Pray for Myanmar

Pray for the citizens of Myanmar as they cope with the effects of the latest disaster to befall them, a deadly cyclone that may have left as many as 22,000 dead, 41,000 missing and perhaps as many as one million homeless.  Pray that God would direct the resources needed to rebuild infrastructure.  Pray that God would bring peace to grieving families and friends.  There may also be ways that you can be involved by giving to various international aid organizations like the Red Cross and the U.N. World Food Program.  Click here to read more about the devastating cyclone.

Myanmar Mission Trip Report

On March 11 our team returned from Myanmar (Burma) where they conducted a training conference for pastors and distributed the money you raised for malaria medication to people that needed it most.  Our Minister of Missions, Eddy Hallock, wrote the following report:

After a long trip of forty hours, we arrived in Myanmar in the city of Mandalay.  This predominantly Buddhist nation was first introduced to the Gospel by Baptist missionary Adoniram Judson in the nineteenth century.  He translated the Bible into the Burmese language and consequently many have believed in Christ as Savior and Lord.

Our group of four pastors went to lead a “continuing education renewal” conference for Burmese pastors.  Through Worship in Action, Tallowood made it possible for over fifty pastors to travel to Mandalay from their towns in the countryside.  Of the fifty-plus pastors that attended, more than thirty of them rode a boat for two days and three nights to arrive in time for the seminars.  Most of the pastors were Baptists, but they invited their friends, so we had pastors from other denominations including Methodist, Brethren Church, Church of Christ, and Assembly of God.  The fellowship among them was wonderful.

During the day we taught Pastoral Care/Discipleship, Evangelism, Homiletics, and Church Administration.  The Burmese people are reserved and much slower to ask questions, but they eventually warmed up and seemed to enjoy the week very much.  On Friday night there was a fellowship time and they shared some glowing testimonies of what the week meant to them.

As I talked and listened to the pastors and leaders in Burma, we came to the conclusion that the best way to use the funds you provided for malaria medication was for three different groups to divide the blessing.  A boarding school started by Pastor Thong (the pastor of Tallowood’s Burmese congregation) made up of orphans and non-Christian families received 1.1 millian chats, equal to $1000 (US).  Last year they only had the equivalent of $100 (US) to pay for medication.  The seminary students in Mandalay are also very poor and cannot pay for treatment.  They also received 1 million chats.  Finally, two associations received the balance of the funds to help pastors and their families when in physical distress.

At our hotel we were able to make friends with some of the young people that work there.  Apparently they were not used to being treated with courtesy and they seemed to really like our team since we talked with them, taught them English and asked questions.  As a result of establishing a friendship with them I began talking about the possibility of studying and comparing Christianity and Buddhism.  By the end of the week we were able to give out four Bibles to various staff members.

We visited some of the pagodas in the city where the people go to pray in front of a statue of Buddha.  The pagodas are everywhere, as are Buddhist monks, who go out twice a day to beg for food.  Some ethnic groups in this country, primarily in the north and northwest have been greatly touched by t he Gospel.  Ethnic minorities like the Chin, Karin, and others are almost totally Christian.  However, the ethnic Burmese majority is Buddhist, so the challenge is before the Christian community to reach out, be friends, share the Gospel, and offer eternal life through Christ.

Thank you for making it possible for many pastors from Myanmar to attend the conference, and for your generous gifts that will provide life-saving medication to many families.

God’s Presence in Burma

Even in the midst of a predominantly Buddhist nation like Myanmar (Burma), whose people are generally resistant to the Gospel, God is present and at work.  Check out this exciting account from missionaries who recently experienced an extraordinary breakthrough:

http://www.christianaid.org/Missionaries/MIR/mir20080318.aspx

Myanmar Launch Video

New Worship in Action Emphasis: MYANMAR

 

As Jesus was beginning his public ministry, he quoted the prophet Isaiah, saying, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor” (Lk 4:18-19).

In October and November, we are going to seek to walk in obedience to Jesus’ command and example through a Worship in Action emphasis on the nation of Myanmar.

Here’s a quick summary of the ways that you can put Worship in Action as we seek to bless the people of Myanmar in Jesus’ Name.

1. Give all or part of the $65 it will cost to sponsor one day of ministry training for a Burmese pastor during the conference Tallowood will offer in Myanmar in March

2. Contribute all of part of $25 to pay for an anti-malaria kit for a family, to be distributed through local churches in Myanmar

3. Sign letters to the Chinese and Russian ambassadors to the United Nations asking them to support and not obstruct global efforts to work for national reconciliation in Myanmar

For the next two months, we want to sponsor 50 days of ministry training for Burmese pastors, to pay for 100 anti-malaria kits for families, and to sign 150 letters to the Chinese and Russian representatives at the UN.

Talk in your families and your circles of friends about how you can give towards these needs (over and above your regular tithes and offerings to the wider ministries of the Tallowood).

Bring your financial donations and your signed letters to the Re:Action Center before or after enterChange at the Tallowood Center (Saturdays) or in the Gym (Sundays).