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	Crawford's Home Page June 8, 2010 Janice and I send greetings from Jakarta. After eight months of visiting our stateside churches, we are back in Jakarta. Ah, back to the smog, grid locked traffic, multiple problems in the ministry and the crushing fatigue of trying to decide where to start pecking away at the enormous ministry needs. However, much of the culture . . . March 27, 2010 Janice and I send you greetings from Mississippi. The past two months, we traveled from Chesapeake, Virginia to Vallejo, California. Right now we are journeying back to Virginia. We have visited our churches in Arizona, Texas, California, Louisiana and Mississippi. We are tired of traveling, but we have enjoyed being with our churches. You folks are wonderful. December 21, 2009 Janice and I send you greetings from Chesapeake, Virginia. Over the past two months we have traveled far and wide visiting our churches. We have visited out churches in Illinois, Virginia, New England, Pennsylvania, Kansas, Colorado, Missouri, and North Carolina. It has been our joy to personally thank many of you folks for your support of the ministry in Jakarta. November 09, 2009 Janice and I send you greetings from Southern California. Over the past couple of months we have been visiting our churches in Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey and now in Southern California. It is a joy to be with you folks who have invested your prayers and offerings into the ministry in Indonesia. September 18, 2009 Janice and I send you greetings from Chesapeake, Virginia. Over the past two months, we have had a variety of changes in our lives. Changes always bring new opportunities and challenges. Let me share the changes and challenges in our ministry in Jakarta. July 13, 2009 Janice and I send you greetings from Jakarta. These last two months have been an exciting time here in Indonesia. Indonesians went to the polls and elected a new parliament and president. The election seemed to go quite well with the former president being reelected by a large margin and the new parliament consisting of mostly . . . May 14, 2009 Janice and I once again send you greetings from Jakarta. Right now Indonesia is in the midst of electing a new government. The parliamentary elections are now completed. Basically, the elections demonstrated that most Indonesians desire a secular government to run this country. The country will now go to the polls . . . back to top March 19, 2009 Janice and I send you greetings from Jakarta. We do appreciate your faithfulness in praying for the work here Indonesia. The Lord has blessed in the work the past couple of months and we want to share the blessings with you. back to top January 3, 2009 Our churches here in Jakarta had a good Christmas season. Almost all the services that I preached in this year were packed out. Moreover, almost all the services had several unsaved folks in attendance. For the last few years, we normally have not been able to get lost folks to attend our Christmas services. Pray for our churches here in Jakarta as they continue to preach the gospel under increasingly difficult circumstances... back to top November 23, 2008 Janice and I send you greetings from Jakarta. Over the past couple of months the eyes of the world have been focused on America's political process and the present economic mess. Goodness, you couldn't even pick up the Indonesian newspaper without being showered with articles about our new president elect Obama. However, it seems to me that the Lord is more interested in what is going on in His church, and His work... back to top August 28, 2008 Janice and I send you greetings from Jakarta. We do want to thank all of you folks for your faithful prayers over the past couple of months. There is a lot of news to share with you, so let's get started. Back in July 2007, I first wrote to you about the project to put a Bible into the hands of each junior high student on the island of Nias... back to top June 16, 2008 ...It seems the whole world is collectively holding its breath concerning fuel prices, food prices and what the future holds. The common Indonesian person is facing the same problems. Fuel and food prices are forcing regular Indonesian people into grinding debt while the rich government officials continue to spend lavishly. Sound familiar?... back to top April 17, 2008 Brother Jim Daley and I have recently returned from spending ten days on Nias island. One of the main goals of the trip was to begin making preparation for the distribution of the Bibles to the junior high schools on Nias. back to top February 12, 2008 Janice and I send you greetings from rainy, flooded Jakarta . We trust this letter finds all of you folks enjoying showers of God's blessings in the mist of the various storms of life. We are truly thankful for the many blessings the Lord has poured out on the ministry here in Jakarta while at the same time helping us through the constant problems that come with the ministry here... back to top December 12, 2007 Over the years, I have come to really enjoy the Christmas season here in Jakarta. One of the things I like about Christmas in Jakarta is the weather, always hot and humid with none of that cold wet stuff that other people seem to hope for around Christmas time. Also, I like the emphasis our churches here place on Christmas, as this is our best opportunity to get rather vocal without getting crushed by the fanatics... back to top November 22, 2007 Janice and I send you our warmest greetings from Jakarta. Actually right now Jakarta is warm and wet, so perhaps we should send the wet greeting also!... back to top October 25, 2007 ...Yesterday, Brother Jim Daley and I signed a contract with the Indonesian Bible Society to start printing the first 5,000 Bibles that we plan to distribute to all the junior high students on the island of Nias. We will need a total of 20,000 Bibles, so this is just the first step in getting all the Bibles that will be needed... back to top September 14, 2007 ...In August, two of the pastors that we have worked with extensively were ordained by their churches. Pastor Supriyanto of the Cipulir Baptist Church was ordained the first week of August. When Pastor Supriyanto took over as pastor of the Cipulir Baptist church, the church was going through a difficult period... back to top July 17, 2007 ...In June we had our Bible school graduation with 13 students graduating. The students received various degrees starting with a one year diploma to a full graduate of theology degree. Most of these students will be heading out to other islands either to start new churches or work in existing churches... back to top May 17, 2007 ...For the most part the churches here in Jakarta are doing good. Over the Good Friday weekend, the Ciledug church had a family retreat. They invited me to preach and also teach on the family. Teaching on the family is a tricky business in a foreign culture... back to top March 15, 2007 Janice and I send you greetings from Jakarta. Most of the news coming out of Indonesia tells of disaster after disaster befalling this country. Although this news is all true, there is much news that you don’t hear:.. back to top January 18, 2007 Janice and I send you greetings from Ciawi, Bogor, West Java, where we are attending the annual fellowship of Indonesia Independent Baptists... back to top November 16, 2006 Greetings from Jakarta. Janice and I want to thank all of you folks for your faithful prayers for us over the past couple of months. During these past couple of months, Janice and I have been deeply involved in my least favorite activity – traveling... back to top August 29, 2006 Janice and I send you greetings from Jakarta. Actually, Lord willing, by the time most of you get this letter we will be in Colorado. We plan to leave Jakarta on the 31st of August for a short visit to the States. We will be going directly to Denver, Colorado where Janice's sister is hospitalized. Janice really appreciates your prayers concerning her sister, Arlene, and also for Janice herself as Janice is once again being asked to donate stem cells for her sister... back to top August 3, 2006 Janice and I send you our greetings from Jakarta. The last few weeks have been a stressful time for us personally and also for the work here in Jakarta. We do appreciate your prayers for us and the work here in Jakarta. We also want you to share the good and the bad of the work here in Indonesia – for there is yet hope... back to top June 21, 2006 Janice and I once again send you greetings from Jakarta. These past two months have been a busy time for us. We are thankful that we are able to be a part of the ministry here in Jakarta, and we are especially thankful for you folks who faithfully pray for the success of this ministry. The ministry here continues despite the creeping introduction of sharia inspired bylaws that are allowing the more fanatical Islamic groups to close down more churches... back to top April 20, 2006 Janice and I send you greetings from Jakarta . The last few weeks have mostly been filled with teaching and working with the Bible school students. To say the least, I have enjoyed this time. I'm not sure how much the students have learned, but my heart has been thrilled again as I taught the life of Christ, the doctrine of Christ, I Corinthians and Galatians... back to top February 16, 2006 Janice and I send you greetings from Jakarta. We are now into the rainy season with the ensuing flooding that comes to Jakarta. Most of the people that live here in Jakarta have long grown use to the flooding, and for the most part, life continues as usual with minor adjustments to accommodate the high water. Likewise, despite the continuing gains of the fanatical Islamic elements to limit gospel penetration among the common people, our churches here continue to battle for higher ground... back to top December 13, 2005 Janice and I send you Christmas greetings from hot, humid Jakarta. We cannot thank you enough for the part you folks play in the ministry here in Indonesia. Your faithful prayers and financial support of the ministry have born fruit. We trust you will feel the same joy we have felt at what the Lord has done over the past couple months... back to top October 16, 2005 Janice and I send you greetings from Jakarta. Over the past few weeks I have spent a good portion of my time in Nias working with the churches and also the water filtration plants. The churches in Nias are doing good, but the water filtration plants continue to be a headache! However, I don't want you folks to forget the work in Jakarta which is facing real challenges... back to top August 31, 2005 Over the last few weeks, I have spent a major portion of my time on the island of Nias. The ministry there continues to produce good results. Pastor Formil and his folks at the Soonogeue church are working to rebuild their church building which was totally destroyed by the earthquake. Although, the construction of the church building is going slow, the church itself is growing and expanding... back to top July 19, 2005 Janice and I send you greetings from Jakarta. Over the past two months, we have had the normal ups and downs in the ministry here in Jakarta. For the most part the news from here is good, but we do want you folks to be aware of the problems that the ministry here faces. Your prayers are greatly needed and appreciated... back to top May 24, 2005 Janice and I once again send you greetings from Jakarta. We trust this letter finds all going well for you folks. All is fine here. We do appreciate your faithful prayers and financial support for the work here in Jakarta, and we do want to keep you well informed as the needs of the ministry are great right now. Your prayers are so important for the ongoing welfare of this ministry at this time... back to top April 18, 2005 Greetings from Jakarta. This last month has continued to add new twists into our ministry here in Indonesia. Just as we had settled into handling the ministries that arose in relation to the tsunami aid, we were suddenly inundated with several new situations that forced us to once again break out of our normal comforting routine... back to top March 13, 2005 Janice and I send you greetings from Jakarta. The past few weeks have been a busy time in the ministry here. The challenge of dealing with tsunami aid while trying to balance on going ministries has been difficult. However, the challenge brought many new opportunities to minister in new areas. As always, your prayers have been felt and appreciated as we have sought to meet these new opportunities... back to top January 24, 2005 Janice and I once again send you greetings from Jakarta. Over the past few weeks Indonesia has figured prominently in world news as folks around the world have viewed the horrible devastation wrought by the big earthquake and resulting tsunami off the northwest coast of Sumatra. Many of you folks have written us, concerned about our safety and desiring to help in some aid effort to those affected by the tsunami... back to top December 12, 2004 Janice and I send you folks warmest greetings for the holidays. We are fine here in Jakarta. Over the past couple of months we have faced quite a few problems in the ministry here, however, the news is not all bad. Let me share with you the bad and the good... back to top October 14 , 2004 Janice and I send you our warmest greetings from Jakarta. The greetings are naturally warm as the weather is always hot and humid here in Jakarta. However, not only is the climate hot, the whole social situation here in Jakarta is quite heated also. With the approach of the fasting month, the more extreme elements have stepped up their covert and overt attacks on churches located all over Indonesia... back to top September 10 , 2004 Janice and I send you greetings from Jakarta . Although Jakarta was rocked by a bomb explosion yesterday, today most folks here in Indonesia continue on as if nothing happened. Further, the government assures us that this is the work of a radical group that has little support here in Indonesia and the perpetrators will soon be captured and properly punished... back to top August 12, 2004 Janice and I send you greetings from Jakarta. We trust that this letter finds you doing well. We do appreciate your faithful prayer and financial support for the ministry here in Jakarta. News wise, Indonesia is still in the process of electing a new president with the final run off set for the 20th of September... back to top July 4, 2004 Janice and I send you greetings from Jakarta. After nearly six months of traveling, we have arrived back home in the mist of Indonesian presidential elections. If one of the five presidential candidates receives fifty percent of the vote tomorrow (July 5), then Indonesia will have a president... back to top April 22, 2004 Greetings from California. Janice and I have been visiting churches in California for the past couple of months. We have had a wonderful time participating in several missions conferences while renewing old friendships and making new ones. The pastors and members in our supporting churches have been very gracious toward us, and we do appreciate their desire to share in the ministry in Jakarta... back to top February 11, 2004 Janice and I send you greetings from Chesapeake, Virginia. Since we arrived in the States the last full week of January, we have been in several of our churches, got some medical and dental work done, and visited with three of our children. Although we have not enjoyed the weather here - cold, really cold, we have enjoyed being with our churches... back to top December 17, 2003 The churches here in Jakarta have done well over the past month. However, there are a couple of things I want to ask you folks to remember in prayer concerning our churches here in Jakarta. Pastor Munjait at the Pelumpang work is facing a difficult situation with one of the main families in the church... back to top November 8, 2003 Janice and I send you greetings from Jakarta. Over the past couple of months the work here in Jakarta has done well. The churches have grown, the Bible school is rolling along well, and there just haven't been many negatives. Now that makes for a happy missionary! Let me share some of the good things have happened over the past few weeks... back to top September 2, 2003 Janice and I send you greetings from Jakarta. Over the past couple of months Indonesia has continued to make the news, however, not normally in a positive manner. Yes, there have been terrorist attacks here in Jakarta and lots of general unrest throughout the country, but from our point of view there have been many good things happening here in Indonesia... back to top June 23, 2003 Last Tuesday, six men graduated from the Bible school. Four graduated with full theological degrees, while the others received a diploma. Yet, the one thing that all six of these men had in common was that they were heading out to start new works... back to top May 3, 2003 Janice and I send you greetings from Jakarta. We trust this letter finds all going well in your part of the world. Sad to say, the world news so often absorbs our minds with war, natural disasters, pestilence and failing economies, that we tend to lose our focus on getting the good news out to a lost and dying world... back to top April, 1 2003 Janice and I send you greetings from Jakarta. During the last couple of weeks, Jakarta has been engulfed with anti-war demonstrations. Outrage over the war in Iraq has totally obliterated all other concerns faced by this nation as they solidify in demanding an end to the war in Iraq. Yet, among all this outrage, we continue to go about our daily lives and ministry... back to top February 13, 2003 Janice and I send you greetings from Jakarta. We trust this letter finds you folks all doing well. As far as we can tell, all is fine here. Although there are daily protests decrying United States aggression toward Islam, we continue to go about our daily activities without feeling threatened. There are several things that we want to report to you folks... back to top December 21, 2002 Janice and I send you greetings from Jakarta. We arrived back in Jakarta the last day of November from our short furlough. We did enjoy our time in the States as we: acquired a new grandson, welcomed a new daughter-in-law into our family, celebrated the homegoing of my father, and enjoyed fellowshipping with several churches that have faithfully supported our ministry over the years. back to top October 24, 2002 Janice and I send you greetings from Massachusetts. Over the past couple of months we have spent our time visiting our churches while dealing with many questions about death. A good portion of our time has been spent around the Washington, D.C. area where the fear of death from an unknown assailant has paralyzed a huge area. The bomb that took many lives in Bali, has caused people to ask about our safety in Jakarta. back to top September 2, 2002 Janice and I send you greetings from Gulfport, Mississippi. We trust this letter finds all well. We are doing fine. It has been a restful month of August for us. Janice and I have spent most of August in Burlington, Massachusetts with Jeff and Jennifer Preston and their family. On August 15, Jennifer (our third daughter) gave birth to her third child, Jarred Thomas Preston. back to top July 22, 2002 There is good news from the church pastored by Hadir in Sunter Jaya. The member whose bus had been impounded was able to get the situation settled so he now is able to run his bus. However, the big news at Sunter Jaya is that it looks like Pastor Hadir has found a wife! back to top June 21, 2002 For the most part, our churches here in Jakarta have done well over the past month. We do ask that you continue to remember Pastor Hadir and the church in Sunter Hijau as the work continues to struggle... back to top May 16, 2002 For the most part, the churches here in Jakarta have grown during this past month. Most of the churches have increased both in attendance and in reaching new people with the gospel. The Sunday schools are growing and new families are being reached with the gospel... back to top April 10, 2002 Greetings from Jakarta. Ah, we live in the land of hope here in Jakarta. Most folks here seem to be living on hope: the economy is getting better, there will be real peace in the troubled areas of Indonesia, government leaders are going to quit being corrupt, my life is going to start getting better soon. Yet, in truth, most of the hopes here in Jakarta are false hopes... back to top February 16, 2002 Janice and I send you greetings from Jakarta, Indonesia. The rainy season here in Jakarta always brings flooding, but this year Jakarta has experienced it's worst flooding in years. The rushing flood waters have forced thousands to flee their homes here in Jakarta, many of whom have lost not only most of their possessions but their livelihoods... back to top December 15, 2001 Janice and I want to send you holiday greetings from Jakarta. Over this past year Indonesiahas been buffeted by social, political, economic and religious upheaval. Right now the country seemingly totters on the brink of anarchy which can easily dismember and destroy the present government. Yet, in the midst of this present anarchy, the ministry here in Jakarta has experienced good growth. By God's grace the gospel continues to reach out here in Jakarta. back to top November 2, 2001 Greetings from Jakarta. The last few weeks have been interesting times here in Jakarta. We have been treated to fanatical Islamic groups demonstrating against America, demanding the breaking of ties with America and the immediate expulsion of all Americans from Indonesia. The police tired of the fanatics' taunting and constant badgering from the moderate majority for not controlling the fanatics, violently attacked a group of fanatic demonstrators on an Islamic holiday... back to top September 21, 2001 Janice and I send you greetings from Jakarta. The terrorist attack on America has led to many different reactions here in Jakarta. Some were thrilled to see the American bully bloodied by the heroic defenders of the greatly persecuted Islamic nations. Some were truly horrified that any Islamic person could commit such acts... back to top July 27, 2001 Janice and I once again send you greetings from Jakarta. Through the strange convolutions of Indonesian politics and the help of the Indonesian military we now have a new president, Megawati Sukarnoputri, who is the daughter of the first president of Indonesia, Sukarno... back to top June 27, 2001 Janice and I send you our greetings from Jakarta, Indonesia. These last few weeks have been a busy time for the ministry here in Jakarta. The joy of work is experiencing the good results; praise the Lord, there have been good results... back to top May 17, 2001 Janice and I once again send you our greetings from Jakarta. Right now as the political situation continues to spiral downward, the economy and the social situation are slowly being drawn into the vortex of a volatile situation that could easily be ignited by various elements that desire the end of the present Indonesian government or the end of the Indonesian nation as it now exists... back to top April 11, 2001 Janice and I send you greetings from Jakarta. The political situation here in Jakarta continues to bumble along without rhyme or reason. Economically, rising prices without corresponding wage increases are choking the common people. Socially, folks are progressively being pushed into religious, political and people groups that vehemently promote dismemberment of the Indonesian society... back to top March 22, 2001 Janice and I send you greetings from Jakarta. The last couple of months have been busy both in the work here and in our personal lives. As many of you know, the political, economic and social situation here in Indonesia has continued to deteriorate over the past couple of months... back to top January 22, 2001 We send you greetings from Jakarta. If you listen to the news, you know that Christmas and the New Year were celebrated here in Jakarta with churches bombed and increased political and social unrest through out the archipelago... back to top
	Web Editor - Don Tarvin Updated 10 Jun 2010