February 2020 Dear Pastor, friends, and co-laborers in the worldwide work of Christ: I just returned from Myanmar. I did not foresee going back so soon after November’s big trip of last year. But, because of several pressing needs, the decision was made quickly. I left America on January 6, again with a sense of mission, obeying God step by step. He is never wrong! The trip was blessed in many ways: Dozens of souls were saved. Church properties were secured. I was able to assist with two medical emergencies. I visited some of our many preachers, churches, schools, and orphans. We planned our next upcoming conference in Kalay, and secured the commitment of more than 300 pastors from Myanmar and Manipur, India to attend. After my Assistant Pastor and his daughter arrived, we held our irst successful GLBM Church Music Seminar.
Pastor Peter Van Siang Lian is building the Myanmar Baptist Church in the Village of Kanan. He has a wonderful boarding school where up to 160 young people are housed in dormitories inanced by GLBM. These young people include dozens of orphans. “Tuang” is a Burmese convert to Christ who has answered the call of God to preach to his own people. Pastor Peter has trained Tuang, and now the church is sending him to plant a new congregation in the nearby village of Thankaiyar. There has never been a church of any kind there. But dozens of souls have already been saved. During the November trip, money was provided to purchase property for the church. In January, we stood on that land with the new converts and prayed for the Lord’s blessing. Later, back in Kanan, I preached and baptized seven more Burmese converts.
John Early, Assistant Pastor of GLBM’s home church, came to Myanmar with his daughter Grace, who plays the violin. Pastor Than Zaw was saved out of Buddhism at the John is a concert pianist and a same time as his father. Being Burmese, they were severemusical genius. He taught a ly persecuted and driven from their village. Determined musical seminar at GLBM’s Cornerstone Baptist to serve Christ, they both continued to witness of their College for one week. Our Pastors and young peosalvation, and each formed Bible studies in neighboring ple, coming from many places across Myanmar, villages which eventually became churches. Than Zaw now has two separate joined our students to study Music Theory, Church congregations and a successful children’s outreach ministry. I preached in these Choir Methods, Evangelistic Song Leading, and the Burmese churches, heard the member’s testimonies, and God touched my heart Biblical Philosophy and Standards of Music. This for their needs: was a very successful and greatly needed project. Every pastor was thankful and greatly helped. Because they don’t have their own property, the northernmost congregation meets each Sunday in a different member’s home to avoid persecution. In a newly formed nearby community, I paid $600 as a down payment on two lots along the main highway. Each lot is 110’ x 50’, and they are $6,000 each. It is a wonderful location, and the men of the church were ecstatic with rejoicing. I believe God will help us raise those funds so that we can reach more souls in that area.
This 79 year-old Buddhist woman heard the Gospel through Than Zaw’s ministry, turned to Christ, and began witnessing for her Saviour. Boys from the community broke into her simple bamboo home one night, beat her bloody, and broke everything they didn’t want to steal. They took the only blanket she had. And, between November and February, nights are very cold in her village. When I arrived at the church, her head was still bleeding under a makeshift wrap. She wept when GLBM replaced everything she lost and more. Your gifts to GLBM enabled us to help her.
Burmese Married Couple: She accepted Christ irst, and was overjoyed by her newfound faith. Her husband was not so happy. Each time she would go to church, he would beat her. During one church service, he burst into the building, grabbed his wife, and dragged her out by the hair. The men of the church were incensed and wanted to ind and beat him. She begged them to have mercy on him, but only pray. It wasn’t long before her husband came to Pastor Than Zaw, weeping, begging for forgiveness, and asking how he could to come to Christ. They now serve God together in the church, and are quickly growing in their knowledge of the Scriptures.
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