Indonesia Work

Regarding the work of Steve and Susan Waller in Jakarta, INDONESIA.

Sad Letter from a Missionary

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This letter is a sad one to me because I know the facts.  The fact is that Steve is returning to Indonesia without having raised the funds that he needed to raise to continue his work in Indonesia.  He returns in good faith that brethren will YET come along side to help.  There are contact links at the bottom of this message.  If you are a member of churches of Christ and have influence will you see what you might do to help?  PLEASE!!!
_________________________

Dear brethren, family, and friends,

Susan and I plan to begin our return trip to Jakarta in exactly two weeks, the Lord willing. We are now making final preparations for that trip– making last visits to our family, changing our thinking from American back to Asian, using Bahasa Indonesia with each other more than we have (we actually do have to do that in order to be ready to face the complete culture change when we arrive in Asia), and planning our packing (making sure we have all of our documents in order and in-hand, etc.).

I have no more scheduled speaking engagements in the USA at this time, and I am making no new appointments during this visit.

Brethren, as one good preaching brother and friend used to say on the radio, “May I talk to you heart to heart?”  I wish to write to you “heart to heart” for just a few moments.

As we think about our stay in the USA on this trip, we have thoughts of joy, sadness, and concern. Many good brethren have been so helpful to us in so many ways. We have met brethren who are new to us, and who have an interest in the work that we have been doing in Indonesia. We have met some who have made serious personal sacrifices to help support these efforts financially—some with limited incomes who have given all they are able to give. We have met those who have been able and willing to help by adding to what they have already been sending to support this effort.  So many have been so generous and helpful in so many ways!  Thank-you so much!

On the other hand, we have spoken, by phone and letter to those whom we have known for years, who refused to allow us to even come into their presence to discuss this mission effort. I realize that every congregation is not able to help every missionary or benevolent work that comes along. I have lived long enough, preached long enough, and worked with local churches here in the USA long enough, to know that not every request for help can be supported in a financial way.

I have lived long enough and understand the Scriptures well enough to know that one must honor the decisions of elders in local churches as to which mission and benevolent works their flock will support, and how much support will be given to such efforts.

I have also lived long enough to know that (in some cases) there are brethren who have funds (undesignated thousands upon thousands of dollars in church bank accounts ) that are doing nothing with it and who seem not to understand the urgency of spreading the gospel, and supporting those will help to spread the gospel into the harvest field, around the world.

One of the things that gives me great concern is that, considering the current threat to free nations of this world, why some brethren cannot see that supporting the spreading of the gospel into primarily Muslim nations (Indonesia for one, it being the largest Muslim nation in the world) would not only be in the best interest of the Cause of Christ and the conversion and salvation of the Muslim people to Christ, but also in the best interest of Americans and American freedom. If one wins his enemy to Christ, he helps to transform that enemy into a brother!

In a case or two, I was surprised when we lost some support this year from a couple of brethren due to petty personal feelings and church politics. How sad that is. I have thought about such verses as 2 Timothy 4:14-18.

Our hope is that those new congregations that we have visited will soon be able to help this work on a regular basis. We look forward to hearing from them.

One of the joys of being able to be back in the USA this time has been to spend some time with both Susan’s mother and my mother. Our mothers are very important to us. Our time together with them has meant so much to us, and it means more as we all grow older. We wish it were possible to take them back with us to Indonesia.

One of the saddest losses that we have experienced through the years is that I have had little or no influence on my four grandchildren and two dauaghters due to the fact that we have been separated from them for the most part of the past 10 years in the work in Indonesia. My grandchildren do not even really know who we are because we rarely see them. I have not been able, therefore, to have the influence on them that I enjoyed from my own grandparents when I was a child. I used to crawl all over my grandfathers’ laps and go places with them, and learn from them. That is one of the greatest sacrifices that I have made as a father and grandfather. Not being able to be with one’s children and grandchildren is difficult. And, it is the cause of some of the greatest sadness that I have as we contemplate our return to Indonesia.

In the congregation that meets in the Kelapa Gading area in northeast Jakarta, on Sunday, 08 July, there were 14 people in Bible Class. Walter Rolos was the teacher. He taught again on “The Mission of the Local Church.”  In the worship service, there were 14 people. The sermon was preached by Marolop Simatupang on the subject, “Lessons From The Way of Cain” (Jude 11).

Brother Marolop wrote the following to me: 

“Our sister from Philippine, Evangeline and her friend, Alma, already come again to Jakarta. They stay in Mediterania Apartement, Kelapa Gading, and work at SIS (Singapore International School) close to our congregation building.
Our hello to our brethren and your family. Thank you!”

This is good news from Jakarta! Sister Evangeline, a Filipina teacher, has been able to return to Jakarta in a new job in a different school. She will be staying closer to us than in the past. This will make it easier for her come to worship. And, her friend and co-worker, Alma, a young lady who is a Catholic, has also returned. Maybe this time we will be able to convert her. Both of them speak English fluently.

Brethren, thank-you for your support, for your prayers, for your interest in the work that is being done in Indonesia. We are already planning our work for the next few months. There is much to do. We hope that we will have the opportunity to accomplish it.

In Christian Love,

Steve and Susan Waller

———————————————————-

Steve Waller — Jakarta, Indonesia

http://spwrsw.indonesia-missions.com

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http://www.indonesia-missions.com

_______

–DRL

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Eight Years, Eight Months Ago

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DRL Note: Since the Wallers will be with us for the gospel meeting this week, I thought it might be interesting to take a look back at the first report sent back to us from the Wallers. This is from “Susan’s Page”…

Getting Settled in Jakarta (October 1998)
by Susan Waller

Greetings to you all from Indonesia! I would say Salamat pagi, Salamat sore, Salamat siang, or Salamat malam, but I don’t know the time of day you will be reading this letter. Indonesian greetings are very precise as to the time of day. Yes, we are presently in hot pursuit of a new language. There are many cultural differences that are reflected in the language of Indonesia (Bahasa Indonesia). The sentence structure is also very different. We have been told that there are very few rules as far as grammar is concerned. It seems that they make choices about what is right by the way things sound. What sounds right seems to dictate the correctness of a sentence. However, that would mean that what seems right to me may not sound right to you. How can I be wrong if there isn’t a standard by which to judge if I am right? Does that sound familiar to you, brethren? However, my language teacher seems to have no problem correcting us.

The conditions here in Jakarta are still in a political upheaval. There are extra security measures being taken, especially around the celebration of holidays. The government is taking precautions to prevent the outbreak of more violence on the scale that took place in May of this year. Businesses in Indonesia have been severely set back by the brutality that occurred then. They have either closed completely, drastically laid off workers, or are in the slow process of rebuilding. We have seen many businesses that have been completely destroyed. There are some malls that no longer exist. Since so many are unemployed the traffic flow is lessened to some extent. However, traffic in Jakarta is like no other city that I have ever seen. There isn’t an American city to compare with it. I have heard that there are some other Asian cities that compare! Now, there are many beggars on every corner where traffic may stop for a light. These are not the usual groups that normally gather for any number of legitimate reasons. There are women with babies who cannot feed their children. There are children of all ages begging at car windows. Some seem to be orphans, or children without any parental supervision. Indonesia has much from which to recover. There were many poor before this crisis happened.

The problem has been compounded by the national crisis. President Habibie has helped pass legislation to get children off the streets and back in school. There are also expatriate organizations helping with the distribution of food to the poor. There are many agencies around the world that are helping in this area. There are signs of recovery. The U.S. dollar has weakened by over Rp. 3,000 (Rupiahs – currency) since we came. This is good for the Indonesians, but it reduces our purchasing power. We think that there will be further strengthening of their currency as they take steps to resolve their economic situation.

On the lighter side, we have been adjusting to the cuisine of Indonesia. It’s not beans, potatoes, roast beef and cornbread! As a matter of fact, I don’t think you can even buy cornmeal here. My mother told me that we would miss her southern cooking. She was right. However, in St. Louis, Steve and I made a point of eating foods from many different cultures, i.e., Mexican, Indian, Italian, Thai, Chinese, German, Greek, and American. Without eating a variety of foods we would have been ill-prepared to eat Indonesian food. As with food from other countries, there are good and bad restaurants. Indonesian food has a tendency to have a “kick” to it! Sambal is a hot sauce that some people like to add to their food. It would compete with Tobasco. The “American restaurants” in Indonesia are not very good. Also, they are very over-priced with mostly sub-standard food.

Shopping in Indonesia is quite an experience. One never knows what he or she might find, or where it might be found in a store. For example, in a grocery you would find all the “sauces” together. The apple sauce and Worcestershire sauce are side-by-side on the store shelf simply because they have “sauce” in the name, not because they are alike in any way. For some strange reason I have problems reading the labels on most of the packages–wonder why?? One can’t go by sight. Something may look like cinnamon, but it may not necessarily be cinnamon. Remember, we are in the Spice Islands. You would think that there would be special stores just selling spices alone. No! As a matter of fact, you can only find them in the grocery store next to the imported spices packaged in America that originally came from Indonesia! Is this confusing?? Any food imported is extremely expensive. There are many open air markets where fresh fruits such as mango, pineapple, bananas, guava, and durian may be purchased.

An Apotik is a drug store here. One can find some medications here that are available in America. Last spring I developed a severe allergy to grass, dust, pollen, etc. before we left the States. I wanted to scratch my eyes constantly. My eyes started swelling and itching only a few days after we came to Jakarta. I had medication that I brought with me which I thought would last for a while. Fortunately, I was able to find some in the Apotik close to the house without the need of a prescription. “Apotik” is from the word “apothecary.”

There are many “nyamuks” here in Indonesia. No, they are not a new musical group. They are mosquitoes!! We have special electrical mosquito “zappers”. Also, we spray the house often for a wide variety of insects. We also have tiny lizards that eat the insects. Lizards find their way into houses and most people are willing to allow them to stay. We have at least two that roam the house. I am very grateful for both of them.

We deeply appreciate all the financial support and encouragement that we have received from everyone. We have much to learn about the land and its people. The brethren here have been wonderful to us. We are reminded daily of the many millions of souls that are lost without the Gospel. Our primary goal is to help the brethren here in teaching others the Gospel of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. We need your help to be able to accomplish this task. I know that you will do your best to help us in this work. Thank-you again for all that you have done to help us.

Love, Susan
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DRL Note2: There is a very real possibility that this godly couple–Steve and Susan Waller–will have to end their work in INDONESIA before they wish to do so. We have been notified by two large supporters of this work, who have been supporters from the very beginning, that their support will soon be ending. The amount from just these two is quite significant: $1450 per month. If you know of churches of Christ looking for a good work to support, we would surely be interested to learn of them. If you know of individuals who might have interest in helping spread the gospel in Indonesia, please put them in contact with us. THANKS! Susan acknowledges in the note above from nearly NINE years ago that she has much to learn. Indeed, Steve and Susan HAVE LEARNED much about the culture and the needs of the brethren in Indonesia. I have visited them seven times and I can highly recommend the work to you. It would be a terrible shame for them not to be able to continue using the knowledge they have gained over these many years.

–DRL

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Sea Breezes

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One of the serendipitous blessings of helping out in a work on foreign soil is the blessing of seeing God’s creative hand in amazing sights, sounds, and smells of different places. How refreshing it was to Diane, Susan Waller, and me to stop by here last year to take in some of the sea breezes from the Indian Ocean, on the southern coast of Java in Indonesia! This world was made BEAUTIFUL by the Almighty God for our enjoyment and pleasure, and He placed limits on it. Or who shut up the sea with doors, when it broke forth, as if it had issued out of the womb? (Job 38:8).

–DRL

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Moving to a Foreign Country

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My friend Steve Waller has written a nice piece about immigration which adds to the hot discussion of the day on the subject from a different and interesting perspective. 

BTW, please come hear STEVE WALLER

in a gospel meeting

at North Marshall  (map at link)

on the dates of June 3-5. 

Time will be 9:30 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. on Sunday

and 7:00 p.m. on Monday and Tuesday.

Steve is an OUTSTANDING preacher of the gospel as was his father.  He does not have as many opportunities to preach all in English any more and he is looking forward to the opportunity, as we are looking forward to having him!  We would be delighted to see you!

–DRL

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Workers in Yogy

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These people cooperated together during a “seminar” in Yogyakarta in late April and early May of 2006.  The one worker missing was snapping the shot–Steve Waller.  I was blessed in this seventh trip to have my wife to travel with me for the first time.  Left to right: Daud; Susan Waller; Diane Lemmons; DRL; Marolop; Sinarwati; Landung; and Walter.

We enjoyed the visit here very much.  We were privileged to do a little sightseeing during the day as our classes had to be conducted at night for the convenience of the students, who worked during the daytime.

–DRL

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Whiteboard in Yogy

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I’m not sure how well you can see the words on the whiteboard in the photo above.  If you can see it, it should be obvious that the words are not in English.  Steve Waller had drawn this chart using Bahasa Indonesia (the language of Indonesia).

In late April of last year Steve and Susan Waller and my wife, Diane, and me flew from Jakarta to Yogyakarta so that Steve and I could conduct a Bible study seminar with men and women with whom our brother Landung had been studying.  We concentrated about 9 hours of teaching on the relationship between Old and New Testaments.  The chart above was very helpful in the discussion and would be quite familiar to most Bible students.  Perhaps you can use the chart to learn a word or two in Bahasa Indonesia.  🙂

The week spent in this “university town” was quite interesting, enjoyable, and challenging.  The prospects with whom we studied were not very knowledgeable at all of the Bible and we had to focus on the simplest of expressions and terms.

While here, Mt. Merapi (an active volcano), was threatening to erupt and we could see it fuming off in the distance from our hotel.  Not long after we left, there came a devastating earthquake which caused great damage and loss of life in this beautiful city.  Sadly (yet, thankfully, not sorrowing without hope, 1 Th 4:13ff), one of the  brethren with whom we met for worship on 30 April–a new convert–lost his life when a wall fell on him during the earthquake.

More photos will follow.

–DRL

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