God will see us through
None today is a stranger to wars
and rumours of wars. Yet when the riots in Indonesia
hit the headlines on 14-15 May 1998, the world was aghast. In part, it was
because of the suddenness with everything happened. One moment, Indonesia
was a prosperous, peaceful nation, and the next chaos and conflict reigned. But
more disturbing was the news of the burning and petrol bombing, the looting,
and worst of all, the assaults on the female Chinese.
“When one member suffers, all the
members share the suffering. When a member is honored, they all share the joy.”
If the world was horrified, how
much more so all of us in the True Jesus Church. We might not have been to the
church in Jakarta but each member
there was bound to us by God’s love and Jesus’ blood. And thus prayers were
offered in almost all the churches for these beloved brothers and sisters. We
asked God to help them through this painful period, preserving their faith and
enabling them to emerge stronger than before. God Heard.
Sis Huang from Jakarta
recounts some incidents that showed her how God was with them throughout:
I.
Incident 1
My husband drove off to work as
usually. At about , the
telephone calls started flooding in Friends, relatives and church members were anxiously
keep each other abreast of the latest developments. The riots were now more
than just demonstrations. There were cases where petrol bombs would be thrown
at cars driven by Chinese. When these bottles exploded both driver and car
would instantly go up in flames, the driver dying a painful and gruesome death.
I could no contact my husband.
Sick with worry, I told my daughter to kneel down and pray with me. Thank the
Lord Jesus for His guidance and protection, my husband managed to reach home
safely. Things got steadily worse towards the afternoon. There were burning,
killing, looting and raping. The air was thick with fumes from the fires. But
we managed to pass the day through prayers.
At dawn, police sirens were heard.
Five hundred rioters descended on our estate. While we had our vigilante corps
(each estate had formed its own), the atmosphere was thick with dangers,
anxiety and fear. We felt really helpless. We could only rely on the Lord
Jesus. My husband went off with vigilantes. My daughter and I remained at home
to pray continually, “Lord you are our only support. We rely on You, thank and praise You. We entrusted everything to you.”
We believed that only the Lord Jesus could save us.
She could not run out so the only
thing for her to do was to hide the toilet upstairs and prayed. She begged the
Lord for deliverance. The rioters were only about 100 steps away from the rear
entry point to our estate. They had looted every single Chinese-owned store
along the way. But thank the Lord, our estate was preserved and saved by the
Lord. I truly believe that in our times
of tribulation, the Lord will protect us and deliver us from the wicked. Great
indeed is the grace and love of our Lord
II.
Incident2
It was the afternoon of the riots.
Sister A’s shop assistants had all gone home. She was waiting for the family
car to pick her up. Suddenly, a group of rioters swarmed into her shop. They
looted everything. He then grabbed her handbag and jewellery. Sister A was
almost strangled by the rioter tugging her necklace. So she shouted loudly,
“Hallelujah! Hallelujah!” this shocked the rioter and caused him to release his
stranglehold on her chain. She was free from this danger.
She could not run out so the only
thing for her to d was to hide in the toilet upstairs and pray. She took off
her sarong (wrap around skirt like garment) and used it to cover Sister A’s
face and body. This old lady told Sister A, “I am here to save you. Just follow
me and walk straight ahead.” It was indeed God’s miraculous work- there were so
many rioters about but none noticed her (otherwise they would have taken turns
to assault her). She managed to leave the shop safely. It was indeed the great
love of Lord Jesus.
III.
Incident 3
Sisters B was at home, ignorant of
the fact that violent riots had broken out. She told her 17-year-old daughter
to walk down to the end of their road to get some documents photocopied. Coming
to the junction, the daughter saw many rioters behaving lawlessly. Hallelujah,
Lord, please deliver.” The Lord Jesus heard her cry. The rioters did not
disturb her at all and she was not harmed in any way.
When she reached home, she told
Sister B, “Mummy, Lord Jesus heard my prayer. He rescued me and brought me home
safely.”
Coincidence? Lucky break? This is
what people in the world would probably think but as for Sis Huang: These
testimonies truly helped me know that the Lord Jesus is our refuge. Though
strong enemies would harm us, the Lord Jesus protects and delivers us. His
loving and abundant salvation grace is ours. May the grace of the Lord Jesus,
the love of God and the inspiration of the Holy Spirit always be with us.
IV.
Incident 4
Brother C owned a leather goods
shop. The entire row of shops where his shop was located was set on fire. But
just as it seemed that his shop would also meet the same fate as the others,
the fire stopped at the adjacent wall. Just like that. By God’s grace.
Doubtlessly, some had to undergo
more difficult tests:
1.
One sister had to jump off the second floor. She
injured her spinal cord, but she made a quick recovery.
2.
Four glass panels in the Jakarta
church were broken.
3.
17 houses and shops belonging to members were
looted. Of these, three were burnt.
But God does not put us through
tests that harm us. He always works for good for those who love Him. The
troubles in Indonesia
should prompt us to self-examine, whether we, who belong to the more affluent
Chinese community, have cared enough for our poorer native neighbors. We can
also learn from the kindness of the old native Indonesia
lady who probably had risked her life to save our sisters. ON top of these, one
thing was clear: the church had emerged stronger from these riots…
…in faith the brethren in Jakarta
saw how God really took care of them in their time of need. His guidance was
always felt. Members held onto their faith and have even drawn closer to God.
…in hope the church as a whole
learn pray and rely on God for deliverance. Some who had been dozing off in
their life of faith received a wake-up call.
…in love local members were really
concerned for each others. If they were on phoning to encourage each other,
they spent the rest of their time praying at home. The whole church has grown
closers. The church’s Welfare Department offered financial assistance to
members whose shops, the source of their livelihood, has been burnt. Individual
members also assisted in private. TJC members and churches all over the world
called to show their concern.
Truly we are one family Jesus
Christ. We are children of a Father who loves us dearly, who will see of us
through all our trials and tribulations.