A Mission With Wings

Members of First Church received a delightful treat on Sunday, May 20, when missionary Gaston Nkulu Ntambo visited with the congregation. Joining him were his wife, Jeanne Kabove Ntambo, and their four-year-old daughter, Eileen Nkulu. Gaston and Jeanne have three other children besides Eileen: Andy Nkulu, Gabriel Kahenga, Noah Kabove. Gaston is a missionary of the General Board of Global Ministries of the United Methodist Church (GBGM) assigned to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). If his name sounds familiar, that may be because Gaston’s father is Bishop Ntambo Nkulu of the North Katanga Conference, who is a long-time friend to First Church.

Gaston and his family are based in Luena, where Gaston serves as a pilot and mechanic with the Wings of the Morning flight ministry in the North Katanga Conference. The aviation ministry provides transportation in hard-to-reach areas of Africa, especially in emergency situations. This ministry is available to anyone who may suffer from life-threatening injuries and illnesses, and there is no charge to these individuals for transportation to hospitals.

"I believe God is using me as a tool to reach out and save lives," explained Gaston. And his wife, Jeanne, also shares in this calling. Jeanne follows the flight paths for planes involved in the ministry. "I believe God has called me into his ministry by making me available at all times, even when I am busy with my four children." She notes that there are no air traffic controllers or weather reporting stations in many of the areas that Wings of the Morning serves, which makes pilots all-the-more dependent on her services. "Through God’s power, I have had an experience of saving pilots’ and passengers’ lives," she testifies.

Gaston shared with our congregation his accounts of his work with Wings of the Morning as well as his dream of having a larger plane that runs on lower-cost and easier-to-obtain gas. While it may seem counter-intuitive, a larger plane would be much cheaper to operate. It would allow for fewer trips when transporting people and supplies (the current plane fits 5 passengers without luggage), and would not require AV-gas, making each trip less expensive.

More Opportunities to Learn About Wings of the Morning

For more information on how you can support Gaston and the Wings of the Morning ministry visit his page at the United Methodist Church's Board of Global Missions.