Rachel is a Religious Studies graduate from the University of Virginia. She has served as a missionary in Slovakia, Oman and Indonesia and she is now serving full-time for Chi Alpha as a campus missionary. Rachel is one of the most thoughtful and kind-hearted people I’ve ever met. She is refreshingly intentional in every relationship she embarks on and she thinks deeply about every decision. I’m so excited to be able to speak to her about her mission experience in Indonesia, especially because she loves so radically in every aspect of ministry and always brings me fresh perspectives! Indonesia is a stunning tropical island nation and the largest Muslim nation on earth. While this country is extremely diverse, it is also illegal to evangelize there and there is a history of violence against Christians in the country. Because of this, there were some things Rachel couldn’t share with me, but there are still great nuggets in this interview!
edited for clarity
EW: Alright, here we are with Rachel to talk about her time as a missionary in Indonesia. So, Rachel, you were in Indonesia, are you allowed to tell me where you were?
RM: The island of Jakarta.
EW: What were you guys doing?
RM: Well, I was on a short-term team, so we were only there for a week. We were doing what the full-term team does on the ground there. So, it was engaging with college students. There’s twenty-some universities in the area we were in, and the team on the ground there offers English help, essentially English learning. They have an English learning center and they invite people in, but also they go out and invite people and tell them about English. They also have small groups where people can learn more about who Jesus is, and once they’ve been invited into the English center, then they’re invited to the small group. And then they have a large group type setting, which is welcome to all the college students around if they want to come in. They explore, normally, a theme which would be related to the stories that maybe they have heard or the faith practice that they have, but then what Jesus says about that as well.
EW: The practices that the people of Indonesia have?
RM: Yeah, that’s mostly what the full-term team did, so we helped do that. Because we were a short-term team, we had a specific event on Thursday called game night, so all the way up until Thursday, whenever we met someone, we would speak to them in English and talk with them and invite them into the English center and then specifically invite them to the game night. And that idea is, like, it’s a foot in the door. You’re familiar with who we are and what we’re here for, and hopefully we can introduce you into more of the gospel side of that once you are a part of knowing what the English center does and who we are as Americans.
EW: What was the biggest thing that God taught you while you were there? Or one thing that God taught you?
RM: I think two things… First is more personal, but God was teaching me that He can use people like me. The first day I was there, I met someone that had gone through a similar experience as one I had recently gone through. And I had felt like I couldn’t be used to share the Good News because I was in a place where I was maybe not feeling the feelings of the Good News as much as I had previously in my life. And her just being there and being willing and obedient in that made me realize that no, I can still do this work and God has still called me to it. So that’s one thing. I also learned, specifically, a lot about prayer. I was exposed to understanding prayer and praying for the people you met in a different way and being in tune with the Spirit of God while you were out. So we did a lot of walking into the campuses, but we can’t evangelize, it’s illegal to be evangelizing there. But, we could pray while we were there with our eyes open and be in tune with what was happening and who we were seeing. So just being able to be led by the Spirit through prayer is something I’d never known before. And it was really helpful in learning that you shouldn’t be ashamed in asking people if they need prayer. They know that you’re not Muslim, normally. They also know that you pray and in this country it’s okay for us to pray for them and it’s okay for us to be Christians and, yeah, I just learned about the power of prayer and how it could be used as a point of conversation.
EW: Cool! What was your favorite part about the trip and your favorite part about Indonesia as a place?
RM: Okay, I have two favorite parts about Indonesia. One, I had never been anywhere as tropical, ever, in my life. And it is beautiful! Like, there is green, there are beautiful rice fields, I think I said “wow” a thousand times within the course of a week. It was so unbelievably beautiful. I’ve never seen anything like that. Also, the people. I did not know what I thought I would encounter, but the people there were so unbelievably friendly, kind, and considerate and they wanted to get to know you and be your best friend and speak English to you to practice their English. So, that was one of my favorite parts about Indonesia itself.
The trip, specifically, my favorite part was probably going to the three different universities. We went to one on each of the first three days and just seeing that twenty-year-olds are twenty-year-olds halfway across the world shouldn’t have been a shock, but it really was! It so was! These people were concerned with their grades and with making friends and with living in a dorm and with being hot and, like, same! You know! So, just being able to be on a campus, something that’s super familiar to me, but also super familiar to them, made a common ground. So being able to talk to people was my favorite thing, for sure.
EW: Last question is, this one is a hard one, I think. In three words…
RM: Oh no, no!
EW: I know, I hate these, but it’s so interesting to hear what people will say!
RM: Okay okay
EW: In three words I want you to tell me what missions means to you.
RM: Okay, I have three separate words. Obedience, flexibility and relationships. They pretty much speak for themselves, but I think one key to missions, or any sort of work in ministry, is flexibility. It’s being flexible with what the Lord is teaching you and also with just the environment you’re around. But also being obedient in that in knowing Who you are serving and who is serving alongside you. You don’t go just to meet God, but God goes with you. So, being reminded of that, in that kind of obedience. And then relational, I mean, yeah, that’s what missions is in my mind. But, if I could capture one word, it would be that one. Because so much of understanding who Jesus is for my own faith has been about understanding who Jesus is personally in relationship with me and what that means about how that transforms my relationship with the world and with other people.
EW: Very cool, thank you for speaking with me!
RM: Yeah! I wish you the best of luck!
grace + peace
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