This is my regular … long awaited … occasional newsletter. In it I’ll be sharing with you what’s been happening since the last newsletter, sharing news and events in brief, and wrapping it up with some prayer points and some photos.
My Life in Myanmar
On December 3rd last year I headed off to Myanmar for my fifth short-term visit. A few days before that I was at my graduation ceremony of SMBC, and only a couple of weeks before that I was sitting exams. Second semester last year was my busiest and also my most successful. I had four very demanding subjects and a total of sixteen thousand words to write for my seven assessments. Thanks only to the grace of God I managed to get all my work in and pass my exams. I was quite relieved to be able to go to Myanmar with all of that work successfully behind me.
I arrived in Yangon around midday on December 4th to the welcome arms of Rev. Dr. Thang Bwee and his wife Nellie. Straight away we began to talk about our plans and hopes for the coming weeks as well as some of our more long-term plans. It was great to get stuck into things right from the get-go and to be involved in the work he is doing. The entire time I was there Thang Bwee was keen to include me in everything and all the while nurturing me and shepherding me like the wise pastor he is.
In the past I have gone to Myanmar for somewhere between two and four weeks to teach English or assist others in their teaching, however this trip was quite different in many ways. The most obvious difference was that I would be in Yangon for nine weeks straight, which would involve overstaying my twenty-eight day tourist visa. Prior to leaving Australia I had spoken to the Myanmar embassy in Canberra and e-mailed Thang Bwee to double-check, and according to everyone we spoke to it was quite normal to overstay. The only penalty would be a $3 per day fine payable at the airport on departure. A small price to pay for the convenience of being able to get more done in one trip. And it was as they said – hassle free for just $3 a day.
Late August 2009 Thang Bwee had e-mailed me asking if I could please teach a subject on Ephesians when I came in December and January, but as college was so busy I didn’t have a chance to start preparations until after my exams in November. And even though I made a start, I didn’t get very far before having to leave on December 3rd. But I still had some time up my sleeve. A few days after arriving in Yangon, Bill Lutton (the director of the mission organisation that is sending me) and his son Will arrived to teach English for one week. During that week I stayed in the hotel and continued my Ephesians prep. I managed to get about four lessons finished in that week, and although I was ahead of myself, I didn’t feel too good that it was only a few days’ worth of teaching. As a consequence, I spent almost every afternoon and evening over the following 7 weeks preparing the next day’s lesson. It turned out ok though and I learnt a lot from my preparations and really enjoyed the process of burying myself in one book of the Bible, surrounded by commentaries and of course, a constant supply of my much loved Jasmine Green tea.
The schedule was the same each week after Bill and Will headed back to Australia. I taught Ephesians to the Bible College students from 10am to midday, then had lunch with Thang Bwee before returning to the hotel to prepare for the next lesson. Wednesdays and Saturdays were ‘free’ days, but I found myself either preparing more Ephesians lessons or preparing a sermon. I was asked to preach two sermons every two weeks, and even though it added to my busyness, I really enjoyed the time in the Word and the learning that comes with sermon prep.
So that was “My Life in Myanmar” for the nine weeks of December and January and I loved every single bit of it. So much so that leaving to come home was difficult. Thang Bwee and I joked about how maybe there would be a problem with my overstay and I’d be stuck in Yangon for weeks. We were both overjoyed at the idea and laughed at the other problems it would cause – like not being able to finish my Associate Degree course at college.
There were a number of things that made it such a great trip. Being amongst the believers of Thang Bwee’s church is always an encouragement. They’re lovely, humble people, and so keen to know more of the Lord and be involved in what he’s doing in the church’s ministry. Teaching is something I enjoy, so that too was an enjoyable experience as well as the preparation. I got to talk at length with some Buddhist monks about Jesus and his death and their perceptions of that – this was part of some research I was doing for a college project this semester. But I think what made the trip so great was that I was living the life I’ll be living when I move there as a resident. Granted, I was living in a hotel and not having to cook and clean for myself, but every other aspect of my week resembled that which Thang Bwee and mission partners have come to see as my role there. After the first twelve months of learning Burmese at the Yangon University I will be primarily involved in teaching at the Reformed Bible Institute (RBI), the Bible college of the Evangelical Reformed Church (ERC) – Thang Bwee’s church. Among other subjects this will include English teaching, but in addition to that I’ll also be teaching English to some of the non-Christians in my community. As has been our plan for a long time, this will be done using a Bible-based curriculum and will be one of our many works of evangelism. I will also be involved in preaching at ERC and working with and mentoring some of Thang Bwee’s young leaders.
I realise that some of the people and places mentioned might be new to some of my readers. If that’s you, please visit “The Work” and “The Workers” pages to learn more.
News & Events
- Both RBI and GBS, the Bible colleges of our 2 partner churches have finished for the 2009/2010 academic year and almost all the students have returned to their families in Chin State (see a map of Myanmar at http://www.5starmyanmar.com/MyanmarStatesMap.jpg).
- For the few students remaining in Yangon they will be involved in various ministries including pastoring churches, children’s ministries, and evangelism.
- Kyaw Htin, a severely ill student of RBI is still in intensive care. In 2008 he was hospitalised with an unknown illness which had him in a coma for many weeks. When he came out of the coma he was paralysed and continued to require assistance with breathing. He has since regained consciousness but remains mostly paralysed with only limited head movement and still requires a machine to assist with his breathing. Fortunately the doctors were able to diagnose his condition a few months ago and operated on a bone tuberculosis in his neck. His mother and sisters remain by his bed 24/7 and ERC provides food and financial assistance. His recovery to date has been very slow and full recovery is expected to take at least another 2 years.
- The health of all others known to our 2 partner churches (ERC and FRCM) has been good. Tuberculosis (not bone tuberculosis), which is normal for at least one member of these churches to have has not been reported in many weeks. The only person reporting illness is Mor Dang who has been recovering from Hepatitis C. He is about 95% recovered but still gets tired very easily. Mor Dang is in charge of Sunday School coordination for all ERC churches in the Yangon area and one of the main pastors at ERC’s most recent church-plant.
- ERC continues to plant churches around the Yangon district and though the congregations are small they are strong. Repentance has been a noticeable factor in many who have come to know the Lord, and although this brings tensions within some Buddhist families, the believers are standing firm and looking always to the Lord for comfort and guidance.
- National elections are set to take place in May and many people are hopeful that they will be a positive turning point in their country’s history.
Things to Pray for
For me:
- For my final two subjects at Bible college this semester (11000 words to write)
- To finish the correspondence TESOL course I’m still working through
- For God to prepare the way in Myanmar for ministry
- That I would be obedient to the Lord, patient in all things, always humble and always striving to know and glorify God more and more. (1 Pet 1:14-15)
For ERC and FRCM:
- Pray for Rev Dr Thang Bwee (ERC), Pastor James Mang Khen Thang (FRCM), and their eldership teams – that they facilitate the ministry of the Gospel and be wise with finances and management. (Eph 5:15-17)
- Pray for Thang Bwee, James, the directors, lecturers and visiting teachers, college wardens and other staff – for wisdom and faithfulness to the Gospel and the Scriptures. (2 Tim 2:15)
- Pray for the students as they prepare for service, that the Lord would sustain and encourage them as they learn. Pray also that they would retain what they’re learning. (2 Tim 3:16-17)
- Pray that the Partner Church congregations of ERC and FRCM would be people who are committed to thinking and acting with Jesus as Lord of all, living out his Lordship in all aspects of life. (Jude 24, 25)
- Pray that each of the Sunday services would be effective for the building up and encouragement of the saints. Pray that they would be welcoming, loving, and seeking to always spur each other on to love and good works. (Heb 10: 24, 25)
- Pray for all those involved in teaching, that they will be examples in speech and conduct, love, faith and purity and that they will rightly handle and explain the Word in truth. Pray for the children and for their growth in Christ. (2 Tim 4:5)
- Pray that through faithful and Bible-centred ministry, God’s community at ERC and FRCM will grow in numbers and influence. Pray that they might be known as being passionate about people, lovers of the truth, and eager to serve Christ. (Acts 2:46-47)
- And pray for Kyaw Htin’s speedy recovery from bone tuberculosis and also for and his family as they tend his needs.
Photos
This is the street outside the Evangelical Reformed Church (ERC).
I will walk down this street almost every day whilst in Yangon.
Some food and tobacco stalls in the street outside the ERC.
After each chapter of Ephesians we would get together like this
to discuss what we had been learning. The students found this helpful
for cementing some of what they had been taught.
On Christmas day the church folks got together
for a fellowship lunch.
On the menu — A VERY spicy Thai noodle dish.
This is just a very small portion of the rice grown from Thang Bwee’s
11 acres of rice paddies. He uses the rice to feed his family,
the college students, and his friends. What’s left over he
sells at market to help pay for the next year’s seed.
Tea shops are very common in Myanmar.
This is an outdoor one and is very popular with the locals.
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I hope you enjoyed this edition of the newsletter; any feedback would be greatly appreciated.
Remember too, if you’d like any prayer cards, or better still the prayer calendar, or any information cards or support cards then please just let me know by reply e-mail.
Grace be with you,
Martin
http://matt2819.com/myanmar
