A woman raised in Islam now enjoys forgiveness in Jesus.

“What’s in a name?” William Shakespeare asked. Veronica Suci Andiani Putri Schultz finds significant meaning in her name.

Her father named her Veronica (“true image”) Putri (“daughter”), and one of her grandfathers named her Suci Andiani (“the pure light”). Neither Muslim man knew at the time that the daughter of the true image of the pure light would come to confess Jesus as the image of God (Colossians 1:15) and the light of the world (John 8:12), but that is what happened after God worked in Veronica’s heart.

The story of Veronica’s path to Christianity is marked by the patient love of God.

Patient love shown to parents

Veronica was born in Pekalongan, Central Java, Indonesia, to strict Muslims parents. Her mother, Tri Sari Hanurawati, began her life in a way that recalls Moses’ early life. A fisherman discovered her—a newborn—in a box left on his ship. After he had arrived at his port of call, he brought her to an orphanage where she lived until she was placed for adoption at age 5.

A Muslim woman by the name of Wastiah adopted Tri Sari. But because Wastiah could not bear her husband a son, the man divorced her—leaving her alone with Tri Sari.

Veronica’s father, Bambang Sumpeno, was raised Muslim but came into contact with Christianity at a young age. One day in fifth grade, while in his backyard, he heard the voices of children singing. Climbing a tree to see and hear better, he discovered that the music was coming from a group of Sunday school children. The children were singing about a man on a hill “shedding blood to wash away all my sins.”

When Bambang’s Muslim father learned about this incident, he warned Bambang to stay away from that class and their music and to limit himself to going to the mosque. Disregarding that instruction, young Bambang dug a hole under the backyard fence the following week and scurried off to listen to the Sunday school class again. When his father found out what he had done, he beat Bambang repeatedly and severely.

Years after that incident, when Bambang was attending college, someone left a New Testament Bible in his living quarters. For the first time, and with the Sunday school song echoing in his head, Bambang understood that it was Jesus who had died on a hill to wash away his sins.

Patient love shown in Veronica’s upbringing

After Tri Sari and Bambang met and married and Veronica was born, they tried sorting out Islam and Christianity. Islam had deep roots in both families, but both parents were interested in learning more about Jesus.

The parents were reading the Bible on their own, but they lacked guidance from a pastor or a church. Veronica explains, “My parents needed help, and that’s why I was sent to a Christian school in first grade.” The parents’ plan was for Veronica to learn about the Christian faith and then relay that information to them.

While they were implementing that plan, the family continued to adhere to the beliefs and practices of Islam. But the more the parents learned about Jesus through the bits and pieces Veronica brought home from her school, the clearer it became that Jesus was their Savior.

But following the Lord presented challenges. On the day when Bambang told his family and colleagues at work that he believed in Jesus as his Savior, as did his wife and two daughters, his mother disowned him and cut him off from all family ties. Bambang also lost his job.

For Veronica, that meant that the comforts of life she previously enjoyed were now gone. But these drastic changes provided an opportunity for God to reveal his power, love, and patience. The Lord provided a church where Veronica and her family could be baptized. He provided a Sunday school teacher for Veronica so she could be prepared with a vision for life.

That vision was the Great Commission. Veronica heard that Jesus wanted his followers to share his message with others, but she wondered how she could ever make disciples of all nations. She would realize how later in life. For now, knowing that Jesus was her Savior gave her peace.

For Veronica, the contrast between Islam and Christianity could not be more pronounced. “Islam is all about following laws. I knew that I would never be perfect following all of those laws. I fasted. I prayed five times a day in order to make a good relationship with God. I got so angry at myself when I could not finish my 30 days of fasting because I lost hope of being right with God. There is no gospel in Islam,” she says. “But when I read in the Bible that Jesus, God himself, humbled himself, rescued me, and redeemed me, that is what opened my eyes. There is no other God like our Jesus!”

Patient love in the classroom

While Veronica was focusing her attention on Jesus, she also began to focus on a vocation: becoming a teacher.

In 2005, she met that goal by becoming a teacher of cross-cultural understanding at the School of Light and Hope, an international Christian baccalaureate school in Jakarta. Her students were children of diplomats and business executives, and their diverse appearances made it obvious that they hailed from all over the world.

That is when Veronica realized that she was finally going to have the opportunity to participate in the Great Commission. She did not have to go anywhere to carry out Jesus’ words; children of other nations had come to her!

And so, Veronica taught children about Jesus, team-teaching with other Christian men and women. In 2011, she was paired up with Jacob Schultz, who had just arrived from the United States.

Patient love in a relationship

Jacob grew up in Beaver Dam, Wis. He attended Luther Preparatory School (LPS) in Watertown, Wis. While a student there, he took part in a Project Timothy mission trip to Latvia. Jacob recalled how life-changing that trip was: “During that trip, the Lord instilled in me a heart for missions, a heart to travel, to tell people all over the world about Jesus.”

Following graduation at LPS, Jacob enrolled in the teacher education program at Martin Luther College (MLC), New Ulm, Minn. When Jacob’s studies at MLC were concluding, he wondered how he might participate in the Great Commission.

He learned that MLC had a working relationship with a school in Indonesia where he could teach. It was the School of Light and Hope, where Veronica was teaching.

Upon graduation from MLC, Jacob deferred assignment into the public ministry of WELS and moved to Indonesia. He and Veronica were paired up in the same classroom. That year, they enjoyed a good working relationship, and their personal relationship was even better.

But that was a concern for Jacob. He wanted to maintain a professional atmosphere in the classroom, so he requested that the school’s principal assign Veronica and him to separate classrooms the next year. That request was granted, and that opened the door for their friendship to blossom.

Indonesian Muslim culture, however, presented some challenges. Arranged relationships and marriages are common. In Veronica’s case, her parents had previously selected suitors for her on three separate occasions. Each time, she declined her parents’ wishes.

Now Veronica was interested in Jacob, but it was not a simple matter of going on a date. Jacob explains, “In America, we have a dating culture, but in Indonesia, more focus is given to the idea of ‘courting.’ You ask the father for permission to begin courting, in preparation for marrying his daughter.”

Veronica’s father and mother were not enthusiastic about her marrying an American, knowing that she might leave Indonesia and live with her husband far away from home. So Veronica tried to balance her love for Jacob, her love for her father, and her love for her Lord. She told her father, “I’m going to fast for three days, and if it is not God’s will, I will listen to you and marry whomever you want me to marry.”

So over a long weekend, and with a self-imposed Monday deadline looming, Veronica waited to see if there was any divine indication that Jacob was the one she was to marry. Finally, on Monday morning, a fourth grader in Veronica’s classroom approached her and told her that she had been praying for her all weekend.

The student gave Veronica a card that said, “Do not fear, for I am the Lord. I am with you.” Inside was the message “Happy wedding.” That was the sign Veronica had been looking for. The wedding took place in the United States.

Patient love in a new home

After the wedding, Jacob and Veronica returned to Indonesia to continue their teaching. The Lord blessed them with a son, Judah Tyaga (“God’s gift”). Missionary Greg Bey, who had been serving as the friendly counselor to Indonesia and was friends with both Jacob and Veronica, performed the baptism.

In 2016, with concerns for the health of Jacob’s father, the family moved to the United States. The family grew with two more children: Ezekiel Prakoso (“God strengthens”) and Malachi Wicaksana (“God’s wisdom”).

Today, the family resides in Beaver Dam, Wis. Jacob works as a correctional officer, and Veronica is back in a classroom, serving as a full-time teacher’s aide at St. Stephen Lutheran School.

As Veronica looks back on her life, she sees the patient love of God. “Seventeen years,” she says. “How long God was patiently leading: ‘No, not this way, that way.’ ”

And while the patient love of God is humbling for Veronica, it is not entirely surprising. She is convinced her name pointed ahead to God’s work in her heart and life. After all, she is the daughter of the true image of the pure light.

Author: James Pope
Volume 113, Number 02
Issue: February 2026