I felt pampered. Earlier this week, some of my team and I accepted an offer to go swimming with members of the church we are partnered with here in Malaysia.
I was picturing us swimming in a small pond or a river… something dirty, unhygienic, but a unique and memorable experience. We had seen a video of a previous World Race team at this ministry site sliding down rocks into a body of water, and we assumed we would encounter something similar.
But we were in for a treat. Our team was all hunkered down in the big white van that carts us around town, laughing as the seats rolled back and forth with every turn and touch of the brakes. Then we pulled up to a nice hotel and saw through the lobby into a resort-like oasis. I think the exact words we used to describe our shock were: “Wow wow wow!”
We excitedly pranced into the pool area that reminded me of an extremely nice summer vacation. We threw on our conservative bathing suits and hopped into the beautiful water.
I spent most of our time chatting with Uyamuna, our 16-year-old friend from church, and carrying the pastor’s daughter, Jerusha, into the deep end. Jerusha, who largely communicates with me through pointing and saying, “let’s go,” wanted me to take her to the kiddie pool. I obliged, and Uyamuna and I joined the herd of 5 and unders in the foot-deep pool.
As we played together, two little Malay girls came over, curious by the white girl speaking English. Uyamuna translated for me, explaining that one of the little girls told her that she has never seen anyone who looked like me before. Sungai Petani is not a tourist destination, so it isn’t surprising that I am the first white person she has ever seen.
We had breath-holding competitions and races from one end of the kiddie pool to the other. Once one of the little Malay girls realized that I don’t speak Malay, she started trying to impress me with her English skills. Let me tell you, this four-year-old really knows her colors and the name for the sun!
Both Malay girls were strikingly beautiful, and I was completely charmed by their big eyes and immediate friendship.
But as I looked over at their mothers watching from the side of the pool, I felt immense sadness. The Malay mothers were covered from head-to-toe, indicating that they were definitely part of the Muslim Malay population.
These little girls will likely never hear the name of Jesus. They were born into an outwardly good life—they were blessed to have caring mothers and to come from families that could afford to take them to a nice hotel to swim. But they were born into a culture where Islam is a requirement and you are not allowed to even hear the Gospel. They were born into a culture of oppression.
In Malaysia, there are three main people groups:
- Indian. We are working with an Indian church this month, where the congregation speaks Tamil. The Indian population is largely Hindu, but Christians can worship freely.
- Chinese. The Chinese Christians have their own churches in their language, and can worship freely.
- Malay. The Malay people are under Islamic law, meaning it is illegal for them to be Christian.
A man at our Indian church shared with me that he could not invite a Malay friend to church, because it could potentially result in the church being shut down by the Malay government. He could invite his Hindu Indian friends, because they are Indian, but never a Malay person. If he wanted to share the Gospel with a Malay person, he would have to do so illegally, and meet privately in his home so as to protect the Malay individual. I’ve heard of Indian Christians using music lessons as a way to introduce Malay people to the Gospel—teaching worship music and providing a safe space for them to learn about God.
There are underground Malay churches, but they could never come out publicly. A young girl at our church told me that if the government finds a Malay Christian, they will kill them.
Out of all of the countries in the world, Malaysia is ranked #31 on the list of countries with the most Christian persecution. As a white American, I am in no danger here. I can say that I am working with a church. I can say that I am a Christian. But if I were to start sharing my faith, the most important part of my life, with a Malay person, I could be getting myself, the church we are partnered with, and the Malay person in major legal trouble.
I look at the smiling faces of these well-off Malay children, and I am more heartbroken than looking at a population in poverty. Wealth and possessions are fleeting. Everything outside of life with the one true God is meaningless, a chasing after the wind. (Challenge to you: Read Ecclesiastes this week. It’s a short, easy to read book that will change your perspective on life.)
While of course it hurts to see children hungry and living in huts as we have seen in other parts of the world, at least those problems can be addressed while those people find Jesus as their true treasure and the meaning for their life. God often uses poverty to ask people to rely on Him as their Provider, so this can be a time for those people to watch God provide in amazing ways.
But for the Malay population, they are poor in spirit and blocked from hearing the good news that could change their lives. They can live what appears to be a good life lacking nothing in the material sense, but they are missing out on a life with the Lord. A life transformed by the freedom that Jesus brings.
Young girls are forced into wearing hijabs before being given any choice in whether or not it is something they believe in. The Islamic call to prayer echoes through the streets each day, reminding everyone of Islam’s dominance over this country.
I’m no expert on Islam. I’m no expert on what Christians are doing to reach the unreached in countries like Malaysia. I’m no expert on the specifics of the Islamic law that is in place. But the little I know is enough to hurt my soul.
Please join me in praying for Malaysia, for God to bring freedom to His people trapped under Islamic law. Please join me in praying for the Indian and Chinese Christian communities here, that they would be able to freely share the Gospel with their friends and neighbors, and that they would be protected from any harm coming their way as they do so. And please join me in prayer for the Malay government, that God would open their eyes and that they would bring freedom of religion to the entire country instead of to just two people groups.
Some Updates:
This month our team has been spending mornings working at a special needs school. The children there have captured our hearts, and we have enjoyed building relationships with the amazing teachers. Mornings generally start with PE, and then we each go to a classroom to teach art, English, or math.
We have been running kids’ ministry two afternoons each week at our Indian church, which is basically three hours of madness. We learn memory verses, read and act out Bible stories, sing songs, dance, run for a solid hour or more in various games, and play endless rounds of duck-duck-goose.
Then almost every evening we have church meetings. Mondays- House Church. Tuesdays- Youth Group. Wednesdays- Prayer Meeting. Thursdays- Church Service. Fridays- Church Service. Our team preaches and shares testimonies four nights each week, so we have all had the opportunity to write sermons and encourage others with our testimonies.
This month has flown by, and it is hard to believe that we will be heading to Thailand in about a week. I am so grateful for how this month has pushed me in areas of ministry that I have not experienced before. I am so grateful for how the Lord has taught me so much about loving others, from my team, to the herds of children we encounter daily, to members of the church, to our new Hindu and Muslim friends.
Stay tuned for major updates soon—within a week I will be on a brand new team!
Thanks so much for all the continued prayers and support!
