Our short-term mission trip to Medan, Indonesia, was truly a journey of prayer. Even before we departed, we united our hearts and fervently prayed to Heavenly Father and Mother to help us achieve our mission goals. Though we had nothing to boast about—neither in language skills, nor physical strength, nor even in our faith—we simply longed to be the mission team that sought God the most, despite our shortcomings.
Once we arrived in Medan, we continued holding morning and evening prayer meetings. Even as we preached, we remained in prayer. Finally, a sister received the blessing of bearing the first fruit of our team. One of the Korean sisters said that she felt she lacked in prayer when preaching the gospel in Korea so she had prayed continuously from the moment she boarded the plane until that moment of bearing fruit. Her words encouraged us to pray even more earnestly. Among our many prayers was one asking that God’s will and our mission’s goal would become one and the same.
Not long after we began preaching there, we came to realize just how urgently Medan Zion needed more gospel workers. Through this, we came to understand where God’s will lay. From that point on, we stopped praying for the fruit of our short-term mission team and instead prayed earnestly for workers for Medan Zion. Our preaching also shifted toward that purpose. God’s answers were astonishing—He poured out blessings that allowed us to witness His miracles day after day.
Brother Aldo, who showed the character of a gospel worker, received the blessing of a new life and attended Sabbath morning worship that very same week. Though he had to go straight to work afterward, he stayed for Bible study. Eventually, he even changed his work schedule so he could keep the Sabbath regularly.
On the day I silently repeated the prayer, “Please allow us to bear a campus prophet fruit,” countless times, we met Brother Falius in the late afternoon. At first, he was unenthusiastic, but after a Bible study, his heart opened completely and he was reborn as a child of God. He never missed a worship service after that and even explained to others that the Sabbath is Saturday during a group study session. During our Korean Culture Experience event, he wrote in Korean on a fan, “I’m happy to attend the Church of God,” deeply moving all the members.
Brother Lanto came to Zion showing interest in the truth even while his friends rejected it. We later found out that his dream was to become a pastor. He had come to Medan to earn money for that dream, but instead met the true God and received the promise of salvation.
On the second Sabbath after evening worship, Heavenly Mother gave us a precious blessing:
“Bear much fruit through the unity of Medan Zion and the short-term mission team. Believe and do it.” We engraved Her words in our hearts, recognizing the importance of both prayer and unity. We resolved to work in harmony with the Medan Zion members, whom Mother so dearly loves, to bear many good fruits and contribute to the fulfillment of the gospel in Medan.
From that point on, the door to the gospel opened even wider. One day, we prayed in advance, “Today, the Medan team has borne eight fruits.” That day, God granted us ten. There were so many baptisms that some received them still wearing their wet baptism clothes. On the day we prayed for ten, twelve people received the blessing of life.
Even though we received blessings of daily fruit, preaching in Indonesia was not easy. The hot, humid weather was far more intense than Korea’s, and by the end of the day, our shoulders were soaked with sweat from carrying our bags. The air pollution affected our noses and throats, and some of us even caught colds in the middle of summer. In those moments, we constantly thought of Father and Mother. Father walked rocky mountain paths in a suit with a heavy bag, and Mother tirelessly cares for Her children without rest. Just as They endured hardship out of pure love for Their children, we endured each challenge with love for Father and Mother in our hearts.
Through our united efforts with the members of Medan Zion, we found 72 new members. By the final worship service of our mission, the sanctuary was so full that there were no empty seats. We earnestly hope every one of those new members will grow into strong pillars of Medan Zion.
Through our short-term mission in Medan—where we relied entirely on Heavenly Father and Mother—we came to know that God is with us every single day. We will continue to walk with God in constant prayer, striving to be children who take the lead in completing the world mission.