Many Hands, One Mission

June 1, 2026

Greetings to all of you from our beautiful home in Iowa. 

I truly love Iowa summers, especially the long daylight that stretches nearly until 9 PM. Since returning from Africa, I have been able to ride my bike almost every day. I try to get in at least 30 miles and, on a good day, over 50 miles. It takes several hours, but I genuinely enjoy it. Our Iowa trails are beautiful, and the rides give me time to pray, reflect, and consider what God is calling me to do in this season of life. 

While still in Africa, I ordered a new German-made electric assist trike, and it recently arrived. It has a slightly larger motor and improved suspension compared to my current ICE trike, which has faithfully carried me nearly 20,000 miles. I plan to keep the old one as a backup because I always want to have a bike ready to ride. I am especially looking forward to some rides with my wife Beth and our granddaughter, Juni, once school is out. 

The most significant event this past month was recruiting several hundred volunteers to help package meals at the Meals from the Heartland warehouse in West Des Moines. I am deeply grateful to everyone who stepped up to serve. Together, we packaged more than 285,000 meals that will eventually make their way to Africa. 

Because ocean shipping takes six weeks or more, the food likely will not arrive until August. Over the past year, importing food containers into South Africa has become increasingly difficult, and many of the children who depend on these meals have suffered greatly as a result. For some children, the meals we provide are the most reliable food they receive all day. 

Many of you have prayed faithfully and generously helped provide funds so we could purchase local food in Africa during this difficult season. On behalf of our children, thank you. Your prayers and generosity are truly making a difference, and I believe lives have been saved because of your compassion. 

The week of June 15, we will host another major food packaging effort, and I would encourage you to consider volunteering. You can contact our office or Meals from the Heartland for more information, or sign up on the Meals from the Heartland website. Whether it is your church, your company, your family, or simply you personally, just an hour or two of your time can help feed thousands of children. 

If you have never participated in a food packaging event, I encourage you to come experience it firsthand. Iowa is truly helping feed the world. 
I would also like to share a little about what daily life in medical mission work looks like for us in Africa. 

Much of our time there is spent hosting short-term church mission teams. In a typical season, we may host 10 or 11 teams, and it truly becomes an “all hands on deck” effort for our entire staff of around 40 employees in Africa. We work hard to ensure every team member has a meaningful and life-changing experience. 

Our days usually begin around 6:30 in the morning and often do not end until 9 at night. We expose teams to many different areas of ministry, including water and sanitation projects, church plants, feeding initiatives, and boys’ and girls’ empowerment programs that distribute hygiene products and teach important life skills. 

One of my favorite parts of the day is gathering around an African campfire in the evening. Even when I am exhausted, these moments are incredibly meaningful. Team members often share what God has been doing in their hearts as they experience missionary life in Africa firsthand. These are the moments people remember and reflect on for years after they return home. 

People often ask what we do when mission teams are not with us. It reminds me a little of the old joke that pastors only work on Sundays. The reality is that there is always more to do than there are hours in the day. The work never truly ends, but I would not trade this life for anything. 
Our son Dustin and his wife Alex carry much of the leadership responsibility in Africa, and we are incredibly blessed with an outstanding team both there and in the United States. Our team truly feels like family, and together we are working toward something much bigger than ourselves. 

The eight-hour time difference between Iowa and Africa means many early morning Zoom meetings when I am home and late evening meetings when I am abroad. Life is certainly full, but I am grateful that it is full of the things I love most. 
 
Prayer request:  Please pray with me that our current food container will have smooth sailing across the ocean and will pass through customs without any issues.