Like many places in the States, this week was Spring Break.
But here they call it Easter vacation, a bit unusual in a country that is
primarily Muslim, especially the further west you go. Good Friday is a holiday as is the Monday
after Easter. There are many services and events all weekend.
Services start early here. We missed the 5 a.m. Good Friday
service, but we made it to the 7 a.m. Everything was in the Kupang Malay
language, including the Scripture. This
is a huge blessing because people here understand Kupang Malay much better than
Indonesian.
We recognized the Apostles Creed (by its rhythm), and we
were able to follow the Scriptures in our own Bibles. The songs and hymns were
projected on the front wall, and we sang along as best we could. The tunes were
unfamiliar, but easy to follow, though we didn’t know what we were singing.
The church was decorated with three commemorative crosses,
many flowers and purple curtains. On Easter Sunday, the curtains were white.
The Good Friday message was from the text in John 19 on the
meaning of the crucifixion.
After the service, which was full, we were warmly
welcomed. Everyone wanted to shake our
hands or touch noses ... the traditional greeting here. Then several wanted
their picture taken with us, including one of the pastors.
On Easter Sunday, there was a parade at 3 a.m. (which we
missed) followed by a service which we thought started at 5 a.m. We arrived at 5
a.m. but discovered the first hour was practice. We could have slept in one more hour. The service
went until 8.
Julie recorded some of the singing. She tried her best to follow the message, but
lol, all she knows is a few words, phrases and numbers—which is more than Jon
knows. For us there was no exposition, application or challenge; though our
Kupang friends, AT and Yanti, said it was a very meaningful message.
It brought home to us again the necessity of hearing the
Word in a language you clearly understand.
Two more workdays here and then we head for home. But, Lord
willing, the work of Bible translation into local languages will continue throughout
the world because it is so important to be used both at home and in the church.
"Christ is risen! He is risen indeed!" “Hallelujah!”
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