Aung Tha Pyi is located in the suburban area of Taunggyi, the capital city of Shan State in Myanmar. It is here where my beloved wife, Mawite, was born. Different tribes of Myanmar live together in Aung Tha Pyi even though the Bahma people are in the majority. The other tribes represent Shan, Pa Oh, Karen, Intha, Chinese, and Chin. They are Buddhists in religion but in practice they are animists who worship spirits and demons.

There has been a small community of believers in this area. They are mainly government workers and soldiers coming from the other areas. Being connected with a very liberal Baptist denomination, none of the believers evangelize the people nor do any church planting work. Sad to say, they even do not like other Christians evangelizing in this area.

Elder Yee Aung Thun grew up in this area in a Christian retired army family. Having the burning desire to spread the gospel there, Yee Aung Thun started the church planting work in 2006. Through his tireless efforts, many people have come to know about Jesus Christ, and now five pure Buddhists have converted and become faithful followers of Christ. Right now the Aung Tha Pyi BP church has 30 communicant members composed of six families.

The Aung Tha Pyi BP church not only grows in number, but also in the grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (2 Pet. 3:18). The church is also actively involved in evangelistic work. Moreover, the church is able to offer some financial support to the missionary, Elder Yee Aung Thun.

Elder Yee Aung Thun is married to Naw ArGyi who is a middle school teacher in the government school. In the past, she was posted to another area which had hindered the effectiveness of the mission work. After praying for many years, she is now posted to a government school in Aung Tha Pyi. We thank the Lord for this. We expect that the church planting work will be more effective now.

As you are praying for us, please do remember these prayer requests. First, Elder Yee Aung Thun’s beloved wife, Naw ArGyi, is expecting a baby next month. This will be their second child; their first daughter is now five. Secondly, pray that the Lord may bless and add more souls in the church. Finally, pray that the Lord may provide this church a permanent place for worship and fellowship.

The church is truly a shining lighthouse to the community around there. We humbly acknowledge that it is the Lord who blesses the church by His grace alone through your gracious partnership and for His glory alone. Working together with you, we see the glory of God. —Rev. Khawl Ro Kima

     The Lord has blessed the Yangon BP Church so much since its beginning in 2006. The total church members in the church record book are seventy. But due to the economical hardship of our country, twenty people have moved to Malaysia and other countries. Three elders including myself are shepherding God’s flock. The sheep are God-fearing, dedicated and active believers rooted deeply in the Word of God and in the Reformed faith.

     The Yangon BP church has been blessed by the visits of BP leaders from the USA and Australia. We are grateful for the ministries of Rev. Dr. Kevin Backus and Rev. Dr. Len Pine to lay the true foundation for the church. Please continue sending them and other leaders too. We are so thankful to the Covenant BP church in Perth, Australia, for coming to us and helping us build up the Yangon church.

     One of the biggest problems the church has been facing is the location. The church has been moved to six different places now. There were some people who did not join the church because the church was moving to a different place. Some people who wanted to join the church were disappointed when they realized the church was moving away. In order to solve this problem, the session has decided to move the church to the suburban area of Yangon where we might obtain land for the church for a cheaper price and there build the church building.

I am now spending my time training the young people in the church who have a desire to serve the Lord but do not have the theological foundation and practical knowledge needed for the ministry. My prayer is that the Lord will use this Bible class for equipping and training many for His service.

As we look back at the past six years, we praise and thank the Lord for what He has done for us and through us. We humbly acknowledge that we have come this far just because of the Lord’s grace alone and for His glory alone. At the same time, we believe that the best is yet to come. There are greater blessings in store for us in the future. We will attempt greater things for the Lord in the future. To God be all the glory and honor. Amen. —Rev. Khawl Ro Kima

March, 2012

Dear Brothers and Sisters in the Lord,

The Lord has been so good and faithful to me and to the mission work here in Myanmar. I would like to share with you what God has done in the ministry during the past few months as you are praying for us.

First of all, the Lord has blessed us by the ministry of Rev. Edward Paauwe and his group who visited us the first week of January. Together with them we had the New Year services. We had leadership training in the first week of January, 2012. Rev. Paauwe taught us the Ten Commandments; Brother Mark Chen, from Singapore, taught us the Five Points of Calvinism, and Deacon Yen Fye taught basic English. Lehia Paauwe, Jacob Woo, and Merilyn Orchard taught the children.

Secondly, we had the church session meeting the second week of January. At the meeting, all five elders, including me, were present. We appointed Mr. LalBiak Kima as the preacher of the Thinglei BP Mission. We also appointed Mr. Zaw Naing as the church planter to take care of the sheep at Namhu village.

Thirdly, the Yangon BP church is moving toward East Dagon, the suburban area of Yangon, hoping to find a permanent place for the church location. Pray that the Lord may give us a good place where we can worship Him freely.

Finally, thank you once again for your prayers and support. We really appreciate you.

Rev. Khawl Ro Kima

2012 is here, amazing! God is so good all the time. His providence is wonderful. 2011 was a very challenging year, especially the months of April and May when we walked through “the valley of the shadow of death.” My father and our beloved missionary, Elder Soe Lwin, went home to heaven. Moreover, we faced a  financial crisis during that time due to the unexpected, low exchange rate. As a result, we had little hope of finishing 2011.

But through your prayers and faithful partnership, we have finished 2011. Moreover, the mission work here is flourishing, even bearing more fruit than in other years. The Yangon BP church has enjoyed increased church attendance and membership. Many people around us have come to realize we are an active and well organized church body. Two families have been added to the Aung Tha Pyi BP mission. The Namhu and Inlay missions are also in good condition.  The Thinglei BP mission has received more members. They recently completed a small hydro-electric power project for the village people. Now Thinglei village is enjoying electric light; this is beyond their dream. They want to start the church building now, but they need some more funds to obtain the compound where they desire to build the church. Please pray for this.

We have dedicated our lives to be more active in the ministry and even attempt greater things for the Lord in this new year.  We have many goals to further spread the gospel of Christ in Myanmar.  We do believe that the Lord will help us to accomplish all these things through your prayers and partnership.  As William Carey once said, “Expect great things from God, attempt great things for God.” The best is still to come.

Thank you very much for the prayer and support you have given for the mission works in Myanmar. We need your continuous prayer and support to carry on the ministry and encourage growth.

Let’s continue joining our hands together in proclaiming His glory among the nations. — Rev. Khawl Ro Kima

I feel like we are still at the beginning of 2011, but actually we are now at the end! As I look back over this last year, I cannot stop praising the LORD for his faithfulness and wonderful providence.  God is really so good all the time.

The Lord has blessed the ministry in every direction. The Yangon BP church is growing well and so are the other ministries: the church planting works at Namhu, Aung Tha Pyi, Inlay, Thinglei and even among the Dai people in the southern Chin State. The Bible school classes, the orphanage, and the children’s ministry are going well too. We are truly moving onward in God’s calling.

All these works are done through your gracious prayer and support. We deeply appreciate your unfailing partnership. Together with you we turn this world upside down.  We ask and anticipate your continuous partnership in the future.  May God bless you abundantly. — Rev. Kima, PMU Missionary to Myanmar

November, 2011

Dear Honored Sponsors and Praying Partners,

Greetings to you in the name of Jesus!

We are now coming to the end of the year. How wonderful is our God who has faithfully supplied all our needs and has been using His unworthy instruments like me.

I would like to express my heartfelt thanks to you for your unceasing prayers and continuous support to the mission work in Myanmar.  I never stop praising the Lord for your partnership with me in the gospel ministry. My great privilege and joy is serving the Lord together with you. The Lord has blessed me and encouraged me so much through your prayers and partnership. “Always in every prayer of mine for you all making request with joy, for your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now” (Phil. 1:4-5).

I also praise the Lord for using His feeble and unworthy instruments like me. The longer I serve Him, the more I realize my unworthiness. At the same time the better I understand His grace and goodness. I enjoy so much serving the Lord. It is my greatest privilege.

I would like to tell you what the Lord has been doing with us since our last prayer letter in June.

Yangon BP Church: The Yangon church is happy to see the Lord bringing new people to attend worship. Pray that they may become covenanted members of the church.

Sharing the Gospel: The BP youth group delivered 1700 gospel tracts in October. We praise the Lord for blessing the BP church with such active and zealous young people for the Lord’s ministry.

Reformed Faith Seminars: The second Reformed Faith Seminar was held on August 23, 2011. The seminar subject was the Five Solas of the Reformation (Part 1). I presented a paper on Sola Fide. People testified that it was a great day for the Reformed believers in Myanmar. On October 20, we held the third seminar at the Yangon BP Church.  It was another remarkable day for us.

Bible Class: The Lord has blessed richly the Bible class in Yangon. We have around 20 people joining the class, mostly BP church members. Some people come to the Bible class to know more about us and the BP church. Please continue to pray for this.

Visiting Friends from Australia: Rev. Edward Paauwe and his group plan to minister to us in January, 2012. They will teach “The Ten Commandments” and “The Five Points of Calvinism.” Please pray for them as they are preparing

It is through your partnership that the Lord has made it possible to keep working the task God has laid upon us. We need your continuous prayer and support to carry on the ministry, even in this next year. I do hope that you will do so. Let’s keep joining our hands for Christ and His church. Myanmar is known as “the land of pagodas.” Your prayer and partnership can help this nation become “the land of churches.” Together we make a difference.

May the Lord bless you abundantly as you have made many sacrifices to “Declare His glory among the heathen, His wonders among all people” (Ps.96:3).

Sincerely in His service,

Rev. Khawl Ro Kima

Praises:

• Ten covenant children were received as full covenanted church members in October. Half of them are orphanage children.
• The Lord has blessed the Bible class since the beginning. More students have joined the class.
• The Lord has blessed the orphanage children in many ways, especially in giving them good health this year.

Prayer Requests:

• We are planning to have a gospel concert for evangelizing non-Christians living in our neighborhood.
• Please continue to pray for our children who are receiving TB treatments. They are Elder Zauva’s son (Ram Dina), my son (Andrew) and daughter (Jenny).
• Pray for the future missionary who will continue the mission work at Namhu. Right now we have one candidate.
• Pray also for the future pastor who will take care of the believers at Thinglei. Elder Mawia is  taking care of them at this time.
• Please pray that God will provide the additional $2,500 needed (in addition to our current donations) to cover our expenses in 2012.

Aung Tha Pyi is located in the suburban area of Tawnggyi city, the capital city of Shan State in eastern Myanmar. The people are mostly retired army families so that one can find there all of the different tribes of Myanmar.  As a result, the people there are more open-minded than in other places.

A Baptist church has existed there for 30 years. But being so liberal in theology and practice, the church has never evangelized the people. Recently some conservative Christian organizations have started mission works there. The Yangon Bible Presbyterian Church, under the support of PMU, is one among them.

The church planting work was started there by brother Yee Aung Thun who shared with me his desire and vision to start a church planting work there. With prayer and dedication the mission work was started in 2006. After three years of Yee Aung Thun’s tireless efforts, the Lord had enabled him to organize people and form a mission “church.” Right now the mission consists of five families with 25 members including the children. It is now quite well organized. They have worship service on every Sunday. They also have a woman’s group meeting every month. We believe that the Lord will enable us to build a healthy and strong church in the near future.

Brother Yee Aung Thun has a six year old daughter.  His wife is a middle school teacher. In the past, his wife could not give full support to his ministry because she was posted by the government at another area. But the Lord has answered our prayer so that she is now posted at Aung Tha Pyi. We expect that Brother Yee Aung Thun will become much more effective in the ministry after working together with his wife.

Please remember Brother Yee Aung Thun in prayer. Especially pray that the Lord may give him the wisdom and courage needed for his ministry. Please also pray for the new believers that they may grow in the grace and knowledge of Christ. — Rev. Kima

Reaching unreached people groups is one of the basic objectives for starting the Bible Presbyterian Church in Myanmar. There are still 41 identified unreached people groups in Myanmar. The spiritual harvest is still plentiful.

Having the same conviction with the Apostle Paul who says, “It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known, so that I would not be building on someone else’s foundation” (Romans 15:20), the BP church in Myanmar has been doing her best to reach the Intha people who are one of the least reached people groups in Myanmar.

The Intha people live in the Shan State around Inlay Lake, the most beautiful and famous lake in Myanmar. It is also one of the most attractive places for tourists. Intha means “sons of the lake.” The majority of the Intha are Buddhists while the minority are animists. The Intha are well known for their one-legged rowing technique which the fishermen developed to enable them to keep two hands free for fishing. Because the Intha people do not have much fertile land, they developed a system of floating gardens on which they grow vegetables, fruits and flowers that support the surrounding area.

Elder Pazar is our missionary working in Inlay. His main focus is to plant a church at Kay Lar village located at the very center of Inlay Lake and then reach out to the surrounding areas. Due to opposition, missionary Pazar and his family are not permitted to stay at the village. This has been one of the main hindrances to the effectiveness of his work. Nevertheless, Pazar has been doing his best. He has a handful of baptized believers there and is now discipling them. Worship service is held on every Sunday.

Though the work is slow, we keep moving forward. Since Inlay is one of the greatest strongholds of Satan in Myanmar, more prayer and effort are needed; long-term plans are also needed.

Please pray for Missionary Pazar and his family that they may have the wisdom and strength for the ministry. Please pray also for the new believers that they be rooted firmly in Christ and growing in the grace and knowledge of their Lord.— Rev. Kima

The Lord has enabled me to begin a Bible class this year. I started it with the purpose of training people who want to know God intimately and desire to have the basic theological foundation needed for the Christian life and ministry.  Right now I have 16 people regularly coming to the class.  Most of them are BP church members.  I have three classes in a week, and I am now teaching them two subjects: Bible Introduction and the Attributes of God.  From this class, I came to realize that teaching is an essential and most effective method of discipling God’s people.  Rev. Ed Paauwe and his group are coming next year in January to assist me in this teaching ministry.  I am so thankful for this.  Please pray that the Lord may bless this Bible class and use it as His means to make the Yangon Bible Presbyterian Church grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. — Rev.  Kim

Namhu is just a small village in the Shan State in eastern Myanmar, but it is a very unique and strategic place for the mission work because four different tribes of Myanmar live together there. The tribes represented are Shan, Bahma, Pa Oh and Chin. They all are Buddhists in religion, but in real practice they are animists who worship spirits and demons.

The mission work there was started by Chin people who retired from the army and remained there after their service, without returning to their respective places. Until recently no one had converted from Buddhism nor had any proper church planting work been done there.

Missionary Soe Lwin, having the burning desire to spread the gospel there, started planting a church in 2006. After five years of his tireless efforts, God blessed, and Soe Lwin had two pure Buddhist family converts and formed the BP mission there. Right now the mission is made of five families (25 members including the children). Moreover, God used our brother Soe Lwin to lead the Namhu village and the neighboring villages to a deeper interest in Christ and His blessed gospel.

Our desire and great expectation has been to see the whole village come to Christ in the near future, but the Lord has unexpectedly taken our brother Soe Lwin away from us. The event makes our hearts wonder, and, in fact, grieve deeply. We do not know why, but we do believe that the Lord has a better plan  for us and His work there. God’s servants may come and go, but the Lord’s work must go on forever.

Please pray for the mission work in Namhu that God will raise up another leader to preach His Word in that place and shepherd the flock there. Please also remember missionary Soe Lwin’s wife, Thangte, and his daughter, Phoebe (eight months old). — Rev. Khawl Ro Kim