Before I go any further, I would like explain little bit about the background of Papua, Indonesia.

Pastor Naomi Selan sits on the right side, next to two girls she ministered to that are now working with her in children’s ministry.

Sadly, although the eastern islands of Indonesia are the so called “christian pouches”, according to most Indonesians, they are the places where the highest problems of alcohol, drugs, divorce and AIDS exist. Papua province is known as the highest percentage of people with AIDS in Indonesia. And it has been a mockery in Indonesia that if we want to find people knocked out by alcohol in the ditch on Sunday morning, we just go to Papua, to Jayapura city, the capital of Papua. There are young people living under the bridges and on the streets. They sniff glue and do all sort of bad things. They live without a purpose and a future. And yes, most of them call themselves Christians, they would fight and even die if someone from another religion mocked the name of Jesus but they do not fight to live for Him.

Out of this sad and tragic condition of Christianity in Papua, we are longing that a revival and a transformation would happen in Papua.

Surprisingly, there were not many churches that backed the idea of revival on the streets. Some pastors of big churches were not interested of working towards such an event. But one small lady with a very small church, located in a wet market selling fresh meat and produce, believed this was a work of God. The lady’s name is Pastor Naomi Selan. She brought along another pastor from another church to help, she also found a group of Catholics who were willing to help.

Some of those Jesus rescued from addictions that had controlled their lives.

We were trying to make an event but God prepared a movement. The event of revival nights we had in Papua were arranged by Sigit and brought to reality by Pastor Naomi Selan and her troops rescued from the streets and night life. We were having a revival night with the help of young people with tattoos and body piercings who were actually praying and doing everything they can to bring people on the streets of Jayapura into salvation. Poor children ministered to by Pastor Naomi Selan and the church also gathered for the event.

On the first night of the event, a challenge was made for all those who wanted to receive Jesus as their Lord and Savior and repent from their sins. There were many passersby on the streets that decided to receive Jesus as their savior and others renewed their commitment to the Lord.

John Lathrop interviews award-winning photographer Shamow’el Rama Surya for PneumaReview.com about his art and what he has seen God doing in remote places in West Papua.

John Lathrop: You are a photographer. How long have you been doing photography?

Shamow’el Rama Surya: My career in photography has already spanned more than 25 years. Starting in 1990, I studied photography in Bandung, West Java after I graduated from High School in my hometown in West Sumatra, Indonesia.

Lathrop: I know that you are also a Christian. Please tell our readers how you became a believer in Jesus.

Surya: I became a Christian on May 10, 2012. On that day, there was an event by a church in Jakarta who was doing a mass baptism service, about 500 people registered. I came there to take photographs of them. It was colossal to see so many people being baptized in this ceremony in the water. And it looked great on camera.

But, when I was there, God’s Spirit touched me and I felt a strong desire that I wanted to get saved as well. So, I spoke with an old lady beside me, telling her that I wanted to be baptized also, like others in this place. The lady’s response was to go quickly and register me. And she asked me, “Have you ‘new born’?”

I replied, “What’s that?”

The lady answered, “Okay, just follow my every word and at the end say Amen.”

So, I followed her instructions, I repeated the words and I said Amen.

I received a Bible as a gift from the lady’s friend, and since that day I started reading the Word of God.

God’s truth has set me free!

Shamow’el Rama Surya with students at Junior School.

Lathrop: In 2014, you made a trip to West Papua. What was the purpose of that trip?

Surya: A Christian ministry called Pelangi, “rainbow,” sent me to West Papua as a teacher. Pelangi ministers to street children from scavengers’ families in Jakarta, Indonesia.

Because the school has no English teacher, they requested that I teach English for the students there.

Before they sent me to Papua, I worked in Jakarta for five months.

After I came back from Papua, I worked with a publisher to produce a book named A Certain Grace.