Sorcerer. Shaman. Witch doctor. In other parts of the world, these are terms by which Kiung would be identified. But in his village in New Ireland, he was known as the “poison man”—one who uses incantations and potions to cast spells to help, harm, or kill people.
For years, Kiung was regularly called upon to use his poison on others. But under that shroud of darkness, he could not find the answers he sought for life and contentment. That’s when he started dabbling in “religion.” But the local religion is merely a list of laws and regulations: prayers to say, songs to sing, and works to do in order to appease God, gain His blessing, and maybe go to heaven.
“I tried to do all of the good things,” Kiung said. “I did everything the church told me to do. I followed all the laws of the church, because I believed if I did enough of these things, I would get eternal life.”
But it wasn’t until Kiung heard a teaching of God’s Word in Patpatar, his heart language, that his life truly changed. “I began to realize that all of my prior ways and beliefs about the spirit world and the rules and traditions . . . they were not in line with God,” Kiung said. “Now I know that it’s only by the work of Jesus. He died and rose again. I believe in Him.”
Today, Kiung is a pastor in the Patpatar church. He teaches and shepherds others who, like him, are seeking the one true God. And he has a message for Christians in the United States: “There is a huge need for the truth. We have churches. We’ve had them for a long time. However, they are not preaching the truth.”
Thank you for your generous partnership so that others like Kiung will have access to the Way, the Truth, and the Life.
