When two other American women were taken away by the Kempeitai, Darlene feared that it would not be long until it was her turn. Some women taken away never returned, and the ones who did came back broken and unwilling to speak of the experience. ![]() The black limousine, pulling up at Kampili, struck fear into the heart of every woman and child. Her heart, pierced with grief, leaned the more heavily on the Lord who had said – as Russell had told her in his parting words – that He would never leave her nor forsake her.Īll the women knew of the Kempeitai, a Japanese operation of secret police that quelled resistance through cruel torture and interrogations. However, two months later she received a terrible blow: Russell had died in Pare Pare, and this news had been kept from her for three months. Darlene recognized on hers a scrap of material from Russell’s shirt. One day a truck arrived at Kampili from Pare Pare, and Darlene and several other women received wooden clogs made by their husbands. Darlene had not heard from him for over a year, but she prayed for him every day. Russell was still far away in a camp at Pare Pare. With this grinding labor, the days passed into weeks and months. Darlene was put in charge of Barracks 8, and she tried to ease the burden of the women and children under her care by rotating their duties each week. They worked long hours in the hot sun and the drenching rain. The women were required to raise pigs and chickens for the Japanese, work in the camp gardens, work as nurses in the camp hospital, cook the daily portions of food, sew uniforms for the Japanese soldiers, and even fell trees, clear land, and unload trucks. Life settled into a routine of hard work at Kampili. Separated from their homes and countries, isolated from the events happening around the world, and living daily under the heavy hand of a Japanese commander, it was the hope of God’s Word that would give them courage to face every hardship. This gave them strength and comfort in the next four years they spent in Kampili. The women gathered around, read a portion of Scripture, and prayed together. Fear of the unknown and grief over parting from loved ones were the general feelings among the women at Kampili.Īs evening fell that first day, Darlene began what became a regular practice in Barracks 8, the barracks in which she was placed. Many had been torn from their husbands like Darlene had been. Here were women of all backgrounds and nationalities. The women were divided up among the eight barracks. In a few months, women and children, too, were gathered up and taken to a prison camp called Kampili – a lonely spot surrounded by barbed wire and flooded rice fields. ![]() With greater understanding I confirm to You tonight, it is still anywhere – I leave the costing to You.” The words from Darlene’s childhood came back to her: “Lord, I’d go anywhere for You, no matter what the cost.” Was she truly willing to give up all? Through her tears, she prayed, “I meant it then, Lord, to the level of my understanding. Only as Darlene handed Russell a pillowcase of clothes and belongings could Russell whisper a tender parting word: “Remember one thing, dear: God has said He would never leave us nor forsake us.” Russell and Darlene were not even given a chance to say good-bye. Though the Deiblers and several other missionaries sought refuge in a quiet mountain retreat, eventually all the men were taken by Japanese troops to a prison camp. ![]() The situation became worse as Japan continued its sweep of destruction. The missionaries waited and prayed and followed closely the war news over the radio. ![]() The Japanese Empire slowly and gradually began expanding their brutal influence among the islands of the Pacific Ocean. Their peaceful efforts to preach the Gospel of Peace were interrupted by the storm of war. Russell and Darlene Deibler were only married for a year before they arrived in the Netherlands East Indies in August 1938, and began work among the Kapauku people in New Guinea. As World War II unfolded and they were caught in the sweeping military might of Japan, the enthusiastic promise she made as a child was tested, for she had to give up every earthly treasure for Christ’s sake. As a young girl living in Boone, Iowa, the cry of her heart was, “Lord, I’d go anywhere for you, no matter what it cost!” The Lord led her to marry a missionary and begin to work on a small island in the Netherlands East Indies. This month, we are going to look at the life of a young missionary wife to whom this verse became real as she faced hardships beyond what she had ever expected when she entered the mission field. “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1). A Boat Sulawesi, formerly Dutch East Indies.
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