Returning to Indonesia after 16 months apart

This old man...

That was the caption written under the photo sent to me by one of the young local village pastors. In the caption he explained that this older gentleman pictured here had just gone home to heaven. I cried a few tears this morning.

Oh, he was a favorite of mine in this particular village. I remember the first time I met him he was proud to tell me he was 100 years old. He didn't really know how old he was because no one from his village kept track of birth dates.

The image of "This old man..." that Coral received via WhatsApp 

His smile was contagious! He attended every event Kingdom Workers held, and was always excited to learn about and share Jesus. Although I am sad that I will not meet him again on this earth, I am confident that we will be reunited in heaven one day. 

I write this from a hotel room in Jakarta on my last day of quarantine. I have not been able to travel to Indonesia for the past 16 months because of all the logistics surrounding COVID-19. Even this trip is not an easy one to make with COVID still being a concern. Yet, in a few short hours, I will be released. And in a few days, I will be on my way to the remote areas where I serve. I can hardly wait! 

Yes, many things have been able to move forward during my absence. Toilets have been built, water projects have been installed, COVID responses have helped many, and we even hired an incredible local staff person. I have missed being a direct part of those things. All these projects have helped to meet the physical needs of the people we serve. And at the same time, the message of Jesus has been shared. What I couldn't experience during this time, what I have longed for, was my relationship with the people I have grown to love over the past few years. I missed visiting their villages, seeing their faces. 

What I couldn't experience during this time, what I have longed for, was my relationships with the people I have grown to love over the past few years. I missed visiting their villages, seeing their faces.

I miss drinking their tea and sharing stories with them. I am so looking forward to witnessing first-hand how they are doing. I want to know they are well, that the solutions we have worked so hard on together are still making a difference in their lives. I want to know that they are still growing closer to Jesus. I want to help plan for an even brighter future that extends beyond the work we have done so far. 

When guests visit, it’s customary to welcome visitors with hot, sweetened tea and fried treats.

Prayer request

I want to say thank you to all the supporters of Kingdom Workers because you make this work possible. Because of you this work was able to be done in my absence, and I am now able to travel again. I ask for your prayers of safety during this time. Please pray that renewed relationships may be blessed and that through the new project that are carried out, more and more people will come to know about the one thing needed—their Savior. 

This old man. I won't be able to sit down and have tea with him in his village anymore, but I have the joy of knowing that he is at peace with his Savior in heaven. There is nothing better than that! 

Coral Cady, Southeast Asia Field Manager, has been with Kingdom Workers since 2014. Coral has supported efforts to bring clean water, health education, agricultural solutions, and more to several rural villages in Indonesia. When she isn't traveling back and forth between the United States and Indonesia, she enjoys spending time with her family and going for morning walks to start the day on the right foot.