Hard work is not enough. Hard work must be supported by diligent prayer.Ora et  labora. This sentence seems fitting to describe the life path of Dwi Prasetyo Minarto, Senior Manager of IT Busines Solution at Pertamina Hulu Energi. Outside of his busy schedule at Pertamina, Dwi is a Friend of the Bible, a person who faithfully supports the ministry of LAI through prayer and funds.

 

From a young age her mother reminded Dwi and her sister to always persevere in prayer and Scripture reading. Dwi's parents are both members of the Jawi Wetan Christian Church (GKJW) in Malang. They are devout worshipers and active in various church activities. “Praying and reading God's word every day has become my lifestyle since the first and second grade of junior high school. I feel that something is missing if I don't have a quiet time," she said.

 

When he was in his second year of high school, Dwi decided to accept Jesus personally and gain a new life. The moment happened at a retreat service in Lawang, Malang “Since being born again, my love for God's word has increased, ” he said. “Maybe like the first love, I felt in love with the Lord Jesus. Reading and meditating on God's word became a lifestyle that I have developed until now," he said.

 

Both of his parents worked at Perumtel (Perusahaan Umum Telekomunikasi), or what we now know as PT Telkom. The world of telecommunications has been close to Dwi since childhood. “My father was a technician at Perumtel, mostly handling the installation of coin phones and Wartel (Warung Telekomunikasi) networks,”said Dwi.

 

Around the late 1980s to 90s, the most booming telephone technology was coin phones and Wartel. People used coin phones for local telephone connections. Users inserted a hundred or five hundred rupiah coin into the telephone set and dialed the number. One coin is the cost of a two-minute call. If you wanted to make a long call, you had to have a lot of coins on hand. Meanwhile, wartel-wartel mushroomed in various cities, serving calls between cities and even between countries (intrlocal). Wartel is a form of technological advancement from before the Indonesian people were accustomed to communicating briefly with telegrams. At that time the landline network was not as numerous as it is now, and telephone charges were still considered very expensive for most Indonesians. Wartel became a tool to call friends, girlfriends or family who lived far away in other cities. Thus, the role of network installation and maintenance technicians at Perumtel was vital.

 

“From the end of elementary school to the beginning of junior high school, my father often invited me to accompany him to install telephone networks in various areas of Malang. I could feel my father's struggle to make a living. During school vacations, I was often invited to accompany my father to work overtime to install the network. My job was to pull and cut telephone cables," Dwi said.

 

The experience of accompanying his father to work, made Dwi gradually understand how the telephone network works. He even began to understand how to manage the network in a Wartel. From there, his interest in electronics and telecommunications began to grow. But at that time it was only limited to helping and admiring his father's work.

 

Dreamed of entering ITB

Around the second grade of junior high school, Dwi's horizons began to broaden. Something rarely seen in teenagers his age. He was determined to study at the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB), one of the best public universities in the country. Initially, Dwi was invited by his parents to visit his Pakde (older brother) who lived in Bandung. Coincidentally, his older cousin was studying Environmental Engineering at ITB. One day Dwi was invited by his brother to visit the ITB campus. Dwi was amazed to see the buildings and the extraordinary atmosphere of the campus. He was determined to enter ITB. While looking at the campus, Dwi prayed in his heart: "God, if You want, help me to be able to study in this place." He wanted to go to college quickly, graduate and work, so that he could ease the burden and make his parents happy.

 

She expressed her intentions and aspirations to her parents. His mother and father encouraged him to study harder. Besides studying hard, Dwi never stopped praying to God. Initially, Dwi wanted to enter the Civil Engineering Department of ITB. Time went on. When Dwi was in the third grade of high school, his aspirations shifted slightly. At that time Dwi had joined a tutoring program at a tutoring institution. He got a lot of new information about various majors in ITB. There were ratings for majors in ITB. According to Dwi, the highest ones are Informatics and Electrical Engineering. Dwi wanted to enter one of the best majors in ITB. So Dwi was more diligent in preparing and praying. When the UMPTN (State University Entrance Examination) arrived, Dwi took the exam with full confidence that God would be with him and help him.

 

Entering ITB

When the announcement came, Dwi and his family cheered. Dwi had been accepted into the Informatics Department of ITB. His dream of entering the best department in ITB had come true. There were tears of gratitude and happiness. The saying goes that effort never betrays results. Dwi's long hard work paid off. However, Dwi considers what he got to be a gift from God. Presumably Dwi agrees with the psalmist's statement:

 

From the time she started living in Bandung until she finished college, Dwi stayed in Balubur, Bandung. The area around Balubur Market where she stayed, is now the Baltos Mall, Balubur Town Square. Since God had given him the best place to study, Dwi did not want to waste His gift. Just like his old habit, he works hard and prays at the same time. Ora et labora. He always strives to get the best grades as a form of living testimony. It is also a tribute to the struggles of his parents who have made it possible for him to study in a place far from home.

 

Once Dwi regretted it so much, when he was in his second semester, his GPA was below 3.00. "At that time my GPA was only 2.95, a little less than 3.00," he recalled. "I felt ashamed, especially to my parents. I remembered their hard work and sacrifice," he continued. Dwi's parents did not mind the score and continued to encourage him to strive for better results in the future.

 

“I had time to complain to God, and asked for better results in the future,” he said. Of course, it didn't stop at prayer, but Dwi became more diligent in her studies. And once again, results do not betray effort. Stepping into the 7th semester, Dwi managed to achieve the maximum score, a GPA of 4.00. This means he got A's in all his courses. Dwi is so grateful for God's help. Even for his success, he was given the opportunity to deliver a testimony in the ITB Christian student fellowship service. In his testimony, Dwi acknowledged that his success was solely by God's grace.

 

Outside his busy schedule, Dwi is active in various fellowship activities. Besides being actively involved in the Fellowship of Christian Students (PMK) ITB, Dwi is also involved in spiritual activities with SION Ministry. For Dwi, life must be balanced between the physical and the spiritual. Pursuing life goals is important, but pursuing heavenly goals should not be forgotten.

 

“Studying in Bandung and living far away from our parents, we must be careful in choosing our associations. God's Word strengthens my faith in living my days as a student and a child of God overseas," she said. "Many people may see Bandung as a city that is known for being free in socializing. Many migrants dissolve and fall in it. However, thank God I was given friends with the same vision. Both Christian and non-Christian friends have a polite and good way of getting along. They were always focused on their duty and calling to learn. So I was able to go through all the challenges well," he continued.

 

Technology & Video Conferencing

There was something unique about Dwi Prasetyo's studies at ITB. He took the title of his final project on video conferencing technology. Something that has become the lifeblood of communication since the Covid-19 pandemic broke out. Nowadays, almost everyone, from office employees, church services, to school activities use video conferencing technology every day, with common applications such as: Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams and so on. When not many people are familiar with it, Dwi has made it the subject of his final project.

 

“Back then, the goal was to graduate quickly. Incidentally, my supervisor had several topics that could be used as thesis themes. After some of the topics were divided, I got the video conference," he said.

 

“It's been quite a  chalenging  themed  video conference  one. But I think, thanks to the technology provided and developed by Google I was able to learn that. At that time Google was starting to boom and there were several tools that I can optimize building for this video confrence system based on Java," he continued.

 

“ Indeed, the final result of my work is still point to point, so communication from one PC to another. It's all simple and all. Because it was just a trial. It never occurred that it would develop as it is now used. Maybe if it's developed, it can become a new product that is booming and can even beat Zoom," he said with a laugh.

 

Enter Pertamina

Dwi graduated from ITB around 2002. In his ITB alumni bio, Dwi wrote his favorite aphorism: there is no day without gratitude. Presumably graduating from a renowned university didn't make him proud, but instead made him more humble and confident in God's power.

 

It wasn't long before he was working as a freelance programmer. He felt quite comfortable with his job. However, God seemed to have other plans. Around February 2003, there were vacancies in various large companies or institutions such as Pertamina and Bank Indonesia. When he opened the vacancy information at Pertamina, there was a whisper that said, "Your place is there!" The voice was repeatedly heard and felt very clear and strong. Dwi believed this was the whisper of the Holy Spirit directing him to the right choice for his life. Finally Dwi decided to try applying to Pertamina.

 

He went through the entire application process. Until it was time for the interview. Before leaving for the interview, Dwi prayed. “If this is indeed God's plan, surely God will provide help,” she was confident.

 

Because he believed this was God's plan, Dwi wanted to prove it by looking different. While it's normal for people to go to an interview dressed to the nines, Dwi deliberately chose the dullest, ugliest clothes in her closet. However, he appeared confident. “I came to the interview with a shirt that had been torn at the neck. The color was also dull," she recalls with a laugh.

 

It turns out that God's promises and plans never miss. Despite attending the interview with dull clothes, Dwi was accepted to work at Pertamina and placed in Cirebon. There is a unique story. Upon learning that Dwi was accepted as a Pertamina employee, his mother in Malang was asked by church ladies in her village: How much did Dwi pay to get into Pertamina? Of course, his mother was surprised to hear the question. It turned out that many people doubted that Dwi entered Pertamina with a straight path.

 

Meeting with LAI

In Cirebon, Dwi started his career at Pertamina. The city of Cirebon also brought Dwi together with his life partner. His wife is from Yogyakarta. Although they come from different church backgrounds, Dwi is a member of the GBI Rajawali congregation in Cirebon and his girlfriend is from the Catholic Church, but because both of them have an open perspective and heart, their relationship has no problems.

 

“My wife and I have the same perspective, God comes first and our true lord is Jesus. Our Bible is basically the same. What the Bible says is what we follow," he explained. Although now both congregate at GBI, every time he returns home to Malang, Dwi also worships at GKJW with his family. When he returns to Yogyakarta, where his wife is, they also enjoy worshipping at the Catholic Church. From his marriage Dwi is blessed with two beautiful daughters.

 

It was also in the city of Cirebon that Dwi was first introduced to the ministry of the Indonesian Bible Institute (LAI). One day LAI conducted a presentation of the One in Love (SDK) Program in various churches in Cirebon. A colleague of his wife, Mr. Igan, a member of the GBI Kalvari congregation invited him to attend the presentation. Dwi  was called to help LAI's ministry, as one of the members of the LAI Mitra Cirebon Support Raising Working Group (KKPD), a volunteer partner of LAI in raising support from God's people in various cities. Since then, he has often made presentations, proclaiming LAI's ministry to various churches in Cirebon and surrounding areas. In addition, Dwi also personally supports LAI's ministry as a Friend of the Bible through regular donations. What makes Dwi want to support the ministry of LAI?

 

“God has been so good to me. Therefore I have a desire to serve God with what I can and have. I have limited time, because of the work I do. I long to spread the Good News of salvation from the Lord Jesus to as many people as possible. Through LAI, I can at least support with funds and prayers. Then at certain times I can help LAI's ministry through preaching to churches, because on Sundays I am off," he explained.

 

When he was transferred to Jakarta, Dwi became even busier. He did not have time to help LAI's ministry through presentations, but his commitment to support LAI's ministry through prayers and funds continued. For him, it's not about the amount, but about sincerity and gratitude for God's goodness. According to Dwi, we must be more diligent in preaching the Gospel, because when all people around the world have heard the Good News, Christ will return soon.

 

Being Salt and Light at Pertamina

Since 2003 until now, it has been 19 years since Dwi Prasetyo Minarto worked at Pertamina. Many outsiders think Pertamina is a wet company, a money pit with many "rats". Dwi's testimony is quite the opposite. From the beginning of his work, God gave Dwi honest and like-minded teammates. Despite different faiths and backgrounds, all have good integrity and honesty.

 

“It's not just my friends, my superiors also have integrity. Likewise, the matter of faith is not an issue. Everyone works based on integrity and professionalism. If in other companies it is often heard that to be promoted, one must give up their faith, in Pertamina there is no such thing. Incidentally, my boss who just retired is also a Christian. My previous boss was the same," he said. With a work atmosphere filled with people of integrity, Dwi is encouraged to show his best performance, while also showing his identity as a follower of Christ. He is determined to be the salt and light of the world wherever God places him. His hard work has even been rewarded as the best Project Manager from Pertamina in Indonesia. It turns out that God's whisper is never wrong. It was God who chose him, and God who helped him reach a high level in his career.

 

Now Dwi serves as Senior Manager of IT Business Solution at Pertamina Hulu Energi in Jakarta. A long way from his initial position as a Programmer Supervisor during his early career in Cirebon. Recently under Pak Dwi's leadership, Pertamina Hulu Energi (PHE) received two major awards at the prestigious Digitech Award 2022, namely The Best IT Governance & The Best Digital Workplace and The Best Transformation & Digital Innovation.

 

Dwi said the digital transformation carried out by PHE's IT department focuses on increasing value both in terms of business, productivity and cost efficiency. We do not want to apply digital in the IT area alone but as a driver and driver to increase business value ” he explained.

 

Dwi added that PHE's IT functions as a strategic partner that can provide input and views to make the company's business better.

 

Outside his career at Pertamina, Dwi, who enjoys sports, listening to sermons on YouTube and music, is active in his church ministry, at GBI Legenda Wisata, Cibubur. "In Sunday worship, we are both often scheduled as ushers, then also involved in various non-routine committees," he said. "It's just that since the pandemic, I have been more active in cell groups," he continued.

 

Loyal, Just and Humble

As a child, every time he heard Bible stories from his Sunday School teachers, Dwi often felt curious. When he got home, he would review the Sunday School stories. He read his Bible to see if the story was true. He was so happy every time he heard the stories of Bible characters. He began to understand how wonderfully God worked in the lives of each character.

 

“ God worked not only during the success of each character, but also during their fall. Their lives become a reflection of ours. That's how I fell in love with the Bible, from wanting to know more about the characters," she said.

 

At his age, Dwi has finished reading the Bible from Genesis to Revelation 8 times. The New Testament has even been read more than ten times. This love for God's word has also been instilled in her two daughters. Dwi often introduces moral messages from Bible stories while chatting casually with her children. She invites her children to imagine the inner thoughts of the characters. Learning from the ups and downs of the characters and learning from their closeness to God.

 

She hopes her children grow up well and have a stronger faith in Christ. She understands that children are a blessing and a gift from God. Therefore, the responsibility of parents, according to Dwi, is to prepare their children to be a blessing to others. Dwi hopes that wherever her children end up, the name of the Lord Jesus will be glorified.

 

Di Dwi's hope is in line with his life motto, which he quotes from Micah 6:8: “O man, it has been told you what is good, And what the LORD requires of you: but to do justice, to love faithfulness, and to walk humbly with your God.”

 

”There is no life more beautiful than living a life of determination”being faithful to God, being fair to all people, and being humble. Undoubtedly our lives will be filled with peace," Dwi concluded.