November 2003
It is my delight to report to you the most recent trip
to Indonesia. It is filled with many victories and a report
on the continued uncertainty and conflict. The following
is an brief outline of the reports I will be sharing. Please
read and pray!
Healing in Bali--this
is a brief report of the one year memorial of the Bali bombing.
How do you combat terror? Read and see how the Christians
in Bali are answering the terrorists.
I Had To Use My Grace Card!!--I
had my credit card stolen and saw the Lord provide all I
needed in amazing ways. I think some of you might realize
you also have a Grace Card.
"Oh, For A Thousand Tongues
To Pray"--there is no doubt in my mind
that the many prayers prayed for me gave me peace that was
unexplainable. Read this story as a thank you to so many
of you who prayed for me on October 13 at 5 p.m. (Alaska
Time).
"Got is Goot"--these
are the words of a beautiful young Indonesian man every
time someone came to "faith in Christ". This is
a tribute to the dedicated young BIT/IFC staff who are making
a difference in this forsaken corner of the earth.
God Hears--a mother
brings her son for help. See how God answered her desperate
prayers.
Healing in Bali
There were several services held by the church in Bali.
There were thousands who attended the praise and worship
events. There was one desire--to honor the Lord. The final
service was on the night of October 12. The worship team
from Hillsong from Sydney Australia led the multitudes in
pure worship. This was not a performance from very talented
musicians--it was an open heaven time. The church was packed.
It was much like the meeting where the sick man was lowered
through the roof. If you wanted to get anyone in this place
it would require some extra ordinary measures--maybe a hole
in the roof.
There were a number of the survivors of the Bali bombing
in the service--there were Muslim, Hindu, and Christian.
There were some children and woman who wore wraps over the
burns covering their bodies. They were asked to come onto
the stage. They stood there in their brokenness midst the
thousands of worshippers. A pastor stood before them and
shared his heart. He showed true compassion and it touched
each one of the victims. There was some compensation given
to each family. I watched one of the Muslim woman put her
arms around the pastor as the tears flowed over the burn
scars on her face. You see true kindness has a way of touching
any heart. It was a sight--we all shared the tears of the
victims. We were all captured in a chorus of praises. The
end of the service offered a chance for those who wanted
to come to "faith in Christ". Two of the Muslims
and one Hindu raised their hands to have a good God change
their lives--they prayed to receive Christ. Other victims
asked for Bibles.
The way to answer terrorism is by revealing its weakness.
How do we win against terror--by showing the true kindness
that flows from the loving heart of Jesus.
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I Had To Use My Grace Card
Who needs a Visa Card when you have a Grace Card? I had
my Credit Card stolen on my way to Bali. I was called by
my wife and told that she canceled the card because someone
was using it all over Asia. I was now ready to leave Bali
and fly to Manado where I would be meeting a medical team.
I went to the Denpasar Airport where I presented my tickets
and was told the flight is full. I was also told that there
was a problem with their computers so they didn't get my
reservation.I was told the next flight they could get for
me was Friday--it was Monday. I know the thought of staying
four extra days among the beaches of this beautiful island
sounds horrible. Remember I had no credit card and only
$ 200 cash.
I went outside the airport and prayed this simple prayer--Father,
You are the God who can make a way when there is no way.
A few moments later a friend, Jeff Hammond, and his wife,
Annette, arrived to get their flight to Jakarta. They suggested
I go to Jakarta where it would be easier to get a flight
to Manado. My concern was to get to Manado where I could
meet the medical team. I got the last seat to Jakarta on
the same flight as Jeff and Annette. We checked the other
airlines for a seat from Jakarta to Manado and we were told
there were no seats today.
Before boarding the flight to Jakarta we met two Indonesian
woman who had attended the Memorial events. We sat down
with them and had a nice visit and we had a couple laughs
about my situation. No credit card and on my way to Jakarta.
The older of the two ladies insisted that she would try
to get me a seat from Jakarta to Manado. There were no seats
when we left Bali but when we landed in Jakarta this lady
came to me and said, "I have a ticket for you to Manado."
We had another laugh together and then I asked to pay her
for the ticket even though I didn't think I had enough to
cover the price of the ticket. She would not accept it and
told me she wanted to help our refugee work and this is
something she could do. I thanked her and could see that
the Lord was trying to show me that even though I didn't
have a Credit Card I had a Grace Card. The Grace Card is
used in situations that seem impossible--where there doesn't
seem to be a way. Later that day, I boarded the flight to
Manado and could hardly believe it--I was in First Class.
I had a four hour flight where I praised the Lord the whole
way. This Grace Card is nice--no interest and backed by
the Bank of Heaven.
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"Oh, For A Thousand Tongues To Pray"
I was going to be making my first stop in the North Maluku
city of Ternate. I know many of the refugees from that city
and have heard their horrific stories. This was a place
of unspeakable terror. It is estimated that over 2,000 were
murdered there including defenseless woman and children.
Pastors were hunted and killed and all the churches were
destroyed in the darkest days of the fighting. This is the
city we needed to stop and get our immigration documents
to travel in North Maluku.
Before I left on this trip I asked for prayer. I know there
were over 1,000 people who agreed to pray for me and the
medical team as we traveled through this region and especially
the time in Ternate.
It was about 8 a.m. when I looked out the window to see
the large volcano standing like a watchman over the Island
of Ternate. We were moments from landing and the medical
team and I would be standing on the island of blood. It
had a history of attacks and the most recent was the attacks
against the Christian residents. I walked out into the heat
of the tropical morning. I do not know how to explain the
peace I was experiencing other than to say--I was walking
on the prayers of the saints. I was fully aware of what
happened here and knew only that I was in the center of
God's will.
We made our way to the immigration office where we would
apply for a visa to travel in North Maluku. This would be
step one of being legal to travel in the newly opened region.
We truly had favor with the immigration officers. It takes
some time to get all the documents done and we passed our
time by challenging the immigration officials to ping pong.
I lost all my games and knew I was greatly out matched.
We got some photos with the medical team and some of the
immigration workers.
After getting the documents we needed we asked for a special
request. We asked to waive the permit from the Ternate Police
and instead get it from the Tobelo Police. If we had to
go to the Ternate Police to get their approval to travel
we would be looking at a possible six more hours in Ternate.
This would be after dark and we would not be able to meet
our team waiting for us on the main Island of Halmahera.
There is a one hour speedboat ride from Ternate to the main
island. The boats do not travel after dark. Tobelo is the
Christian city where we would be staying for the next week.
Yes, the favor of God was on us. We made an uneventful speedboat
ride to Halmahera.
I thank you for all your prayers. We did hear that the following
day after we left Ternate there was a small skirmish. We
were walking on the prayers of the saints.
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"Got Is Goot"
I turned to see Nius, a beautiful young Indonesian man,
with his head bowed and tears flowing from his face. He
was facing a middle-aged Indonesian man who was also bowing
with tears streaming down his face. They were not looking
at each other but their heads nearly touched as they bowed
together in fervent prayer. The setting was the back of
a bombed out church in a small village north of Tobelo.
It took a very bumpy ride though a jungle road to get to
this village. This village had been destroyed four times
in the days of the conflict. The villagers fled to the jungle
each time and returned to rebuild their homes. Maybe a good
word to use is--forsaken. It seems like such a forsaken
place. Their school was being rebuilt and there were hopes
their children would soon be back in school. These two men
from different generations had something in common that
moment--they both knew God was the only answer to the wounding,
the scaring and the brokenness. They were locked on the
fountain of healing and hope. Nius was a member of the BIT/IFC
staff. He was from the village of Duma and had lost his
father in the conflict. He had his own wounds, scars and
brokenness that he laid at the feet of Jesus. He was himself
a refugee and now he was pointing these forsaken people
to the one certain thing in this uncertain land.
Yes--Jesus is the only hope for any of us. You could be
living a western upper-class life filled with every luxury
and extravagance anyone can imagine or you could be a forgotten
refugee in a burned out village on a remote island at the
ends of the earth--Jesus is still the only hope you have.
After Nius looked up from the time of prayer he turned to
me and in broken English he said, "Got is Goot".
This man had prayed to come to faith in Christ. How do you
change the brokenness of this region--one person at a time.
Whenever someone made a decision for Christ, Nius would
smile and say, "Got is Goot". I witnessed some
200 souls saying, "Yes, Jesus" in the week I was
with the medical staff. I agree--God is Good. He is still
the Savior.
Please pray for Esther Scarborough and her medical staff.
There are some 30 involved with the clinics. They have recently
traveled to the strongly Muslim regions of Bacan and Morotai
to treat the sick. The effort is to bring goodwill and to
see the wounds of this region healed. This is not an easy
work. There are many demands, pressures, hardships and obstacles
to overcome.
I can still see Nius's broad smile with thumbs up saying,
"Got is Goot".
God Hears
She was raising her seven year old son, Riko, on her own.
Her husband had been killed while protecting his family from
the jihad attackers. He was simply protecting those he loved
and now he was gone and this mother was trying her best to
raise this child. She noticed the blister-like sores all over
her son's body. She prayed for him for a month as his condition
got worse. She was destitute and had her own physical problems
but she prayed with all her heart. He was getting worse and
there seemed like there was little hope.
The mother heard there was an American medical team in town
and boldly brought her son to see them. A medical team from
New Frontiers Medical Force out of Clearwater, Florida had
been in Tobelo for six days doing clinics in refugee camps
and resettlement villages. Dr. Tonya Hawthorne and her team
had just finished five clinics where they saw over 700 poor
Indonesian patients. They had work hard and were now at their
sleeping quarters when this mother came with her request.
She quietly pleaded, "Would you please look at my son?"
She was like the woman who pressed through the crowd to touch
Jesus. This mother had that same desperation for her son's
failing health. Riko was now unable to walk on his own. He
was malnourished and it was hard for him to keep his food
down. He was very frail and the blister-like sores were from
head to toe. Dr. Tonya agreed to see him and in the next moments
compassion flowed to this mother and son. The sores were unlike
anything this medical team had seen--but they knew this boy
needed help soon.
Before they left Florida one of the nurses was given some
money from a friend. She wondered where to best use the funds
and it was clear this was a chance to help this mother and
son. The team donated enough money to transport mother and
son to the city of Manado. They went to the BIT/IFC clinic
in Manado where they could get free meals and a private bedroom.
I was at the clinic checking on Riko when he was examined
by an Indonesian doctor. I noticed he was looking better and
was able to walk some on his own. He had received some vitamins
and nutritious food from the clinic staff. The diagnosis was
a shock to the mother. Riko had a skin form of leprosy. He
had no open wounds and the doctor was positive about the chances
of him making a full recovery.
This was the combination of three works of grace. First--the
mother began to pray for her sick son. Secondly--someone in
Florida was moved to give a donation before the medical team
even left for Indonesia. Third--the medical team was in the
right place at the right time filled with compassion for this
mother and son. It all began with the prayers of this mother.
Don't every underestimate the prayer of a mother to set all
of heaven into action. We now pray for Riko's future--there
is no doubt God has a plan for his life.
Final Word
Please continue to pray for the refugees and those trying
to resettle in their villages. The official number of refugees
in the Tobelo region is over 18,000. There is much danger
in some of these areas. On October 12 the village of Betalemi
was attacked and in the next day five villages in Central
Sulawesi were attacked. Hundreds of homes were destroyed
and 11 people were killed. There are now more refugees as
people flee their villages. In and near Tobelo four bombs
have exploded in the last month. We continue to believe
that light will overcome the darkness. We overcome evil
one person at a time. "Got Is Goot"
Carl Cady--U.S. Director for International Friends of Compassion
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