Evangelism By Weed Wacker

In early January I received a text message from Ruth that said, “Don’t come home because there is a Demonstration on our air strip.”   With a text like that it demands more than a text message.  I immediately called Ruth back.   She said there were about 50 men shouting on the Run way at Adventist Aviation.   While I work for Adventist Mission we live on the campus at Adventist Aviation Indonesia.   The 50 men were mostly drunk and had hired two very large dump trucks to bring rocks and dirt and dump it in a few key locations on the airstrip.   They basically caused a lot of frustration for the next few days and then they started preventing anyone from mowing the airstrip.  Their demand was, “Our forefathers sold you (the Adventist Church) the land but it was the wrong forefather who received the money and now we need more money.   Send us $9,000,000 US dollars and we’ll stop making problems.”  Adventist Aviation and the nearby Adventist School have all the legal papers and have actually paid for the property twice because of a past problem,  similar to this one.

Bob Roberts restarting the grass choked mower for the 10,000th time

To complicate matters the family that is making the problems have many Adventist relatives.   It has come to light that some of the Adventists are looking to gain from Aviation paying the problem family for the land.   The problem is the Lawyer tells us to absolutely not pay them anything. . . so the family just keeps making problems hoping we’ll bend.

In America we would just call the police and the family would be rounded up and arrested and we’d have a day in court to settle the fact that they are indeed doing criminal activity.   However, we don’t live in America and because of the politically unstable condition here its not that easy.   Many police will not act until you give them more than the criminals are willing to give.   So until you do that little will be done.   On top of this there is even more complicated issues that I cannot share at this point because of it’s implications for certain peoples confidentiality.    But let’s just say there are about 4 or 5 very complicated issues going on all at once.

Ruth and I are prayer walking each morning on the air strip for this and many other prayer concerns.   We also have been trying to “Kill this situation with Kindness.”   For Several weeks Ruth has baked a large amount of Banana Bread and I and a Boys boy or two go and deliver it and try to make friends with the problem makers.   We have seen limited, positive results but because of some of the other complications we find ourselves taking one step forward and 2 steps back.

Here are the implications to us living here at Adventist Aviation:

First, Aviation has had to temporarily move where they fly from.   However, the larger aviation community is greatly hurt by this, too.   Adventist Aviation is the only emergency back up landing strip for the 4 other mission aviation groups.   If the Sentani commercial airport is closed, which happens fairly frequently, our fellow aviation ministries are all shut down.  This in turn slowly starves the 2-3 million people who live in the center of the Papuan highlands who depend on the food and services that mission aviation groups as a whole provide to the interior. 

Second, If someone mows at Adventist Aviation then they send a person to harass any of the Adventist Aviation Workers.   Basically they come and try to hit our workers with sticks or stones or sometimes they just come and shout things like, “Aren’t you afraid to die?”  “I’m going to kill you if you continue to mow the air strip.”  “If you don’t pay me immediately I’ll build my store on the air strip.”   Eventually we learned that they are less likely to harass we Americans because someone amongst them believes that NATO will come and bomb them if they make problems for us.   We had to laugh at that one.  A thought finally clicked in our minds as to a new game plan based on this laughable information.

Third, nearly all small craft aviation companies use Adventist Aviation’s Airstrip to land when they have critically ill patients that need fast medical attention.   Why?  Because we are immediately joining the road to the Government Hospital just behind out property.    Literally this air strip has been the life difference for more than a few critically ill patients.   So now without this strip an additional 20-50 minutes have been added to critically ill patients journey to medical help.

Forth, there is a fair amount of fear that comes with living in a place where people just come at will and make problems and no matter how much you call the police they rarely if ever arrive in time to do anything.   

Fifth, Fortunately we have a Savior who gives us strength each day.   It has increased Ruth’s and my prayer walking time.   We look forward to our exercise and prayer times each morning I’m here and not traveling some place else.

Andrew and Jacob raking up the piles of grass clippings

For the past 2 Sundays . . .which happened to be a day off for me. . .  I’ve spent a portion of those days helping Bob Roberts (the chief pilot) mow the now knee to neck high grass.   The family that is making problems came 1 time and told us to wait til the next day because they had a funeral service at their home.   But this Sunday they didn’t come all morning long and we had unlimited time to mow.

Bob was mowing with the Weed Wacker first but found it difficult to operate as he wasn’t use to it.   So I took over the Weed Wacker mid morning and he used the 20 inch push mower.   A 20 inch mower is about the best Papua has to buy and even then it’s very expensive.  (I’d love for someone to send Bob a real ride on tractor of a commercial lawn mower nature.)  We cleared a major portion of the taxi area and then started working on the very west end of the air strip so that we could take the Kodiak out if need be.

The recruits are helping to mow.   Zach Roberts (dark blue shirt), Jason – his brother in red shirt, Bob Roberts and Aubrey Boyd (in Blue Shirt)

After lunch I returned and was making good progress and even recruited my boys and Zach Roberts (Bob’s Grandson) to help.   We were making great progress when someone told me, “Darron why don’t you go just outside of the gate and clear a little so we can safely pull out of the campus onto the public street in front of the campus?”   So off I went.

When I arrived at the gate with the Weed Wacker’s metal blade humming at a high pitch scream I noticed a young man about 20-25 years old coming rapidly toward me.   Then he gave me a hand sign that is equivalent to the middle finger in the States.   This hand sign is a slashing motion with ones pointer finger across the throat and means roughly “I’m coming to kill you if you don’t immediately stop what you’re doing.”   I started to turn around but a quick second glance helped me realize he had a stone ready to launch in my back side the moment I turned around.

Early on Sunday morning I had met an American man who is an Anthropologist and has lived amongst the Sentani Tribe for more than 40 years.   He explained that if you are ever shouted at or threatened as a Sentani Tribe member it is expected that you will yell back and threaten even more so.   I fully realize that I’m not of the Sentani Tribe but that thought entered my mind at that precise moment.   The impression that came to my mind at that moment was, Yell!  No, scream, infinitely louder and with more authority than this young buck with the rock in his hand.   Then I worried, What if he throws the rock at me?   Then I knew I had only 2 human weapons besides the Divine option of prayer that I was already using.   1) I am a fast runner, 2) I had a metal blade Weed Wacker fully gassed up and already running at top speed.    I tried once more to turn away as I prayed but then I saw that not only was he yelling at me but now he had a bigger stone.   So I charged at him full steam ahead with metal blade raised at my head level like a bayonet in the arms of horse mounted cavalry.    I let our a blood Curdling Scream that only a Tennessee Boy from the hills knows how the imitate.   I put my legs into after burner gear and began yelling every word of authority I knew in Bahasa Indonesian.   Suddenly his eyes changed from, “I’m the young buck in charge around here, “ to one of , “Oh no the American is going to kill me with that screaming machine.”   I was now running at full steam with a back-pack-mounted, metal-bladed, weed wacker.   By this time every shop owner and most of the shoppers were all standing out side of their shops standing with mouths wide open.   The Barber shop emptied out with guys in capes and half a hair cut standing with mouths wide open.

The young guy no longer looked proud and arrogant.  He now stood at the cross roads of his life.  I had forced him into decision making time.   The alter call was being made by this Weed Wakin’ Preacher from American.   The appeal was plain and simple.  1)  “Do I launch the stone and face NATO?  2) or do I drop the rock and hope I can out run this crazed American?”   Fortunately for me he chose the second option.   And Run He did!   Though eventually I would have caught him. . . I chose to stop my charge because I really didn’t want to harm him.   I just needed him to know that I needed to be respected.

As the Anthropologist said, “Sometimes they need to know there is a new Warrior in town.  But don’t always use this method. Once you win, then they will make you their friend because, after all, they want to be on the side of the next up and coming David.”   I’m not at all comfortable with this role but I was amazed that I was invited to do the Thanksgiving service for a funeral for the family.   I was worried that now I was the new number one enemy but they all laughed at how I had sent their arrogant young man packing.   They told me, “Don’t think another thing about it!   We like you because you are kind.”   Still scratching my head at this one.  But I made it back and alive from Preaching at the Thanksgiving Service for family member who died.

I have to say what a strange way to win friends and influence people!   Maybe it’s my next book, “Evangelism By Weed Wacker Weaponry.”   I prefer prayer walking and doling out bread.

Me trying to smile just moments after the young buck was sent packing by my weed wacker.  I was still shaking at this moment.