Bringing The CHC Spirit To Orphans In Bandung
By Dawn Seow May 1, 2013 May 1, 2013
Jakarta City Harvest Connect Group continues the City Harvest spirit in Indonesia.
PHOTOS: JakartaCHCG.
It is one thing to leave a church physically, and another to leave it spiritually. A group of Indonesians may have left Singapore, but their hearts are still very much connected to City Harvest Church. That is how Jakarta City Harvest Connect Group was formed.
JakartaCHCG is community made up of people who were from CHC and have returned to Indonesia permanently. Many of them had served in the cell group ministry, and attended the Indonesian Service weekly.
"After we returned to Indonesia, we found it very hard to find a community that represents City Harvest Church," said Dimas Wibisono, 29, a member of the JakartaCHCG. "We missed the CHC environment. That is why we proposed to Pastor Aries (Zulkarnain), our leader in Indonesian Church, to start this Connect Group to (help us) stay connected to CHC Singapore and bring its DNA to impact the society (here)."
The connect group was founded on Feb. 25 2012 with 10 members, some of whom had never heard about CHC Singapore. It has since grown to 35 members.
To celebrate its first anniversary, 19 members of JakartaCHCG went on a trip to Bandung, Indonesia, to visit an orphanage. Rumah Pengharapan Baru–"House of New Hope"–in Lembang, Bandung was started by a Korean man with a heart for Indonesia. He built this shelter for orphans and for children who have been abandoned or whose parents are unable to care for them.
The orphanage was started on limited resources but the small house was enough to give the children shelter and love.
"The Indonesian (staff of the orphanage), led by a woman named Susan, are very involved in the running of the orphanage," said Wibisono, "they even sacrifice their personal belongings to the house. This sacrifice brought upon the grace of God and they now have a piece of land to build a new house."
There are now 50 children in the orphanage, aged from month-old to 22 years. "They are playful, and like any other children, they crave attention and love," he said. "We were there for a simple reason–to love them, and show them that there were others who love and care about them."
During their visit, Wibisono and his team played games with the children, taught them praise and worship songs, performed a skit, and shared the Word of God. One cell group member, who had been through a similar experience as the orphans, shared his testimony to encourage them. The team also blessed the children with funds they collected as well as groceries and sundries.
"We believe that it is the presence of God that comforts the children; but we are also grateful that God gave us the grace to be His extended arms to reveal His love by doing relevant things for the society," said Wisibono. "God's embrace mends broken hearts and this is the conviction we hold in our belief–Christianity is about loving God whole-heartedly and loving people fervently."
The team also visited homes for drugs addicts and people with mental disorders, as well as people in South Jakarta who suffered flooding. Each time, they would bring necessities.
Dimas Wibisno and his team are committed to visit the orphanage once every four months. If you are interested to be part of their team or to contribute to the children's future, do email dimas.wb@gmail.com.
Dawn Seow
Dawn Seow is Senior Writer at City News and its energy source. Married with two boys, Dawn is happiest binge-watching Netflix, crocheting and reading new library books every week. Dawn has a passion for Emerge youth and SOT and wants to see great writers rise up.