That night, the village of Lenggang, in Raren Batuah, East Barito, was pitch black due to a power cut. In one house lived Mrs Arista, a woman in her late fifties, together with her 85-year-old mother, who was now bedridden and unwell.

In that house, only the two of them remained. Her three older siblings and three younger siblings had passed away. Her husband, too, had passed away before her. Of the four children she had given birth to, two had also passed away. The people who once provided her with support have, one by one, left her. Despite this, Mrs Arista carries on with her life with fortitude.

 
“I must be strong,” she said. Her words sound simple, but after hearing her life story, they carry such weight.

Her husband died in 2018 of a heart attack. Their final meeting was an ordinary one: her husband said goodbye as he set off to go fishing. Unexpectedly, he collapsed at the fishing spot. He was taken to hospital but could not be saved. God called him home. She could never have imagined that that morning would be their final meeting.

From that day on, her life changed. She had to become a single parent to two children who were still in secondary school at the time. At the same time, she had to care for her mother, who was growing older and increasingly frail. Before she had even had time to come to terms with the grief of losing her husband, in the same year she lost two more beloved family members—her mother-in-law and her sister-in-law.

One sorrow followed another. But life gave her no chance to complain or wallow in grief. The children had to be fed. School had to go on. Her mother had to be looked after. So Mrs Arista chose to carry on.

She went out to tap rubber, often on foot. Her income from rubber became her main source of livelihood. When there was enough sap, she could sell her harvest once a week. During the dry season, she could only sell it about twice a month.

The work is not always easy. Last year, she fell in the rubber plantation. To this day, her knees still often go numb. This makes it difficult for her to carry the sap to the collector. She even has to pay someone else to carry it for her.

On another occasion, when her daughter had to undergo a caesarean section due to convulsions during pregnancy, Mrs Arista did not have enough money. She was forced to sell the rubber plantation to pay for the operation.

 
“I have experienced almost every hardship life has to offer; the only thing I haven’t experienced yet is death,” she said.

The last eight years have been a long period of spiritual waiting.

In the past, Mrs Arista used to read the Bible regularly. She even admitted to having memorised many verses. However, after her husband’s death, the only Bible she owned was placed inside his coffin—in accordance with local tradition. Since then, she has had no Bible to read.

Although she no longer had a Bible, she prayed diligently. Every night, she never failed to offer up a prayer. Her prayers were simple. She did not ask for wealth. She only asked for health and strength for herself and her children. She asked God to guide and watch over her life.

She continued to attend services at the church situated directly opposite her house. She also diligently attended family worship services, travelling by car with members of the congregation. But she admitted that, during those eight years without reading the Bible, something felt different.

“It felt uncomfortable; my heart felt dry,” she said.

 
Mrs Arista never thought of buying a new Bible. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to own one. The struggles of life meant she had to think about far more pressing matters: how to keep her children alive, how to send them to school, how to care for her elderly and ailing mother, and how she herself could continue to work.

Buying a Bible was not yet a priority for her. Survival was the top priority. However, it turned out that God never stopped looking after her. Mrs Arista went through many periods when she was unable to work and had no money. Yet help always came her way.

“If we have faith in God, His blessings will always be there. Provision is certain because God helps us.”

Since her husband’s death, she has never faced a situation so dire that she could no longer cope. Therefore, she believes that God will always help her.
After eight years, God answered her prayers. Something she had longed for was finally returned to her.

A few days ago, when the LAI team arrived bearing a Bible funded by the Friends of the Bible, this gift was more than just a book to Mrs Arista. That Bible was like reopening a door that had been closed for years.

A door leading to the Word of God, which had once been so familiar to her. A door leading to the longing she had kept within her all this time. A door leading to hope.

There was joy as she received the Bible. The longing she had kept locked in her heart for eight years had finally been answered. From now on, Mrs Arista can read her own Bible again.

Perhaps she had forgotten many of the Bible verses she once memorised. Now, those pages have been opened once more. And with every page she reads, there is new hope that she is not facing life’s struggles alone.

She still has to tap rubber. She still has to look after her mother, who is bedridden. She still has to think about her children and grandchildren. She also still has to make instalment payments on a co-operative loan to gradually repair her house so that it is more comfortable to live in.

Life for Mrs Arista and her family certainly did not become easy overnight. But now, amidst these struggles, she has regained something she had longed for over the past eight years: the Word of God, which she can read for herself. That Word has become a lamp and a guide for her life’s journey.

Mrs Arista may have lost her husband, two children, six siblings, her parents-in-law, and other loved ones. She once asked herself: could she still go on living, after such immense loss?

Through all these struggles, she never stopped praying. Every night she bowed her head and knelt. She asked God to grant her good health. She pleaded with God to give her strength. She also hoped that God would never cease to guide her steps. There was one conviction she always held fast to: the Lord Jesus would never forsake her.

When asked what message she would like to convey to other mothers who still have young children, Mrs Arista said very little. Perhaps because her own life has taught her something far deeper than any lengthy advice.

“Trust in God. Keep relying on God,” she emphasised.

That is what enables Mrs Arista to get up every morning and carry on with her struggle in life. With the Bible back in her hands after eight years, Mrs Arista strides resolutely forward. Not because her life has become easy. But because she believes that, in every step of her struggle, God is always with her. “God is always there!” (Evi Larosa)