For the Healing of East Timor

That's how Jerome and Sandy Biboa (not their real names), missionaries to East Timor, sign off every email and newsletter they send out to friends, family and co-laborers in the mission field.

Without a doubt, much healing is needed for this young nation that has severely suffered under oppressive Indonesian rule for more than two decades and claimed its independence only last May 20, 2002. Thus, at the onset of their life as a missionary couple in East Timor, it has been one of the goals of the couple to use their knowledge and skills as licensed health to help heal the East Timorese people.

After completing their missions training at the Asian Center for Missions, the couple began praying for a particular country where they planned to serve. But God took them on a detour to East Timor when they met an American missionary couple who shared about this country that was struggling to get on its feet and how they have been praying that the Lord would send someone to help.

God removed Jerome's and Sandy's initial confusion about where to serve by showing them a passage in the Scriptures where the apostle Paul had a vision of the man from Macedonia (Acts 16:6-10).

Instead of proceeding straight to Asia, Paul preached the Gospel first to the people of Macedonia. The call to serve in East Timor then was further confirmed by the burden they felt for the place and the people during a 10-day exposure trip there in May 2001.

In September of the same year, Jerome and Sandy flew to East Timor and settled in Dili, the capital city. Working hand in hand with the local church of the Assemblies of God, they drew up a proposal to develop a health training course for dental nurses and physical therapy assistants as well as set up a clinic to meet the healthcare requirements of the community. Undaunted when the government rejected the proposal, they proceeded to plan B--a community health program.

Jerome explains, "The community health program includes a community health workers' training, community health teaching, oral health promotion and medical missions. Of course, the end goal is community evangelism."

"We work in close partnership with the local church. We train them, we empower them. They are there in all the activities. This is to make them more visible to the community. Evangelical churches there are under militant persecution. There is so much friction," he further elaborated.

The Lord mightily used the community health program to regain the confidence of the community in the local church and reconcile the residents with the church people. It turned out that more than 50% of the patients who came to the clinics, which were located inside the church building, were the persecutors of the church. Some even agreed to be prayed over by the health professionals.

"Although we were not able to directly share the Gospel, the mere fact that they allowed us to pray for them--that is already access," says Sandy. She called this technique of sharing God's love through their medical profession, creative evangelism.

Aside from the obvious persecution, Jerome and Sandy have had their share of personal trials during their first nine months in East Timor. On one occasion, their house was broken into and some of their things were stolen. In another trying incident, Jerome was able to use the computer for only two days before it broke down. There was also the time when Sandy, by then pregnant, seemed to be suffering from threatened abortion. There was no OB-Gynecologist, no doctor and neither were there medicines-not even pre-natal vitamins.

But Sandy declares, "We've grown closer as a couple and we've become more prayerful. When we were robbed of items that were small but precious to us, we realized that we can live without those but we cannot live without God. It is only His grace that truly sustains us…it's really spiritual warfare out here and most of the depression we feel is caused by the battle."

According to Jerome, the concept that being a missionary is difficult only depends on one's perspective and the expectations one sets. And believe it or not, mission life can be funny. For instance, there was a time when the neighborhood kids wanted to know Jay's name. They already knew Sandy but they did not know what to call him. One day, while Jay was out by their gate waiting for a taxi, the children heard Sandy call him "Honey." They figured that was his name and began calling him just that.

Language is also a source of humor. During the oral health promotion with elementary school children, they held a "Best Smile" contest among grade school kids.

The Tetum word "hamnasa" is used for both the English words "smile" and "laugh." Jay had an interpreter explain the contest so as not to confuse the children. But when they asked the first, second and third graders to give their best smiles, they got gales of the best laughs instead. Even after a second explanation they still got the best laugh from the fourth and fifth graders.

As it turns out, the tremendous task of helping to heal East Timor is lightened by hilarious situations the pop up along the way. Jerome and Sandy have not only learned to love the East Timorese but to laugh with them as well.

And their joy has been made fuller by the birth of their daughter, Alicia (not her real name), last July 28. Their little angel, as they affectionately refer to her, will be coming along with them when they return to East Timor in October.

Note: * the names of the missionaries were changed for security purposes.

You too can help send missionaries to East Timor. Become a partner of the Asian Center for Missions today! Here's how!

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