Ministry in Spite of Shutdowns

The Government of Myanmar announced “stay-at-home” because of COVID-19 since March 22, 2020 [especially affecting group meetings]. I would like to share with you the ministry that we were told cannot go ahead, but how the Lord has blessed us in the last seven months.

Bible Reading Challenges

We arranged “Two Month Bible Reading Challenge,” March 26-June 25, 2020. Everyone who was involved in reading the whole Bible within two months was very much blessed, and thank God for that.

As “stay-at-home” continued, we arranged “Six Month Bible Reading Challenge.” Again, we started reading from June 1 and will finish reading the whole Bible again on November 30, 2020. This time, more people are involved in reading the Bible, and many have testified how much they enjoy reading the Bible systematically and how God speaks to them through the Bible.

Online Zoom Worship Services

As we cannot have worship services in the church, we have online Zoom worship services as follows:

Church Zoom online worship Sunday mornings at 10:00 a.m.
Youth Worship services on every Wednesday and Sunday night at 8:00 p.m.
Sunday school children Zoom teaching three days a week.
Missionaries’ (church planters’) prayer meeting every Saturday morning at 9:30 a.m.
Missionary wives’ prayer meeting every Monday and Wednesday at 3:00 p.m.
Church prayer meeting every Friday at 3:00 p.m.

Note: Our missionaries as well as believers on the mission fields also can join together at our Zoom online worship meetings. We are much closer in intimacy with one another, and we can see each other two or three times in a week. Praise God. During the week, each of our church planters has their own activities and ministries in their own respective places.

New Mission Fields in the Mandalay Area

During COVID-19, the Lord opened doors for new mission fields in eight villages.

Our church in Mandalay has been visiting these villages two or three times a week, sharing the gospel of Jesus. In these villages, all of them are Buddhists, but some people are opening their hearts for the gospel. The Lord has changed some of them. Two families have testified to following Jesus and have thrown away their religious things. Praise God.

Effects of COVID-19

Because of COVID-19, we cannot have worship services at the church since March 2020. Many church members also lost their jobs and are facing difficulties for food. Many pastors and missionaries as well as gospel workers have been facing challenges for daily living. And on some of our mission fields, there are very poor people with whom we have been sharing the gospel and doing follow up. . . .

[Please pray that] we can show love and compassion practically to the pastors, missionaries, and believers, as well as to non-Christians.

Zoom Online Conferences, October—December

Women of Faith Conference—“To become a blessed woman” (Luke 11:28), Oct. 26-28.
Faith Bible Churches’ Sunday School Children Conference, Oct. 30.
Soul-Winning Conference—“To become soul winners for Christ” (Mathew 4:19), Nov. 5-7.
Youth Bible Conference—“An example to the believers” (1 Tim 4: 12), Nov. 13-15.
Marriage & Family Seminar—“Healthy family,” Nov. 18-20.
Pastors and Church Leaders Conference, Nov. 23-25.
Evangelistic Meeting—“To reach non-Christians in Myanmar with the gospel,” Dec. 2-4.