Report from the field: “After completing my study at the [VOM supported] mission training centre, I was assigned to a remote area.
“At first, I started to visit house to house. But after one month had passed, my efforts didn’t bear fruit and I began to doubt and wonder if this village is the area that God wanted me to go.
“At a time when I was asking God these questions, I met an animist shaman, Sanea. He is a highly respected and well-known leader.
“I shared the gospel with him, but he was not open to hearing it. Instead, he tried to convince me of the local animist beliefs.
“His motivation to persuade me that his beliefs were true made me all the more determined to lead him to Christ. I started to pray continually that Jesus would touch his heart.
“One day, Sanea experienced a rare disease that resulted in hallucinations and memory loss. He sought various ways known to him of healing, but he did not recover.
“I paid him a visit, and when I asked if I could pray for him, he allowed me. Thanks be to God, He healed Sanea. Since that time, Sanea became convinced of the gospel and decided to be baptised. He has left behind his shamanic knowledge and his old beliefs.
“A local church was built on land owned by Sanea. It is not only him who has come to know Christ. Through his influence, many others believe too; they are very faithful.
“Sanea is now known as the ‘shaman who was healed in the name of Jesus Christ’.
“I will continue to outreach to the people here, please pray for me.”
– Sister E, a VOM-supported front-line worker in Indonesia.