Malaysia is a beautiful country. Miles and miles of coastline, stunning jungles, mountains, and the cleanest cities I have yet seen in Asia. Even now, I sit in KFC, the only American restaurant in our small town, and look out to see so much green everywhere, spotted here and there with colorful flowers, and beautiful mountains rising in the distance. In the backyard of our house is a small jungle, complete with pesky monkeys (which like to cause a ruckus), king cobras, and foot and a-half-long centipedes. The first day here we were warned that, if you hear a crashing sound, it’s just the monkeys jumping from roof to roof. We have seen many of these fiesty little creatures, but don’t worry, we have not seen any of the more… interesting jungle dwellers as of yet (and pray that we don’t!).
Yes, this country is one of the most beautiful I have seen, and is by far the most culturally diverse, but it is also the most oppressed and hostile. While stating it is religiously free, it is, in fact, an Islamic nation. We are allowed to be Christians, even openly, but it is illegal to witness to a Malay (native Malaysian). There are three main people groups in Malaysia: Malays, Indians, and Chinese, but they never intermingle unless it is required for business purposes. Malays are the only ones required to be Muslims. The Chinese can believe anything they want
, as can the Indians (we can even witness to them as much as we like), but Malays must be Muslim. If I were to witness to one, or invite them to church even, I would be thrown in jail. Because of this, most Malays that become Christian move out of Malaysia. Even if they did not fear for their lives, they are seen as a major threat by their families and communities, and feel hedged in.
So what are we doing here then? We are currently working and living with an amazing Indian family that were all born and raised in Malaysia. They have only been working in this area of Malaysia for a little over a year, and it is slow going here. They are just now to the point of being grudgingly accepted by the neighborhood, therefore most of the ministry is still in the pioneering stages. For example: we teach English to 7-10 year olds three days a week, but that has only been going for a few months now. We also teach a character building program to the same kids on Saturdays, which is essent
ially teaching them Biblical principles without pointing that out. We have to be very careful in these ministries because, miraculously, there are two Malay children that now attend, along with the usually around 15 Indian children.
We are still just starting out the ministry here, but this family is an amazing, godly family and we have been blessed to be invited into their home for the month to share their lives. Please pray for Thomas, Sharmilla, and their three children as they pray about the rather bold next steps the Lord seems to be telling them to take in reaching out to their community.
