MAF’s first student from Singapore has begun full-time pilot training at Mareeba in Far North Queensland, Australia. But Ezra reveals why his own dreams had to ‘die’ first.
Story by Matt Painter
The new student sits alone in the sun on an outdoor chair. His notes are in his lap, his eyes are closed. He speaks to himself, methodically working through a checklist with his hands reaching for switches around his mental cockpit.
Meet Ezra Tan, who recently commenced flight training at the MAF Training Centre, with Aviation Australia’s Diploma of Aviation.
“It’s quite a remote, outback place,” Ezra said. “I arrived about two weeks ago. I was very impressed. The first few times I got to touch the aeroplanes; I was very impressed with their condition. I’m very impressed by the open communication channels as well.
“My first flight here was just last week. The moment the vibrations from the wheels stopped—oh man, my vocabulary isn't enough! I remember the feeling. I don't have the words. It was just surreal, it felt like flotation. It felt very comfortable.”
Ezra’s fascination with technology began at a young age. Not only planes, but trains, bikes, submarines and even his sister’s alarm clock caught Ezra’s attention. Having successfully fixed the clock, he turned his developing skills to the refrigerator light. Then when he saw the Space Shuttle at the NASA World Tour in Singapore, his love for winged aircraft took hold.
At fifteen years of age, Ezra questioned his purpose in life. His youth pastor challenged him with the Parable of the Talents, imploring him to find out what his talents were.
“And that's where I felt God say ‘missions’. But at that time, I struggled because I also really felt very passionate about aeroplanes. I wanted to pursue a career as a pilot, and it felt at odds because of the limited information I had about what missions really meant,” he said.
I remember the feeling. I don't have the words. It was just surreal, it felt like flotation.
“I felt that if I want to go and do missions, I would have to give up my dream of being a pilot because there just wouldn't be the time or space for it after being ‘delayed’ by a missions term. Or if I choose to be a pilot, then I would be too old do missions by the time I finished the many years of bond with the airlines or the Air Force.
“That struggle went on for about seven years. One random day, I felt God prompt, ‘Choose now. Do you want to be your pilot, or do you want to be my missionary?’ About three days later, I guess you can say in frustration, I decided, ‘Okay, fine, God. I'll just go and do missions. I'll give up being a pilot.’
“I caught up with my missions pastor and told him about my decision. He knew about this dilemma… We had a conversation in the church office making plans, preparations for me to be sent on missions. But halfway through that conversation, he suddenly remembered about my dilemma between the call to missions and my dream to be a pilot. He asked what would happen to that dream, to which I responded that I'm giving it up. At that very moment, he recalled that he received an email from MAF that very same week, and suggested ‘Why don't you go and take a look at this organisation first? It might be a better fit for you.’
Ezra attended a MAF Singapore event where Chad Tilley, a MAF pilot who previously flew in Bangladesh, was speaking and sharing stories of MAF’s work.
“The ministry blew me away. It was the perfect middle ground between being a pilot and serving in missions,” Ezra said.
But Ezra was angry at God, having already made up his mind to give up flying. He asked his pastor why God hadn’t revealed such a ministry earlier.
“My pastor responded, ‘God is often like that. He waits for us to put to death our own desires first. Then he reveals more.’
My pastor responded, ‘God is often like that. He waits for us to put to death our own desires first. Then he reveals more.’
“That struck me, particularly the words ‘put to death’. Because at that same season, I was also dealing with the words from Dietrich Bonhoeffer, ‘When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die.’
“I know it sounds crude. ‘Come and die.’ But it's actually an echo of Christ's words. When you want to follow Him, you have to carry your cross daily.
“It was at that moment I realised—if I didn't reach that altar of surrender first, before knowing about MAF, then I would be pursuing this mission organisation for all the wrong reasons. I'd be pursuing it because I get to fly aeroplanes, because I get to be a pilot, and I’d completely miss the missions heart behind it.”
Ezra continues to move forward in his training and has just flown solo in Mareeba.
"Upon successfully completing that first solo flight, as the engine finally rumbled to a stop, I felt a sense of reaffirmation and peace that I am indeed aligned with God's plan for me. And that traditional drenching of water after one's solo flight somehow felt like a washing away of the many years of lies and discouragement from pursuing a ministry in missions. I am going to fly for life, preferably for life!"