We are still in Jakarta, but tomorrow morning we are leaving for Bandung. We will have five services there over the course of four days. This morning, Darrel Stott ministered at GBI Church, and I was his “support team.” An interesting church. The technical level is very high: lighting, sound, stage, professional praise, but the service lasts… ONLY one hour. Two songs, prayer, sermon, song, prayer, and… the service is over. Can you imagine? How do they survive there?
I asked Darrel Stott, “Is that all?” He smiled. Then I realized what a blessing our people have in Father’s Blessing Church, because they receive so much ministry during the service. Each of our services lasts five hours, and time flies by so quickly that we barely have time to do anything… I cannot imagine what they manage to accomplish in one hour. Let’s take a look at a service at GBI Church in Jakarta.
The service was short, so we had plenty of free time left… which meant it was time to relax. After the service, we visited a huge electronics center. Darrel was looking for a camera, and I tagged along with him. It was the first time I had seen such a large supermarket. An entire skyscraper packed with departments selling all kinds of equipment.
It is so noisy inside that you have to shout to hear anything at all. Powerful loudspeakers are turned on everywhere, and music is blaring. Horrible!
There is an excess of all kinds of technology! They have gadgets we have never even heard of. They have a copy of the iPhone 6 (iPhone 6) with the same features, plus two SIM cards, and it costs only $150. For those who do not know the price of the iPhone 6, let me tell you: approximately $1,100–$1,300. It just has a different name there. What is it? I will not say… Some kind of Chinese name.
The prices are generally quite pleasant. I could not resist buying the EDIUS 6 video-editing software. We all use this program when editing videos. The official version costs about $600, while I bought the same program there for $2. Cheap and satisfying! I thought only Slavs “pirated” software. But Indonesians are quite the “pirates” themselves.
I really like the people of Indonesia. They are very friendly, and everyone smiles… it is even a little unusual. Joyful laughter in the shops and on the streets is very typical of Indonesia. In Indonesian, “thank you” is “trimakasi.” And “please” is “sama sama.”
And here is my first Indonesian dictionary:
- Tuhan – God
- Pugi Tuhan – Glory to God.
- Roh – Spirit
- Tremakassi – thank you.
- Minu – Excuse me?
- Ikan – Fish
- Luawk – the most expensive coffee in the world.
What a wonderful, very positive people! Everyone tries to help you, do something nice for you, and so on. When they greet you, they look you in the eye and smile… something you cannot say about other peoples.
Did you know that in Indonesia you must not greet someone with your left hand? It is considered disrespectful and even insulting. The left hand is considered “unclean.” They use their left hand to wash themselves after using the toilet. There is no toilet paper in the restrooms, but there are faucets, dippers, and hoses. If you use the toilet, you are expected to wash yourself. I am also learning to use this “wonderful technique” here… I had to “defile” my left hand too. It is terribly inconvenient, but what can you do?
The food here is varied, with many natural products. I eat a lot of fish; there is plenty of it here. So far, I like everything. Darrell Stott warned me that Jakarta is an artificial Indonesia, whereas on the island of Kalimantan I will see and “experience” the real Indonesia. I hope it is not as frightening as Darrell says.
Today, after the service, I was treated to something delicious, although I never figured out what it was.
With love, Dmitriy Leo.
