Tools of Protection

This Palembang man and woman are in the spiritual protection business. They sell rings, amulets and other items to provide their clients with spiritual power. Some items have purported power to ward off evil spirits and curses. Others are supposed to help you in love relationships. These items are called jimat in Indonesian. This seller had jimat focused to different religious clientele. He had “hell notes” for the Chinese Buddhists. He had knife charms with Arabic writings and special blades for Muslims. There are rocks and special tubes for other religions. Even people who call themselves Christians often use jimat.

The power of occultism is very strong in many people groups on Sumatra. While most Indonesians will laugh and deny these beliefs if a Western foreigner asks them about it, but they will turn around and pay good money to men like the one pictured here. Indonesians are pragmatic. They don’t care much what power they are calling upon as long as it allows them to succeed in whatever they are trying to do.

One man asked a worker about baptism, because he had heard that being baptized could heal him of his sickness. Many Indonesians are willing to use Jesus to meet a felt physical need. Sadly, they are often not willing to bow to Him as Lord just because He’s worthy.

Pray for believers to be convicted of their ties to the occult so that they repent.

Pray for revival among Sumatra’s churches.

Pray for workers who are proclaiming the Gospel to show forth the power of God.

Pray for all the peoples of Sumatra to bow to Jesus for no other reason than the fact that He is worthy.

Lembak People Group Profile

“And those who know your name put their trust in you, for you, O LORD, have not forsaken those who seek you” (Psalm 9:10, ESV).

The 208,000 Lembak [lem-BAUK] people live in Benkulu and in the areas north of the city. Their language is part of the Malay family. Most Lembak men work as rice farmers or as workers in rubber tree plantations. Some men also work producing bricks through small home-based factories. Women generally help out in the fields and manage the household. The Lembak are a patriarchal society. Neighboring peoples often call them bulang (turban) people.

Lembak culture has close ties to Rejang and Serawai. Villages are formed by family members living close together in adjoining houses. They often enjoy traditional Dangdut singing which combines a strong beat with Arabic lyrics that teach Islamic truths. Most Lembak are Muslim, but are still highly influenced by animistic and occult beliefs. The dukun or shaman is often consulted for health or family problems.

There are only a handful of Lembak believers and no indigenous Lembak churches.

Pray that:

More workers will reach out to the Lembak with the Gospel.

Lembak believers will have courage and boldness to reach out with the Gospel to their friends and family.
Strong discipleship and training for Lembak believers will take place.

Indigenous Lembak fellowships will be formed before the end of this year.

Lembak believers will cut all ties with occult and animistic beliefs.

The Gospel will be broadly sown among the Lembak.

Many intercessors will adopt the Lembak for passionate, persevering prayer until the church is established among the Lembak.

Shave & Haircut $1

Most neighborhoods have a traditional barber shop called a pangkas. You can usually get your hair cut for 5 to 7 thousand rupiah, or for a little less than a dollar. The odds are good that the combs and clipper has not been cleaned. The razor is also reused without being cleaned. So, if you are a neat freak who likes things sanitary, the pangkas is not the place for you. But if you want to gather and talk with the men of the community, the pangkas is a great place to hang out.

If you are in a hurry, the pangkas is not the best place to go. It’s more of a social event. And they love having foreigners come in. The barber – tukang rambut – will normally pull out his cell phone and take a picture of you so he can show it to his other customers.

Many workers will not use the pangkas because it’s dirty and unsanitary. This decision illustrates the struggle workers have about how far they are willing to go in order to enter into the culture.

Pray for workers to have wisdom as they engage and embrace the culture around them.

Pray for workers dealing with culture shock to be able to rest in the Lord.

Pray for God's Kingdom to come among all the peoples on Sumatra.

Eye on the Sparrow

Most large traditional markets in Sumatra have a section for buying tropical birds. Birds are very popular pets here in Southeast Asia. The birds that the little boy in the picture is looking at are very common, very small, and not very expensive. Because of these facts these birds are often given to small children to play with. This is a good opportunity for the children to learn how to handle animals, but it does not always bode well for the birds.

The worker who took this photo remembers visiting a village and seeing one such bird in a cage being handled by a 2 year old. The two year old dropped the cage three times during a short visit. The poor little bird looked ready to have a heart attack. The little boy said, “aduh.” Roughly translated that means, “oh dear.”

This situation reminded the worker of the old song that says, “His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.” As the little bird was put at the mercy of a toddler, he may not have felt watched over or protected by the All Mighty! Yet that is often what life feels like for God’s children who are trying to be obedient in a land where the majority of the people do not honor God’s Word or God’s Son.

Pray for new believers on Sumatra who often feel trapped in a cage of opposition and persecution at the hands of their family and friends.

Pray for new believers among Sumatra’s people groups who struggle with feelings of isolation and loneliness.

Pray for traditional fellowships that are caged by fear and tradition that keeps them from reaching out to the lost around them.

Pray for small house fellowships that face physical danger in order to gather and worship the Lord.

The cost of faithfully following the Lord in the United States is not nearly as great as it is on Sumatra. Pray for God’s Kingdom to come on our island despite the high personal costs! After all it cost Jesus His life blood to bring God’s Kingdom from heaven to earth.