Not forgotten

In the remote village of Lesirwai, northern Tanzania, access to healthcare is a daily struggle. The nearest town is more than four hours away, and no vehicle can easily access the community. But once a month, everything changes.

Thanks to MAF, a small aircraft brings nurses and doctors to Lesirwai, delivering vital maternal healthcare and vaccines to mothers like Nepili. For her and many others, this flight is more than transportation, it’s a lifeline.

‘We struggle a lot,’ Nepili shares. ‘There’s no vehicle that can reach here easily. When the plane lands, even if it’s just once a month, it’s everything!’

Children are often the first to greet the plane, running towards it with excitement.

‘They’re shy at first,’ laughs MAF Pilot Roshan Stephen (pictured above). ‘But once you smile, they light up. You wave, and they wave back. You laugh, and they laugh too. It’s simple, but it stays with you.’

A mission of presence and hope

For Roshan, each flight is more than a job. It’s a mission of presence and hope. ‘Every time I fly out there, I feel it. It’s not just about landing and leaving, it’s about showing up for people who are often forgotten.’

To the people of Lesirwai, this monthly flight is a powerful reminder that they are seen, remembered, and cared for.

‘We don’t get visitors often,’ smiles Nepili, ‘but when the plane comes, it’s like the world remembers us.’

Nepili’s words deeply echo the heart of Jesus that none should be forgotten, excluded or downtrodden. We see this in so many of Jesus’ encounters with people.

Luke’s gospel provides us with numerous examples of people who, although they’ve been shunned and despised by others, find Jesus coming close.

‘While Jesus was in one of the towns, a man came along who was covered with leprosy. When he saw Jesus, he fell with his face to the ground and begged him, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.” Jesus reached out His hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” He said. “Be clean!” and the leprosy left him.’ (Luke 5:12-13 NIV)

A deeply symbolic act

Leprosy was a very lonely disease. Many of the people who’d been infected by it had to live outside the main hub of community so they wouldn’t infect others. Attending temple worship was forbidden unless they were declared clean, but unfortunately many remained infected throughout their lives.

To reach out and touch a leper was an incredibly symbolic act because Jesus didn’t need to touch anyone to be able to heal them. Instead, this act communicated, ‘I see you, and you are worthy of love.’

The healing that ensued was a demonstration that the Kingdom of God was for such as these.

New Testament scholar Grant Osborne called this act the ‘love hermeneutic’ — the willingness to break Jewish taboos to alleviate suffering.

Jesus, Scripture shows, was happy in the company of the outcast, the abandoned, the rejected and the forgotten. In fact, He often sought them out.

I think of Zacchaeus, the woman caught in adultery, the women at the well and the demon possessed man, to name but a few precious people.

To those that were angered and offended by His proximity to the poor, Jesus had this to say: ‘Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it?’ (Luke 15:4 NIV)

Good news and a good shepherd

Jesus was intent on going to those who were marginalised and far away, and those who were often excluded from the community. They were people who were far from the action, far from good news and all too easily forgotten.

The parable closes with a beautiful image of a shepherd joyfully carrying the sheep home on his shoulders.

As followers of Jesus, we want to share the Good News that there is a Shepherd who sees, seeks and will never forget His people. So, as Jesus reached out and touched the leper in a radical act of love, may we too be those who show God’s love in this way.

May MAF continue to let people know they are remembered and not forgotten.

Response

• Do you feel forgotten today? Take a moment to quiet yourself and imagine Jesus the good shepherd walking alongside you or rescuing you from danger. Know that He sees you and He is with you.
• Is there someone in your life who feels as if they’re on the outside or who believes they’ve been forgotten? Could you encourage them in some way today?
• Pray that everyone MAF serves today will know that they are known by a loving God, and that He cannot forget His beloved creation.