Alliance international workers Lora and Andy Brake teach at Sekolah Tinggi Theologi (STT Jaffray), which means Higher School of Theology. It is one of the main training centers of The Alliance in Indonesia. Located in the city of Makassar on the island of Sulawesi, Jaffray equips believers in eastern Indonesia to serve God through teaching, evangelism, or as international workers or pastors. “God is using STT Jaffray to build up His Kingdom in Indonesia and beyond,” Andy wrote in Alliance Life several years ago.
As part of their graduation requirements, the students serve as interns. During one village internship, Minto, who attends Lora and Andy’s church plant, saw God move powerfully in the lives of two men among the Dyaks, the first people group to receive the gospel in the 1930s from R. A. Jaffray, Alliance pioneer missionary to Indonesia.
One of the two men was a hunter who contracted tropical malaria. Unconscious for two weeks, he languished in the hospital. Minto, along with other members of the local Dyak church, visited him to pray for him.
No Hope
As the patient continued to deteriorate, church members began funeral arrangements. When his skin turned blue, the doctor informed the man’s family and congregation that there was no hope.
Minto wondered if he had been praying wrong. Why had God not answered? The group interceded again, with the doctor reiterating that the man was going to die.
The next morning, the believers arrived at the hospital to find the patient awake and sitting up in bed. His color had returned, and he felt much better. “This is a miracle of the Lord,” said the doctor, a member of the country’s dominant religion.
The man had repented in the hospital—confessing that he had a mistress and often got drunk. After his release, he accompanied Minto on weekly trips to share his testimony.
“Why do you go every week?” Minto asked the hunter.
“Because there are many more like me—drunkards and men who are unfaithful to their families,” he replied. “They need to know that Jesus is the Savior.”
Delivered from Darkness
Another Dyak man had entered a pool known for its darkness and evil. He became mentally agitated—and possibly demon-possessed. Each time Minto and his ministry team visited the man, he shouted that Minto was trying to murder him.
After several days, Minto visited the man again and found him sitting calmly in his home. Minto and his team prayed for him, and he repented of his sins and committed his life to Jesus.
“We praise the Lord that He is using our students and for the many others we’ve had opportunity to disciple and equip for ministry,” the Brakes write. “Pray for the continued fruit of good character and many more converts.”
—Based on an update by Andy and Lora Brake, Alliance international workers in Indonesia
Learn More
Read Andy’s article, “Raised in the Church,” in the September 1, 2012, issue of Alliance Life.