"Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen" (Matthew 28:19-20)
"Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me" (Isaiah 6:8).
"Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord" (I Corinthians 15:58).
October 2021 was the second month for me to do mission work in the city of Makassar, South Sulawesi. Praise God, my family and I were able to live a good life and did ministry during October. My activities in October 2021 are as follows:
Domicile Affairs in Makassar
From October 2 to 4, I was still completing the required domicile documents at the village office Borong, Manggala, Makassar, South Sulawesi. The officer told me that all submitted documents will be processed and later if there is a lack or error in the data and also the certainty of citizenship status in Makassar as well, they will notify me by phone call. Until the end of October there has been no notification and information from the office. Hopefully in November all the affairs of our domicile in Makassar will be completed.
Translation Work
a. Tracts
During October there were 8 tracts in English written by the brethren and from sound and authorized sources which I translated into Indonesian:
- One True Church
- Is Christmas The Birthday Of Jesus?
- Is the Bible the Word of God?
- The Reality of Hell
- Three Facts of Sin
- How to View the Old Testament
- Why Does God Allow Suffering?
- It Is Reasonable to Believe in God
There are still a number of tracts that I will be translating in November 2021.
With the availability of these tracts, I can take them with me when I go out to evangelize and give to the people I meet, after I know them and introduce the gospel to them.
Besides that, I also offer these tracts to a number of local congregations to print and they can distribute to the people in their respective areas. In October, I sent them to the Lord's church in Kendari, Southeast Sulawesi at their request.
b. Personal Evangelism Materials
In addition to the tracts above, there is also personal evangelistic material entitled Back to the Bible which I translated into Indonesian at the recommendation of one of my brethren, the leader of local congregation in Sawangan, Minahasa. Of course this is one of the few evangelistic materials available today. I have just finished translating two lessons and I will translate the next material in November. Hopefully it can be finished and printed as much as possible to be used by myself in Makassar and other local congregations in Indonesia.
Online Bible Courses
I have also been managing an Online Bible Course for a long time called Sabda Injil which has a website can be visited on the internet at the link https://www.sabdainjil.com. Starting in October I began to spend more time replying the registration forms and checking the answers of the participants and also answering their questions. There are two series of courses that I offer through this website: The Bible Blueprint and Back to the Bible. So far, 640 participants have taken this course. Some participants took one series of courses and others two series of courses. Some have completed the course series and some are working on the course series. After participants complete the course series which they are taking, they will be awarded a certificate of appreciation.
My goal in building an Online Bible Course is not only for participants can simply follow the two series of courses, but also to open up opportunities to offer face-to-face gospel learning in their respective cities where there is a church of Christ, and usually the opportunity given to the evangelist or leader of local congregation to handle them. So far, there have been several participants who have studied face-to-face with preachers in addition to continuing to take a series of Bible courses. Along with the development of technology, with zoom and google meet applications that can be a means to preach the gospel, it is also offered to participants to learn the gospel virtually. Almost every participant responded positively and enthusiastically to the virtual learning idea in addition to working on the course material they took. Indeed, until now there has been no realization of this virtual learning program. I am still discussing with a number of evangelists in other local congregations to collaborate in organizing this program. I really hope that this program can be started soon.
Face-to-face Bible Study
On October 13, when I opened the online Bible Course registration form, I found one of the participants (a housewife) from Makassar. She asked if she could study the Bible by face-to-face. As to the other participants, I replied his application form that Sabda Injil accepts him as one of the participants in the Bible course and will fulfill his wish to study the Bible face-to-face.
On October 18, I contacted her through the Sabda Injil WhatsApp number to confirm her readiness and entrusted to the servant of God in Makassar to fulfill her wish to study the Bible face-to-face. She replied by asking, "Is (face-to-face Bible Study) paid or free, brother?" I replied, "No fees at all for the glory of God." Then she confirmed her willingness to study by saying, "Ok sir thank you."
Then I, by my personal WhatsApp number, contacted her again to follow up on her willingness to study the Bible face-to-face and she agreed to study with me. Then we made an agreement about the day and time of study and we agreed every Saturday. In October, we have studied on the 23rd and 30th. She is very serious and eager to learn the gospel. He also asked questions and I was always doing my best to give answers from the Bible. Sometimes we also discuss any spiritual thought together. After we finished each study, I gave her two tracts to take home and read them at home, including with his family. May the ongoing teaching-learning process be fruitful for Christ.
At the initial face-to-face learning meeting, she asked where church I am from and I introduced myself and told her that I am a servant of the Christ's church and have just started a ministry in Makassar city last September 2021. I have also offered her to come to worship on Sunday in a rented building by Church of Christ in Makassar. Hopefully in the coming weeks she will come to worship. I have also offered to teach her family members. Hopefully she can be a door to evangelize her family members.
Meet Brethren
On October 16, I asked for the contact number of a sister in Christ who studied at a university in the city of Makassar from her cousin. This sister is from church of Christ at Tawibaru, East Luwu, South Sulawesi. I contacted her number through WhatsApp application and got a reply from her. She came to worship on Sunday, October 17 with us at the building rented by local congregation. We had time to talk together. She also attended the Bible class on Sunday afternoon.
In addition to meeting this sister, I also contacted a brother in Christ via WhatsApp messages and have not been able to meet in person because he has business in the city of Makassar. Hope to see him another time.
Sunday Worships and Bible Classes
In October we worship every week at Confie Indonesia Co-Working Space with fellow Christians who study and work in Makassar. For the Bible class in October, the first three weeks were held at our residential house in Perumahan Beringin Permai 2 and the last two weeks were held the worship building after the worship service was over. The theme of the Bible class is in accordance with the title of the book The True Faith by David Pharr, which is printed by NSSBS. This book is very good to be taught in the Bible class because it discusses the life of Christians from the beginning of becoming a Christian to growing up in the faith. The book which consists of 49 lessons is designed in such a way that each lesson is short and presented in simple language so that even lay members can easily absorb and understand it.
My two children and I thank God for all His infinite blessings for our ministry and life in the city of Makassar. We also thank the sponsoring and supervising congregation, GSJKDI Sawangan, Minahasa and supporting congregations both from Malaysia and Indonesia for your prayers and supports.
Blog: https://mission-report.blogspot.com/
