At the Heart of Kelabit Highlands
“A cross! I can see a big cross on top of a mountain,” someone burst out in excitement as our Twin Otter made its descent to the Bario airport after a 50-minute flight from Miri. I was captivated by the enchanting beauty of mountain ranges with spikes of rocky cliffs and jagged peaks encircling the vast plain patched with cultivated padi fields. No wonder Bario has been labelled as a tropical paradise.
Finally the sixteen of us from Emmanuel Methodist Church touched the tarmac at the Kelabit Highlands on the morning of 12th October 2018. Pastor Solomon, co-author of the book “The Bario Revival” and his wife Enne were with us throughout our Bario Revival Tour. We were 1,000 meters above sea level and we felt the cool breeze kiss our cheeks as we disembarked. What a refreshing welcome!
The name Bario is derived from the Kelabit word bariew, which means wind. It is inhibited by over 1,000 Kelabits spread over seven main villages. God visited this land during the spiritual revival in 1973 and the awesomeness of His presence still lingers. Many tourists come here for a break in need of peace in mind or for a trekking adventure in the mountain terrains. We came here with a greater enthusiasm, to seek spiritual refreshing at this valley of the wind.
Solitude at the Peak
We could also see the cross on the Prayer Mountain from our Homestay. Climbing up the mountain was a much anticipated highlight of our trip and we couldn’t wait to conquer it after our lunch the very first day. We were looking forward to encounter God at the peak.
“We are all going to make the climb!” a few of us exclaimed as we alighted from the back of the Hilux when we reached Kampung Arur Dalan, located at the foot of the mountain. Obviously the group’s joyful spirit had built up our confidence, even for the uninitiated in our midst. It didn’t seem as hard as we had anticipated as we ascended the narrow buttressed footpaths. A few took their time leisurely appreciating the fascinating flora at the thick undergrowth along the way.
We took a break two-third way up the mountain, at the rustic chapel where Pastor Solomon briefed us on the spiritual significance of the Prayer Mountain. This Prayer Mountain was revealed in a vision to intercessors during the Bario Revival. Ever since then many have climbed up, experienced spiritual breakthroughs and miraculous healing, seen visions, revelations, signs and wonders.
The latter part of the climb is steeper and the ropes along the trail helped us greatly. It took us a total of one and half hours to reach the peak where the cross stands. An old wooden cross stands stoically where the villagers had erected it during the revival. However, a new 33 foot high (signifying the number of years Jesus lived on earth) metal cross was sponsored and erected in November 2015. From the peak we could see the panoramic view of the valley, with clusters of villages scattered across its breadth.
My immediate feeling at the foot of the cross was the deep sense of an unworthy sinner experiencing the love and grace of God through the Lamb who died on the Cross. We sang “Only by Grace” which helped prepare us to seek Him. It was spiritually refreshing when the cool wind blew on our faces as we prayed under the hot sun at the barren peak. Pastor Solomon also challenged us with the two verses inscribed near the base of the cross and on the plague nearby. He emphasized “lest we forgot” from Deuteronomy 4:9 and “pouring out of the Spirit on all people” from Joel 2:28. Many shared later on their refreshing encounters with God.
Deeper than
the Pineapple Hospitality
It didn’t take us long to recognize the highly esteemed virtues of the Kelabit community – their warm hospitality and friendliness. Accompanying their hospitability is almost always their sweet and juicy pineapple. We again finished the pineapple in no time as we stopped at the Asal Lemba’a Longhouse for afternoon tea after our descent from the Prayer Mountain.
This longhouse was built on the old BEM missionary airstrip. As we walked along the longhouse, we were given a very informative talk on the demographic changes during the periods of World War II and the Indonesian Confrontation. The transformation in their life style and cultural heritage came with the advent of Christianity. Though the gospel reached the Kelabits in 1939, followed shortly by their en masse conversion to Christianity, the greatest impact in their lives began with outpourings of the Holy Spirit in 1973. Besides spiritual restoration, healing of the land, people and even animals, there were also socio-economic breakthroughs experienced by the people. Despite their geographical isolation, they excel in education, business and various professions, even politics.
The cultural night after our dinner was most memorable. We were welcomed by the hitting of the tubung, a bamboo instrument, by a group of Kelabit women dressed in their colourful traditional dress and bead caps. The graceful movements of the hornbill dance by the ladies and the leg twisting skills of the warrior dance by the man to sape music were very captivating. Later, as we joined them, laughter filled the corridors when we obviously “re-invented” the intricate steps and delicate hand movements. Everyone participated in the fun. The bamboo dance and the turning plate games that followed did not seem to tire us. No one felt like retiring even after the farewell pineapple juice toast!
A most meaningful part happened next. We were given an angklung each, a musical instrument made of a varying number of bamboo tubes attached to a bamboo frame. After receiving on the spot coaching, more than 30 of us stroked the instrument to produce a combination of the different resonant pitches for a melody. Much to our delight, our angklung ensemble performed a near perfect “Amazing Grace” as the finale for the night.
We started and ended our cultural evening with prayer and blessings. As we walked back to our Homestay, we were filled with overwhelming joy. I pondered why it was so very extraordinary. There must be something deeper than just the pineapple hospitality. It must be the love and joy of the Lord in their hearts that makes them so special, overflowing into us. There is no exaggeration in saying that the Kelabits are God’s chosen people and their land is heaven on earth.
Through Refiner’s Fire
We were all ready very early the next morning even before hearing the call of the tubung for the daily chapel morning prayer at 5:30am. After the prayer, Rev Solomon brought us for a morning walk around the village. The fresh air invigorated us as we took in the serene landscape complete with mist hovering over the plains.
Besides Bario rice and pineapple, Bario is also famous for its organic salt. After a short stop at the small township, we headed for the salt spring at Pa Umor village. The salt spring has existed for several decades. The salty water is collected from the well that is fed by an underground spring. It is boiled in drums for 24 hours until all the water has evaporated, leaving the salt crystals at the bottom. It is then packed into lengths of bamboo pipes to drip dry. The pipes are then put in the fire to be burnt until the bamboo becomes ashes and the remaining rod of salt becomes red hot. The purified and dried cylindrical rod of organic salt is then wrapped in big leaves and sold.
Pastor Solomon challenged us to be the salt of the earth (Matt. 5:13). He stressed that salt which gives flavor and preservative effect needs to be purified. Very often the purification process needs to go through fire. During our group sharing that night, a few of us shared on how the Lord revealed to them the need of our cleansing from within, to be holy and set apart for Him.
It drizzled briefly as we left for our next destination, the sheep farm. Again we were challenged by Pastor Solomon on our role as a shepherd in taking care of the sheep and looking for the lost sheep. It struck me when he mentioned a heart breaking incident when a few wild dogs entered through the fence and killed more than ten helpless sheep. Does it not remind us that the sheep in our church can be the target of unpredictable evil attack at any time? What can we do to prevent such catastrophe?
Hunger for another Wave
The most exciting testimonies shared by Pastor Solomon were his first hand revival accounts when he was a teacher at SMK Bario. It was on October 4, 1973, the phenomenal divine visitation of God come when he was meeting a group of 12 student leaders of the Inter-School Christian Fellowship in the classroom at the hilltop. With the outpouring of the Holy Spirit they experienced the overpowering sense of the holiness of God. There were confessions, repentance, forgiveness, reconciliations, restorations, followed by joy and praise. This old classroom block had been replaced and today there is a memorial structure on the exact site on this Revival Hill erected in remembrance of that momentous day.
That night, Pastor Solomon shared in greater detail as he shared his photographs on the revival waves from 1973 till 1985. After the impactful first wave characterized by repentance, there were three other perceptible waves at 2 to 6-year intervals. Each subsequent wave was coloured with different features of the church – with joy, prayer and worship. Revival was contagious and it spread to the surrounding villages and gave rise to the fifth wave at Ba’ Kelalan in 1985. The church grew remarkably during the period. Sad to say, a cycle of spiritual refreshment followed by decay seems to describe the situation of the church today.
When Pastor Solomon shared at the top of the Prayer Mountain on his burden to seek God for another wave of revival, his voice was choked with emotion. People need to return to their spiritual roots and rediscover their true sense of destiny during this perilous time. He also shared his excitement over many BEM youths gearing up for the coming youth gathering themed “Re-Digging Old Wells for a New Anointing” (Gen. 26:18).
We all shall join him in the same cry to our God for our church today: “God, will you not revive us again that your people may rejoice in you.” (Psalm 85:6) That was also how Pastor Solomon ended his book in “The Bario Revival.”
The Spirit of God is Joy
Everyone shared during our second night at the homestay. Each had a refreshing spiritual encounter to tell. We pray that our individual encounters with God here stir in us a personal revival, spreading even into our church. We also came away with a favourite Kelabit revival chorus, Roh Tuhan ineh liat, Doh liat… (The spirit of God is joy, let’s rejoice…).
Our third and last day there was Sunday and worshipping with the community was another memorable experience. Our group sang “How Great Thou Art” in front of the congregation. A few were so excited as it was their first experience in a choir!
Soon we needed to depart for our flight. I could see that every luggage was stretched to the full. You can well guess what were inside – Bario rice, pineapple fruit, pineapple jam, salt, cinnamon sticks, tenom seeds and others. Enne recounted the goodness of the Lord for the three days of good weather. According to the weather forecast, it should have been raining every day during our tour. We had been praying hard and we knew that God often overrules.
As we bade farewell to this blessed place, my heart couldn’t help but start to sing again the revival song – Roh Tuhan ineh liat, Doh liat… Rejoice! Our good Lord has refreshed us at the valley of the wind!
By Dr Wong Sung Ging
Emmanuel Methodist Church, Bintulu