Participants: Martin Kim & Judy Aitken
Series Code: ASAP
Program Code: ASAP000008
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00:42 The beautiful country of Myanmar
00:45 known to many as Burma 00:47 is home to over 100 distinct ethnic groups. 00:51 Situated in South East Asia 00:54 between the countries of Thailand and India, 00:57 Burma has a long rich history of dynasties and kingdoms. 01:03 While the large majority of the people are Buddhists, 01:06 Christianity was introduced to the country 01:09 during the colonial period 01:11 when the British governed the country 01:12 between 1886 and 1948. 01:17 Today, there are about three million Christians in Burma 01:21 about four percent of the population. 01:25 Adventism was started in the early 1900s 01:30 most known and loved are among those early missionaries 01:33 was a young man by the name of Eric B Hare. 01:39 When Eric B Hare and his wife arrived in the country of Burma 01:42 as a young newly wed couple in 1915 01:45 and began working among the Karen ethnic group 01:48 they were met with suspicion and fear. 01:51 Primarily animist and spirit worshippers 01:54 the Karen believed that the white God worshippers 01:57 that had come to live among them 01:59 were there to cast spells on them 02:01 and perhaps eat their children. 02:04 If the heirs would have built a church 02:07 and started their ministry by preaching Christian doctrine, 02:10 it is unlikely that they would had any success 02:13 in reaching people for Christ. 02:15 Fortunately for God's work in Burma the heirs instead 02:20 built the clinic and began serving the medical 02:23 and physical needs of the people. 02:25 As God's love poured through hands 02:27 that brought relief to the suffering 02:29 it also melted away fear and suspicion. 02:33 As pastor Hare or Dr. Rabbit 02:36 as he became known to the people, 02:38 became friends with the villagers. 02:40 They soon began asking him 02:43 about the God that he worshipped. 02:46 It was only then when huts were ready to receive 02:49 the seeds of the gospel 02:51 that they began to share their faith. 02:54 Over the years that followed 02:56 the heirs rejoiced as many villagers 02:58 gave their lives to God and became Christians. 03:02 Today many Adventist Christian in Burma 03:04 can trace their roots back to the work that Elder Hare 03:08 and his wife started in a small clinic 03:10 in the steamy jungles of Burma. 03:13 Today an Adventist South East Asia project 03:16 is following in the same tradition 03:18 and methods of Elder Hare and his wife. 03:22 I would like you to meet our church planter Khaing Hlone. 03:29 After I became a Christian my heart was filled 03:32 with a desire to share with others 03:35 the things that I have learned about God. 03:38 In the place where I was living 03:40 there were already many others sharing their faith 03:44 and so I asked God where I might go 03:47 to be an effective worker for Him. 03:50 When I looked back on my experience 03:53 I am amazed to see how God has led me each step of the way 03:57 to a small village in remote region of Burma. 04:02 I am now working as a Bible worker 04:04 sponsored by ASAP for the Lahu people 04:09 one of the ethnic minority groups living in Burma. 04:16 At first the village elders and their animist priest 04:21 were quite resistant to me sharing my faith about God. 04:25 They said that they were not really interested 04:27 in anything to do with Christianity. 04:29 But were inviting me into their village 04:31 because they had heard that I was a good teacher 04:34 and their children needed a school. 04:38 I accepted the position but still my heart longed 04:41 to be able share the good news with these people. 04:45 I prayed a lot asking God to show me ways 04:49 that I could gain the confidence and trusted of the people. 04:56 For the first four months 04:58 I simply taught the children regular school subjects. 05:02 They learned how to read and write. 05:04 They studied literature and how to speak Burmese. 05:09 After four months of working with the children in this way 05:13 I noticed the big change come over the people. 05:16 I had gained their confidence. 05:19 They were now very friendly and accepting of me. 05:24 I was impressed that the time had come 05:26 for me to begin to teach the children about God. 05:30 As part of their literature classes 05:32 I began to tell them stories from the Bible. 05:35 The children loved them, they also loved to sing 05:40 and so as part of our music and Burmese languages classes 05:45 we began to sing songs in Burmese about God. 05:56 The children enjoyed this so much 05:59 that they began to come to my home in the evening 06:02 for more stories and singing. 06:05 Even some of the parents have started to come to my home 06:08 in the evenings and now also on Sabbath. 06:12 We now have about 30 people 06:15 from the village coming on the regular basis. 06:21 One of the most influential people 06:23 in a Lahu village is the animist priest. 06:28 At first, the animist priest in this village 06:32 was very skeptical. 06:34 But God has touched his heart 06:36 and he has become one of my biggest supporters. 06:40 He encourages the children to come to my evening meetings 06:44 and has become very interested himself. 06:47 He does not know how to read 06:49 and so he is learning about God from our discussions 06:53 and the picture rolls that I have received from ASAP. 06:57 He says that he wants to become an Adventist Christian 07:01 along with his whole family. 07:04 But he is struggling about what to do 07:06 with his responsibilities as the village priest. 07:11 Please pray that God will make the way clear for him. 07:16 One of the things that I believe has helped me 07:19 gain the confidence of the people 07:21 is the work that I have been able to do for the sick. 07:25 Normally what happens here when someone gets sick 07:28 is that they first go to the animist priest 07:30 for healing. 07:32 If that is not work they travel to the nearest city 07:36 and go to the hospital. 07:38 If that does not work they accept their fate 07:42 and return to the village. 07:44 It is for some of these people 07:47 who have returned from the hospital 07:49 that I have been able to help with prayer 07:52 and simple natural treatments. 07:56 I would not have known how to do these 07:58 if I had not been for the training program 08:01 that ASAP gave us and the natural methods 08:04 that we learned from Dr. Mary Ann Mcneilus. 08:08 With these simple treatments and prayer 08:12 many people have become well. 08:15 As a result they now believe in Jesus 08:18 and the power of prayer. 08:22 I have been trying to show them by my own example 08:26 and by teaching them 08:27 the health principles of the Bible. 08:30 How to live a happier, healthier life 08:33 but it is difficult for them. 08:36 They really like to drink alcohol and smoke. 08:41 Pork is a very big part of their daily diet 08:44 and they say that as much as they would like to be healthy 08:47 it is very hard to give up these things. 08:51 Please pray for me as I continue to work 08:54 with these Lahu people and share with them 08:58 about the love of God. 09:01 We thank the Lord for our faithful ASAP 09:03 national missionaries 09:05 who are using "Christ's method to reach the people. 09:08 We are told Christ's method alone 09:11 will give true success in reaching the people. 09:13 The Savior mingled with men as one who desired their good. 09:17 He showed His sympathy for them, 09:19 ministered to their needs, and won their confidence. 09:23 Then He bade them, 'Follow Me.' 09:31 " In 1948 Burma gained its independence from Britain 09:36 and for a short time practices the democratic 09:38 form of government they had learned from the British. 09:42 However, in 1962 the government was taken over by the military 09:48 and the country has virtually been 09:50 under military rule since that time. 09:54 While the people of Burma have been 09:56 free to practice their Christianity and even evangelize 10:00 in some regions with local government approval. 10:04 Some of the ethnic groups have had ongoing 10:07 clashes with the Burmese military. 10:11 One of the groups that have been brutally oppressed 10:14 is the Karen, the same ethnic group that 10:17 Eric B Hare worked with for so many years. 10:21 As a result many Karen 10:24 have fled across the border into Thailand 10:26 where they take refuge in camps set up by the Thai government. 10:32 Some have lived in these camps for decades. 10:38 In 1966 a young man who had recently graduated 10:43 from the Adventist Seminary in Burma 10:45 heard about the refugees along the Thai border 10:48 and felt impressed to go and work for them. 10:52 At first it was very difficult. 10:54 It is not easy to work in a place 10:56 where there are no Christians. 10:59 It was only after two or three years 11:01 of visiting the people in their homes 11:04 that Pastor Phamor was able to get 11:06 some of the people to become interested in Christianity. 11:10 Once again like Elder Hare, Pastor Phamor 11:13 discovered that he was only after he became friends 11:17 with the people and began to meet their needs 11:20 that their hearts will respond to the gospel message. 11:24 The method he found worked best was to open schools. 11:31 In those days there were no schools. 11:34 I felt impressed that if we could start schools 11:37 we would not only meet the real need for the people 11:40 we could also have the opportunity 11:42 to share the gospel with the children that came. 11:46 With God's help we started two schools, 11:49 one in Thailand and one across the border 11:52 in no-man's-land. 11:55 I call it no-man's-land 11:56 because the land is under martial law. 11:59 If the Burmese government soldiers 12:01 find you in this area 12:03 they shoot first and ask questions later. 12:06 It doesn't matter who you are they will kill you. 12:10 Another reason why I call it no-man's-land 12:13 is because no one seems to care what happens 12:16 to the people who are living here. 12:20 As Pastor Phamor stepped out in faith 12:23 and built the bamboos schools in the jungles of no-man's-land 12:27 God began to provide the funds to help pay the teachers 12:31 and Bible workers a small stipend for their work. 12:35 As they prayed and trusted God for help 12:38 people heard about the work that they were doing 12:41 and started sending in small donations each month to help. 12:46 Over the years the work has grown as God has blessed. 12:52 The schools were a big success. 12:56 From those first two schools that we started 12:58 we now have 38 schools. 13:02 Some are in the refugee camps 13:05 but many more are located in no-man's-land. 13:09 The soldiers come scatter the people 13:11 and burn down the schools 13:13 but we just build again in another location. 13:17 Our enrolment has grown from 25 to about 5,000 students. 13:24 Because of these schools God's work has really grown. 13:28 Many of the students have become 13:30 dedicated teachers and lay pastors. 13:34 Even though I teach commerce and English 13:37 I still have many opportunities 13:39 to talk to my students about God. 13:41 When I see this young people accepting Jesus 13:45 and making decisions to follow 13:47 it brings me the greatest satisfaction 13:51 that I am able to do this kind of work. 13:55 It was when I was a student at this school 13:58 that I became a Christian and accepted Jesus as my Savior 14:03 because, my heart was so full 14:05 I wanted to share that joy with others. 14:08 So I decided to become a teacher myself 14:11 and now I am the one teaching the children about God's love. 14:16 The subjects that I enjoy 14:17 teaching the most are health and Bible. 14:21 To me there is no greater joy that a teacher can have 14:26 then when she sees one of her students 14:28 accept Christ as their personal Savior. 14:31 This is what makes it all worthwhile. 14:35 The thing that I like the most about this school 14:38 is that they teach the Bible here. 14:41 No other school in the camps do that. 14:44 I was born into a Buddhist family 14:46 and when I first came to this school 14:49 I did not know much about the Bible or God. 14:52 But everyday our teachers about the love of God 14:56 and how Jesus came to this earth to save us 15:01 and help us live better lives. 15:04 I decided that this is what I wanted for my life. 15:08 I have accepted Christ and have been baptized 15:12 here at this school. 15:15 Only about 25% of the students that attend our school 15:18 come from Adventist homes 15:20 and rest come from other religions or faiths. 15:24 This gives us a wonderful opportunity 15:26 to share Christ with the young people 15:28 who come to our school. 15:30 I believe that Christian education 15:33 is one of the best ways to evangelize. 15:39 It brings me the greatest joy when I see these young people 15:43 accepting Jesus and becoming baptized 15:46 and then as they finish and graduate from our school 15:50 some of them want to go on and become nurses, 15:53 doctors, teachers and pastors. 15:56 It is wonderful to think about how God's work will grow 16:00 as these young people go out and work for Him in the future. 16:04 Now we have about 174 teachers and about 25 lay pastors. 16:10 Even though we do not pay them a lot 16:13 the salaries of that many workers 16:15 adds up to a lot each month. 16:18 The reason that we need help from our friends from abroad 16:21 is because the villages are very poor. 16:25 In the refugee camps it is very difficult to make any income. 16:29 And in no-man's-land the crops are destroyed 16:32 by the enemy soldiers every year. 16:35 They burn down the homes, 16:37 their barns and destroy their food. 16:41 The people are very poor. 16:43 They don't really even have enough clothing 16:46 or food each year. 16:49 As a result it is very difficult to collect 16:52 any school fees at all. 16:55 And yet we believe that this work is so important 16:59 that we must keep running the schools 17:01 and trust in God for the funds to come. 17:05 Every month we have challenges 17:08 and yet witness great miracles. 17:11 God is faithful and we are putting our trust in Him. 17:22 Many people may have read the thrilling stories 17:24 that Eric B Hare wrote about his life 17:27 as a missionary in Burma. 17:30 Some have no doubt wondered 17:32 how different their lives would be 17:34 if they had become a missionary themselves 17:36 and been able to work with the people of Burma 17:39 and bring them to Jesus like Elder Hare did. 17:42 Through the Providence of God 17:44 we may still have this opportunity. 17:48 Since, most of us are not able to become 17:51 missionaries in the jungle of Burma 17:54 God is bringing the mission field to us. 17:58 A few years ago the United Nations began 18:01 the process of relocating families from Burma 18:04 to give them the opportunity to start a new life. 18:08 Many refugees have already moved to Australia, 18:12 Europe, Canada and the United States. 18:17 After living their entire lives in a refugee camp, 18:21 landing in a new country can be an overwhelming 18:25 and frightful experience. 18:28 As church members in Fort Wayne, Indiana have discovered 18:32 this is a wonderful opportunity 18:35 to become a missionary right here at home. 18:41 When the Karen Burmese refugees first come to Fort Wayne 18:47 they come with literally nothing. 18:49 When they get here everything is new 18:52 and it's a very different than home. 18:55 They have to come into a culture 18:59 where everything is fast paced. 19:02 Right after bath they need a job. 19:05 They get off the, of the airplane 19:07 and they have a one little suitcase 19:08 with their meager belongings 19:11 and they get put in apartment 19:13 which the government pays for a few months 19:16 and suddenly its like go find a job. 19:18 They have to learn how to use microwaves and rice cookers 19:22 and they have to learn how to drive cars. 19:24 And they have to learn how to use the computer 19:26 and a TV and fill out applications for jobs. 19:30 And they don't even know what common words mean. 19:33 They always get the poorest jobs, 19:36 they get minimum wage. 19:38 It means they end up living in the worst housing in the area. 19:42 The Seventh-day Adventist families that have come in 19:45 and come to our church mostly our church will take them things 19:49 they need like pots and pans and microwaves 19:52 and we give them cloths and bedding and food. 19:56 People who are fresh immigrants to this country 20:00 are most opened to the gospel. 20:02 In America we spend millions of dollars 20:05 on public evangelism and yet they return on that investment 20:09 I would guess as not as great as it would be 20:13 if we focused on reaching this first generation 20:16 refugees that come to America. 20:23 Even from the time I was a child 20:25 I have always wanted to be God's servant. 20:29 God has blessed me and I have been able to serve Him 20:33 in many different parts of Burma. 20:35 In His great providence God eventually 20:38 let me here to Fort Wayne, Indiana 20:41 where the local church was endeavoring 20:43 to reach out to the Karen families in US city. 20:48 Pastor Ramon asked me to have a translation services. 20:52 I was able to help the families that were coming to church 20:56 and the students that were coming to our Adventist school. 21:00 I then began to visit the Karen 21:02 and Burmese families in their homes 21:04 encouraging them and inviting them to church. 21:08 There are so many ways that a church can help 21:10 a new immigrant family. 21:13 In addition to provisions from your 21:16 local community services center 21:18 you can also help connect these lovely families 21:22 to other services available to them. 21:26 They need help in transportation for simple things 21:28 like grocery shopping, attending church, 21:31 finding clinics and hospitals 21:33 or even help in filling out a simple application. 21:38 I believe that as your church becomes involved 21:41 in a refugee ministry that you will find that it 21:44 not only helps serve God's children 21:48 it also brings a big blessing 21:50 to the church family that does the serving. 22:02 When I first began to work 22:05 with the Karen and other refugees 22:08 I wasn't expecting to fall in love with them as people 22:11 which I did. 22:12 They're really family 22:15 and I also wasn't really looking at it 22:18 from a perspective of this is my mission field. 22:22 You know, for years and years we have always said to God 22:25 you want us to go the mission field, 22:27 just tell us we'll go. 22:30 We were always willing and He never sent us. 22:33 And it was kind of like, why. 22:36 And then I came here and suddenly here we are with 22:39 thousands of refugees living here in Fort Wayne 22:43 and it seemed like no school, no church 22:49 was really saying here is a huge opportunity 22:53 to serve God right here in America. 22:57 We realize that suddenly we were in the mission field. 23:01 Wow, I am in the mission field and I didn't know it. 23:06 Every one of us in the mission field. 23:09 If you're in a little town or a big town no matter 23:11 what those people around that need to hear 23:14 the gospel and what you're waiting for. 23:19 There is an urgency to this mission. 23:23 I'm painful aware that many Adventist refugees 23:26 that come to this country end up 23:29 becoming part of other churches 23:32 because our own church is ill equipped 23:35 to care for their needs. 23:37 This mission field is ripe for the harvest. 23:40 They were many people who were ready to become 23:43 a part of the family of God if given the right invitation. 23:48 Our church has grown tremendously 23:51 because we are allowing God to love other people through us. 23:55 When I first came to this church 23:57 we were about half full 23:59 running two worship services now. 24:02 This church is now looking for a new campus 24:04 to accommodate the people who keep coming 24:07 because they're finding a safe place 24:09 where they can be loved and cared for 24:12 and your church can be such a church 24:16 if you're willing to make the sacrifice 24:20 and allow God to love other people through you. 24:24 Friends, we see God working in marvelous ways 24:27 for the people of Burma. 24:30 We invite you to partner with us to reach the 24:33 unreached people who desperately need Jesus. 24:37 We're told in the book Desire of Ages, 24:40 "All may find something to do. 24:42 'The poor always ye have with you' Jesus said, 24:46 and none need feel that there is no place 24:49 where they can labor for Him. 24:52 Millions upon millions of human souls ready to perish, 24:56 bound in chains of ignorance and sin 24:59 have never so much as heard of Christ's love for them. 25:04 Were our condition and theirs to be reversed, 25:07 what would we desire them to do for us? 25:11 All this so far as lies in our power, 25:14 we are under the most solemn obligation to do for them." 25:20 I invite you to pray with me asking Jesus Christ 25:24 the greatest missionary to dwell in us by His spirit 25:28 guiding us to become missionaries for Him. 25:31 I believe that if we pray this prayer He will answer 25:35 and lead us to the refugees in need. 25:38 We solicit your prayers for this ministry 25:41 and invite you to give as God impresses you. 25:44 Your gifts will help send many willing missionaries 25:48 to un-reach villages in Burma. 25:51 For $90 a month you can support a church planter, 25:55 $100 a month will support a medical missionary 25:59 and $70 a month will support a teacher 26:03 at the Karen Adventist Academy. 26:06 You can call ASAP now or go online at your convenience 26:10 to make a tax deductible donation. 26:13 To learn more about how you can reach out 26:16 to refugees here on your doorstep 26:19 please call us as the Lord impresses you. 26:22 My prayer is that God will bless you 26:25 and speak to your heart if you listen to our 26:28 Karen Brother Joe Tan sing "Open Our Eyes." 26:33 Open your eyes to the world all around you 26:37 Open your eyes, open your eyes 26:42 This world is much more than the things 26:45 that surround you 26:47 You must arise, and open your eyes 26:52 Sometimes we're too busy to share 26:56 But Jesus wants us to care, to care 27:04 Open your eyes to the world all around you 27:09 Open your eyes, open your eyes 27:13 This world is much more than the things 27:16 that surround you Open your eyes, 27:20 open your eyes 27:23 Jesus loves all men the same 27:27 So we've got to go out in His name, 27:32 His name 27:35 Jesus says, Jesus says, 27:39 Jesus says, it's Him 27:44 Jesus says, when we love someone 27:48 in His name, 27:50 we're loving Him 27:56 we're loving Him |
Revised 2014-12-17