01 Jun 2012

June/July 2012 - Living (Mission)

Myanmar Ministry

The Tamil Annual Conference has been conducting these two projects the Gift of Hope and The Vacation Bible Schools in Myanmar for the last five years

Myanmar is a nation of many restrictions and control . It has been a ‘closed’ country for such a long time. But despite the restrictions, it is a land with many opportunities for the Gospel. As its doors are recently opening, we need to grab the opportunity to plant the seed of the Gospel.

One of our main aims in MMM TAC for the Myanmar Ministry is to nurture youths and children that they will eventually be a blessing to the nation and to raise up as a generation that would chart the future of the nation. This we hope to achieve through our being involved in the school education (Gift Of Hope) and sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ (Vocation Bible School Myanmar).

The Tamil Methodist Churches in Malaysia has risen to accept this challenge through their sponsorships and donations. We want to thank and praise God for all the TMC churches for their kindness and generosity. As for the Gift of Hope Project, we had to peg at RM150.00 per child (previously we were collecting RM120 per child). This is because the Myanmar currency ‘Kyat’ rose to almost 30% against the U.S. dollar. The school items such as uniforms, shoes, socks, bags and stationeries for the school children too became expensive. The cost of living in Myanmar is rising. But God is Good! He saw us through this difficult times. A special appreciation to our Singapore Partner - the Emmanuel Tamil Annual Conference, The Methodist Church in Singapore who is our major contributor towards the Gift of Hope. May God Bless You. It is a joy to see the cheers and smiles on the faces of the children and their parents on receiving these gifts. It was the contribution of individuals and TMC churches that had brought the sunshine to these little children. The families are basically poor and the parents simply can not afford to send their children to schools. It is our hope that our little contributions would eventually help to break the vicious cycle of their poverty.

It has been very rewarding and we see the fruits of our labour increasing yearly
We had Vacation Bible School in Myanmar from 3rd – 11th May 2012 in five different locations in South Myanmar. It was attended by about 1000 children. The locations were Bayint Naung, Myanmar Institute of Christian Theology (MICT), Emmanuel Lutheran Church Yangon, Than Lin and Bego. The theme for this year’s VBS is “Jesus Is God” and the VBS materials were prepared by Mrs. Ruby Vilson of TMC Tamil Settlement. The children were taught Bible stories, memory verses and handcrafts pertaining to the lessons learnt. At the end of the VBS, almost 95% of the children who were mainly non Christian accepted Jesus as their personal savior. Praise be to God. We were overwhelmed at such a response but is was actually the flow of the Holy Spirit like a river that brought the children to the feet of our Lord Jesus Christ. These born again children are then adopted by our Community Centers and local Myanmar Methodist Churches to be nurtured and groomed into discipleship. The donors and TMC churches have every reason to be proud because you have been part of the success story of the VBS. God will surely reward you for your kindness.

The Tamil Annual Conference has been conducting these two projects the Gift of Hope and The Vacation Bible Schools in Myanmar for the last five years. It has been very rewarding and we see the fruits of our labour increasing yearly. There is a great opportunity for the Gospel in Myanmar. We invite fellow Methodist Churches in Malaysia to be involved in this dynamic ministry. You are welcomed to participate, pray or come into partnership with us. The harvest is plenty!

One of the greatest opportunities in Myanmar is to work among the poor and the down trodden. There is lack of employment, infrastructure, basic health care and sanitation, housing and education. But God is at work in Myanmar! May the Lord fulfill what He had purposed in His heart for the people of Myanmar in Myanmar. And this can only be done through You.

[A.E. ASUDAS  is a member of MMM from TAC]