Back 'Home'

Hello everyone. I wanted to let you all know that I made it back to Salatiga safe and sound. I had a wonderful time in Singapore, Ps. Stephen Goh and his family were wonderful! Very kind and generous, and all around good people. I thank God for people like that and think that we should all strive to be more like them (which, of course is best accomplished when striving to be more like Jesus). 

I arrived Thursday night, we had some dinner and then went home to rest. Friday was mostly just a resting and figuring out our week kind of a day, but on Friday night they had a small group in their home. During that time I was prayed for, and given some really encouraging words that I really needed. Saturday we went around a little bit and had some fun, and then Saturday night I went to worship practice with Ps Stephens son Josh, who was going to be leading worship the next day with friends of his from all different churches. (Cool!) We had a lot of fun together, yes, we did practice (they practiced, I watched) but there was also a lot of playing *no pun intended*...well maybe... Sunday morning the worship was good, and the word was even better. After church Ps Stephen asked me to help to pray for the congregation, which I did, and which I loved. I love being used by God. 

Monday, the day of truth, we went to the Embassy and filled out the application, and then we were told that it cost quite a bit of money, and would take 3 days to process, putting the pick up time exactly 5 hours after my plane left for Jakarta.... I had been told that it was a same day process, but such is the way of things. First things first, I asked if there was any way that she could make it faster so that I did not have to change my flight schedule. She said that she would call someone and to wait for a while. Next, go pay the bill, it was about exactly the amount that I had in my account, but I figured/prayed that God would provide. Alas, the Indonesian Embassy is a cash only institution, but thankfully I was there with Ps Stephen and he was able to loan me the cash that I needed. After this I asked the woman at the desk if she had called her boss. She said that she was sorry and that there was nothing she could do. I asked her if she would mind calling one more time, and handed her the receipt. After about 20 minutes, she called me over and said "Come back tomorrow at 3" Glory to God!
After we left the Embassy we went around the city and had a little fun. I got to see the Merlion, with a long discussion about the fact that anything unnatural is not of God, and had an all around good time. That night we went to a meeting, and I ran into someone I had met at the Friday meeting. I smiled and began to join the worship, as we were a few minutes late. As we sat down to wait for the next song she handed me an envelope that said "I felt that God wanted me to share His blessings with you." In the envelope was exactly the amount that I needed to pay for the visa, plus enough extra to put in the offering. I am so blessed! When I went to give it back to Ps. Stephen he refused to take it. I had effectively received twice the amount that I needed.
Tuesday we went around the city of Singapore, and it was a lot of fun. We went to the Embassy and picked up my visa with no problems. I ate some western food, and enjoyed speaking English all of the time, but by the time I was about half way through my day I was really missing Indonesia. It is amazing to me how much I have grown to love her. I don't know exactly how it will turn out, but I am excited to spend the next year here. I know that God is with me, and we will just have to wait and see what will happen next. 

Off to Singapore

I am finally in Singapore. It has been a bit of a long day, but I am good, and I think that I will have a really good week while I am here. Whenever I come here I am struck by the difference between the metropolis that is Singapore, with the laid back way of Indonesia, but I love it. 

I am so excited to learn Indonesian! Honestly, I can hardly even tell you how excited I am. School does not start until Sep 17th, but there are some things that I will need to take care of before then anyway. When I get back from Singapore I will have to go to Semarang and register there and get an Indonesian ID card for my time there, and things like that. I have many projects that I will be working on in September actually, one thing is that I am going to attempt to translate all of the songs for the Sunday service so that we can have the Indonesian lyrics with the English translation on the overheads. Another thing is that during the month of September Ps. Sam is heading up a mission to "adopt" a small town outside of Salatiga. During the day in this town you can find around 50 prostitutes, but at night there are over 300 women there, so every weekend we are going to be doing something to help. The first weekend we will be giving out food. The next we will have kind of an "Empowering Women" conference (for lack of a better word) to help them know that there is another and better way of life. Also, Sam will be giving away the book that he wrote about his testimony. To add to this adoption, they are also going to try and buy the church building that is in the town, as it is there are about 10 people in the church, and the pastor there is deathly ill, so Sam is going to be talking to other pastors around Salatiga to see if they can all spare members of the worship team, and a week to preach, and try to buy the building and really build up the church members (I am not talking just about size, but build up as in give them faith and transformed lives) in that area. I just want to mention here, that this venture will be costing Sam quite a bit of money, and if any of you want to donate to that cause specifically, then you are more than welcome. Just let me know. 

Back to what I am doing in Singapore, like I told you all before I have friends here that I will be staying with, and the plan is to go to the Embassy on Monday, because everyone is closed down for Ramadan on Friday this week. Actually, it has been really interesting to be in a Muslim nation during this time. Of course you all know that during the month of August, they all fast, but what I didn't know is that the fast ends in a week of feasting and what is called Idul Fitri, which is essentially the Muslim Day of Atonement. All of the families get together and forgive each other for things that happened during the past year. During this time, most places to eat are closed, so if you don't want to cook, go to someones house....because they will feed you, but be careful, because they will also take you to the neighbors house and you will probably get to eat three or four dinners before the day is out, which, by the way, happened to me. 

Well, it has been a long day, and I really want to sleep. I will update again soon. Please pray that everything goes smoothly and that there is no problem getting the visa. Love you all. 

A Few Thoughts

It has been a very busy week here in Indonesia. On Wednesday all of the students had a big test. On Friday, was Indonesian Independence Day, and today is Idul Fitri, the equivalent of the Muslim day of Atonement. It is a feast to celebrate the end of the month of fasting, and also a time to reconcile and forgive each other. Many Christians here celebrate it, and I have been invited to two different homes to celebrate tomorrow (my friend Abby had four homes to visit after church today).  

I am so thankful for the new cultural experiences I have been able to have since I have been here. Never mind that there were very loud fireworks and singing all night or that most of the restaurants have been closed for the month, it is amazing to see the world through eyes other than what I grew up with. There are so many things here that you have to get used to, that are just different, and yet the fundamental principle that people are people all over the world remains the same. 

This week will be busy as well. On Thursday I leave for Singapore, I will be there for four days, and I will get my student visa. Once I get it, I must go to IMLAC (the school I will be studying at) and give all of the proper paper work to the man in the office. Once I do that he will give me a KITAS, (not sure exactly what it stands for) and I will have to go to Semarang, the capital of Central Java and register there. Once that is done (and everything is paid for...which by the way, I need you all to pray for finances to come in, because as of July 1st their prices went up. Also, I am praying that I can get a motor bike while I am here. They cost around 1,000 to 13,000 and it would be a huge help this year while I am going up and down the mountain all the time.) I will begin school in mid September. Until then, I have been helping to teach English to the kids, and have also been teaching cross stitch or "kris stik" as they call it here. 

So as you can see, there is a lot to pray for, and there have been some challenges, but I am good. I understand a lot more Indonesian than I can speak, and you would not believe how nice it is to actually be able to understand some of what is going on. They all want me to learn Javanese, but I have asked that they let me learn Indonesian first. Actually there is a girl who is staying here right now from Papua...she speaks all 14 of the indigenous languages of Papua....truly amazing....and for some reason she is shy to learn English with me... go figure. I will tell you however, that on Independence Day I sang and danced with the kids for a performance at church. We sang "This is the Day that the Lord has Made" in Indonesian, Mentawai, Batak, Sunda, Papua, and English while dancing traditional dances from each island...needless to say they enjoyed the extra tall white person dancing their dances, and honestly I had fun. Normally I don't like to do things that I am not good at... (who does?) but I had a good time. 

Anyway, I am looking forward to next week, and we will see what happens...life is an adventure (read: challenge) and I am just getting started.

A Practical Word on Faith

We as Christians hear and speak about faith all the time, and many times we think about how fun, exciting or interesting a "life of faith" would be, but do we really understand what "living by faith is?" We as a community, it would seem, have come to understand living by faith as trusting God to heal a cold, or provide for us financially when we are a little low, but it should be so much more than that. That is only the first step. Living by faith should be much more like stepping out so far onto a limb that if God doesn't come through for you, you will die. We should be way out there, but the problem that I am beginning to see is that every time someone steps out that far, most of our brothers and sisters in Christ begin to pull back. They ask, "are you sure you heard from God?" or they say "That is not practical" or often use the term "good stewardship" instead of "practical". Having great faith is not about thanking God for the healing he has already given to someone who is really sick, or praying louder, or doing prophetic acts, it is about obedience, and faithfulness when it doesn't look good, or is inconvenient and believing that things really will change. 

I am not saying that God does not do supernatural and sudden healings, or financial miracles, but I am saying real faith is praying every day for however long it takes and believing for hearts to be changed. It is working at and believing for a good and whole marriage, and believing God that He will come through for you. Yet it is also risking financial insecurity if He asks you to spend a lot of money to do something impossible. It is praying for the dead to raise from the dead, but you can only raise people from the dead if you have spent a massive amount of time in prayer. There is the gift of healing, but you usually find it in people who have been faithful in many trials. Paul's faith was not that God would rescue him from persecution, but that because of his faithfulness, the people persecuting him would find the love of Christ. The reason that he was bitten by a snake and did not die is because he was displacing the pagan religion with the truth...not because he was playing with snakes and believing that God would not let him die. We are not using faith prove our own worth, but to establish Gods goodness and grace and power in this world. I guess what I am trying to say is that we should all take a minute to really evaluate what we think of faith, what we truly believe, and honestly challenge our own paradigms on the subject. I know you all believe it in your heads, but does your heart agree? If you were really being honest, what would you say about the way the church approaches faith today? Think about it. Pray about it. Decide. Run with it with all your might. See what He will do. 

Honestly...

The past few blogs have mostly just been updates about what is going on, but not really about where my heart is really at in all of this, so today I decided to tell you honestly. 

I know that I have said that I am very happy to be back here in Indonesia, but today I really proved that to myself. We went to church this morning, and it was a nice surprise to see that they put the English translation up on the overhead with the songs. I was able to greet most of the friends that I had not greeted yet, and then my friend Rolly and I went around Salatiga to hang out for a while. We had good conversation, and I was able to buy some things I wanted. Simple morning. Not much happening. I found myself not only smiling, but every time I got on the motorcycle to go somewhere else I felt like I was a little kid playing a game. I looked around and was just filled with this overwhelming since of how happy I was, and then I remembered that in September I will begin school. I cannot believe that I actually get to learn Indonesian!!! I am so excited. I feel like if I could pick a life, any life, that this is the one that I would have picked. The more I get back into the flow of things here the more I am really enjoying it. 

It is not only that I love the country, but it is also that I feel like I have a purpose, that I am working and doing something that is important. When I was on my way here from Maui I had a one hour layover in Tokyo. Not a big deal, I didn't think much of it, but while I was sitting in the airport God gave me a vision about what I am going to be doing here. I don't really want to share it right now, I am still in the process of praying about it and seeing how it will all fit...plus it is a lot bigger than me, so it is kind of intimidating; I will tell you though, that it fits in with all that I have been doing here up until now, and it really gives me a long term goal while I am here. It is always nice to have something to look forward to. Yesterday I was able to sit and listen to the students sing and play the guitar for about an hour, and I could not help but realize what a blessing it was. I love these kids so much. I am so blessed. I don't feel that I can adequately tell you what is in my heart to say, except to say that our God is so good, He is so faithful, and He always gives the best for His loved ones. I don't know how everything will work out. I don't know what will happen tomorrow, but I know that I am blessed, and happy. I feel loved, and I feel beautiful, I feel important, and I feel humbled. Honestly. 

Next Step

Well I have been here for a few days, and they have been wonderful. I have been able to spend a lot of time just re-acquainting myself with everyone, and with the way of life here. I am pretty much all set up in my room, and I am going to begin teaching English again tomorrow. It feels a little bit fast, but at the same time I am really excited. However, I do have one more hurtle to jump over before I get to where I am going, and start school...and that is a trip to Singapore. 

I knew coming over here that I would have to take a trip to Singapore the last week of August to get my student visa, and begin school in September. Now that is about two weeks away. It is not a big deal, except I would like to ask you all to be praying that finances come in for the trip. I have been being careful, but the tickets will cost a bit more than I expected them to. I have faith that God will provide, as He always does, and thus, am not worried, but I do ask you to keep that in prayer. I need to purchase them as soon as I can so that they don't go up even more in price. 

Once I am there I will need to go to the Embassy and apply for my visa, and then I should be all ready to go, and begin school in September. This will also cost money, but once again, I know that God will provide. 

Actually, I was talking to one of my friends today about the difference between living for a salary, and living in the inheritance. When we have a salary, or when we base decisions solely on money, then we always seem to see that lump sum decreasing; whereas, if we live in the inheritance, it is about not only money, but about the way you go through life. Yes, I need money for the airplane ticket, and I am not saying that we should not work hard, or be wise with our money, that is a part of being righteous and a strong witness to the world, but living in inheritance means that when I get to Singapore, I have friends there who will take me into their home. I have a place to stay, I am living out the benefit of who my dad is, and the legacy that he has left me to walk in.

I guess I just wanted to let you guys know what the next step is. Please pray for me tomorrow as I begin teaching, and know that I pray for you all often. I love and miss you guys, but am having the time of my life here. Talk to you soon. 

Stephanie

New Phase

I am finally here in Salatiga. I arrived yesterday morning in Jogja at 3:30, after being on a train for 9 hours, and then took another 2 hours to drive from there to here, but just as the students were finishing their morning prayer here in Penuai, I pulled in to one of my favorite places. It is really surreal that I am here again, and I am so thankful to be. I greeted everyone, shocking some of the ones who didn't know I was coming, and unpacked my bags. 

After a quick shower, I headed down into Salatiga to see all of the students at Destiny Inst. who didn't know that I was coming, and succeed in shocking the old students and meeting the new ones. I spent most of the day hanging out and re-connecting with people, and now I am on day two, and the plan is to go ahead and get settled in. 

Honestly, I am a little bit overwhelmed, I still have a bit of time left before I begin school, which is good, because there are other things that I want to be doing here as well, but when you are looking at something that is bigger than you it can be troublesome as to where you should start. Actually doing the thing that you have been wishing you could do is kind of difficult. It is like an olympian who actually wins the gold medal. There is nothing in the world that can compare with the joy, but also the sheer magnitude of what you just did. What do they do with their time three months later? Still train? Not nearly as hard. Now that I am in Salatiga again, instead of Hawaii or Bandung, it is here, this is it, I have to get to work, I don't know how this is gonna turn out, but I guess it's time to take the plunge....can anyone tell me where the pool is? Confident and a bit confused, but I am not really worried. I guess the first step would be to pray, to get myself centered, and settled, and we can go from there. So, with that in mind, please keep me in your prayers. I'll update again later. All my love. 

Me

Update

It is my last day here in Bandung. I am really excited to finally be going to Salatiga and begin the work that I actually came here to do, but I am finding that I am very sad to be leaving my friends here. I have been so blessed and felt so loved here in Bandung. We have all had a really good time. The trick to leaving is to look down the road you are taking, and not over your shoulder to the one that you are leaving. 

Honestly, I don't really feel ready to do all that I am going to do, but I guess the best way to get over that is just to trust God, and take it one moment at a time. Sometimes I feel that I can take on the world, and sometimes I feel that a whole day is too much for me. I am not really sure what all I will be doing, or how it is all going to go over, but what I do know is that in a few hours I will be getting on the train and going to see some people that I love very much, I know that the Lord is going with me, and that it was His idea in the first place, and I know that I have a few weeks to get used to everything before I go to Singapore to finalize my student visa. When I get back form Singapore I will officially be beginning school...which by the way, I cannot wait to do! I am so excited to be learning this language. I already enjoy using the little bit that I do know, so I think that the more I learn the more fun I will have...plus I will be better able to live and get around and the like. 

This is just a quick update, please be praying for me as I travel. I do have a friend going with me so I will be safe, and we will be traveling through the night. Also pray that I have a smooth transition, and that the dates and times that I have to go to Singapore work out well. I love you all very much, and I pray for you often. Talk to you again soon. 

Words of Action.

God is so Good. Can I just say that? Because He always comes through. Have you ever had one of those times when you just knew what He was going to say, and then He actually says what you needed to hear instead? He is so faithful. I just found out that one of the biggest things that has been ahem... concerning me is actually not an issue, and that it will not only be fine, but will probably end up being a lot of fun too. I don't really want to go into the details just now, but I can assure you that it is a huge answer to prayer. 

I have been here in Bandung for about three and a half weeks, and I have had a wonderful time the whole time. My original plan was to head to Salatiga on the 1st, but they asked me to stay until the 5th. I will be taking the train, and I have a friend that will be going with me to insure my safety. Such is the provision and blessing of our God. Actually, I have been blessed with favor here beyond what I thought I would be, they have told me that they wish I would stay another month at least; but I am beginning to be really excited and ready to get to work in Salatiga, to see my students again...who by the way, gave me a call the other day, not that they could really say much in English yet, but they just wanted to say hi. 

As I have been here, I have spent a good deal of time resting, and having fun, and praying, and have a good idea of what I will really be spending most of my time doing...besides just learning the language, I plan on doing everything I can to figure out a way to really teach the kids English, how to express themselves, and how to be well spoken in the language, but more than that I want to show them that the Father loves them. I don't want to just give them a voice, I want them to have something to say. I want them to be confident and know that they speak the truth, and that the truth is good. I want to teach them character, and grace. These things I can only teach them if I am there with them, it comes out of a heart of love. The best way to teach forgiveness is to forgive. The best way to teach them that they are loved is to love them. It's not about one grand act of love, but about the sharing of a life...for however long. I have received more love from someone that I barely knew, who acted kindly and understandingly to me than I have from some people that I have known for years and yet they never showed any interest in what I had to say, or who I was. So far, as I have spent time here, the language has been a bit difficult, but whenever someone doesn't say it right it just turns into a laughing fit and we all have a good time. What would it be like if when we made a mistake it was good fun instead of shameful? How much more willing would we be to try? I guess what I am trying to say is that actions speak louder than words. 

On a side note (but just as important) I wanted to let you know that I was able to connect with Ps. Sam this week, and we had a good talk. We are on the same page as far as I can tell. So, like I said before. God is just so good!