Report from Indonesia, Feb 2007

The Night the Broken Hearted Danced

The music was loud and the night echoed the beat of the traditional drums. This was a celebration—with dancing, food, and speeches. This was no ordinary celebration—we were not celebrating a new harvest or a new building. We were celebrating the rescue of 10 lives. We were rejoicing over the “God of all Comfort” wrapping His arms around these little lives. We were dancing because God had brought 10 children into our care. This is what God does best—he took these little ones out of a dark future and this was the dawning of new hopes and dreams. There were ten special guests at the dedication of the new Children’s Home. They had great names like Caleb, Moses, Joshua, Yohannas, Natalia and Naomi. These are the “little ones” who captured our hearts and now live in our Children’s Home.

We danced the traditional Cakalali (Chock-a-lay-lee) with a shield and sword. It is the dance of the warrior with high steps and intimidating facial expressions. The drums are loud and the dancers are wildly dancing around. The best time for the Indonesians is to give one of us inexperienced American men a chance to do the dance. We tried but we did not win any prizes on our dance skills. They laughed but appreciated us giving it a try. Then the second dance of the night is called the Poco Poco (po-cho po-cho). This is a kind of line dance that is done to a special rhythmic music. This dance originated in these remote islands. It has very complicated steps and just when you think you can figure it out it changes. It’s especially frustrating for us outsiders because it seems even the youngest Indonesian child can do the dance flawlessly. It was as everyone was dancing that night that it came to me. This was the night that the broken-hearted danced in complete joy. I knew the stories of these children—some of them have enough heartbreak for a life time and they were still very young. I watched a young girl who is one of the older children in the Children’s Home. She was laughing and just having the greatest time. She had a balloon wrapped around her head like a tiara. She was so graceful in her beautiful purple dress. She knew every move as she danced that night. Her story is that her father was killed in the conflict (2000-2003). Her mother was remarried and then she was killed at the hands of her husband. This child went through the loss of both her parents and the abuse of her step-father. There was no one who would take her—there is no social service or foster care in this region. The child was alone until she was brought to the attention of our staff. She is now going to grow up accepted and loved. That night we celebrated the great distance between being wanted and being rejected. On the floor not far from all the dancing was Yohannas. He is broad shouldered for being less than a year old. He tried his best to dance but enjoyed the cake far more than anything. He was the child rejected by his mother. He was left in a garbage heap when he was only hours old. He was found by a woman who took him to her home. She is a grandmother and tried to find someone to take him. He also was not wanted and the old woman could not care of him. He was given the name Buang Jiwa (Discarded/thrown-away soul). We did want him after hearing about him. He is now living in the Children’s Home with a new name Yohannas meaning “whom Jehovah gave”. Fetrik, the latest little girl, is so malnourished she is so small and now building her strength. Someday she will dance with us. There are the two children of the Thelda the Leper along with the other five. That night we danced with the broken hearted. We danced and celebrated the one thing we all knew that night—God is a rescuer.

The Children’s Home is a first class facility and is a tribute to the loving gifts of so many especially First Presbyterian Church in Fairbanks, Alaska. I was blessed to see the plaque near the entrance thanking those who gave to make this rescue house a reality. We have room for more children and the staff is all Indonesians—each child is given special care. We completed profiles on all the children while we were there. This is what God’s heart is all about—giving hope to the hopeless.

When Leper’s shed Tears of Joy

Most people I have spoken to about Lepers think that it has been eradicated. In the remote Islands of East Indonesia it is a growing problem. This region has the greatest saturation of lepers in South East Asia. These people face the same stigma as those in the Bible days—they are rejected outcasts. IFC is currently helping two lepers that live on our base and 15 others who are treated on a regular basis. We have wanted to find a way to help as many as we can. We know that this is the heart of God. God is for the rejected and those who suffer. The dream of helping them is now in full speed forward. Peter Scarborough, IFC Field Director, is coordinating the first steps of building a Leper Treatment Center on our base in East Indonesia. The road to the site has been cleared and water well has been drilled. The cleared site is large enough to have a small community living there. It is set in the midst of the huge jungle trees on our base. We are at step one of this goal.

We had a wonderful ground breaking ceremony. Jim and Cindy Aldrich represented First Presbyterian Church in Fairbanks Alaska who put the first seed dollars to get the Leper Center started. We prayed together and asked for God’s help in the future steps. It was a great time but it seemed incomplete. The two lepers who live at our base were not with us during the ground breaking. The access to the new site was in but there was a wet hole where a culvert will be placed. We walked back to the clinic where the Lepers are staying. In a moment of inspiration the questioned was asked—why don’t we take Hendrik and Nikodemos to the new site? Hendik is in a wheelchair because his feet are just stubs and he cannot walk but Nikodemos could walk in spite of his injuries. It took four guys to get Hendrik around the obstacles. In about 15 minutes of pushing, pulling and carrying he was at the new Leper Treatment Center site.

I wish all of you could have seen the faces of these two men. Hendrik is middle-aged and has suffered as a Leper for over 20 years. Nikodemos is a young man who is barely 20 years old. He has injuries on his hands and feet. Hendrik has a baritone voice—someone said he has a “radio voice” you expect to here him say—“today news is…” He began to speak to us like you would talk to a friend about your life. We were standing in the middle of this clearing that someday will be a treatment center and cottages for others like him. His resounding voice started by telling us how he was beaten with sticks or had stones thrown at him whenever he was seen by his villagers. They would tell him how much he stunk and how he was not anything other than a dog. He had a deep hole in his heart and he opened up to show us his hurt. He then looked at us and said—“But now, I am in Heaven”. He told us he is loved and accepted now. He was telling us that he was being rebuilt as a person. He had a name and he is spoken to with respect now. Hendrik and Nikodemos bowed their heads and with his resounding voice Hendrik began to pray for us and this place. We knelt together on the soil of this new site and added the prayers of this humble man. Nikodemos had tears of joy running down his face as we prayed and Hendrik had is hands together as he prayed. It is a great day when Lepers shed tears of joy. That was a day to remember.

The dream we have is to build a treatment center and at least 20 houses—each house will have four bedrooms and a common area. The staff is confident we could fill those houses with the Lepers we know about right now. Please pray for us as we take on this huge challenge. It is a challenge and a privilege to be a part of this effort.