PELITA - The Methodist Church Newsletter
Listed below are articles abstracted from past issues of PELITA
April/May 2009 - Myanmar Mission Trip Report
23-28 Feb 2009
TRAC’s Mission Statement, “Open Heavens, Global Missions” comes closer to fulfilment in the fiveyear partnership with the Methodist Church (Lower Myanmar) in their relief/rehabilitation work for the Delta area devastated by Cyclone Nargis and the outlying missions outreach work near Yangon-Bago.
The recent trip to Yangon-Borgalay-Bago in February 2009 had a eight member team from TRAC - Mr Francis Choo (Team Leader), Mrs Pauline Choo, Ms Winnie Siew, Ms Janice Tay, Mr Lee Ting Ung, Mr Jeff Ng, Pastor Robert Khaw and Rev Joshua Khong. It had two primary objectives:
1. To monitor the ongoing rebuilding works in four villages where TRAC has committed to a five year rehabilitation/assistance partnership (2008-2012).
2. Field study to the missions outreach work of the Lower Myanmar Methodist churches in the Bago-Yangon area and possible projects and partnership which local TRAC churches can support/assist.
The rehabilitation projects of rebuilding homes and restoring the livelihood of villagers post Cyclone Nargis are well underway and progressing as planned. The new chairperson elected for the Rehabilitation Committee is Dr Caroline Mawia, a trained medical doctor in public healthcare, the wife of Bishop Mawia. God has indeed raised up a most capable servant to lead and serve Him in this important and urgent task. The five-year rehabilitation programme also takes into account preventive measures to minimise damage to property, reduce casualties, and educate villagers on evacuation, storm shelters etc.
February is hot and dry, the crops had been harvested and the padi fields had dried up and hardened. The locals told us that the hottest period would be March-April where temperatures would reach 40-45 Celsius. The yield this year had dropped as low as 40% of its pre-cyclone Nargis harvest. Now that harvest was over and grains stored away, villagers resumed erecting and repairing houses swept away or damaged by the cyclone. Small fishing sampans were bought and distributed to villagers – their main mode for transport and work. Two bigger boats were purchased to transport goods and building material to villages in the Delta.
The scarcity of clean drinking water remains a challenge to health workers in the delta. A UNICEF doctor in one of the villages told us that he had treated more than 45 cases of diarrhoea on the day we met him, children being most susceptible. There were many young mothers with babies and toddlers in the villages we visited. Dr Caroline Mawia confirmed that there was a shortage of health workers and midwives serving the Delta area because of the vast region and harsh conditions. Many outsiders find these factors to be very challenging. Dr Caroline suggested that perhaps the villagers themselves could be trained as auxiliary midwives and health workers to meet this need.
On the last night we were in Yangon we met a Korean couple who were in Mandalay teaching water purification using the Bio Sand water filtration. The low cost, low maintenance and simple construction of the filtration system using locally available material make it a feasible and possible answer to the quest for clean drinking water.
At every village and church we were greeted with warm friendly smiles and faces of young children and villagers that are filled with joy and hope. The people had very little: homes, meals, clothing were very simple and spartan and yet everywhere we went we saw the testimony of hope in hopelessness, joy in mourning, light in darkness because God is present. Young children were eager to gather around us to sing praises and listen to the stories that Jesus loves them; villagers generously shared whatever little they had with their Christian brothers and sisters from abroad. No lavish spread on tables but the gatherings, fellowships and meals shared were warm and rich. God reminds us again that His Family is bigger and wider …not only beyond the four walls of our local churches. The bond of His people and body of Christ goes beyond the boundary of language and nations.
Predominantly Buddhist Myanmar is hard ground to evangelise, nevertheless God has raised up for Himself faithful servants who are willing to labour and persevere in remote villages. We met many young men and women who went into mission fields in their late teens and early twenties upon graduation from the seminary and has remained faithful in their ministry. Korean missionaries have blessed many villages with purchases of land and building community halls and churches for them. In poverty and subsistence livelihood villagers and brethren in Myanmar need our help and financial support to continue with their ministry and outreach work. It is sad to hear of full time workers and pastors leaving their ministry because they need to work abroad to make ends meet and feed their family.
Field study to the missions outreach work in the Bago-Yangon area has linked up some of the local TRAC churches to bless and assist them in their ongoing work and church growth. I believe we who have the privilege to partner our sister churches in Myanmar are richly blessed too. Their fervour, perseverance and faithfulness to God’s calling shine mightier and brighter than the golden stupas and pagodas that dot the green hills and horizon of a land crying out for hope, righteousness and justice.
Rev Joshua Khong
Wesley Methodist Church
Kuantan