Newsletter
IFC Director: Carl Cady
May 26, 2002

Dear Praying Friends--

I battled the latest computer virus for ten days. I was hit by the 32 Klez virus and it took ten days to recover my computer and the files I needed. It is good to be back on line.

I thought I'd update you on the situation in Indonesia and ways we can support the refugees in prayer.

Sekely Villagers Safe-- A desperate letter sent over a year ago from the pastor of the church in the village of Sekely prompted a rescue of abducted Christians.

Sleeping Under The Bed Of A Dying Man-- The parents of a young man who was in the final stages of T.B. lovingly cared for their son in their small shelter in the back corner of the Mega Belia refugee camp.

Hopes Of Peace In Ambon Broken-- There were positive signs of peace in Ambon over the first months of 2002. Groups of Muslim and Christians were mingling together for the first time in three years in Ambon. But after the "call to war" by the Laskar Jihad head, Jafar Umar Thalib, violence and tensions have fill the street of Ambon, the capital city of the Maluku province.

A Dress, A Doll, A Pair Of Shoes, And A Bag Of Coins-- Emily is only eight years old but her lesson in child like tenderness and cheerful giving is an encouragement to us all.

Sekely villagers safe

In February of 2001 a letter was sent from a pastor in the village of Sekely. He was asking for a miracle rescue of the around 100 members of his community who were facing the terror and possible death from the Jihad militia. The security of an Indonesian Military post was leaving in a couple months. This pastor asked for help in rescuing these villagers. This proved to be a very difficult effort and it took just over a year to get the first 22 rescued. There are 80 more from this village that needs to be rescued.

These rescues occurred with the assistance of some “friendly” individuals who were willing to assist the Christians to depart to a village where they were able to get transported to a safe area. Please pray for the remaining ones who need to be rescued. Those who leave their villages leave under the condition of giving up all their property, all of their future rights, and they will be forbidden to return to their home village. The Islamic community said they will never allow Christians to live in their village again. Anyone who remains in the village must convert to Islam. Christians are being tested on their devotion to Christ. Are they willing to give up homes and land to follow the Lord.

Sleeping under the bed of a dying man

The Mega Belia refugee camp is a desperate place to live. This camp is in the shadow of a large volcano in the North Sulawesi city of Bitung. Mega Belia has been shelter for thousands of fleeing Christians who have fled the fighting over the last three year in the Maluku and North Maluku province of East Indonesia. There are now over 6,000 souls residing in this camp. They have inadequate water to support the needs of the residents. Since December 31, 2001 the Indonesian government ceased providing aid in the form of a bowl of rice a day per person. People are suffering the effects of not having good nutrition.

A small group of IFC staff went to the back corner of this camp site to spend some time comforting a family whose three year old son died of malnutrition. After leaving their shelter we walked a few steps and turned into another shelter. I didn't know I was about to see something I wasn't prepared to see. I don't know how anyone could be ready for this. We stooped to enter the shelter and found two desperate faces looking at us. They didn't know why their son was dying. Esther Scarborough, IFC staff nurse, asked to see their son. We went with Esther to the bedside of this 23 year old young man. He lay on the bamboo bed with a cloth laying over his lap. He was a rack of bones and had blood on his shirt. Esther said she was sure he was in the final stages of T.B. He had a bad cough and was laboring to breath. His parents were also coughing and it was suspected that they also had T.B.

These people have lost everything in the attacks against their lives and lands. They flee for their lives to find shelter in the refugee camps. These refugee camps provide security from the attacks but the spread of disease has taken a number of lives. This Mother and Father are lovingly caring for their dying son. I watched this Mother use a cloth to wipe the perspiration from his frail body. The Mother was asked, " Where are you sleeping?" She pointed to a place under the bed where her son was laying. In caring for their dying son they never left his side. They were sleeping under their dying son. I asked Esther about the prospects of the parent having T.B. She said they likely have been infected by caring for him. If they have T.B. they will die unless they are treated.

This touched me greatly as I thought of everything this family has been through. Their life is now confined to a small shelter where they are watching their son die. Compelled by love they stay at his side and continue to comfort him as he wastes away.

After leaving this scene a plan was made to start a program to treat the refugee who have T.B. Phase one of the T.B. Project is now underway. 17 health care workers are being trained to treat those who need the nine month care for T.B. and the first group of T.B. patients are being treated. A special thanks to the Australian churches who gave for this project. There is a lot of gratification knowing that lives are being saved. Thank you Australia. Please pray for Esther Scarborough as she leads the T.B. project.

Hopes of peace in Ambon broken

The first three months of 2002 showed some positive signs of peace in the Maluku province. The Malino agreement had been signed by both Muslim and Christian leaders. The groundwork for a new beginning in the lives of both Christian and Muslims had been secured. Christians and Muslims had begun to mingle together for the first time in nearly three years. Our hopes were high that this would lead to reconciliation and the normalization for the people of this region.

These hopes were dashed on April 26, 2002 when the leader of the Laskar Jihad, Jafar Umar Thalib, preached a dangerous message to about 7,000 followers in Ambon. He instigated his followers to not give up on the "war" and to resist all efforts to disarm them. He condemned the governor of Maluku and threatened the family of Indonesian President, Megawati.

The following are a couple statements from that message.

"Woe to the Governor. Listen to the voice of Jafar Umar Thalib. Report to Megawati that Jafar Umar Thalib is a provocateur and declare to your Megawati that the Muslim community will not stop the war. And let us together form one rank. Let us forgive one another the faults of our brother Muslims so that we can form one rank which will be loved by God. Listen to the ranks that are loved by God. Listen. Woe to the Muslims. Woe to the jihad soldiers. Woe to the prospective martyrs. Listen to the ranks that are loved by God. They are those who fight in the way of Allah. Get rid of all forms of stories of division and Islamic enmity and let us firmly resolve that we are Muslims and we will stand together in this struggle.”

"And let us no longer be afraid of the teaching of the PDS, the Civil Emergency Traitors. Let us no longer feel put down by the cacklings of the cowards. We only fear the threats of Allah. Allah teaches us, all Muslims, with his word. Woe, you who have faith, why….why do you talk about what you do not act upon. How great is the wrath of God when you speak and do not act. We have warned our government that if they are unable to stop the flags of the traitors, we will declare civil war,” added Jafar.

"From this day on there will be no more talk of being good to one another, From this day on, what will be is talk about which districts we have succeeded in occupying. From this day the talk will be about how many bombs you have made. >From this day the talk will be how we can unite our commando…. Our war command."

Two days following this message there were 14 Christians killed in an attack on the village of Soya, including a six month old child. There were dozens injured and a church was burned in the attack. Maluku Governor Saleh Latuconsina linked the Laskar Jihad with the brutal attack on this village. Before the end of the week Jafar Umar Thalib was arrested in Surabuya. He was arrest on charges of provoking violence and threats to the President's family.

This has resulted in riots and more unrest in Ambon and the Malacca's. Please pray for the days ahead for this region. Pray for the possibility of reconciliation. Pray for the Indonesian government to be just and wise in their handling of these issues. Pray for both Muslim and Christian leaders as they face the hard issues around the unrest. Ask the Lord to use love and mercy in place of hatred and violence.

A dress, a doll, a pair of shoes, and a bag of coins

I have known Rob and Arlene Koenig for many years, even when they were both single. It seem like a short time but it has been over ten years. Cathy, Caleb, and I went up to their home to spend some time together before I went back to Indonesia on this next trip. Little did I know that when we were greeted by Emily Rose in the driveway how much she would impact us that night. Braided hair and long dress she greeted us with her little sister Hanna in her arms.She looked like she could have stepped off the set of "Little House On the Prairie". Emily Rose is the big sister of five other brothers and sisters. She is only eight years old but holds the top spot as "leader of the Keonig pack". Rob and Arlene have four children of their own and two who were adopted from an orphanage in the Ukraine. Jonathan, Daniel, Benjamin, Evan, and Hanna are not yet aware of how blessed they are to have a big sister like Emily Rose.

We enjoyed the pre-dinner chat with Rob and Arlene. This evening was in the 80's and the view from their home on the hill was spectacular. Then all the food was ready and we sat down to eat. Rob was in charge of one end of the table and Arlene the other end. We have two children--Christina is 24 and Caleb is 13. We have never had to feed six children eight years old or under. All the children knew the routine. Eat what is on your plate--or someone else will eat it. Mom and Dad never raised their voices or lost focus on the lines of communication happening all around them. I thought they are like conductors of an orchestra. Aware of every member of the band--they served baked chicken instead of Beethoven. The meal was wonderful and as much fun to watch as to eat. I had juice spilled on me when a dropped glass landed on my side of the table and when whipped cream aimed at the gingerbread missed and spattered me. I considered it as an initiation into a lesson on big business. This was the major leagues of organization. I will never took at Rob and Arlene the same--they are both CEO's.

After dinner--we talked about this coming trip to Indonesia. I answered a number of questions and shared about some of the issues facing the refugees. We talked about the food program and the T.B. Project. Emily Rose went upstairs for a few minutes and came down to stand next to me. She stood there with a plastic bag in her hand. She got my attention and began to take out the contents one at a time. First a dress--she said this is for one of the refugee children. She had heard me talk about some of the refugee families selling their clothes to feed their children. Then she handed me a doll and a pair of shoes. She said she thought they could use them. The last item was a zip lock bag with all the coins she had been saving. She handed it to me and said she wanted to help feed some of the hungry people. I had her find 20 cents. She found two dines and set them on the table. I told her this will feed one person for one day. She then counted all of her coins. She had $ 5.19 in assorted coins. She began to divide the money she had by 20 cents. She stood rolling her eyes and cheerfully stated--I have enough to feed someone for 25 days and almost 26 days. I wish you all could have seen the joy expressed in her eyes. She was giving all she had and it was going to make a difference. I believe she was being cheered on by the hosts in heaven. This was something special. This was a 21st Century "widows mite". It was uncontaminated childlike faith. If the Lord were there like He was on the day the widow dropped her two coins into the treasury--He would nudge one of His disciples and say, "Take notice she put in all she had." This is a tribute to Emily Rose who finished the evening with the reading of a poem and a worshipful dance before the Lord. She twirled and raised her hands before the Lord--even the crash to the floor was a move of beauty--because it was abandonment--nothing was held back. What an evening. Emily Rose you have found the secret to the Kingdom of God.

A final word

I will be going to Indonesia with Paul Camp and P.J. Bentley. Paul and I will be investigating the T.B. Project and we will be in all the refugee centers and resettlement sites. If we can be approved by the North Maluku Governor we will be delivering aid to some of the most needy among the refugees of this region. I would ask you to pray that the Lord's will would be done on this trip. We want to be a blessing to the people who have suffered so much over the last years.

Hebrews 13:3

Carl Cady