in Ecclesiastes 3:11, "...he has put eternity into man's heart." This is a huge commonality among all human beings; the longing to know more about the Creator. It's pretty cool that the Creator placed within His creation (us) the desire to know more of Him who did the creating. I am so glad God did this!

A second commonality amongst all peoples is that we share dominion of the created world. Genesis 1:28 & 29 shows us that we "have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth. And God said, 'Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You have them all for food."

A third commonality is that God can also be seen within His worldly creation. Romans 1:19-23 details, "For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made." Very Cool!

So we can see three commonalities that tie all human kind together. The truth that reveals that all people have a longing to know God and eternity with Him, the truth that we all have dominion over the world He created for us, and the truth that He can be seen in the world itself.

Where does this truth leave us? Christianity is for everyone in the world, including all those you encounter while serving in Afghanistan. It is not a United States of America belief system, but a belief system inspired by God himself. Everyone in the world has inside of them these common truths. So no matter how different a person may look on the outside, remember that we are much more common on the inside than you may think.

God Bless!

FLYING

Hey Roadies! I was out and about a little bit this last week and every time I saw a Black Hawk flying around I was thinking of you. I would love to see you while we are here. Check out the link I have provided below. Our Mi-17's conducted the air assaults for these missions, and yours truly actually got to fly several of the targets, so that was COOL! My door gunner, who sits behind a mini-gun, had a HD helmet cam for each LZ. The footage is pretty great. I need to keep this one really short. I hope you each are finding time to read your bibles, pray, and interact with God. I know at least for me, my time with the Lord while I am in Afghanistan seems so much sweeter. Don't get so busy that you don't find the time to let Him love on you. God Bless! Matt STORY HERE

I'm Ba-aaaaack!

Hello all. I am in Kabul and all is well. I will be out and about and would love to see or talk to you. KAF and TK this week. Let me know if you are in that area. My Afghan cell is 070-734-7915. Call me. Even if we haven't met. I can tell you from experience it feels good to see people from church while you are here. Well, it was an exciting time right when I got here. I actually was delayed from coming into Kabul due to last weeks shootings downtown. I live on the airport in a triple secure area, so I am somewhat removed from that stuff. We get an occasional rocket attack, but they are never close. Please remember that you are in the thoughts and prayers of so many, including myself. Keep up the good work and remember that while you may not always see the fruits of your labor, your steps are ordered of the Lord! I wanted to share with you a word of encouragement real quick. My team and I hired a man a few months ago for our flight operations section (John). He is very experienced and I was glad to have him. From the first day on the job he started hitting home runs with all kinds of needed refinements. Anyway, once I got back to Kabul I felt kinda down. Not sure why. I increased my prayer and reading time and just attempted to power through it, but my first few days just seemed dumpy. I had lunch with John today and found out the most important thing...that we both know the Lord! Immediately we began to speak like brothers. Not only did we hit if off professionally and personally, but now we had Christ in common. Very cool, I love when this happens. I won't go into how we immediately began to minister to each other, but I will say how the Lord spoke to my heart through this meeting. Look for God. Look for God in everything. Everything we do. Everything we see. Every relationship; good and bad. Look for God in your painful times; great joy can come from hard times. God allows our trials and bad times to refine us, which helps us to know Him more. God is with you. He is directing your paths. He can be seen in all things. You just need to look for him. Read Psalm 23. The world we live in is the "shadow of death". Afghanistan feels like "actual death" much of the time, but God is still with us. Fear no evil, for he is with you. Look for Him...every moment of every day. Allow the knowledge of His precence to give you peace! Peace. PS. Seriously....go read the 23rd Psalm.

Pastor Matt Back to Afghanistan

OK I have to admit; it's been 12 weeks since I have blogged and I feel a little guilty about something. I don't feel guilty because I haven't blogged, but today I am heading back to Afghanistan and am just now thinking of how all the while I was home and enjoying my family, and the good ole' US of A, you guys have been there nugging it out. In the heat! I hope all of you have been well.

I know that each of you would have wanted me to enjoy the family time, I definitely did. Just as I will want you to enjoy your families when you rotate back home.

Well, let me just start of with a reminder. A reminder of what this "Crossroads Afghanistan" is all about.

While your there it is definitely hard to think of Ft. Rucker, but rest assured there are many eager and anxious pilots and soldiers right behind you. They are uncertain of the "when and where" for their turn to the giant sand box, and their thoughts are on you guys...the tip of the spear. You are the ones on the front lines of this now ten year old war. My thoughts and prayers are with you, and it is my great honor to join you on the field of battle.

I said all that to say that this blog is designed to keep us all connected. Those that are overthere, and those that are waiting in anticipation of going; as you read, whether stateside or from overseas, know that many are using this blog as a connection to a piece of their time while at Mother Rucker.

Let me encourage you to respond, comment, or join in. I will be blogging from my foxhole in Kabul. From time to time I will get out to the FOB's and would love to see you. Let me know where you are. Even if it's someone you know only attended Crossroads once, or not even once, welcome them to read the blog.

The most important thing is that we know each other are out there. I know many of you don't get to go all over, but just like it's comforting to know if your flight school buddy is somewhere overthere with you, it is even more comforting to know that your brother or sister in Christ is somewhere out there too.

Talk to you soon!

God Bless You,
Matt

Hey Roadies.

I will be rotating back to the states this week! As you can imagine I am very excited.

Looking back of the past 90 or so days I can remember so many different challenges. It seems like everything is a Leader Reaction Course (LRC) drill. I am sure most of you have done this type of thing. In military training you are given a challenge with a task to solve a problem, of which, there may or may not be a solution. It seems as if my time in Afghanistan is one impossible challenge after the next. These LRC type events seem to have littered the past 10 weeks; one challenge after the next with each challenge having completely unique characteristics from the previous one. I seriously think I might lose my hair……too late-).

In the middle of all the chaos I have also had some wonderful personal experiences. Each personal experience seemed to impact me in a great way. I am sure the depth of emotion I felt from each experience was due to the other chaotic things going on around me, and in many cases it was a shared experience with someone else. Here are a few.

In the middle of very challenging times; I along with a colleague had been having a rough few days. In the midst of our rough times the topic of God and the Lord came up several times. One evening as I was finishing a long day he asked me a question about God as I was walking out the door to the office. He knows I love and know the Lord, and it was almost as if he had been lacking the courage to ask me right up until I was leaving. We talked about God for two hours. We talked about who Christ really was and what faith in him really meant. Our talk ended in a prayer of praise and humbling acceptance of the forgiveness that is offered by having faith in Christ. After a bit more talking we both went in for the night. I walked into my room exhausted; fell to the floor and wept. Crying out praises to God, I felt so humbled and exhausted and the same time. Any person that has had the Holy Spirit moving inside them before knows how exhausted you feel when it’s over. That’s how I felt. Praise God. This was a great day in heaven and earth!!!

Another experience dealt with a friendship I have established with a man named Joia Aziz. He is the head of the Afghan security forces that provide us protection. I had met him several times due to several security things that have gone on here. He doesn’t speak any English and always has several men sitting around him in his office. I went into his office one day to discuss a routine security concern and we ended up talking for a couple of hours. We drank tea, and talked about our families and our faiths. I very much enjoy my relationship with this man and look forward to seeing him when I get back. A couple of days later I went into his office and he gave me a bag full of wonderful gifts. His wife, and their 7 children, had each given me a gift for me and my family. This was very humbling and will be something I remember forever.

Another experience deals with a new friend I have made in the past couple of weeks. The program I am on in Northrop Grumman is designed so that I will rotate in and out of Kabul with another program manager every couple of months. That way each of us will not get burnt out on being away from our families. Doug has just been hired onto our team and is a retired US Marine Colonel. He is very smart and very funny and brings a lot of experience and knowledge to our business team. He has five children and has been married for over 30 years. Another interesting fact is that he is a Muslim. Do you think that it is coincidence that a Christian minister and follower of Christ Jesus, is teamed up with a Muslim man. I can’t accept that it is. Again, I found myself humbled and feeling very inadequate at what the Lord has put before me. I have never prayed so much.

These last two experiences lead me to a huge thought. In the past several months I have spoken about Jesus to a Muslim on numerous occasions! Again, I feel very humbled and with this in mind I feel very weighted down by the enormity and burden of what I am to doing. Matthew 5:14, “You are the light of the world”. This is so easy to preach and proclaim from within a church deep inside the United States. Yet here I am talking to men who do not know the truth of Jesus Christ. The truth is the truth though and someone must pass it forward. Yet you can’t just bang someone over the head with it. It takes relationship; specifically with such opposing cultural and religious belief systems.

Follow this chain if you will. John 1:1, John 8:32, Isaiah 40:8, and John 14:6. These versus have been on the fore front of my mind over the past several months. Christ is the word, which is truth, who is standing now, and will stand for eternity, and no one comes to the father except through Him.

How did I end up with this? A long time ago I got rid of my way and got real with God’s way. Do you want that in your life? Ask God to break your heart for his people. Ask him to melt away the cares of this world with only the broken left to be seen. Ask him to burden your eyes for the lost; to only see the lost as he sees them. Ask him to give you courage to be courageous! Tell him you want to sell out to him. He already knows it’s hard for you….just acknowledge your desire to sell out to him and his desires….and watch him transform your life.

God Bless you Roadies.
Matt

Hey Roadies!

So who felt the earthquake? I know I did. I was dreaming that my older brother was picking on me and shaking my bed to wake me up....ouch! What's that all about? The reality is that a hundred or so miles north of Kabul there was a 5.9 quake last week. Exciting right! There's more.
Some rocket attacks and an explosion downtown at the Hospital. Can't we all just get along? I mean if you want us to leave, quit blowing stuff up. Wait a minute...they don't want us to leave because we bring money and work right. Sorry, looks like I am drifting into other topics.

Anyway, for the most part things are back to normal here in Kabul. I am getting back to a steady state. I know things are really busy down in Helmond. Our guys are playing a part in quite a bit of that.

Couple of things. I need to know you’re out there Roadies. Where you at Lauren G.?? I know you’re out there. Call my Afghan cell: 070-734-7915. For that matter, any Roadie in this nation call my Afghan cell. I don't care if we have never met personally. It would be "most excellent" for my cell to ring and here any of your voices.

Also, sound of if you are enjoying the 120 days of wind. I have decided I don't like wind any more. It's good for a little bit, maybe a day, but it seems like we have 30 to 40 knots all day....everyday!!!

Maybe I should rebuke the wind like Christ did in Mark 4…..ok maybe not.

Either way, my prayers are with each of you. Don’t hesitate to call me. I know one thing is for sure about serving in Afghanistan….time goes by pretty fast, so hang in there.
God Bless,
Matt

Hey Roadies! Guess What!

I am back up as a PIC in the Mi-17. YAY! After the last couple of weeks we have had here I can tell you that going flying a couple of times was the perfect dose for me. I needed a bit of out of the office time. It felt good to challenge myself a little bit too. I got to fly up to the HLZ's just west of BAF. Shout out to me if you know where that is! The first one I picked on was right at 8700 MSL and the second was over 10500 MSL, so it was exciting. These LZ's are definitely the right way to practice the minimum power pinnacle landing. Never take mountain flying lightly. Read the books about the windward and leeward sides, how to fly through valleys, etc. Most importantly is performance planning. How much power will be available to me when I climb up and land? I think its really fun. I like to do the planning and then go see if it works. I hope you enjoy the planning too.

Well let me say Happy Mother's Day to all the mother's out there. I am thankful for both my mothers and my beautful wife who is also a great mother. Make sure to go out of your way for your mother.

Hopefully in the next week or so I will be totally back to normal here in Kabul. My replacement will be coming in soon, so that means it's getting closer to my return. I will really be ready for home this time.

I also want to give a shout out to the faithful patriots at my mom's American Legion post in Indiana. Thanks for reading!

Must go for now!
God Bless.
Matt

Hey Roadies!

It’s been a tough time over here. First the crash of an OH-58D which resulted in the loss of one US Army Warrant Officer and then the shooting in Kabul which resulted in 9 US killed.  That's 10 in 4 days. As long as we have been in Afghanistan it is easy for those at home to see these numbers on TV and move on with their daily routine, but I can tell you first hand these losses are very heavy on those of us on this side. That is not to mention the families of those that were lost. The loss of not one person is acceptable. In a military operation it is understood that the loss of a team member is a possibility and maybe even a likely hood, but never acceptable. Measures must be taken, tactics changed, and procedures manipulated to do whatever conceivable to try and prevent the same type of events in the future.  

Finally the most important thing is that we continue our work. We cannot stop or be deterred.  We must ensure that those that have fallen did not fall in vain. Many feel the guilt of “why not me”, many have seen things no one should see, but all must go on. Trust has been lost and a once stable relationship is now less solid, but still we must continue in order to honor the dead.

I am safe, I am confident in the purpose of our work, and I feel your prayers and concern. May I take a moment to speak to all the Roadies who may have this type of work in their future? Study Hard! Get far away from the “Rucker University” mentality and understand that the training you receive at Ft. Rucker is life and death stuff. I know many of you may have heard this before, but the “Instructor Pilot and the less experience pilot arrive to the crash at the same time”. What that means is that you are responsible for you! Know all you can, ask all the questions you can, study all you can; and come over here as prepared as you can.
God bless you guys. I am still in austere conditions right now until we can get back to operations normal. I will be back soon. Go to the link to read details of what happened in Kabul.
Thanks again for all your prayers and concern.
Matt

Hey Afghan Roadies! What's happening?

Shout out to the Roadies in JBAD and KAF!!  What's up?  U guys alright?  I know the reports people hear from far off are never right.
We have had some EXPLOSIONS in Kabul too!  Never a fun thing.
New tactic for this city. There have been quite a bit of police imposters making attempts at our perimeters.  We had one the other day at our gate.  A guy was dressed up as a Afghan soldier and attempted to get in....he is no longer with us.  Needless to say when I get some time off I won't be hanging around the outer gate!!

I am smoked right now and wanted to quickly sum up last weeks truth and fairness discussion.  Bottom line is God may seem unfair in light of certain events here on earth, but the reality is God is very fair.  Think about it.

1. Everybody is welcome. 
2. Everybody gets in the same way. 
3. Everybody can meet the requirement.

This is very fair.  Without a doubt the most fair!  So we can be thankful that we may not always understand God's ways and we most certainly can't live up to His standards, but that by true faith in Jesus Christ we are good to go.
Thank goodness...cause otherwise I'd be toast. 

You guys rock!  Keep up the good fight.  Watch out for the birds!

Matt

Hey Afghan Roadies!

I hope you all are well.  Things are well here in Kabul.  Not sure  

if you realize it, but it's been a rough last couple of weeks for  

coalition forces.  I know in KAF and Kabul its been a pretty costly  

10 days or so.  Looks like the winter is officially over and the  

hills are alive!  Be careful out there.  What may have been a safe  

valley in February, may not be now!!!  Bottom Line Up Front:  Watch  

the recenty thawed out high ground!

On another topic; I would like to vent just a bit about a topic  

close to my heart.  Hope that's ok.

While I am in Afghanistan I seem to run into more and more people  

that just don’t like the message that salvation can only come  

through faith in the resurrected Christ Jesus.  They say it’s unfair!

It’s a basic argument for most people.  The argument that “good  

people” will be able to go to heaven.  This thought process is of  

course a very palatable and fair idea.  I get that logic.  I  

understand the human desire for “all people” to be good, and that if  

you’re good; you get a good outcome after you die.

For me it’s hard to look at people that you know are going to  

struggle to walk out a faith in Christ.

For example, if I were to lead one of my Afghan interpreters to  

faith in Christ.  Of course this could occur only by the power of  

God’s Holy Spirit.  Anyway, this faith would be a suicide mission  

for him.  He would have to be so sold out for Christ because his  

entire world would be shattered in unimaginable ways if he even  

mentioned believing in Christ as the risen Lord.  Is this unfair?

So, do I not tell him…….?

Of course not, I have to tell him.  Now, I have to be smart about  

how I do it and I mostly have to pray for him, but this brings me to  

my point.

Fairness has nothing to do with truth.

Put another way….for something to be true, it does not have to be  

fair.  Sorry, that’s the truth.

FAIRNESS IS NOT A REQUIREMENT OF TRUTH!!!!

Realizing this truth as a Christ follower is what fuels a lifelong  

passion to tell other people about the truth that is Jesus.  It may  

not be fair from a non-believers perspective, but God is holy and  

great in ways humanity can’t understand, so I am compelled to trust  

Him, even if his judgments don’t seem fair.

What do you think?

Hey Roadies in Afghanistan!

I know some of you are rotating in, so if you can let me know where you’re at.  I would love to hook up.  Things are well in Kabul.  Lots of rain.  I have pasted a little video for you.  I flew on this mission over a year ago.  We still work with these guys several times a week.  Can anyone tell where this is??? Sound off if you’re at KAF?  I will be down there for a week very soon.  070-734-7915 is my local cell.

Take Care and God Bless You!
Matt

Happy Nowruz (New Year)!

As you know Monday the 21st was the New Year on the Iranian calendar used in Afghanistan.  The celebration is called Nowruz and has its roots from way, way back.  So Happy New Year in Afghanistan!  This makes the second New Year for me in Afghanistan.  One with our Gregorian (Western) calendar on January 1st, 2011 and now my first in Afghanistan where we rang in the year 1390!!!!!   

Well, I completed my first week back and I have to say it has been much easier getting back in the swing this time.  I am so thankful this has been a good week for me.
I had begun to anticipate the work I would do upon my return and began to get anxious.  As you know the pace in Afghanistan is fast, so I started to think and worry about my return quite a bit my last week home.  I can honestly say that the anxious worrying feelings did me no good at all.  I don’t know why I do that to myself.  There really is no reason to worry.  I love that the Lord tells us in Luke 12:22–26 (TNIV) 

22 Then Jesus said to his disciples: “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. 23 Life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. 24 Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! 25 Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to your life? 26 Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest? 

All of that worrying I did while the entire time Christ had it covered for me!  May I encourage you to join me in a renewed effort to not worry so much? Whether you’re coming or going from Afghanistan, or there are things going on at home that are out of your control….do your best to lean on Christ’s words and wisdom in this matter.  It works!

Be Blessed!

Welcome Back Crossroads Afghanistan!

Well, it's been five weeks since I last blogged.  My intent was to possibly blog a couple of times while I was home, but I was OBE (Overcome by Events).  All I can say is WOW!  There are so many things to do when you get home with so little time to do it.  Especially, when you are on a quick return clock.  I know many of you only get two weeks at a time, so it would be extremely difficult to get stuff done.  If you only get two weeks on your R&R I would just stick with immediate family, because that time will go by really fast.  Two weeks is better than nothing though.

Well in the five weeks I was gone I missed most of the cold weather here in Afghanistan...that's good.  I came back to a country that still has a lot going on.  I know each of you is really busy and I just pray that you are finding some peaceful time to yourself.  I can say with all honesty that Crossroads Community Church DOES think about you and pray for you.  You are a big deal to Pastor Gene and the rest of the team.  This blog is actually a very small thing when compared to all that is going on to bring you a better capability to stay connected (video).  Trust me its coming.  It's coming with much love and effort having been put into it, so I am very excited about that.

That’s it for now.  I am back in Kabul.  My cell phone has not changed 0707347915.  Call me if you can.  I am not sure when I will be out and about, so if you get anytime in Kabul please call me.

Be Blessed
Pastor Matt

WOW!

BLUF: I hope you are enjoying the current series, “PLAY” @ Crossroads.
If you have fallen behind on listening, that’s ok.  Try to make time to listen to the series “Play” if you can.  I am really digging it, and I am sure you will too.  It’s a word of encouragement and perspective.  It’s a message of how to be joyful no matter what your circumstance.
If you are having the same “Afghanistan ups and downs” that I do, I am sure you can use a word of encouragement.  I am sure you could use a little help with being joyful.
Give yourself a break and take make the time to sit down and listen.  It lifted me I and I hope and pray that it will lift you up too.

BREAK BREAK
We are getting plenty of snow and rain in Kabul.  I know it’s been rainy and foggy in Kandahar.  It was freezing last time I was in Herat.  Basically the winter has arrived all over the country.  I hope you're all staying close to the weather forecasters and learning the trends of your area.  I have been caught in low visibility in the mountains and it’s not fun!  Let’s all just decide not to push it…even you medevac pilots.
Anyway, I am going home to Enterprise in a few days.  I will keep blogging from home.  I will keep praying for you from home, and if I get the chance I will make a special shout out to ya from home.
I pray that you are blessed and at peace here in Afghanistan.
Matt

What a day! I have to tell you this story.

To some people of high importance or special position a story like this may be old news, but for me it was a new experience that was pretty cool.

My friend and interpreter Hamid has been trying to assist me with getting a very special “all access” badge for the Kabul International Airport. It would be hard to explain all the details of this process, but what I can say is that the process is definitely a “who you know” kind of thing on many levels of bureaucracy. Having the right stamp and the right signature on the right paper on the right day is HUGE at every stop. Hamid has been walking the papers and pictures through the whole time. Having this badge will definitely assist me with moving people and things in and out of Kabul.

Today one more wicket was required. I needed to go to the airport special security office and have my picture taken. All of the most important approvals for the badge have already occurred and it seemed like it may have been one of the final steps. I was thinking that if they take my picture, in addition to the passport photo I already provided, I would surely be good to go.

I mentioned in my last blog that I am in no way an Afghan cultural expert, but I do know enough to understand various customs and courtesies. Today I was fortunate enough to experience one of these customs first hand.
Before I go on I should mention that in a country like this moving in and around an airport is no small task. Hamid puts himself at great risk as did I. If you think security at home is bad…try walking up to the International Airport in Kabul. It aint happening!

So we go into the older of two airport terminals on the Afghanistan held side of the airport. This brought back memories, because more than two years ago this is exactly where I first set foot into the country. Our contact lead us into the office area up several flights of stairs where I sat in a room full of men waiting to get my picture taken. The office was very busy and the entire setting was really interesting! This is where it got pretty cool.

It is custom in Afghanistan to have tea and show hospitality to any person that you would do business with. After we got our pictures taken Hamid indicated that the senior intelligence officer for the airport wanted to have tea with me. Of course I agreed.

After being lead into another office, in a different location, I met another gentleman and the four of us sat and had tea. They also brought out a “sweet treat” similar to peanut brittle, but no peanuts. We sat and talked about all types of work and personal related items for over 40 minutes. I closed our talk by telling them how thankful I was for their assistance and especially their hospitality to me. It was a very cool experience! Hamid mentioned that they would like to have me back for lunch sometime soon. I am definitely in for that.
On a personal note, the entire experience has me thinking about God’s love for ALL people. How Christ is the most important thing in Afghanistan too.

Sometimes it doesn’t seem that way because it’s so easy to just see the Islamic exterior of these people and forget about God’s intent for their interior. What an amazing challenge. What an even more amazing responsibility.

I hope you are experiencing some of this too. I know if you are flying around at all you have to see the villages and the people. It’s really incredible. I don’t mean to sound so enamored with this people. I know that many of you are only seeing the business end of the “not so nice” Afghans. I got that. I have seen the business end myself. However, the fact still remains that the larger majority of these people are for us, and not against us.

Be Blessed!

Hey Roadies!

I read some interesting facts today I wanted to share with you.
Did you know that Afghanistan was not a designated Islamic State until 1992?  It wasn’t until 1996 that Afghanistan was an “Islamic Emirate”.  If you look a little further you can see that back into the early 20th century there were movements to remove traditional Islamic headgear from women, as well as attempts to integrate schools with men and women.  Very interesting.

I know as a military service member you most likely had to read a small book or pamphlet about the various tribes in Afghanistan and it’s likely that many of you have read “Kite Runner” or other popular books about a particular piece of this nation.  I understand that most likely you do not interact much with the local populous.  But you do fly around and see them.  You see where they live.  If you are like me you have to be a little bit curious what it’s like for those tent people, or the mountain people, or the red desert people.  Have you ever seen an Afghan that looks Chinese?  That’s because of the huge Mongolian influence during the middle ages.  What about Bamiyan pass (near Bagram) with the remnants of the huge Buddha statue?  It just seems so obvious to me that there is more than meets the eye here in Afghanistan.
This really is an amazing people.  There are so many web sites out there where you can find the “back story” on the people of this land.  I am by no means a studied expert on the country, but I can tell you this, I am sure our God has a greater purpose for our nation being involved here.

What if?!  What if our efforts here as people of the one true God, Yahweh, will influence a nation for Christ?  What if our efforts here can save even just one?  Could you and I be part of God’s bigger plan?  I say YES.

I know you may just be thinking about how to get through tomorrow.   I know you may be in a stressful RL progression, or studying for a PIC check ride, or working 12 to 15 hours a day (like me), or just not able to focus in on others.  I UNDERSTAND this for sure!  However, I have found that focusing on a bigger plan, Gods plan, seems to help my day-to-day perspective.  Set your eyes upon the Lord!

Try it!  As you are walking to the chow hall, or headed out to the aircraft, ask God if there is a bigger purpose here than we can see.  Ask Him to give you insight on how He may want to influence this nation through you.  All things are possible to those who believe.  You never know.  How would you feel for the rest of your life if while you were here God used you to bring an Afghan to Christ!  Many of the characters in the bible were primarily insignificant people that God used to make a huge difference (Moses, Joseph, David, Daniel, and Esther, any of Christ’s disciples).  The list is huge.

Is God planning on using you while you are in Afghanistan?  Will you get the chance when you turn in your laundry?  Could you strike up a conversation in the chow hall or a shop? If you look you will see that there are plenty of Afghans around you, and you may just have the opportunity to be the light of the world, Matthew 5:14. 

Circumstantial and Necessary Disclaimer:  Please be careful!  As you know this can be delicate.  Don’t bring trouble upon yourself, but also don’t be afraid to get to know an Afghan. Just through relationships with several men I have been able to build enough trust to speak about Christ to them.  I haven’t witnessed yet, but I have talked about Christ with a couple.  I am taking "baby steps" because I would rather not get blown up-).  I am sure my family would concur.

Fly Safe!  Remember: White out landings are no different than brown outs!  Enjoy!

What's happening Afghanistan!

Much going on in country as we approach the winter.  Not sure where you are, but I know it's getting cold.  Even down in Helmond it's cold in the mornings.  In Kabul it's very cold.  I hope you all are safe and eating well.  Things are good in Kabul.  Plenty of work to do.  I took a program management position and am flying alot less.  That is good in some ways and bad in some ways.  I will be in Herat on the 12th.  Sound off if you are there.  I will be in Shindand on the 15th.  I would love to hook up.  I will be in KAF around the 16th for a few days.  I think it would be really cool to link up with some old or current Roadies while over here in Afghanistan.  I hope that you guys have access to any support you need but please know I am here for you too.  I know you may not live in Enterprise anymore but that doesn't matter.  Just call me if you need anything, 0707347915.

I was driving in Kabul today and got slowed down in a traffic jam.  It was crazy and traffic jams in Kabul always make me a bit nervous.  Many things were causing the jam, but I had to share with you how funny this was.  I saw the donkey in the air in front of the small wagon.  It wasn't this exact pic, but the one I saw was just like it.  It was very funny, I almost crashed.  I have scraped up against a car everytime I go out, so a small crash wouldn't matter, but it was still funny to see.

I hope you guys are seeing some of the locals and their culture.  It really helps me take stock in how well we have it in the USA.  It helps me keep a good perspective on life.  I hope that you are getting some of that during your time here in Afghanistan.
Gotta go.
Be Blessed!

Christmas and New Years in Afghanistan!

Well hello Crossroads Aghanistan.  I hope each of you have had a great Christmas time in Afghanistan (is that possible?).  As I write this on New Year's Eve I must say that it doesn't quite feel like a holiday here in Kabul.  As you know, individual units do a good job of trying to make the place feel like home, but the fact is...it's just not possible.  So my prayers are with you that you may find a quiet peace and comfort during this time.  I will tell you what I did to help me through this day.  I found a quiet space, put on my favorite worship music, and just got lost for a while.  This led me to a great bit of personal time with the Lord, I held my bible close and just felt comforted!  I hope you can find a place like this.

An interesting story about my Christmas Day.  As you know it was a work day.  I was invited to a USAF Christmas Party where in the serving line was two Afghan Generals.  You know how the command officers always like to serve the troops on special occasions.  Well this was no different, but two of the gentlemen were Afghans.  As I allowed him to put the stuffing on my plate I was wished a Merry Christmas!  It was pretty cool to have an Afghan do that but later it got me thinking so much about how powerful Christ is, and how meaningful that was.  I know that it could be argued that Christmas is just a holiday now days and Christ really isn't mentioned much.  That is true of our society...we have allowed the most holy of holidays to become commercialized.  Yet that doesn't even matter in the light of how powerful Jesus actually is.  While those two generals were serving at a celebration of the Birth of Christ there were huge things happening that we could not see.  Walls and barriers were being chipped away.  Boundaries were being crossed.  Bridges were being built.  It was quite amazing.  To top it off the USAF chaplain prayed in Christ's name.  WOW!

Anyway, don't allow yourselves to get lonely.  If you are call me at 0707347915.  Please know that Christ is here with you.  When you miss your family and feel powerless.....take that as an opportunity to lean on Jesus.  He is right here with us ready to provide the comfort you need, 2 Thessalonians 2:16–17 says "Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace, comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word".


God Bless You,
Matt