I, along with our Asia Pacific Area Director (APAD), visited Ruth Devairakam and her family in Kluang, Malaysia from July 8 to July 13. Our visit was to encourage Ruth and her daughters following the recent death of her husband Wilfred, and to offer some training and teaching to equip the family and church members for future ministry.
We shared meals and spent time fellowshipping with Ruth and her elder daughter, Joanna, Joanna’s husband Kenny and Ruth’s younger daughter, Jerusha. Ruth is a native Tamil Indian whose family moved to Malaysia when she was very young, but Joanna and Jerusha were both born in Malaysia. Joanna works for the government and Jerusha is an elementary school teacher.
One night we met at a church member’s home, which is used as a home church. We worshiped and shared a meal with the group, and then APAD and I had some discussion on Christian deliverance and spiritual warfare. I recommended to the group that they might be interested in reading Jennifer LeClaire’s book, “50 Spiritual Warfare Prayers to Stop the Enemy’s Weapons.”
In our conversation about spiritual warfare and deliverance, I was able to cover the following topics:
- Authority in Christ
- Armor of God
- Declaring victory over the enemy
- Strength and protection
- Deliverance and help
- Freedom from fear
The church member who was the homeowner had questions about how to banish evil spirits from her home. Sometimes, there are things on the mission field that missionaries encounter that seem very unusual to our western ears. This homeowner happened to be a Tamil Indian living in Malaysia. In that moment, I recalled what former Advent Christian missionary to India, Barbara White, once taught me. Barbara’s approach was to bless water and sprinkle it in every entrance in the home and say this command out loud: “In the name of Jesus, I rebuke all evil spirits from this home. You must leave now and never return.” Barbara did this many times during her 40 years of missionary service in India.
The following evening, APAD arranged a workshop for the same group at the hotel where we were staying, and taught the church members how use a simple self-learning Bible study method he learned from Dr. Waylon Moore:
Read a passage from the Bible and make note of:
- Wow! List anything and everything that amazes or surprises you about the verses you have just read.
- Verse. Write the verse that seems most important to you in the verses you have just read.
- Huh (questions)? Write all the questions that come to mind from the verses you have read.
- Do. Write down what these verses are telling you to do.
Although I never met Wilfred, the church members shared that he was a very kind man who loved God. He was also musically talented and played both the guitar and violin. Joanna is currently working on her PhD, and recently authored a fictional book entitled “The Cross He Left Behind,” under a pen name. Joanna describes her book this way, “It is a story of inner restoration, divine orchestration and the unseen forces that transform us from within and direct our paths.”
Please pray for Ruth and her family as they adjust to life without Wilfred, and as Ruth continues to minister to the Tamil Indians in Malaysia. Pray that God will guide and protect Ruth and her family as they serve in the Muslim nation of Malaysia. I pray the Lord will allow me another opportunity to visit Ruth and her family.
