A Burmese Easter
We've been in Burma for the past two days, and it's been a whirlwind of activity! We crossed the border Saturday afternoon without any problems. Something very interesting is that while Thai people drive on the left, the Burmese drive on the right, so as you pass under the bridge at the border, you have to switch sides!
After the border crossing, we met up with Pastor Timothy for dinner and met a Christian band from Bangkok we'll be working with. Our focus while in Burma is relational and spiritual ministry, and Timothy and his team used that night to cast the vision for us.
After a good night's sleep, we woke up for Easter Sunday. The students opened their surprise Easter cards from their parents. Everyone was so pleased to have that connection with home. There were plenty of tears! We hope you enjoyed receiving your Easter card from them, too. Then, it was off to church to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Before we continue, we want to give you a bit of the political and historical context of Burma, to help you understand the uniqueness of our experience here.
For the past 60 years, Burma (Myanmar) has been ruled by a military dictatorship. In 1990, an election was held and a democratically elected president was chosen, but the government put her in prison where she stayed for 20 years. Most aspects of daily life were completely controlled by the government, and the people lived in fear. Christians were harassed and persecuted. Burma was the second most closed country in the world, after North Korea. Until 2012, foreigners were not even allowed to enter Burma. Until last year, foreigners could only get day passes and were not allowed to spend the night.
In the past few years, things have changed drastically. The government has relinquished much of their control. The country has opened its borders and it has again become a safe place to visit. Christians can worship without fear. The president who was elected 20 years ago has been released from prison and re-elected. In just a few days, she will be put into power and the military regime will finally end. This is a momentous historical occasion, compared to that of the Berlin Wall coming down.
We are blessed to find ourselves in Burma during this time. We are blessed to be in the country, ministering in the name of Christ without fear. We are blessed to be a part of this historical event. We are blessed to be among the few American missionaries to enter the country in 70 years, to worship with Burmese Christians.
Easter Sunday was amazing. We worshipped in both English and Burmese, singing old favorite hymns and worship songs that had been translated and hearing the Word of God read and preached in both languages. We performed our play again for the church and it was an encouragement to them. Tristan played the role of Jesus and he did a great job! Grace even shared her testimony with the church, about things she's learned about God in the past few years, and Mr. Glossinger preached again. We bet you could count on one hand how many Americans have gotten to speak in church in Burma on Easter, so it was an special and unforgettable moment.
After some rest at the hotel, we went back to the church for a worship concert. About 70 Burmese youth from the community showed up and we kicked off the event with some ice breakers that got the Valor students interacting with the Burmese. For the concert, we interspersed and sat with our new Burmese friends. To see Burmese and Americans worshipping side by side was a touching picture of what heaven will look like.
The students are very tired from all this activity and ministry, so we gave them a night of rest. We walked to a nearby restaurant for ice cream and coffee and then let them hang out and go to bed a bit early. Tomorrow, we host a youth outreach so we have to be prepared for that!
We'll be home in only a few days. Keep praying for us. We hope you had a blessed Easter!
After the border crossing, we met up with Pastor Timothy for dinner and met a Christian band from Bangkok we'll be working with. Our focus while in Burma is relational and spiritual ministry, and Timothy and his team used that night to cast the vision for us.
After a good night's sleep, we woke up for Easter Sunday. The students opened their surprise Easter cards from their parents. Everyone was so pleased to have that connection with home. There were plenty of tears! We hope you enjoyed receiving your Easter card from them, too. Then, it was off to church to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Before we continue, we want to give you a bit of the political and historical context of Burma, to help you understand the uniqueness of our experience here.
For the past 60 years, Burma (Myanmar) has been ruled by a military dictatorship. In 1990, an election was held and a democratically elected president was chosen, but the government put her in prison where she stayed for 20 years. Most aspects of daily life were completely controlled by the government, and the people lived in fear. Christians were harassed and persecuted. Burma was the second most closed country in the world, after North Korea. Until 2012, foreigners were not even allowed to enter Burma. Until last year, foreigners could only get day passes and were not allowed to spend the night.
In the past few years, things have changed drastically. The government has relinquished much of their control. The country has opened its borders and it has again become a safe place to visit. Christians can worship without fear. The president who was elected 20 years ago has been released from prison and re-elected. In just a few days, she will be put into power and the military regime will finally end. This is a momentous historical occasion, compared to that of the Berlin Wall coming down.
We are blessed to find ourselves in Burma during this time. We are blessed to be in the country, ministering in the name of Christ without fear. We are blessed to be a part of this historical event. We are blessed to be among the few American missionaries to enter the country in 70 years, to worship with Burmese Christians.
Easter Sunday was amazing. We worshipped in both English and Burmese, singing old favorite hymns and worship songs that had been translated and hearing the Word of God read and preached in both languages. We performed our play again for the church and it was an encouragement to them. Tristan played the role of Jesus and he did a great job! Grace even shared her testimony with the church, about things she's learned about God in the past few years, and Mr. Glossinger preached again. We bet you could count on one hand how many Americans have gotten to speak in church in Burma on Easter, so it was an special and unforgettable moment.
After some rest at the hotel, we went back to the church for a worship concert. About 70 Burmese youth from the community showed up and we kicked off the event with some ice breakers that got the Valor students interacting with the Burmese. For the concert, we interspersed and sat with our new Burmese friends. To see Burmese and Americans worshipping side by side was a touching picture of what heaven will look like.
The students are very tired from all this activity and ministry, so we gave them a night of rest. We walked to a nearby restaurant for ice cream and coffee and then let them hang out and go to bed a bit early. Tomorrow, we host a youth outreach so we have to be prepared for that!
We'll be home in only a few days. Keep praying for us. We hope you had a blessed Easter!
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