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Discovery Trip Report: My Journey to Find God’s Calling
Irwan E Jo
My passion for Indonesia keeps growing as I know Christ deeper in Columbus, Ohio, USA. I decided that I need to veer into a discovery mode rather than just dreaming about how my calling will turn out. Lots of alumni in Indonesia have shared that our idealism needs to meet reality; otherwise our vision for Indonesia will not make any sense. It is good to have a personal sense of calling but it needs to be contextualized with the condition of Indonesia currently. Thus, I plan to find more confirmation from God by having several discovery trips to Indonesia and July 2006 was my first discovery trip. Prior to the discovery trip plan, I had been thinking about doing some research in education field. Therefore I decided that I will dig deeper into education field in Indonesia, as I personally think the field is crucial for the country’s growth. In this reflection, I will share my itinerary and how the journey gives me more hope to see Indonesia progresses and develops into a great country.
I started my trip by visiting a friend of mine in Surabaya. My friend and her husband own a construction business. We spent a lot of time talking and I found out how she and her husband are trying to fund their chauffeur’s son into college and giving their housemaids practical trainings so they don’t work as a housemaid forever. I think this is what trying to make an impact is like. It might not look spectacular but I am really sure that their efforts will make an impact for her housemaids. Witnessing how my friend is trying to help her housemaids has given me an inspiration. I learn that giving an impact can also be done in little things like helping our housemaids.
One of the main reasons I visited Surabaya was to meet Mr. Yohannes Somawiharja, an alumnus from Columbus that went back to Indonesia about 3 years ago. He is currently the provost in Universitas Ciputra[1]. We sat down in his office at the Universitas Ciputra admissions headquarter and talked for several hours about what the university is trying to accomplish and how the university came about. I encourage you to spend some time and visit the university website to get more details. Personally, I was in awe to know that there is a great purpose beyond the intention to earn a living by being an educator. One of the conversations with Mr. Somawiharja that I remembered was when he explained that Indonesia needs more entrepreneurs because for a developing country to grow they need about 20% of their population to be business owners (entrepreneurs). I went back to Jakarta the next day with a sense of joy knowing that there are people in Indonesia who care about Indonesia in spite of their needs to earn for a living. From Mr. Somawiharja’s story, I can see how God embraces his personal vision and provides him with his basic necessities. All of which did not come without struggles. Mr. Somawiharja’s story gives me a conviction to pursue my calling seriously and depend on God for all my basic necessities.
I continued my journey to meet Weilin Han. I heard about her from several Columbus alumni. They told me about how passionate she has been in pursuing education development in Indonesia. We planned to meet in Jakarta but little that I expect to be invited to a teachers’ training event in Depok. We started our day early (6 am) to avoid the disturbing traffic jam. The training was held at Didaktika high school, one of the private Muslim high schools in Depok. It was my first time to visit a Muslim high school. As I stepped into the school, the principal greeted us with respect and welcomed us to the main auditorium where the training would be held. The auditorium was equipped with a projector facility and all the chairs were neatly arranged for the teachers to seat. Weilin conducted the teachers’ training with Mrs. Ruth Solaiman who has been her partner for several years. Apparently, there were more people helping out on that day. I met another five people from Kuark Magazine , where Weilin and Mrs. Solaiman adopted their teaching materials from. The training went really smooth and was well organized. Weilin handled the first through third grader teachers and Mrs. Solaiman handled the fourth through sixth grader teachers. They had seven science experiments done by seven groups of teachers. Weilin taught the teachers some class management techniques which I think are really practical to be implemented in the class. I went around the room and witnessed how these teachers were really passionate and excited in doing the experiments. In fact, I took the chance to talk with several teachers during the break and asked them about the training. They responded really well and showed me a positive attitude about the techniques that they had just learnt. Some even told me about the intention of implementing what they had just learnt. We finished the training about 3 pm and headed back home to Kuark Magazine main office at Permata Hijau. I personally felt really encouraged to see how Weilin and Mrs. Solaiman taught in the training. They were teaching the class professionally and most important of all, they were really passionate about what they were doing. Looking at the expression of excitement on the teachers’ face and their positive attitude towards education was really priceless. I think this is what keeps these two ladies (Weilin and Mrs. Solaiman) passionate and tireless. The practically of the training captivated the teachers’ attention including mine. Weilin and Mrs. Solaiman certainly made teaching looks practical to be imitated and followed. By attending the training, I learn that we need to understand the needs of the audience. Even Weilin who is talented in teaching, spent several months teaching as an intern in one of the Muslim high school in Jakarta before she come up with all the training materials. My next goal is to understand the audience that I will be serving by answering God’s call.
My journey did not just end as the training finished. Apparently, the Kuark Magazine[2] crews offered me a tour to the Kuark’s main office. I met the rest of the crew in the simple three stories building. I think approximately thirty people are working in that office. I met Mrs. Sanny, who is the managing director of the company. We spoke a lot about education development in Indonesia and how the government has contributed to the development. We talked about the struggles that they are going through in pushing the education development agenda. I can sense how difficult it is to do the right thing in Indonesia. However, Mrs. Sanny and Weilin made a good point about their pursuit in helping Indonesia improve in education. They told me that the fulfillment in pursuing their calling is not necessarily only to see the improvement in education but to meet people who have the same passion and vision. I learn that we need to build our network in pursuing God’s calling. By listening to Weilin and Mrs. Sanny’s stories, I gain the confidence that God will put passionate people in our way to help us accomplish His will.
I ended my journey by visiting University Pelita Harapan. They had a festival which was open to the public. They invited public speakers like Surya Paloh, Sutiyoso, Aburizal Bakrie, and many others to speak on many different issues. I could only attend three of the academic showcases and had a chance to look around the university. The festival was not only to invite people to attend the showcases but was also intended to show the university facilities to the public. Overall, I think the university has the facility to support the students to excel in education and I was actually amazed that the University is offering competitive facilities comparable to the universities in America.
In conclusion, there are so many people who are passionate to help Indonesia grows either Christians or non Christians. One of the things that are definitely much clearer from my journey is the struggle to pursue your calling in Indonesia. It is definitely not easy to pursue your calling but from the people I met, they have never shown me the lack of hope. God even provides passionate people to accompany them in their pursuits. I definitely pray that God will raise more passionate people for Indonesia. As I left Indonesia, I kept thinking about Matt 9:37-38:
Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest.”
I think the passage rings very true. I really hope that I will be able to help them soon as I plan to go back to Indonesia in the near future. What about you?
Irwan E Jo obtained his bachelor degree in Computer Science in Ohio State University at Columbus. He is currently working as an IT Application Developer. His main interest is in education field in Indonesia.
[1] http://www.ciputra.ac.id/
[2]http://www.komikuark.net/
