My Experiences in the new field of Suriname

As my days of service in the field of Suriname come to an end, I find myself looking back in retrospect over the past two years and there rests for me no other alternative than to praise the name of God for the great and marvelous works the Lord has done up to this moment for me and for this country.

One of my greatest fears in accepting the challenge to work as a pioneering missionary in Suriname was of course, my age and my lack of experience in the administrative, evangelical and pioneering areas. I always feared that I would not be able to accomplish what was expected of me, and this caused me much anguish and filled me with insecurity many times. Only through much prayer was I able to obtain surety in the Lord.

There have been many experiences but I shall try to mention those that stand out the most during my stay in this country. I have unforgettable memories that begin from the moment I arrived.

As a Colombian, I needed a visa in order to enter this country, something which I did not have and felt sure I did not need, since I had been told in Mosbach that it was not necessary. Furthermore, the country found itself in very dire situation and had recently experienced a considerable labour setback which had caused the International airport to close. On that 12th of August, 1999 I had to spend the night in the airport after the Immigration Bureau was assured by brother Ernest Huur that the following day he would fix my visa directly with the Ministry of Exterior Relations. Otherwise, I would have been sent back to Curacao where the closest representative of Suriname resides.

Suffice it to say, it was not a very pleasant night. The mosquitoes wouldn’t let me sleep and at times bats would fly so low, I imagined that any minute they would land on my head. On the following morning they opened the door and I had to wait, without having any breakfast, for brother Huur who finally came to pick me up after twelve that day.

I found myself in a country completely different than mine. As we traveled from the airport towards the capital, there was nothing to see but the jungle, something which frightened me in that particular moment, because I was not sure what to expect from this country knowing that I would have to stay and work here for two years. Due to the economic crisis and the continual labour setbacks there was little variety of food in the supermarkets, something that seemed terrible to me since I was used to having everything in my country.

One of the hardest things to bear was the thought that I would have to stay all by myself, as brother Roderick Stubb’s arrival from Jamaica was still uncertain. Moreover, brother Ernest Huur would be returning home to his family in Holland and to his work. Luckily, three days after my arrival, brother Roderick found the house where we would be staying after an endless number of experiences and the wrong address. I can say that the taxi driver was able to bring him to the right house only through divine help.

I was never given any time to settle in and adapt to the country much less have someone to guide us and give us a tour of the city. We had to do everything on our own. That first week was used to put in order all our legal documents and staying permit because soon we’d be all by ourselves and there would be nobody to help us. As if this were not enough, my return ticket got lost. It must have stayed in one of the many places we visited since I could not find it amongst my things. After reporting my missing ticket to the police I receive a new one. It was not an easy beginning, since we knew no one and had absolutely no idea in which direction lay the center of the city, what bus to take, where to get off and how to return.

I also found out that I would have to perfect my culinary skills, something which I had never attempted to do. I had always liked to make bread and pancakes but I had never cooked before. I was forced to remember all those “home recipes” and the way my mother had explained to me how certain things were cooked. Another thing which troubled me was accounting. I had forgotten to note down immediately certain expenditures I had made and then I’d forgotten about them. On top of that I was unsure of how to enter some of the expenses in the accounting books. This was something that took up quite a bit of my time. After six months of work, for personal reasons, brother Roderick had to leave. Another Colombian, brother Oscar Oviedo and a very good friend of mine with whom I’ve shared many childhood experiences including the trip to the Missionary School in Hungary, and the return trip to Colombia, took his place. Suriname, a coastal country, is known for its humid, jungle-like climate and its rainy season, so much that it is considered to have nine months of rain and three months of drought. It is also very prone to floods as it is found below sea level; something that prevented us from canvassing at the beginning and still continues to do so. Something that impressed me greatly in this country was the diversity of ethnic groups and the peace in which they live together. For instance, in Paramaribo, one can appreciate the fact that a Jewish synagogue resides beside a Moslem Mosque. One can also travel through certain sections of the capital and it will seem as if you’re in the middle east or in the center of India, while other areas resemble Europe and still others appear to be the heart of Africa, surrounded by all its cultures. Businesses are
run by Hindus and Jews while 90% of supermarkets are owned by the Chinese.

Ironically, one will often hear the complaint that people don’t have enough money to live, while in the center of the city, one can find a great concentration of the latest models in cars and an increase in the construction of buildings and businesses. In conjunction to the many different cultures, one can also find an equal amount of religious creeds, superstitions and beliefs such as: spiritualism in all its forms, Hinduism, Buddhism, voodoo, Satanism etc. As a matter of fact, Christianity has been greatly influenced and infiltrated by the former. People will assure you that they have given their lives to the Lord while during the week or in difficult times they turn to “boenoemen” or spiritual witch doctors in search of relief and an answer to their problems. In this situation, we found the need to research all these subjects so that we would be able to have an answer for all the disturbing questions and problems of the village. Our first encounter with this type of experience was realized when we visited the interior of the country in the Amazon Jungle. With apprehension I had heard of the experiences of those possessed by the enemy but I had never witnessed such a thing.

We were able to see the hand of God and the manifestation of His power in that moment as these people found rest from these satanic attacks in the Lord. Long afterwards, after thoroughly researching this subject, I found out that we had made a few mistakes but that the Lord had worked with us according to our faith. With the help of God we have been able to help many people who suffered from demon-possession and the honour and glory belongs solely to the Giver of life. Recently, I have prepared an article about this subject and I hope that it will be of help and a blessing to the brethren around the world. From what I have heard, it will be published but before this comes to pass, it is necessary to alter it and make certain changes and modifications. The devil never rests still for a single moment. Our lack of residence is an example of this.

Accordingly to what I have heard, somebody told the immigrant police that we were teaching erroneous theories, which is why we were refused a residence from the beginning. The official interview was postponed for so long that this delay was the reason for my return to Colombia after working here for an entire year. Nevertheless, the Lord caused this to work in our favour and it was a blessing for the brethren in this country, with whom I was able to share my experiences and findings, concerning the belief of demon-possession. In this manner I was thereby able to help. As I am writing this, I still do not have in my possession this official permit, yet may the glory be given to God because I expect to receive it within the next few days. It was necessary to give a detailed explanation of our principles of faith to the authorities before they would grant us an official interview.

Another example of Satan’s diligent ways was the time when the car we’d been given to further the missionary work was stolen and the attack made on the house during the stay of brother Reinaldo Porras, my father, in this place. All of Satan’s plans went awry through the Lord’s intervention because the car was eventually found and the 12 young men responsible for this crime are being detained behind bars. During my father’s visit, two people were baptized and the group in Suriname was organized.

Not long after this incident, we had the opportunity to rent a beautiful house where we are still living at the moment, not too far from our previous location and in a more central area. It was here that my friend suffered a terrible accident while he was washing the exterior of the house. He fell from a ladder from the height of approximately two meters, landing head first, then shoulders and finally the rest of his body. Once again, we saw the hand of God and we were able to take him to the hospital where he had to stay for a few days. Unfortunately, after they let him go, he fell once again during the middle of the night when he could not fall asleep and woke up dizzy. He fell from the second floor onto the first and without a doubt, the angels helped him out and guided him to my bedside so that I could find out what had happened to him and be able to act on time. Once again brother Oscar was hospitalized for two weeks until he left for Colombia to receive better medical attention and to recuperate his health with the help of his family.

There has to be a love for souls and for the Lord’s work in order to surrender yourself completely to the work of salvation of souls without thinking about the cost. Suriname has been for me a place where I have been able to mature both physically and spiritually and it is here that I have learnt that you don’t need the manifestation of great miracles in order to perceive the presence of God in your life. I have also seen the incredible manner in which He guides us and shows us His will as soon as we submit the direction of our lives in His hands and ask Him daily that His will be done and not our own.

We are merely instruments in His hands and the only thing left for us to say is “Woe is me! For I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts.” Isa. 6:5

Something which I have seen fulfilled before my very eyes and which lately I have understood to a greater extent are the words of God in Zechariah 4:6, “Not by might, not by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of hosts.
I hope that we may all be meek in spirit and always willing to sacrifice everything for the salvation of souls.

This is my wish in the Lord,
Gabriel Porras