by Mike & Katie Lucero

Dari Mana? Where are you from? It is not an uncommon question here. Complete strangers, shop owners, and new acquaintances are all quick to ask this seemingly uncomplicated question. Since our students at Wesley International School represent over 12 countries, and every continent except Antarctica, the response could vary almost every time you ask it.

But the truth is, the answer is a very complicated one. Even though many of our students are “from” foreign countries, they have lived in Indonesia almost their entire lives. Some feel more comfortable speaking Indonesian than their native language and know more about Indonesian culture than their own.

It is understandable then, that when I asked one of my students who was returning to America if he was excited to go home, his answer was no. Home: It is a simple word, but to most expatriate students here, home has very complex emotions attached to it.

It was a little over a year ago that we left our home at 11 Howe St—our home in Seattle, our home at Bethany Presbyterian—and moved across the world to teach at Wesley International School in Malang, Indonesia.

The first few weeks in our new house were spent getting used to the cats that would run across our roof, pet roosters that would crow well before sunrise, and the Islamic call to prayer that would start at 4 am. Even more adjustments followed: traffic, new jobs, new pets (a lizard and two cats) and hot weather, to name just a few! After every adjustment came the satisfaction that life became a little less hectic and closer to normal.

One of the more enjoyable adjustments was living in an expatriate community that is international as well as interdenominational, and it has been through this community that God has blessed us with a new home in Indonesia.

We have gotten to know a wonderful family from England, a surfer and his wife from California, a science teacher from Tanzania, a soccer coach from Germany, not to mention many Indonesians.

It has been in this Christian community that God has turned a foreign country into a home away from Seattle. We have been blessed to experience a small part of what heaven will be like where people from every nation will praise the Lord together.

This community also throws into stark contrast the Muslim people of Indonesia, a country divided between dozens of incredibly different cultures, languages, and islands. It is also a country without much hope.

Most Indonesians do not have the promise of finding a real home as we have found; nor do they have the understanding of a Father who is calling them to come home. We are here for Indonesians who do not know what it means to truly have a home with Him. We are here for our students who struggle with the meaning of “home” and often feel lost when they leave Indonesia. We are here to be His light in a world that can often be complicated and confusing.

And it is only through your prayers that those we are here for can find their way home into His arms!