Released: April 15, 2005

Local Church Network in Indonesia Provides Aid to Tsunami Victims

INDONESIA: In the wake of the Asian Tsunami in Southeast Asia, one native Indonesian church network saw a unique opportunity to show compassion to their Muslim neighbors. For years, the Aceh province in the northern part of the Sumatra has been closed to outsiders. In January, the Indonesian government lifted the restricted access to the region so they might receive aid from their Indonesian neighbors and the world.

On December 26, much of the Aceh province was destroyed by the tidal wave that began right off their shore. It wiped out miles of their coastline, left buildings in rubble, and flooded large areas of the city. Immediately, churches and relief organizations from around the world sent in teams to help.

"The devastation in the capital city of Banda Aceh is unbelievable," said the Southeast Coordinator for Accelerating International Mission Strategies (AIMS). "It looks like an atomic bomb was dropped on it. All that remains are the foundations of houses and people picking through the debris trying to find personal items or anything they might salvage or sell."

Based in the city of Medan just outside the Aceh province, Pastor M's* church network knew this was the opportunity they had been praying for. In August 2004, after an AIMS' Equipping for the Harvest conference, Pastor M's church had adopted the Aceh people in the Banda Aceh region. Numbering about three million people, the Aceh are one of the largest unreached people in Indonesia. Strongly Muslim, most have been closed to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Violence spawned by the Acehnese struggle for independence caused the Indonesian government to close the region even to other Indonesian groups. For the next several months, the church network prayed for the Aceh people and sought God about the best way to reach out to them. After the tsunami, they were ready to put action to their prayers.

Almost immediately, the church network has sent short-term teams to provide emergency relief aid. They cooked meals, cleaned up homes, and delivered supplies to the thousands of victims who survived. In one village, they discovered that the people had been given clothes but no underwear, so they sent underwear with their next team. In another village, the people had received uncooked rice, but they had no way to cook it. With electricity out through many villages in the region, they were unable to draw water from their wells. Another team from the church brought back small camp stoves and utensils for them to use.

"These people really need help," said Pastor M. "They have endured a very traumatic experience and need people who will love them sincerely."

AIMS has continued to partner with Pastor M's church throughout the disaster. Since December, AIMS has raised about $60,000 through its Tsunami Relief and Development Fund to send to partners in Indonesia, Thailand, India, and Sri Lanka. Funding given to the church network in Indonesia will go toward rebuilding homes and schools, supplying trauma counselors, providing needed job training, and restructuring water supply systems. For more information about the Tsunami Relief and Development Fund, call the AIMS home office at (757) 495-5850 or visit the AIMS online at www.aims.org.

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* Note: Some names have been omitted or changed to protect the identity of people working in areas that are hostile to the Gospel. Photos of region are available upon request.

Previously published by GlobalMissiology.Net (April 2005 Online Edition)

For reprint information, please call the AIMS publication office at (757) 495-5850 or email the editor at aims@aims.org.

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