During the week of Chusok (Korean Thanksgiving), Alice and I had the chance to visit our daughter, Erica, and her husband, Mike, at their new school posting in Jakarta, Indonesia. Erica and Mike had just given birth to their second daughter, Chiara.
While we were visiting, I had the chance to talk with their new nanny, Nunung, who had just joined the family several weeks before. She was very open about her story and although not a native English speaker, her English skills were excellent.
Nunung told me she was born in Jakarta, and attended grade school and a couple of years in high school in Jakarta. However, because she was short in stature, she was ridiculed by her classmates for her small size, and after many years of this, it was just too much to take; she dropped out of school at age 16.
Things were not much better at home. Nunung said her parents continually pressured her to go out and earn money for the family. She seldom felt love or kindness from her parents, so after several years of trying to make this work, she decided to leave home.
Since she had no technical training or skills, she applied for positions serving as a nanny. She was able to find work, but still felt unfulfilled as a person. Nunung shared that when the kids were down for a nap, she would usually spend that time crying, just because she felt so depressed and empty. She would cry all the time, believing there was no God, because she couldn’t understand how her life could be so miserable if God did, in fact, exist. She had felt so unloved for so long- from her family, even from her boyfriend.
However, one family for whom Nunung was working had an extensive library and said she could have access to any of the books she while she was working for them. Because her English was quite good, she made use of the library whenever she could.
One day, Nunung found a book unlike all the others. It was black and had a leather cover. She began reading a section of the book called “Psalms” and she read the name of God. As she continued reading, she felt God’s love for her and experienced a sense of peace for the first time in her life.
Finally, she shared that through The Bible, she learned of Jesus and his love for her as well. “Now,” she said, “I am a follower of Jesus and it has made all the difference in my life.”
Nunung continued to share how her relationship with Christ had enabled her to do what she never thought she’d be able to do: forgive. She was able to finally forgive her parents and her boyfriend for the many ways they had hurt her. Nunung continued to seek out churches and a community to support her as she grew as a Christian, was eventually baptized and has since shared her testimony willingly and openly with many others.
It is encouraging to know that God is always at work- in foreign countries and in our own homes. He speaks to us through circumstances, through others, through His Word, and His love changes lives.
Praise God!
John Engstrom
Head of School
School Head's Blog 