Happy New Year! Happy 2016!

Pickin' & Grinnin'

Culture is often times the thing that tells us what is right or wrong, appropriate or inappropriate. This little Pekal boy is not just being a little boy. Culturally speaking, it is perfectly okay to pick your nose in public. It is not unusual to see grown men AND women with their fingers up their noses to the first digit. Digging for nuggets in them thar hills can be serious business here in Sumatra!

The men in Sumatra have elevated blowing snot out of their nose to a high art form. Driving down the street it is not out of the ordinary to see a man lean out the window and blow an incredibly large wad of snot to the pavement. One worker envies this ability, but he is afraid to try it for fear of ending up with snot all over his face or shirt or both. Some things just take a lifetime of practice, and aren’t worth trying to pick up later-in-life.

The point of this article is not to advocate for nose picking or blowing in the United States. The point is that cultural norms vary, and cross-cultural workers are constantly finding themselves in situations that stretch their cultural sensitivities. By the by, they think it’s gross that we blow our noses into tissues.

On the downside, it’s very rude on Sumatra to pick your teeth. So if you get something stuck in your teeth while eating in public, you have to make up your mind if you are going to be rude and give it a quick dig, or just suffer! It’s actually okay to dig as long as you use your hand and cover up while you’re digging!

Pray for workers on Sumatra to have wisdom and grace to deal with cultural differences.

Pray for the Holy Spirit to grant favor and grace to workers when they break cultural norms without knowing it.

Pray for workers to have courage to challenge cultural norms when those norms violate the Word of God. 

Chocolate in its Original Wrapper

This is the fruit of a coco tree. It is more recognizable to us in the United States in a Hershey’s wrapper than in its original form! Chocolate is a major crop in many areas of Sumatra. On a recent survey trip a worker traveled to an area that produced chocolate. A worm had infested the trees. The worm did not impact the amount of fruit produced by the tree, but altered the taste of the fruit in essence still ruining the crop.

All the labor of a farmer is looking forward to the time of harvest. There are so many things that can go wrong. Every good farmer knows that he must work as if everything depends on him, and pray as if everything depends on God. Ultimately it is God who brings in the harvest.

In a similar manner cross cultural workers in Sumatra are also looking towards a rich harvest. They too realize that many things can go wrong in the work of sowing Gospel seeds in hopes of a harvest of souls. There are several worms that can wiggle in and destroy the crop of a cross cultural worker.

One worm is tradition of the people. Tradition is not a bad thing if it is in line with God’s truth, but when tradition contradicts God’s Word, it is a powerful barrier to belief. Many people in Sumatra are unwilling to even consider the Gospel because it is not in line with their religion and their cultural traditions.

Another worm is language and culture. As workers learn a new language and culture one of the first things they learn is that they are outsiders. No matter how good their language becomes or how knowledgeable they are about local culture, they will always be seen as outsiders. As an outsider it is difficult to affect change and introduce new ideas so that the people will accept them.

A final worm among many is access to the people. One of the reason that many people groups remain unreached is because they are very difficult to access. The roads are not good. The infrastructure is non-existent.  The local government will not give permission to outsiders to come and live among the people. The living conditions are so harsh that workers don’t do well even when they gain access.

These are just a few of the worms that slow down the process of savoring a sweet crop among the least reached groups on Sumatra. These are worms that need to be treated with powerful believing prayer!

Pray that the Holy Spirit will convict the peoples of Sumatra to let go of traditions that do not square with the truth of God’s Word.

Pray for God to break down the barriers of culture and language that make it difficult for workers to effectively share the Gospel.

Pray for open doors and resilient workers to go into the difficult to access areas of Sumatra.

Pray for a huge harvest of souls among all 53 of the Unreached People Groups on Sumatra.

To Fix a Flat

This is a typical example of a tire repair shop in Sumatra. This particular shop is geared towards motorcycles. Roads being such as they are on Sumatra it is not uncommon to pick up a nail or screw in your tire and have it go flat. Some people here quip that all the nails and screws on the road were put there by owners of tire repair businesses like this one! It normally costs one or two dollars to repair a punctured tire.

Nobody likes having to slow down to fix a flat tire. It is inconvenient. It takes you out of the flow of traffic, which is at times challenging to reenter. It stops your forward motion. It makes you late for your next appointment. But to ignore a flat tire can create bigger problems and longer delays.

God often uses little irritations, like a flat tire, to slow His children down. We can push through these warnings, but to do so often causes bigger problems and longer delays. Whenever an unexpected slowdown occurs it is always best to slow down and become alert to ways that the Father is at work.

Pray for believers on Sumatra to be sensitive to God’s delays and interruptions as invitations to be involved in His work both in them and around them.

Pray for believers here to resist the urge to ignore or push through delays and miss what God is trying to do.

Pray for divine appointments to share the Gospel among all the people groups living on this island.

Many have never heard and believers here are too busy or inward focused to slow down and share.

Bengkulu People Group Profile

“‘Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the LORD GOD is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation’” (Isaiah 12:2, ESV).

The Bengkulu people are descended from a mixture of different cultures including the Malay, Mingangkabau, Aceh, Bugis, and Jawa peoples. The 60,000 Bengkulu live in and around the city of Bengkulu on the southwestern coast of Sumatra. The Bengkulu language is a form of Malay. Because of their blended heritage, the Bengkulu are welcoming to many other ethnic groups. Therefore, there are several people groups living among the Bengkulu.

The extended family unit is very important in Bengkulu society. Very few family decisions are made without the consensus of parents and siblings. When community-wide decisions are made, the Bengkulu seek consensus through a council comprised of respected leaders from all the family units in the community.

Most Bengkulu people earn a living from fishing. Because of this, the Bengkulu still celebrate Tabot according to the Islamic calendar. This festival is held to honor the Sea Dragon so that their fishermen will not be harmed at sea. The Bengkulu are Muslim, but, as is seen in the celebration of Tabot, they still hold to some traditional, animistic beliefs.

There are only a handful of Bengkulu believers. There is currently no indigenous Bengkulu church.

Pray that:

God will turn the Bengkulu people into fishers of men.

Entire Bengkulu family groups will receive the Gospel together.

Dreams and visions will be given to the Bengkulu, awakening them to the truth of who Jesus is.

Believers living among the Bengkulu will become burdened to share the Gospel boldly.

Believers will receive training in how to share in a sensitive and relevant way with the Bengkulu.

God will call fellowships in the United States and on Sumatra to adopt the Bengkulu in prayer and through sending workers.

The first indigenous, reproducing church will soon be birthed among the Bengkulu.

What Snacks Lack

In just about any traditional market throughout Sumatra you will find a stall that has bags of snacks like this photo taken in Bandar Lampung. Most snack food like this will sell for around a dollar a bag. It is customary when you travel to buy something to bring back to your friends. The gift is called an oleh-oleh. Snacks like these are often times used as an oleh-oleh.

The idea behind the oleh-oleh is that while separated from our family and friends we thought about them a got them a little something. Doing little things to strengthen the bonds of relationships is an important value among many cultures here on Sumatra.

The difficulty comes when the number of people expecting an oleh-oleh exceeds your ability to buy or carry the oleh-oleh back from the place you visited. This cultural value is often set up to become a letdown and disappointment. It is kind of like the after Christmas letdown when the expectation doesn’t match the reality of what is received.

The root cause of the letdown is looking for satisfaction and meaning in things or relationships. Everyone who seeks satisfaction in life from people or stuff will ultimately be let down. God is the only source of ultimate satisfaction, but He is often the last source that people try after shopping around from other sources.

The best oleh-oleh is when we pray for and share the Gospel with those we love. To those who understand the value of such things, it will be more than enough. To those who do not understand, even the most extravagant oleh-oleh will only bring temporary interest. The best thing about prayer and the Gospel is that it has already been paid for by Jesus, it’s eternal, and it doesn’t take up any space or weight in your luggage!

Pray for Sumatrans to seek satisfaction in life from God.

Pray for believers on Sumatra to see the value of prayer and the Gospel so that they share both liberally with all the people around them.

Pray for the Holy Spirit to reveal the reality of how things and people can never replace God as the source of satisfaction in life.

Hurry Home

This Banjar man owned a speed boat that he used to ferry people from Tembilahan to several of the coastal villages in the area. Workers rented his boat to go to a Duano village that was over two hours away. The workers thought the ride was bouncy going, but they didn’t realize that the going part was going to be smooth compared with coming home!

It took over two hours to go to the village, but it only took an hour and a half to go home. Apparently the driver had not planned to spend so long waiting for the workers to head back, so he really opened the throttle on the way home. It was fun when the boat flies over a wake and is airborne for a couple of seconds, but when the boat slams back onto the water all the fun of flying is quickly forgotten. The workers joked with each other that it was a nice ride once you set aside the lost fillings and internal bleeding caused by the constant jarring of the boat on the waves!

There is something universal about heading for home that makes all of us like this Banjar man. We want to push a little harder and go a little faster. There is a longing in our hearts to return safely from a journey and come into the safe haven we all call home. Spiritually speaking we are all rushing along the journey called life, but we will at some point be called home. The question is, “What type of eternal home are people rushing towards?”

Most of the people among the Banjar, Duano, Riau Malay, Javanese, and Bugis people groups are rushing towards an eternal home, but eternity will not be as welcoming as they hope. They need to hear about a Savior who can prepare a home for them in heaven. They need the help of the Spirit to set aside religion and cultural belief to hear and comprehend this Gospel. They need to find their way to a new home in Christ. This is a difficult journey, but not nearly as difficult as staying on the path that they have chosen for themselves.

Pray for workers to meet people on their way home with the Good News of a new home in heaven.

Pray for the peoples of Sumatra to respond with faith to the Gospel.

Pray for strength and journey mercies for workers going to hard-to-reach areas with the Gospel.

Pray for grace and strength for people on Sumatra to let go of culture and religion in order to embrace God’s truth and be saved.

Gospel Thumbs Up

This woman sat and listened as a worker shared the Gospel with several students from a Muslim academy called a Pesantren. It was interesting because the worker arrived just as the Mosque sounded the call to prayer on Friday afternoon. This is the main time for prayer for Muslims, but the students stayed to listen to the Gospel.

The thumbs up was not really for the Gospel. The woman agreed with the importance of being obedient to God and trying to deal with the sin issue that everyone struggles with. Her answer to the dilemma is good works. It’s like the Muslim brain is hard-wired toward good works. It just doesn’t make sense to them that good works are not sufficient to deal with the severity of their sin problem.

Prayer is essential. Only God can break through this hard-wired thought process that rejects anything other than a works based payment for sin. The Gospel can be shared contextually and compassionately, but until the cultural response is altered by a work of the Holy Spirit the results are small. They hear, but they don’t comprehend.

Pray for workers who are sharing the Gospel not to lose heart by the lack of response and in some cases with angry responses.

Pray for the Holy Spirit to remove the veil that is keeping people in Sumatra from receiving the Gospel.

Pray for Muslims in Sumatra to realize the futility of paying their sin debt through good works.

Photo from Palembang

Pray for the river peoples of Sumatra.

Just Need a Push

The nice thing about living in Sumatra is that people are willing to jump in and help when a need arises. This truck wouldn’t start. No problem; several men jumped in and gave the truck a push to get it started and off they went. One worker remembers a time when his car’s tire was stuck in a ditch and four Sumatran men jumped in and lifted the car tire out of the ditch so the worker could back up. It’s amazing what Sumatrans can do when they work together!

There are many churches on Sumatra. They know the Bible, and they know how much God loves the lost. They know the gospel, and that they are supposed to be sharing it with those around them. But, like the truck in this photo, they need a little push to get them rolling.

The 53 Unreached People Groups (UPGs) on Sumatra will not be reached until the church on Sumatra is awakened to their Great Commission responsibilities. One of the key activities that workers on Sumatra are involved in is to train and vision cast with churches. Oddly enough, workers are finding resistance to this effort not from the church members but rather from the pastors of the churches.

Pastors here are afraid of community reaction. They might get threatened. Their buildings might get vandalized or even burned to the ground. They might have to go through persecution. These fears are not unfounded. Yet, even so, they need to be obedient to God’s commands, and they need to lead God’s children to obey the Great Commission. To do this takes heavenly courage.

Pray for believers on Sumatra to have the opportunity to be trained in how to share the Gospel in a contextual manner.

Pray for workers to have wisdom and influence to give believers here the push they need to get started in sharing the Gospel to all the peoples of Sumatra.

Pray for God to soften the hearts of pastors on Sumatra who have opposed the idea of reaching out with the Gospel to the UPGs living around them.

Pray for God to strengthen persecuted believers in Sumatra so that they will obey the Great Commission in the midst of the fire. 

Fresh Off the Tree

This Jambi man is preparing coconuts to sell at a traditional market. There are many ways that coconuts are sold at the market. This man is shredding coconut to be used in baking. Many of the products on Sumatra and manually produced. This is because labor is cheap. The average manual laborer on Sumatra makes $5 to $10 a day.

Unfortunately $5 to $10 a day doesn’t really meet the financial needs of a family. For this reason, it is not uncommon for both the mom and dad to have a job and to work long hours. As the parents are working all day, it often leaves the children unsupervised. It is a vicious cycle that leads to a poverty mentality. This is the same thinking that causes people to rationalize stealing – You have, I don’t therefore it is okay for me to just take it.

Jesus sees the plight of the poor, and He wants His children to see it too. The physical needs on Sumatra are overwhelming. It is easy just to close our eyes, or even to get angry at the poverty mentality. It is uncomfortable to “have” resources when so many around you are among the “have nots.” Jesus Himself was among the poor when He walked the earth, but that did not keep Him from being generous with what He had. For those of us from a Western, prosperous nation it is hard to comprehend the lack of resources that is normal to the people here.

Pray for workers on Sumatra to see the needs of the poor and to respond with compassion, wisdom, and generosity.

Pray for the poor to escape from the poverty mentality that rationalizes stealing and other poor decisions.

Pray for believers to not only alleviate the needs of the very poor in a way that helps without hurting, but at the same time share the riches of Christ by sharing the Gospel.

Pray for God’s grace for all the unsupervised children on Sumatra.

Light a Candle for Sumatra

This prayer guide is available to download in both low and high resolution versions at: http://ge.tt/1amVbFR2. 

Kayu Agung People Group Profile

“But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ” (Ephesians 2:13, ESV).

The 20,000 Kayu Agung people live in the Kayu Agung and Upper Ogan Komering Ilir districts of South Sumatra. Kayu Agung means “great or noble wood.” The Kayu Agung language is a form of Malay. They earn their living from farming and trading. Often they do both because the swampy land where they live is not able to support crops year-round.

Most Kayu Agung people live in the same area their entire lives, but there is a tradition that leads many young men to leave their villages. The idea is somewhat akin to Robin Hood. The men leave for the purpose of stealing something really valuable and then bringing the wealth back to the village. Those who succeed are highly honored. Those who fail rarely return. They either die or are imprisoned in their attempts to take from the rich. Others settle elsewhere rather than facing the shame of their failure. It’s common to read newspaper articles about Kayu Agung men dying in shoot-outs with local police.

The Kayu Agung are predominately Islamic. They also believe that the spirits of the dead can cause problems for the living. Because of this belief they perform a ritual with flowers that will confuse the spirit so that it will not stay in the area. They often consult the dukun (shaman) for help with planting, harvesting, and various health issues. There are few known believers and no known Kayu Agung churches.

Pray that:

God will open the hearts of the Kayu Agung people to hear and receive the Gospel.

The Holy Spirit will bring conviction of sin amongst the Kayu Agung so that they confess Christ.

Intercessors will battle for the Kayu Agung until a strong, indigenous Gospel witness is established.

Believers will be willing to give sacrificially to show the love of Jesus to the Kayu Agung.

Workers will have discernment to see the needs of the Kayu Agung and wisdom to serve them accordingly.

Believers among the Kayu Agung will be taught to obey God’s Word and become fishers of men.

The spiritual harvest will come soon among the Kayu Agung.

Starting the Day with a Song

This is a kindergarten class of Kaur children singing a song together before going into class. Sumatrans love to sing. It’s not uncommon for complete strangers to ask you to sing something while you are visiting in their village. One worker, who admittedly is a joyful-noise-singer, uses “This is the Day” as his song to share.

Education is not yet universally available to Sumatran children. Many children from rural areas get no more than a sixth grade education. Children who want to go on to secondary and high school often have to leave their village to go to larger cities. This means from the age of 13 years old they are living in boarding schools.

Books and materials in rural schools are also not always current. Because of the difficulties of the education system, many village communities put higher value in religious education. They feel that they can teach the children how to farm, but hope the religious training will teach them how to be good people.

Unfortunately, people cannot be taught how to be good. There is a brokenness in the nature of mankind that happened early on in the garden. The only thing that can set a person right is an operation from heaven. The means of this operation is found in the Gospel. Many of these Kaur children will live their lives without ever hearing about the radical love of God expressed in the Gospel unless workers are called and sent to them.

Pray for God to teach the Kaur a new song of His redeeming love.

Pray for workers to answer God’s call to go to the Kaur and share the wonderful love of Jesus.

Pray for truly transformed lives among the Kaur.

Pray for greater education opportunities for the children of Sumatra. 

Strange Performances

This woman dressed up in a mouse-suit is just one in a variety of performers who go from neighborhood to neighborhood. For $1 the performer will do a short performance to entertain young children. She had a music box she carried that gave her something to dance to.

Many of these performers have animals – performing monkeys, dogs and the like. One such performer pulled out a snake, but that was too much for several of the younger children in the audience and they burst into tears!

Stranger yet than street performances for tips are people who are trying to perform well enough to earn their way into heaven. There are many people on Sumatra who believe that their good deeds must outweigh their bad deeds in order for them to be accepted by God. The problem with a performance based salvation is that no one is good enough to merit salvation.

Pray for Sumatrans trapped in a merit based salvation system to see that the debt has already been paid in full by Jesus Christ.

Pray for believers on Sumatra not to fall into the performance trap and try to “earn” their salvation after having received the Gospel.

Pray for the Holy Spirit to reveal the way, the truth, and the life among all the peoples of Sumatra.

Photo from Aceh - Tamiang

Following what is Modeled

The ideal of manliness in Indonesia is coupled with smoking. It’s very rare to meet a man in Indonesia who doesn’t smoke. It is only natural that this little boy in Lampung would be interested in the box full of cigarettes. All the men around him model this interest.

This reveals a deep human truth. What a person does has a far greater influence than what a person says. And the person with greater influence by far is the person whose talk and actions go together in perfect harmony. This is often the problem with religious people on Sumatra. Too many times the actions of the life do not match the proclamation of faith. This is true among all of the religions here.

One of the factors in the life of Christ that is so compelling is the absolute harmony between what Jesus taught and how He lived. If only the same could be said of those who claim to be His followers on Sumatra.

Pray for believers on Sumatra to live according to the example of Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit.

Pray for people on Sumatra to comprehend the perfect unity between how Christ lived and what Christ taught.

Pray especially for Sumatrans to hear, understand, and accept what Christ taught specifically about Himself.

Jesus does not expect us to do anything that He did not do Himself. After all He left a perfect model for us to follow!

Just a Rock

This Lampung Abung man was selling rings. Opinions about rings like this vary widely. One seller said the rocks in the rings were just rocks, with no substantive difference from the rocks used to pave the street. Others claim that the stones have magical powers and believe they can bring protection and special abilities to the wearer. The Indonesian word for objects with occult powers is jimat [gee-MAT].

Occultism is a widespread phenomenon in Lampung. Many people trust in jimat and other magical items to help them deal with life’s problems. These occult beliefs are often laid alongside other religious beliefs. This syncretistic tendency is a major challenge for those who are trying to lead people into a close relationship with God.

Those who want to be close to God cannot continue in the paths of occultism. Paul warned the Corinthians that it is not possible to participate at the table of the Lord and of demons (1 Corinthians 10:21). Many new believers on Sumatra have occult ties that need to be broken. These connections are often times generational and it takes a good deal of teaching, prayer, and patience to help these new believers to be free.

Pray for believers witnessing on Sumatra to have wisdom and grace to deal gently, but firmly with new believers involved in occult practices.

Pray for believers to break free from syncretistic tendencies within their cultures.

Pray for power to break the spiritual strongholds on Sumatra perpetuated by occultism. 

Tears for Sumatra Prayer Guide

Pray for all the unreached people groups in Sumatra - http://ge.tt/5FZOgIP2/v/0. 

Photo from Riau

Bonai Malay People Group Profile

“For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done” (Matthew 16:47, ESV).

The 14,000 Bonai Malay live in the western part of Riau Province. Until recently they were considered “foreign” by their own government because of their refusal to enter into the modern world. But in this generation, all of that has changed. The Bonai Malay have embraced a more modern way of life. They are sending their children to school. They are welcoming electricity and other tools into their villages for the first time.

Prior to this generation the Bonai Malay lived as hunter-gatherers. They worshipped nature and followed animism as their religion. Today, most Bonai Malay have received Islam. Many credit the advances in the villages to their acceptance of the Muslim religion.

Because the Bonai Malay, unlike the other Malay groups on Sumatra, just recently received Islam they struggle more with syncretism. They often default to the religious experiences of their forefathers. There are no known believers among this group. There is no indigenous church.

The Bonai Malay have great needs for continuing education and community development.

Pray that:

God will call, equip, and send workers to share the Gospel with the Bonai Malay.

The Holy Spirit will break the powers of darkness forged through generations of animism.

The Holy Spirit will convict the Bonai Malay of sin and show them the hopelessness of works-based salvation.

Believers will engage in community development projects among the Bonai Malay to show the love of Christ.

Professional believers will use their businesses to help develop the Bonai Malay area while sharing the Gospel.

The Bonai Malay will see Jesus in His glory with His angels, and will come to know Him as the way of salvation.

Bonai Malay believers will be won to Christ, grouped, discipled, and encouraged to grow in Christlikeness.

You Dirty Dog!

This land owner in Lampung was tired of people throwing garbage on his property. It is a common problem that Sumatrans throw their garbage everywhere. Many beautiful beaches are littered with garbage. However, this habit of tossing garbage anywhere also included people’s private property.

In Indonesian culture it is serious business to call someone a “dog.” The writing on this wall says that people who throw garbage here are a dog. The message connected, because you’ll notice that the ground under the writing is pretty clean for Indonesian standards.

The problem of dealing with garbage is not only a sanitation issue, it is also a spiritual issue for the peoples of Sumatra. Lying, stealing, cheating are all wide spread issues on Sumatra. The word used to sum up all these problems is corruption. The word God uses is sin.

One of the great needs on Sumatra is for Sumatrans to be shocked out of their complacency with the status quo. They need to realize that before Holy God their sin makes them a dirty dog. They need a complete transformation to take care of their sin problem. Only God is able to do it.

Pray for Sumatrans to realize how shockingly bad their sins are before Holy God.

Pray for believers on Sumatra to be bold in sharing about the life transformation that is available through faith in Jesus Christ.

Pray for believers to personally encounter this life transformation so that others can clearly see Jesus in them.

Pray for Sumatrans to have the courage to admit their garbage problem and humbly ask to have the Lord remove the trash from within their hearts.

Photo from Bangka

Pray for the Bangka Malay and for Sumatrans all over the island to build their lives on an eternal foundation.

Not Just a Car Model

This man in Riau is making a nisan or grave-marker out of cement and ceramic tile. This type of headstone is very common on Sumatra. There are different types of nisan used for Christians and Muslims. Usually the businesses who make nisan are located next to the cemetery.

Death is a reality that every Sumatran will have to face. Most people here on the island prefer not to think about it, but all acknowledge the truth that death is an impending appointment for every person. The important question is how to best prepare for that appointment.

The common belief on Sumatra is that good works is the best method to prepare to meet God. They are often unclear about how much “good work” is needed to balance “bad deeds.” The idea of a mediator who steps in to pay the sin debt seems too good to be true.

Death is coming for every man. And in the history of the world death only gave back one man because He never did any “bad deeds.” Jesus is that man, and He gave the great sacrifice once for all to pay the sin debt of those who believe upon His finished work.

Sumatrans need to hear about the great substitutionary death of Jesus and the Good News that there is another way to prepare for the inevitable meeting with God after death. That way is the way of grace through faith. After all, by good works no one is justified before Holy God.

Pray for the people on Sumatra who are trusting in good works to realize that they are not able to pay their own sin debt.

Pray for Christ followers to be bold to share the Good News about how Jesus has already paid the sin debt for those who believe upon His finished work at Calvary.

Pray for the Holy Spirit to bring deep conviction of sin to the peoples of Sumatra so that they can repent before it is too late.

Connected

It is becoming more and more common to see Sumatrans on tablets or other mobile devises like this Minangkabau man photographed in Pekanbaru. With greater access to the internet and to information, many Sumatrans are being exposed to a wide range of ideologies, unfortunately many of these ideas are not of the Lord.

At a recent prayer gathering one worker heard a mother lamenting the wide-spread problem with young men and pornography in her community. The ideas of sexual freedom are pervasive on the internet. Unfortunately what is purported as “freedom” is actually bondage.

Another unexpected side-effect of being “connected” on the internet is a social disconnect from the people around you. Sumatran cultures have always been highly social, connected cultures; but as more people get plugged into technology that social fabric is starting to fray.

There are many wonderful things about technology, but the dark-side of what is out there on the World Wide Web only serves to highlight that we are all sinners in need of a Savior. The challenge for many people on Sumatra is that they have no connection to people who are able and or willing to share the Good News of how they can be set free from the bondage of sin.

Pray for the people of Sumatra to come under deep conviction of sin.

Pray for believers on Sumatra to be courageous to share what they know with people who need to know the Savior.

Pray for wisdom for Sumatrans to navigate the dark-side of technology that is becoming available to them.

Where's the Beef?

Seeing cows on the side of the road or in a soccer field is common here on Sumatra. Every year Muslims celebrate Idul Adah. On the way to church one worker witnessed several cows like the ones pictured here being sacrificed. Many Muslims believe that giving towards the sacrifice on Idul Adah will help to pay for their sins. Some people even write out their sins and put them under the blood as the animal is being sacrificed.

In one city on Sumatra there were signs of sacrificial animals with seats on their backs. The sign said, “Let me carry you to heaven.”

The meat from the sacrifice is supposed to be given to poor Muslims. This again is seen as a meritorious good work that will pay a person’s sin debt. The friend of one worker was on the committee that decided who gets the meat from the sacrifice. This man offered some of the meat to the worker. This is extremely ironic because the worker is neither poor nor Muslim.

The idea of sacrifice is deeply pictured in the Old Testament, which Muslims accept as being stories from God. What many Muslims do not know is the story of the Great Sacrifice of the Lamb of God. Believers on Sumatra have an incredible opportunity and responsibility to share this important story with their friends and neighbors. If people here are ever to have their sins paid for, they need more than the blood of bulls, sheep, and goats. These sacrifices are not able to carry them to heaven.

Pray for believers to overcome their fears and boldly share the story of the Great Sacrifice with their friends and neighbors who are still trying to pay for their own sins through good works.

Pray for the Holy Spirit to reveal to Sumatrans the insufficiency of the blood of animals to atone for the wages of sin.

Pray for God to visit all the peoples on Sumatra with the knowledge of the truth that can set people free and give them eternal life.

Duano People Group Profile

“Mightier than the thunders of many waters, mightier than the waves of the sea, the LORD on high is mighty!” (Psalm 93:4, ESV).

The Duano sometimes refer to themselves as Desin Dolaq which in their language means “sea-people.” They are indigenous to Sumatra and the Riau islands, but a large group of Duano migrated to the area near Johor, Malaysia within the past two centuries. There are currently 15,000 Duano living on Sumatra and the Riau islands. They are historically a sea going people or sea nomads. The Duano speak a variation of the Malay dialect. In large the Duano live like most other Malay people groups.

Most Duano make their living by fishing and harvesting foods from the sea. Duano tend to live simple lives and many do not seek much education. They also tend to be of a lower economic status compared with neighboring people groups.

The Duano are Muslim, but they also maintain many of their animistic beliefs. They have strong beliefs about the spirit world and what must be done to appease the spirits to avoid problems. There are some Duano believers in Malaysia, but there are no known believers in Sumatra among this people group.

Pray that:

God will call workers to go and live among and share the Gospel broadly with the Duano.

The Holy Spirit will prepare hearts among the Duano to hear and respond to the Gospel.

New Duano believers will be effectively grouped with other believers and taught to be obedient followers of Christ.

New believers will have courage to face persecution from family and friends.

Believers from Malaysia from among the Duano will be burdened to reach out to the Duano in Indonesia.

Duano believers will show that Christ is greater than the spirits they used to fear.

The Duano people will come to know the God who is mightier than the waves of the sea.

Photo from Bangka

Unbearably Cute!

Similar to America, it’s not unusual to see cars decorated like this one for a wedding. Weddings are big events and it is normal for the family to collect money from the larger family. One cross-cultural worker related how her house helper was asked by her family to donate her entire salary for several months to help pay for a wedding. It’s a source of shame to the entire family to not be able to afford a big wedding.

At the end of time there is going to be a huge wedding feast. Jesus is the bridegroom, and the Father is going to go to great expense to make everything extraordinary for those invited to attend. The shame involved in missing this big wedding makes the shame families feel on Sumatra to be light and momentary. The only people invited are those who are part of the bride of Christ.

Pray for Christ’s bride on Sumatra to grow in both number, maturity, and beauty.

Pray for the lost on Sumatra to hear the invitation to the wedding feast and to receive it with great joy.

Pray for the powers of darkness on Sumatra to be bound so that the Gospel will be received by many people.

Offerings on Wheels

These little offering boxes were in the grand mosque (Muslim place of worship) in Pekanbaru. During their services the boxes are rolled down the carpet in front of the people who are kneeling to worship. Mosques don’t have chairs or benches. People kneel on their knees throughout the services.

Giving to charity is one of the 5 pillars of Islam. Muslims believe that participating in the good works outlined in the 5 pillars will pay their sin debt. It is a difficult process, because Muslims never know for certain when their observance of good works is enough to cancel the debts they incur when they sin.

Those who do poorly at following the rules often shrug their shoulders with resignation that they are going to hell for who knows how long. Those who do well are often proud and look down on others. Unfortunately, good works will not pay mankind’s sin debt. Only the blood of Jesus is a sufficient offering to satisfy the righteous requirements of Holy God.

Pray for the peoples of Sumatra to hear about the blood offering that pays for sin.

Pray for those who do well at following rules and those who do not to come to realize the Good News that Jesus Christ welcomes them to come and be made clean.

Pray for the Spirit to prepare the hearts of the more than 1 million people living in Pekanbaru to hear and respond to the Gospel.

Pray for believers in Pekanbaru to be bold and courageous to share the Gospel with their friends, coworkers, neighbors, and family.

Pakpak Boang People Group Profile

"O LORD, you have brought up my soul from Sheol; you restored me to life from among those who go down to the pit.” (Psalm 30:3, ESV).

The 18,000 Pakpak Boang live in the Singkil area of the Southern part of Aceh Province in Northern Sumatra, Indonesia. The Pakpak Boang are part of the Pakpak or Dairi Batak tribe. Boang is a derivation of the Indonesian word “buang” which means to discard or throw away. They chose this name for themselves because they felt discarded by the rest of the tribe when then decided to leave Christianity to follow Islam.

Most Pakpak Boang make their livelihoods as farmers and fishermen. Their extended families are called marga, showing cultural connections to the Batak and Nias people groups.  The Pakpak Boang follow Islam mixed with animistic beliefs. They especially revere the grave of Abdul Rauf, who was a great religious leader from the area. Like many people groups on Sumatra, the Pakpak Boang often seek the magical power of the shaman or dukun.

There are a few Pakpak Boang believers, but there is no indigenous church. Churches in the area have often been the target of community persecution. There is currently no consistent witness focused on this people group.

Pray that:

Believers in Singkil will be empowered by the Holy Spirit to show love even in the face of persecution.

Workers will hear the call of God to live among and share the Gospel with the Pakpak Boang.

Members of fanatic groups will encounter the risen Christ and will become apostles to their own people group.

The influence of animistic beliefs will be broken by the power of the Holy Spirit.

An indigenous Pakpak Boang church will come into being before the end of the year.

Many Pakpak Boang will be brought up from the pit and will be placed upon the rock of salvation.

The greater Pakpak tribe will show love and concern to the Boang so that they will not feel cast off or discarded.

Some Like it Hot!

This Minangkabau woman is grinding chili peppers called cabe [cha-BEH] in a traditional market in Padang, Sumatra. It’s important to be focused on this task because you can burn your eyes if you forget and rub your eye with cabe juice on it. It is the same effect as pepper spray that the police use in the states.

Most Indonesian cooking uses some chili pepper as spice. The food here is much spicier than most American dishes. One worker describes Indonesian food as, “Food too hot to eat.” For those who enjoy chili pepper hot food, Indonesia is wonderful.

Adjusting to new foods is just one thing that bombards the senses of a new worker on Sumatra. Sights, smells, tastes, sounds all converge to overload a new worker’s internal balance. The result is called culture shock. It can be as painful as rubbing your eyes with chili juice on your hands.

Pray for workers dealing with culture shock to find their equilibrium in Jesus.

Pray for adjustments to food, language, and culture so that workers become adept at sharing the Gospel.

Pray for new workers to develop a taste for the local culture so that is not only bearable, but enjoyable to them.