The One Day War

Hi there everyone! That's right, we had a one day war here on the tiny, jungly island of Tarakan. It's probably the first of it's kind that Tarakan has seen since World War II when the Japanese occuppied the island. Its scale was not nearly as large as that war, but it did succeed in pretty well shutting down the town for several days.

Two weeks ago we heard rumors that there were going to be riots in downtown Tarakan. Apparently a Tidung (pronounced tee-dung) man and his son were killed by a Bugis (boo-geese) man and the Tidung people were calling for an ethnic war against the Bugis people. Fighting of this kind that pits tribe against tribe can unfortunately be common here in Indonesia where there are many thousands of tribes that make up the people of this unique island-filled country. The Bugis people used to be sea-faring pirates many years ago, and actually, the word "boogie man" comes from this tough people group. Most all of the Tidung and Bugis people are Muslim.

Well, on Tuesday night the police gave everyone a 5:00 curfew, and that night Dave and I could hear the rioters from up here on the hill. We, nor any of the other MAF families, felt in danger because we live far enough away and are not targeted, but it was still eerie to hear the chants of the angry Tidung people yelling. Then we heard gunshots. This went on for a while, the chanting, then gun shots from the police to try and break up the crowd. Then we could see an orange glow where the crowd had lit a building on fire! Although we didn't feel in danger, that was one night we were glad to be home. The boys slept through it all.

So the town was shut down for several days with many people leaving the island or fleeing from their homes. I had to borrow diapers and bread from a friend! But other than that we had plenty of food to get by. The worst part about it for me was being stuck at home! I like to get out at least once a day. But thankfully that didn't last too long. It was weird, though, driving around and seeing the soldiers that the government sent it, with their automatic weapons, around town. My friend Rebecca Hopkins took the picture in the beginning of the blog of some soldiers in front of our one fast food restaurant in town, KFC! (Indonesians LOVE fried chicken!) Ryan likes to look at the soldiers whenever we drive by them.

And, funny enough, it was Ryan who noticed the bullet holes in the second level of the mall. There are 13 (the boys and I counted) bullet holes in the glass. I never would have noticed them if not for my observant son.

All that to say that we could use your prayers here in Tarakan because there are rumors that after the soldiers pull out of town on Thursday, October 14, that the fighting may start again. Please pray for the peace of Tarakan. And for the salvation of the Tidung and Bugis people.

Love and miss you all! Linda

Busy, Busy, Busy!

Wow, time does fly! I apologize for not writing sooner. I must admit, when things get busy, the computer is the first thing to go! (Those of you who know me well know this...) But I will try to post updates every two weeks or so. With homeschooling going on, there's just a lot to think about. It's been going okay - we definitely have our good days and hard days and trying to balance keeping Ryan occuppied at the same time is challenging. That kid would tear the whole school apart if he could!
Speaking of Ryan, tomorrow is his birthday! He will be 4 years old. It seems like he's been around a lot longer than that. But I can't even remember our life without him. Sometimes C.J. wishes to be without him! Ryan can be a little rough at times, so we have to work through C.J.'s hurt feelings a lot. Those are our struggles.
Well, things are just plain busy around here lately! We have homeschooling four days a week and our co-op on Friday. I am teaching art for co-op, which has been really fun! I like it a lot. My friends are teaching P.E., Geography, Science, and Indonesian. So Friday's are a packed morning. Ryan gets to go to pre-school, too, which two other moms are teaching at one of their houses. It is fun to have something structured with the kids' friends as a part of their school experience here.
This past weekend was our first annual MAF ladies Retreat here in Tarakan. It was a one-night retreat at the local Swiss-Belhotel (which was really nice!). It was so nice to get together with all of the ladies here and have some fun, listen to Beth Moore teach on Loving Well, sing some songs and just relax. I am so privileged to be here to be a part of it.
We just welcomed a new couple to the program here, Chris and Sarah Desjardan (I can never remember how to spell their last name). They are in the process of getting settled into their new house, and then on Friday we will welcome another family coming back from furlough and moving to Tarakan. They were previously in Southern Kalimantan. So things will be busy with a welcome dinner for these two new families, plus Ryan's birthday party next Saturday.
Well, I sure miss you all of my friends! You can pray for me to be intentional about making time to spend with the Lord. I am feeling like I need to do this more, but it's just tough with everything that's going on! Let me know how you all are doing... Love ya, Linda

Lessons from a Turtle

The following is a story that happened to us a week ago with C.J.'s turtle "Tortilla" (Tor-til-a) (A combination of tortoise and tortilla!) Oh, and a big praise that our school books came in this week! Thanks for all who were praying for that!

The sermon really touched my heart that Sunday - what I could understand of it. The pastor talked pretty fast, and since it was in Indonesian, I could pick up about half of what he said. But one thing I got as he read the parables of Jesus from Luke 15: God's heart is broken over sin and for the lost. He longs for them to repent and return to Him, like the Prodigal son.

It was such a good reminder. You would think that serving overseas like we do, the lost would always be our chief concern, but having children, being involved in a technical ministry, and sometimes just growing preoccuppied with the things of our own life, sometimes I can just plain forget about the lost. Can you relate?

Since it was such a stirring reminder, that next morning, I read our boys the parable of the prodigal son from Luke 15 so they could understand the pastor's message. Then we prayed and asked God to give us hearts like His.

Later that mornign, I asked C.J. to take his turtle outside to get some sun. I got busy doing other things and so did C.J. We can both get distracted rather easily. About a half-hour later I asked, "Where's Tortilla?" "I dont' know," was C.J.'s reply.

"What do you mean you don't know? Weren't you keeping an eye on her?"

"She was right over there." He pointed to a place in the grass no longer occuppied by the turtle. Frustration brewed up in me. I had to run an errand and I didn't have time to look for a turtle!

Distraught, C.J. meandered around the yard, poking in corners and looking under coverings of dried-up bamboo leaves - but no Tortilla. Soon, he gave up and I found him sobbing in his room. "I've failed Tortilla!" he sobbed. "I lost her."

As I tried to negotiate the line between my parental irritation at his negligence, my disbelief that such a slow creature could completely disappear from our yard, and my frustration at needing to be somewhere else, my heart was touched by C.J.'s absolute brokenness over his lost turtle. I felt the Lord whisper, "Just stay with him for a while." After asking internally for God's direction, I urged C.J. to not be too hard on himself, but to call his friend who knew a lot about turtles, and ask him if he had any advice about where to look, and to pray that he could find Tortilla.

While C.J. was doing that, I grabbed a flashlight and decided to try my luck (even though it's not luck) at looking underneath the house. Logically, it's the only place she could have gotten to in the amount of time that C.J. had left her on the grass. I headed down the cement steps that went to the carport below the house. From there I could shine the light into the dark crevace taht was underneath the house. And there, sure enough, though I only swher because she stuck her head out, was Tortilla, the now naughty turtle who had run away.

"C.J.!" I cried excitedly, loud enough so he would hear me from the house, "I found her!" C.J. tore out of the house and down the stiars - smiling from ear to ear. We rejoiced together. It was only then that our prayer from that morning rushed back into my mind. "C.J.," I said thoughtfully, "I think God just gave us an object lesson so we could experience how it feels for him to miss the lost like in those parables of Jesus."

"C.J. thought for a moment. "Maybe so, Mom."

"Are you glad to have your turtle back?"

"Oh, yeah!"

Once Tortilla was returned to her cage, we had a new appreciation for the silly creature, and a gentle reminder from the Lord about his love for the lost.

Hannah's Anniversary

Hey there everyone! Thank you SO much for all of your prayers and thoughts on Hannah's anniversary. I just know it makes a huge difference in our ability to make it through the hard things and even find joy in them to by thinking about the future that all of us who follow Jesus have in heaven! I think it just feels good to make it through August 2 - especially this year being here in Indonesia.

It was a busy weekend because we celebrated Dave's birthday on Saturday, and then Hannah's anniversary on Sunday. I think having things planned really helps because it gives us a sense of "control" in some ways that we're not completely at the whim of the day. After praying about it, we decided to ask our friends the Holstens if they wanted to come over and celebrate Hannah's anniversary with us. David and Natalie were here back when we were here before (back in the day!) and have been serving here ever since. So they knew Hannah, and their son Carter was a good friend with Hannah. Now they have four children (Carter, Grace, Luke and Zoe).

David and Natalie brought over some pictures of Hannah that they had from back around 2001 or so. It was neat to see them, and to talk and share about our memories. We remembered how Hannah and Carter used to play "brother and sister", and how Hannah became very interested in amphibians because Carter was. I am amazed sometimes at how many things I have forgotten. So it was special to remember together. Dave and I were reminiscing how Hannah used to not want to kiss him goodbye in the mornings so she would run and hide in the rolled up tikar (bamboo mat), right in the middle of it! Funny.

After sharing memories, the kids colored pictures in honor of Hannah (we ended up with a lot of butterflies) and then we went outside and released balloons together. I love doing that on her anniversary. It's so simple, yet there's something very symbolic about letting the balloon go and watching it go up to heaven. Dave reminded us that all of us who are in Christ will get to be together again someday. Some days I can live in that as a reality, and other days I find myself dwelling in my sadness. I know I'm only human. I do ask God to increase my faith so that I can live more days walking as if it were reality that I will see Hannah again. Not that I don't need to be sad - I think it's a fine line to balance our grief and be honest about it, but temper it with the hope that we have in Christ. For when I am really believing that this life isn't all there is, I find I am much more full of joy and confidence in the Lord.

One other thing I enjoyed doing was going down to MAF on her actual anniversary and sitting in the airplane that's dedicated to Hannah. (see picture above) It is special to me to have something that actually represents her here. I wondered how many stories have taken place in that airplane and how many people have been helped by it. It was special to have a tangible place to go to and something to touch that represents her here in Indonesia.

So, be encouraged everyone! This life isn't the end - someday we will get to be with our King, the Lord Jesus. But until then, I am so thankful for all of you and your prayers and your friendship. God bless you.

Stuck in the Mud

Yes, yesterday I went out to go shopping - just to get a few things at the store, and I got stuck in the mud at the top of our hill. There are these two little tracks of cement that the car has to stay on, and I accidentally went off, and since it's been raining so much lately I got stuck in the mud. Forty five minutes later with the help of my friend Katie and an Indonesian neighbor, we finally got the car out of the mud. When Dave got home for lunch, he could see the remains of several tears and said, "What's wrong?" I told him about my adventure, and how I hadn't been able to accomplish what I wanted to do. He said, "IWA." I said, "What in the world does IWA mean?" He said, "Indonesia Wins Again!" (Our friends the Holstens have coined this term!)
Now, on its own, although frustrating, that one event may not have brought me to tears, but after the last several days of "reality" hitting about living in Indonesia, it did. Reality in the form of: pretty constant rain for the last week (that means constant clouds, and you all know how much I love clouds!), the LPG(gas) running out for the stove while I was preparing dinner for guests, training a new househelper, the boys getting eaten up by mosquitos, mosques that go off and echo inside your brain because it's so loud(5 times a day, starting at 4:30 am). Anyway, you get the picture.
The first three weeks of being here have been wonderful at times, and very frustrating at other times. God is definitely teaching us a lesson in dependence upon Him, and also in changing our expectations. The reason we get so frustrated when things go wrong is because we're not expecting them to. Pretty much in America things work (internet, electricity, your oven, the hot water...) Well, that may not always be the case here. So, I must admit, yesterday, being stuck in the mud just capped my experience of being slightly depressed. I really feel like God is teaching me to be honest when things are frustrating, but to trust Him to take care of me, and to provide for my needs. And, if things don't work out like I want them to, to have faith that He is in control and has a good reason.
One good thing that came from being stuck in the mud was I got to meet our Indonesian neighbor, who helped me. I was so grateful that she would be willing to get dirty and come and help me. So I decided to take her a gift of rambutan (That's an Indonesian fruit that looks like it has hair on it- rambut means hair). Indonesians love to give and receive gifts. So, you can pray for more opportunities to visit with her.
When I get discouraged about the hard things of living here in Indonesia, I think about two weeks ago when I got to sit next to a friend in church, and see her for the first time. I will call her Mary, though that is not her real name. Mary grew up Muslim, and accepted Christ about a year ago or so. God gave me the privilege of talking to her when we lived here before. She and her Canadian husband lived next door. She told me about having dreams about Jesus, and we got to pray together as she was definitely seeking. So imagine my joy to get to sit next to her in church and call her "sister!" That has been one of the most exciting things of all so far! She has been ostricized from her family, yet her faith persists. Sitting next to her I had new appreciation for the blood of Jesus and what we are saved from. Praise God!
Hannah's anniversary is coming up (number 7) of her homegoing to heaven. It is August 2. We have been praying and thinking of how to spend that day. My heart has been heavier lately and I think part of it is the anticipation of that day and all of the emotions it brings. You can pray that God would give is strength and blessing on that day.
PRAYER POINTS: Pray for our attitudes as we encounter difficulties here. And for fortitude on Hannah's anniversary and the days leading up to it, and for much fruit to come from her life and memory. Thank you! We are so grateful for all of you!

We Made It!

Wow, thanks for all of your prayers! We made it to Tarakan, Indonesia. For the whole journey we could feel your prayers! The Lord gave us all such a peace and a calmness. The boys did GREAT! We are convinced they are world-travelers-in-training. Even Ryan did well. To the right is a picture of Mary Epp, Annette Welburn and I. The Epps and Welburns came to the airport to see us off. It was so nice to be sent off by them! Below is a picture of Dave and Reg Epp.






The hardest part of the journey was when we arrived in Jakarta. We had to collect our bags, get them through customs, and then transfer to the domestic terminal via a shuttle. All of this, done in Indonesia, is a bit crazy! The domestic terminal was packed, and hot, and it didn't help that I forgot to set my watch one hour back, so I thought our flight was going to leave any moment! Once we got that figured out, and our bags checked in, we began the hot process of waiting for our flight.

Once we got on there, we were all out for the count. I couldn't even keep my eyes open! And C.J. was out, even though he was being oogled and ogled by the passenger across the aisle!

The boys enjoyed making some friends on the trip. To the right is a picture of them and a friend we made in San Francisco, who traveled with us to Taiwan. The picture is in the waiting room in the airport at Taipei, Taiwan. She was going to Vietnam to visit family. Below, is Ryan enjoying talking on the phone, or pretending he is on the flight from Taipei to Jakarta.

But, it's good to be here in Tarakan. The team here is young and energetic. (I've already been referred to as an "old-timer"), and they've given us a warm welcome. It's been great to see our friends the Holstens again. They were arrived in Tarakan when we were here before, and now David is the program manager. His wife Natalie has been taking me out shopping. I tell you, coming from Idaho, it's quite a change! The driving is chaotic, you get stared at wherever you go, and people call you "bule" (boo-lay), which means foreigner. But we've already gotten to see some old friends from before. I guess eight years is a long time.

The strangest part of the journey for me was when we were flying over the jungles of Borneo, on our way to Jakarta. Just seeing the broccoli-like terrain below brought me right back to flying with Dave in the MAF 206 over scenery just like that, and I thought, "I can't believe we're back!" I've had many "weird" moments since then, when things all of a sudden became crystal clear and I had a memory. The sweetest and most heart-wrenching one happened this morning when my friend Joy picked me up and brought me to her house, which is the house we used to live in. Although it's changed since we've lived there, one memory was crystal clear. The corner in the kitchen was where we had Hannah's little table that she would sit at for hours and make crafts, color and staple things. (She loved her stapler!) Just seeing that corner brought back so many memories! That corner represents to me who Hannah is. (I say is because I'm pretty sure she's still got the same personality in heaven). She's creative and artistic and knows what she's about.

Dave got his old motorcycle back to ride, so here is a picture of he and the boys in our front yard. We love and miss all of you and look forward to hearing from you!

PRAYER POINTS: Thanks again for your prayers! Please continue to pray for us as we settle in to a new country, climate and team. and pray for Dave as he has already begun his check-out in the Caravan. There are a lot of things to learn.

We're Leaving on Saturday!

Thanks so much for praying! We finally got the final approval on our visas and MAF has purchased tickets for us for...gulp...this Saturday! We'll fly out of Boise in the late afternoon to San Francisco, where we have a layover until 1:35 in the morning when we board our China Air flight to Taipei. From there it's on to Jakarta, and then on to Tarakan. We covet your prayers for the trip, especially with Ryan. I'm sure C.J. will do just fine, but Ryan gets a little testy when he's tired!

It's very exciting, and things are very busy. We're busy shopping for last minute supplies, and packing them all up. It should be quite a production. But, as God has promised us, He is striding ahead of us, and is with us. The coolest thing happened this morning - a total God thing. I just happened to pick up the verse that I was talking about in my last post, Deuteronomy 31:6, and we read it from the 3x5 card this morning as a family. Then, later on during the day, we were listening to Air 1 the radio station, and they read the same verse! It was their verse of the day. Then, I was talking to a good friend on the phone today and telling her about it and she said, "No way! God led me to that verse this morning!" I had goosebumps. I just love it it when God does that! I love it when He's so clear because it really reminds me that He's real.

Well, I'm beat so I'm going to sign off with that update. Thanks so much for everyone's prayers! I may not write again until we get settled in in Indonesia. At least until we figure out how to connect to the internet!

PRAYER POINTS: Praise God for the final visas coming in! Please pray for our trip on Saturday to go well, and for patience and protection for our family. Thank you!