Flight APL01
to West Sumatra
Thinking he might not understand English you remain silent. But he turns to you and asks, in English, where you're going! You think that should be obvious really but you explain that you're visiting the island of Sumatra. Then he introduces himself. He is Minangkabau, from Padang, and his family is seated across the aisle. His wife is from Bukittinggi. They've been living in Australia for a number of years but now they're on their way home.
It's traditional and still common, he explains, for young Minangkabau men to leave home, travel and gain experience elsewhere before returning home. We call it "marantau". There's a saying among our people ... and he says in Minang, his local language, "... marantau bujang daulu, di rumah baguno balun".
"What does that mean?" you ask. Nature is our teacher, he replies, so like mulberry trees that haven't produced flowers or fruit, young men are not yet useful at home, so they're encouraged to go away and come back when they'll be useful. As a result of this tradition many Minangkabau people live outside West Sumatra and every year a new wave of people leave their villages to travel both within Indonesia and abroad.
At this point his wife asks him something and you have time to reflect.
- Most Minangkabau people have little opportunity to hear the good news at home. But when they "marantau" they may live near followers of Jesus. What if they were befriended by these people and met Jesus while abroad? They could be truly useful in God's great plan when they returned!
- Furthermore, imagine if communities of Minangkabau followers of Jesus were established in West Sumatra. What if Minangkabau people took the good news of life in Jesus when they "marantau"? What a way for the gospel to be spread!
Take some time, while your fellow passenger is distracted with his family, to pray with these possibilities in mind.
Later in the flight he gives you his name card and they invite you to visit sometime.
If this is your first encounter with Minangkabau people, it would be useful to learn something about their culture so that you can embark on this prayer journey more knowledgeably. There is still time before you land to discover the unique features that distinguish it from most other Muslim people groups. Click here to begin exploring Minangkabau culture.
As your plane begins its final approach the intercom crackles into life, "Fasten your seat belts please as we prepare to land at BIM (Minangkabau International Airport)." Click here to land.