Crashing a funeral in Vietnam
CAN THO, VIETNAM — Suppose you were expecting a visitor you’ve never met from a faraway country. And suppose that, just before this person showed…
Churches of Christ in Southeast Asia
Changing verb tenses — and lives
CAN THO, VIETNAM — A chance encounter resulted in her husband’s death. Four decades later, another chance meeting led to her granddaughter’s rebirth — and…
Indonesia’s Christian island
GUNUNGSITOLI, INDONESIA — A mangled, rusty bicycle stands as a memorial outside the Nias Heritage Museum. Behind it, two colorful concrete signs bear two terrible…
Surrounded by mosques
BEKASI, INDONESIA — At 4:44 a.m., the calls to prayer begin. They come from everywhere, it seems, in a cacophonous variety of tones and pitches.…
‘Living hope’ in a Muslim land
SEREMBAN, MALAYSIA — The Seremban Church of Christ meets in a predominantly Muslim nation with strict anti-conversion laws. But it doesn’t meet in secret. Far…
Persecuted Christians pour out their hearts
SEREMBAN, MALAYSIA — Who or what is God in this season? Ninety-nine Christians from across Southeast Asia pondered that question as they stared at blank…
A broken leg brings forth angels in Southeast Asia
SEREMBAN, MALAYSIA — “Hospitality” sometimes includes a trip to the hospital. I learned that much during my visit to this Southeast Asian city, about an…
