Harum Mission Trip by Covenant Presbyterian Church
27 Nov to 4 Dec 2023
Covenant Presbyterian Church (CPC) first visited the Harum* Bible Translation (BT) project in 2018, when they got to know the local project managers H & E, and then again in 2019. Although all visits stopped during the Covid-19 pandemic, they kept in touch regularly via Zoom. Finally, they were able to resume visiting in 2023. With much rejoicing, the team of 17 from CPC made the trip with ages ranging from 6 to 74 years old! The trip was co-led by a couple from Wycliffe Singapore.
The Harum people group is an unreached people group numbering about 360,000 in Indonesia. Their heart language is not the national language. As the Harum believers desired to know more about their God in their heart language, in 2011, Wycliffe Singapore and Kartidaya Indonesia began partnering in a BT project to translate the Harum New Testament (NT). CPC came to know about the needs of the Harum BT project through Wycliffe Singapore in 2018. To date, the NT translation has been completed and is being prepared for printing, and the dedication of the NT is scheduled for April 2024. The next phase of the project will focus on scripture engagement – this will involve using the translated scripture, films, songs and other materials in the Harum language to share the Word of God in the local churches and in the wider community.
CPC was warmly welcomed by the local people who were very friendly and hospitable. The project managers H & E arranged a full and varied schedule for the CPC team. They visited families in the BT team, prayed for the sick, conducted a Pastors’ Workshop on divine healing, and enjoyed fellowship with Harum believers and pre-believers. They also encouraged the BT team to focus on scripture engagement with the local churches after the Bible dedication. They heard an elderly man’s testimony about how he came to know Jesus through reading the Bible and brought his whole family to Christ. Others came to know God through their involvement in BT and the dubbing of the Jesus Film.
Activities were also held to reach out to the younger members of the community: teaching English in a kindergarten, visiting a Christian school, and spending time with children in the community. The CPC team also participated in a Christmas Celebration in the local church, presenting songs, a dance and a skit with a gospel message.
The CPC team came home praising the Lord for a wonderful visit to the Harum people. They are now looking forward to partnering with Wycliffe Singapore to support the scripture engagement phase, and see the Word of God transform the lives of those who turn to God.
* Not the real name