Good afternoon from Bandung, Indonesia!
We have been here for two weeks, so sorry for the lack of update!
We landed in Jakarta, where I got to meet up with my long lost friend, Tedy! We met in Ithaca, NY at the New York Voices Jazz Camp 2 years ago. Who knew I would come visit his homeland shortly after? We had a lot of fun eating sushi, listening to his friends play jazz, and catching up.
Tedy warned me we would be rockstars in Indonesia because we are foreigners, and he was so right! Many people want to take our pictures and show us around their city and homes. They are very proud of their food and culture. If you meet the people once, you are instantly family and always will be. I’m realizing how much patience being a celebrity requires… Stopping all the time for pictures when you want to go home for dinner, saying hello to everyone on the streets and having people shout things in Bahassah that you don’t understand. Being honked at and yelled at constantly… it’s an interesting dynamic.
Our living conditions have been some of the most challenging on the Race. We live in an elementary school classroom. This part has been very challenging because there are rats, cockroaches, and mold. Some of us have gotten a little sick from it. We pack up all our stuff in the mornings so the kids can use the classrooms. There are 10 women on our team this month. We have my original 6 person team, 2 squad leaders, and 2 Exposure girls. These girls meet us on the field for a month to decide if they want to join the World Race or not. It’s kind of a test run for them. Continued prayers for our health, fitness, and well being would be very appreciated!
Ministry has been so fun! The first week, I babysat an 8 month old and two kids while their mom did meetings. I had a lot of fun holding the baby and teaching the other two how to play guitar and egg shakers (they are prodigies, I’m convinced). We visited the classrooms and taught for two days, doing a skit about Jericho and how God is always with you. We also sang the “Peel Banana” song (it was a HUGE hit Banana Bandits!) and Father Abraham. We also spent last weekend repainting this classroom and making a cute Woodland themed mural that Melissa designed. The fox is taller than me… Classic! It is not done yet, but already the teachers are SO excited!
Indonesia is primarily Muslim, so we have to be very careful with our wording to respect the parents and other teachers. We have also heard the incredible testimonies of Muslim based believers. I have heard the whole Race that Jesus has been coming to them in visions and dreams, so it is incredible to hear them talk about that. It has been very powerful. We have prayer walked, visited a family, and a mosque. Yesterday, we visited a family in dire need. The parents have 6 children, 2 are married, and they have 2 grandchildren. All 12 of them live in a very small space. They used to live on the streets and their youngest child was 3 months old. Now they have a space, but they are being evicted on Friday. This was very unexpected. Though they have nothing, they still provided us coffee and donuts, hosting us and showing hospitality. We prayed for them and I sang a hymn in their space to bring more peace there. Here is a picture of their home and some of their sweet family.
I turned 24 on July 8! Thank you to all that messaged me and wished me happy birthday! We had to do ministry that day, so we drove an hour to a church in the mountains in the morning. It was a beautiful villa with a great view of the mountainside! My teammates supplied me with sweet notes that they handed me one by one throughout the day. We sat through a very interesting teaching about how the Quran actually points to Jesus. The man teaching was a professor of the Quran who is now a Christian. It was really amazing information that I would love to share with you at home if you would like! I have learned so much compassion and understanding for this people group through learning about their faith and teachings. After, the teaching, I got up to sing a hymn and the congregation surprised me happy birthday and a cake afterward! They prayed over me and gave a blessing. Everyone sang and greeted me afterward, each person shaking my hand as they left building (and when they entered that morning). I felt as if I was among family, they were so sweet! We breaked for lunch, and then had discussion questions about the previous teaching and our group learned even more about the Quran and the ways it points to Jesus. Then I heard the testimonies of 3 Muslim based believers, one of them the professor of Islam. It was a powerful way to spend my day. After church, we took pictures with people and went home. Then, we went to the mall for a birthday dinner. We cooked the food at our tables the way we wanted to. Then, we went to get ice cream and finished cleaning up our mural mess from the weekend.
Indonesia has invited us in their culture as family and friend. I really love the people here. They are one of a kind and so loving! I am very blessed to be here this month. Continue praying for peace and blessings as we do ministry in this country and enter our last month and a half of our journey!
With love,
Mary Beth
