The White Hat

This Riau Malay man was tending a shop that sold Muslim clothing. The hats in the foreground are called peci [peh-CHEE]. It is the national hat in Indonesia, and it’s a hat strongly connected with the Muslim religion. Those who wear a white peci are supposed to have already been on the pilgrimage to Mecca called the hajj. Those who wear a peci are often seen as being better, more holy people.

Jesus warned about people who make a display of their righteousness in Matthew 23:1-7. True holiness is not a matter of what you wear or how you appear. True holiness is revealed by deeds and actions, but is rooted in something deeper. Those who put on a show to be seen by others are often the very ones whose life is less than exemplary. They preach, but they don’t practice. Such people are hypocrites. Every religious group has their share of this type of person, because religion alone doesn’t make anyone right with God. It doesn’t make anyone holy.

Many Muslims will admit that they know people who have been on the hajj, wear the white peci, but have lives that are far from holy. They sometimes get drunk, gamble, visit prostitutes, and cheat in business; their lives are a mockery of what the white peci is supposed to represent. This is not universally true, but it happens often enough that most people in Sumatra have a name of someone they know to go along with the story of being a religious hypocrite. But even the very best representative of wearing the white peci in a worthy manner is still far short of the righteousness of God.

We’d all agree that holiness is more than just wearing a special hat, but what is the essence of true holiness? Paul suggests that true righteousness does not come through works of the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. This is universally necessary because everyone falls short of God’s perfect standard (Romans 3:20-25). To the Philippians Paul shares that everything else is garbage compared with the surpassing goodness of being found in Jesus, for in Jesus alone mankind can receive true righteousness or holiness that is by faith (Philippians 3:8-9). As Paul reminded the Ephesians, this faith that imparts salvation and holiness is a gift of God and leaves mankind no room for boasting other than in Christ (Ephesians 2:8-9).

Many people prefer to wear the hat than to humbly admit their sin and receive God’s gift of forgiveness through the perfect sacrifice of Jesus, the Lamb of God. Anyone who truly receives this gift will not only be saved, but will be transformed. This is God’s work and it is marvelous to behold!

Pray for those on Sumatra, who are trusting in the good deeds that the white hat is supposed to represent, to see the futility of salvation and holiness by works.

Pray for spiritually blind eyes on Sumatra to be opened to see Jesus lifted up so that all the peoples of Sumatra will be drawn to Him.

Pray for humility on Sumatra that is willing to take the place of a helpless sinner in order to receive the gift of righteousness and salvation that is in Christ alone.

Photo from Kerinci

Kaur People Group Profile

“He answered, ‘The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man’” (Matthew 13:37, ESV).

The Kaur are one of the original inhabitants of the southern region of Bengkulu Province. There are 40,000 Kaur living primarily around the Kaur Bintuhan area. Most Kaur work as farmers. Their main crops include coffee, pepper, rice, coconut, and rubber. It’s traditional for the men to work the fields while the women manage the household. Traditional Kaur homes have tin roofs and are painted white and blue.

The Kaur dialect comes from the Malay language. They are closely related culturally to the Lampungese, Pasemah, and Semendo. They are loyal to their Islamic faith. Most Kaur children are educated in Islamic schools called madrasah. Most villages have at least two masjid. The masjid, or Muslim place of worship, is the center of village life.

There are no known believers among the Kaur. There are very few believers living near the Kaur. They are isolated from most outside influences. They are also suspicious of outsiders coming into their villages.

Pray that:

The Lord of the Harvest will send out workers into the Kaur harvest field.

The Holy Spirit will prepare the soil of Kaur hearts to hear and respond to the Gospel.

Believers from the Lahat, Manna, and Bengkulu will become burdened to reach out to the Kaur.

Kaur will become more welcoming of outsiders, especially those who bring them the Good News.

Good Gospel seed will be sown among the Kaur in a manner that is contextual and sensitive to their cultural background.

God will raise up a generation of Kaur youth to respond to the Gospel and carry it to their families and villages.

Kaur farmers will perceive the goodness of the Gospel seed that is being sown among them.

Photo from Aceh

Keep it Going

Because of economic realities on Sumatra, Sumatrans are very good and fixing things and keeping them going as opposed to buying new and replacing broken machinery. These Duano men are working on fixing the motor for a fishing boat.

With most things being patched up and wired together, it’s not uncommon to have things break down. This leads to an uncertainty about what will get done during the day. Sumatrans will often predicate all of their plans with the phrase, “If God wills.” The point being that they have no idea what’s going to break or what obstacle will come up to slow them down. In such an environment, fatalism is a natural response.

Sumatrans are so used to things being outside their control that many times they do not realize the things that are in their control. For example, they do have a choice about how they relate to God. If they want, they can believe the Gospel and have their sins forgiven. Many Sumatrans do not see this freeing fact. Just as they were destined to have many things break down because of their economic realities, they are destined to be Muslim because of cultural realities. They think it is the will of God, and they can’t do anything about it.

John 3:16 reminds us that whosoever believes can be saved because of God’s big love for all peoples. The evil one has blinded millions of Sumatrans so that they cannot comprehend this truth. What they have may not be working well, but they doggedly keep it going because they can’t imagine it any other way.

Pray for blind eyes on Sumatra to be open to see the truth of God’s big love.

Pray for Sumatrans to have courage to reject cultural norms that keep them from God.

Pray for the Holy Spirit to help Sumatrans to resist the apathy of fatalism and take responsibility for the things that are in their control.

Pray for workers to not grow weary in sharing the Gospel with people who seem unable to even comprehend the choice that is being offered to them.

Dirty Feet not Allowed

Before a Muslim in Sumatra can read the Koran he or she must be ritually clean. This ritual process of being clean is called Wudu. The person will wash their face, then their arms up to the elbow, and finish with both their feet. Most mosque have a place for Wudu such as the one pictured here in Pekanbaru.

It is not a bad idea to approach Holy God in a respectful manner. Many believers take the grace of God for granted and approach the Most High in a casual manner that is inappropriate. However, like many good traditions, Wudu can become just a formality and ceremony that loses its meaning.

The other problem with this tradition, is that water is unable to make us truly clean before Holy God. Hebrews 9:22 reminds us that without the shedding of blood there can be no forgiveness of sins. It is sin that makes us unclean. The only fountain that can make us truly clean is the one opened by the sacrifice of the Lamb of God. It is His life blood that makes it possible for us to be clean enough to enter into God’s presence.

Believers would do well to remember the cost of relationship, and to approach God more respectfully. He is Holy and powerful and worthy. Perhaps a mental process like the physical ritual of Wudu might be a good thing for those who are already washed and made clean in the Blood of the Lamb.

Pray for believers on Sumatra to not take the grace of God for granted or to treat it causually.

Pray that believers on Sumatra will realize the cost of their forgiveness and humble themselves before Holy God.

Pray for those who have not yet been washed in the Blood of the Lamb to become aware of the worthlessness of ritual or good works to make them clean.

Bangka Malay People Group Profile

“But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” Romans 5:8, ESV).

The island of Bangka is located east of Sumatra in the South China Sea. It’s home to the 340,000 Bangka Malay people. The Bangka Malay are friendly and welcoming to everyone. Their primary industries are pepper farming and tin mining. They are also known for a wide variety of handicrafts. Their beautiful island home has famous beaches and is a popular Indonesian tourist destination.

One of the traditions of the Bangka is for newly married couples to move away from both sets of parents. This tendency of new couples to form an independent identity has made the Bangka more open to marrying outside of their ethnic group. Mixed marriages are not uncommon.

Most Bangka Malay are Muslim, but it’s not uncommon for traditional animistic beliefs to be mixed in with Islamic beliefs. There is a significant Chinese population, which has also influenced Bangka culture.

There are only a handful of known Bangka believers and no indigenous churches. There are some churches on the island, but they are predominately Chinese or Batak.

Pray that:

Believers living on Bangka will share the Gospel boldly and in a culturally sensitive way.

God will give wisdom to workers on Bangka to develop a Spirit-led strategy for reaching the Bangka Malay.

Spiritual strongholds of animism and occultism will not be mixed with Christianity among new believers.

Obedience-based discipleship will strengthen and equip new believers for a life of holiness and victory.

An indigenous, multiplying Bangka Malay church will be established soon.

Creative platforms will be developed to give workers opportunity to live and work on Bangka.

Churches on Sumatra, Java, and around the world will adopt the Bangka for intense, persistent, and focused intercession.

Take this One

The Muko Muko man in this photo joked with the visiting worker asking, “Do you want to take this one to the United States with you?” This is a fairly common jest on Sumatra. Unfortunately, to the small child this jest is often taken in earnest and many times the child bursts into tears at the terrifying thought of being torn from family and home and sent off with some scary stranger. Normally the child’s tears only cause the adult to laugh harder.

The terror of this young child is akin to the terror that many Sumatrans feel when they first hear the Gospel. The suggestion that they leave their religious beliefs in order to receive the forgiveness of sins found only in the atoning work of Jesus is terrifying to them. They consider the probable rejection of family and community and it is too much. Even their cultural identity is tied up with their religion. It’s no joking matter to consider diverging from the religious norms.

In the midst of this awkward spiritual bondage Satan laughs because he knows that he’s effectively using the strongest human relationships created by God in order to prevent people from seriously considering the Gospel that is mandated by God. He laughs as thousands of Sumatrans pass into eternity every year with no good answer to the problem of their sins. He chuckles as people freeze up and reject the great salvation that God offers to them in love. He rolls on the ground with mirth as people here are beaten and rejected for the sake of following Christ, because the people who are beating and rejecting the new believers are absolutely convinced that they are serving God.

It’s difficult for us coming from a Western mindset to even comprehend the spiritual and cultural barriers that people here have to face in order to receive Jesus as their personal Savior.

Pray for the Holy Spirit to overcome the terror placed in the hearts of Sumatrans by Satan that keeps them from even considering the Gospel.

Pray for workers to have compassion for the lost and power to defeat the terrible foe of mankind.

Pray for new believers here to be filled with heaven’s power to face persecution, beatings, and rejection for the sake of Christ. He is worthy even of these sacrifices.

Pray for family and friends being used as tools of the evil one to realize the truth and see the dark power behind what they are doing.

Pray for the Light of the World to reveal the schemes of darkness and to set the captives free on Sumatra.