Archive for March, 2010

Although Myanmar is thousands of miles from the US, a partnership exists between the ministry of Rev. Kim and our Bible Presbyterian denomination. We thank the Lord for these opportunities.

In January, the Grand Island Bible Presbyterian Church gifted the Bible Presbyterian Church of Myanmar with a boat that will serve as “church bus” for the Inle Lake region under the leadership of Brother Pazar. Since the center of ministry is a village on stilts in the middle of the lake, such transportation is vital to spread the gospel and build up the saints.

Last October, Dr. and Mrs. Len Pine traveled to Myanmar for training purposes. While Dr. Pine taught hermeneutics to the men who are training for ordination, Mrs. Pine held a seminar with the ladies on the woman’s role in the church and home. While Rev. Kim continues training efforts for the men in vital areas, the ladies of the church have begun to train other women in biblical truth. In December, two missionary wives, Mawite and Thangte, taught the ladies of the BP churches of the Shan State on the matter of biblical roles of women. Such multiplication of teaching is a common occurrence in Myanmar. Both Khawl and Mawite Kim have a burden to train the people in God’s Word in appropriate ways.

The next opportunity for partnership, Lord willing, will be this coming summer when Dr. and Mrs. Kevin Backus travel to Myanmar for more training. Dr. Backus will continue the seminary training of those seeking ordination, focusing on theology. Mrs. Sharon Backus will be raising funds to join him in this partnership ministry. Her focus will be teacher’s training for the women. Her years of experience training adults in the art of teaching, as well as her experience as a children’s teacher will be extremely valuable to the women of Myanmar.

While Rev. Kim continues to follow his calling to reach Myanmar in a myriad of ways, we here in the US are blessed to partner with him. Would you partner with Rev. Kim in reaching Myanmar for Christ? Without leaving your home, you can pray for this ministry. Please also consider supporting this work. PMU’s monthly support to Myanmar partially supports Rev. Kim personally; however, the largest portion is sent to support the ministry itself. Ministries such as the orphanage, pre-school, and all the missions stations and missionaries are supported through PMU. PMU is also presently helping with famine relief in the Chin State.

For your prayer time, we leave you with some requests from Rev. Kim. Thank you for partnering with us and Rev. Kim for the sake of the Gospel in Myanmar.

• Salvation camp is to be conducted in March 25-28 in the Shan State
• Pray for the orphanage children that God may continue supply the needs of their daily living. Pray that God may give them individual sponsors.
• Pray that the Lord may provide us a permanent place for the church meeting and worship.
• Pray that the Lord may provide us one house for the orphanage center. The orphanage children are living in a rented house now.
• Continue to pray also for the missionaries/church planters in the Shan State
• Pray for the BP church at Thinglei as they are praying to build a sanctuary in this year.
• Pray for the churches in the Southern Chin State as they are suffering badly from the rat infiltration (worse than last year).

January was a joyous month at the BPC in La Paz, Bolivia. The new building continues to receive finishing touches, and Rev. Quisbert was thrilled when a Korean pastor friend called David to let him know that he wanted to donate some pulpit furniture for the Church. So, David traveled to Iquique, Chile, to make arrangements to transport it back to Bolivia, as well as to shop for a new gas water heater for the showers at the church. (In Bolivia the cost is high and the quality low.) He found all that he needed, hired the truck, and returned in time for the start of the church’s VBS program.

The church held its VBS January 18 – 23 from 10:00 am – 12:30 pm. They started with thirty-seven children and finished with sixty-one in attendance. Some of the days were rainy, and they thought it would be a difficult for the classes, but kids were faithfully waiting at home and others arrived early for the VBS. Every day they opened the VBS by praying and singing many songs. Memory verses were Psalm 96:3, John 8:32; John 14:6, and the theme hymn was “I Love to Tell the Story.”

On Saturday the 23^rd they rented a bus and went to the “La Florida” park. When they arrived at the park they had a little rain, but as they started to sing and teach the Bible lesson, the rain suddenly stopped. Thank you for your prayers. Twenty-one children accepted Jesus Christ as their personal Savior. Pastor Quisbert says, “We praise the Lord because we testified about the Gospel with the VBS program.”

PMU is pleased to be able to field a team of young people and adults to go to the fourth largest city in the world. In a week’s time they will seek to reach many of the 22 million people from every conceivable ethnic background that live there. The dates are August 14-21, 2010. The team members are:

• Courtney Amacher, Grand Island, New York
• Alexander Bean, Lakeland, Florida
• Nathan Blizzard, Cape Canaveral, Florida
• Benjamin Couch, Lakeland, Florida
• Kai Donaldson, Scappoose, Oregon
• Rachel McMillan, Cape Canaveral, Florida
• Richard McMillan, Cape Canaveral, Florida
• Rita McMillan, Cape Canaveral, Florida
• Eli Pine, Grand Island, New York
• Bethany Williams, Grand Island, New York
• Dr. Len Pine, Grand Island, New York (Leader)

The team will receive hands-on training in street evangelism to people of many different cultures, and then put that training to immediate use daily on the streets and in the parks of New York City. This ministry is being conducted in cooperation with the New York Gospel Mission, an independent, Reformed missionary agency founded in 1895 to reach the Jewish community in NYC. The mission is continuing to bear witness for the Lord Jesus Christ to the Jews and to the various ethnic groups in the East Village as well as the greater New York area. (On the web: http://www.nygm.org.) The team will also take part in the worship services of the mission church, Tompkins Square Gospel Fellowship, and see firsthand what an inner city, multi-ethnic congregation is all about. Please pray for the team members as they continue to raise the funds they need for the trip (about $615 plus the cost of getting to NYC), and by all means give if you are able.

By Rev. Mark Baldwin, PMU Missionary to Cambodia

Missions in the past meant such things as a three month journey around the horn of Africa, squalid living conditions, contaminated food, disease, adversity, deadly opposition, poor health care, being out of contact with everyone you know, and being totally dependent upon God alone — knowing that help from home was not even a possibility. It wasn’t for everyone. Thankfully much has changed in missions in the last 100 years. While we are, as we have always been, truly dependent on God alone, God does indeed work through means.

In missions there is sometimes the perception that only time actually working in and on a “productive” foreign field is valuable, so the question is asked, “Do we really need a ‘home office’?” Today, as 100 years ago, the means God uses to accomplish the Great Commission and to build up His Church include the home office and its staff. They have always served as the support, the champion, the organizer, the planner, the fund raiser, and the ultimate enabler of missions. Now, with high speed communications, they also serve another critical function. They are part of the mission team in every field even though they’re half a world away. Hardly a plan is made, or crisis, issue, or concern resolved in which the office isn’t involved in some valuable way. On a daily basis, I regard them as my valued fellow workers here in my field. Won’t you support us missionaries by supporting them?

[Photo, L to R: Karen, Chelsea, Len, and Eli]