My ministry team, the Faith Warriors, are all about evangelism, teaching, and prayer. Along with many other things, We were given the opportunity of serving with pastor Pak Minto and his family – his wife Hana, daughter Efsa, son Joy and daughter Osi. He runs a school for children grades 1-4 in Batam, Indonesia, and they currently have about 200 kids total. It’s been a privilege to teach and serve the kids together with them.

We first met pastor Minto and his family when he invited my ministry team to go talk and get to know each other at their house. We were very encouraged to meet him and his family, and to hear their testimonies as well; both of how they came to know Christ and how God lead them to start their school. There is such a beautiful, refreshing and uplifting fellowship that we have with them as believers that I am grateful for, and I’m sure I speak for the rest of my team as well.

Ministry

After being uplifted by Minto and his family, we were excited to start ministry at their school. However, if there was one word to describe how we felt when we came to teach there for the first time, it would be unprepared. We did not expect to jump straight into teaching on our own, alongside a teacher who acted as our translator, needing to come up with lesson plans and develop a strategy for how we would tackle all of the different classrooms on the spot. Even so, we worked together well and taught each grade level differently, ranging from 1st to 4th grade. Overall, it was an effective and fruitful, yet new and scary, ministry experience.

Since then, we’ve also gone out together to pray over their school and a local village, bringing the gospel and the Holy Spirit with us everywhere we went. We also got to attend pastor Minto’s church, where he gave members of our ministry team opportunities to lead part of the service, as Frankie gave the sermon and Annike, Kendall and I lead a worship song. I am so thankful for the opportunities we’ve had with the pastor and his family for ministry and fellowship all the same!

Fellowship

We’ve since returned to pastor Minto’s house on numerous occasions and have been treated again and again with the most extravagant, sincere, and admirable hospitality. Each time, they provided more food than what we could ever have asked for, and it was absolutely delicious – the first Indonesian word I learned there was enak, which means, “delicious!” They also treated us so well, being lead so evidently in the love of Christ. We were so encouraged through them as a ministry team, being able to hear their stories and how they have persevered through persecution, worry and doubt, as well as serve in a culture that rejects the gospel.

It has been an absolute blessing and honor to serve alongside pastor Minto and his family, and I am so grateful that the LORD brought us together on this little island in Indonesia.

Thank you!