Thank you for all of those who are praying for our church in Myanmar and asking how they can be of help.  The good news is they are all fine.  But the situation is difficult.  Below is an email I got from one of our leaders.

"_______  is the township where we live and where our church is. As you know, people in this area live in the 7th or 8th floor-tall apartment buildings. The storm cut off power lines and no water because we use power for water pump. No restaurant can operate since there is no water - no tea-shop, no noodle shop. All prices go up more than 500%. One egg use to be only 70- 80 kyats now it is about 300 kyats – in downtown it is 800 kyats!! The most difficult thing is not having water. There is a long queue just in front of some water purifier factory. Other prices are dramatically rocketing. Gasoline use to be about 2500 kyats and last year it was increased to 5000 kyats per/gallon. Now it is 10, 000 kyats and only the lucky one get it. Every supply has run out. Food supply run out. Kan-kong (water cress leave) used to be just 30 kyats and now is 200 kyats. Every time, trucks loaded with food arrived, people quickly swam and buy everything. Food supply has run out. Rice, cooking oil, bean and charcoal are not only expensive but unavailable in many places. Another reason is shop owners are also afraid of burglary and robbery.
 
Since almost every roof has been blown away, the price of metal roof has increased more than 500%. One kilo of nail for roofing is 10, 000kyats from merely 1500kyatw! And there is no enough supply. If one is lucky, he could get a few pieces.
 
Transportation is difficult. The public transportation fare up radically. Many of our church members have a very difficult time coming to church.
 
Most trees have been falling down. Many of these threes are almost a hundred years old. It will take years to regain what the city used to be."

We are trying to find out if there is an opportunity for us to be of practical help.  As you may have read in the papers, the military regime is making it difficult for outside help to reach the locals.  I will keep you posted once we are able to find a way.  Please keep our members and leaders in your prayers.
 

 

Most of you would have heard by now that a cyclone hit the city of Yangon in Maynmar where we have a church.  Thousands have reportedly died but information is very general as the authorities are preventing information from getting out.  We do know that hundreds perished, and thousands are homeless and without water.  The good news is that the government has allowed foreign aid.  We have been trying to contact our leaders and members there but all communication lines are down.  Please keep our leaders, members, and the Burmese people in prayer.  Will post an update once I get specific information.

One of the most inspiring sights in Yangon is the Unaw (pronounced “Uno”) Memorial Baptist Church building which stands at the heart of the city.  The church was founded in 1816 by one of Adoniram Judson’s first disciples.  Almost 200 years later, it still alive and thriving.  It is a testament to the legacy of Adoniram Judson, the power of discipleship, and the significance of the church.  

May the churches we have planted and will plant last for generations.  May they continue to stand strong centuries from now, in the center of disciple making and cultural transformation in the cities and countries where they stand.

I recently had the wonderful and memorable opportunity to witness and co-officiate the wedding of Kap and Seng Htoi ("Seng-twey").  Kap is one of our pastors in Myanmar who is right now in honeymoon bliss.  Kap met Seng Htoi through older brother Mang when she taught English at Mang's English school.  Seng Htoi was from a Baptist family and then soon joined our church in Yangon.  Over a year ago, Seng Htoi arranged for Kap to meet her friend and acted as chaperone.  Kap and Seng Htoi ended up talking the whole time and soon fell in love.  I had previously blogged about their engagement which was exciting enough, but the year that followed since has been one of the most challenging and exhilirating seasons in Kap's life.  A little background is necessary.

There are eight major tribes that make up the Burmese people.  Each tribe could be as different from each other as they would be to a Filipino.  In terms of culture, it's almost having eight nations in one.  Kap is from the Chin tribe while Seng Htoi is Kachin.  Here is where it gets interesting.  It is not a simple matter for a member of one tribe to marry one from another.  This is a major deal in Myanmar.  Myanmar is an ultra conservative culture as it is, but it so happens that Seng Htoi's parents are extremely strict even for Burmese standards (the father was a schoolmaster whose passion is to preserve ancient Burmese poetry and literature - she was never allowed to wear jeans as long as she lived with her parents).  Seng Htoi's strict parents were even against the union initially for this reason alone.  They finally consented on the condition that Kap observe the following Kachin traditions and rituals (among other things):
• while courting, Kap had to bring representatives from his family and tribe who would vouch for his character and intentions.
• when he asked for Seng Htoi's hand in marriage, he was required to walk to the parents house with 4 kilos of rice, 40 pieces of eggs, 4 whole chickens, clothes and food to present as gifts.  Kachin culture mercifully allows you to bring help to carry the items.  In the Chin tribe, it would have been anywhere from 4 to 10 buffalos.  At least you get to ride it, not carry it.
• a dowry of $1,000 (amount depends on the social standing of the future bride) almost none of which will go to the parents.  This will be distributed to uncles, aunts, even first cousins.
• being from another tribe, Kap was required to find a Kachin family who would legally adopt him.  We are talking about an actual, legal adoption, not a symbolic one.  So much so that Kap received a legal Kachin name and now has two sets of parents.  Well, three actually - biological parents, adoptive parents, in-laws.  The good thing was there was a Kachin family in church who gladly received Kap into their family and were willing to go through the process.

There were times when these cultural hoops became very difficult even for Seng Htoi.  But Kap persevered.  He truly loves Seng Htoi and knows she is the one God has prepared for him.  He was determined to do whatever it took to get her to walk down the aisle with him waiting on the altar.

All of Kap's hard work, determination, and perseverance finally paid off.  It was a beautiful wedding.  It was a Christian/traditional Kachin ceremony.  They are a beautiful couple.  It was also during and after the ceremony that I realized some of the reasons Kap's in laws made him jump through so many cultural hoops. 

It all started making sense to me when right after the ceremony, the Kachin Baptist church community of Seng Htoi's parents gathered around the newly married couple and spoke words of blessing over them and presented Kap with a traditional Kachin sword.  From there, we proceeded to the apartment they were moving to to bless the house.  After that, we went to the house of Seng Htoi's parents where I got a glimpse of the beauty of ancient Asian culture and imagined the Philippines 150 years ago.

The living room was full.  On one side were two Chin pastors who together with Pastor Carlo Ratilla and myself represented Kap.  On the other side of the room were Seng Htoi's parents, grandparents, uncles, aunts, pastors, even school teachers.  Then it hit me.  All the Kachin rituals Kap had to endure and observe were meant for one purpose: that Kap would receive the blessing and be received into the Kachin community.  From now on, when Kap walks the streets of that part of town, the Kachin people will say "He's one of us."  What a powerful demonstration of community and belonging.  It's not easy to get in, but once you're in, you're in for life.

For their honeymoon, the newly married couple spent a week in Taunggyi, Kalaw, and Inlay lake areas in Myanmar.  They arrive in Manila on the first week of April for MPD maintenance.  Please congratulate, receive, and bless them.  Help us all get them the best possible start to a marriage.

Pictures from the wedding:



(l to r) Pastor Carlo, Kap, local Chin pastor, Kap’s brother, me. 








Three pastors. 









Dashing (and thinner) Mang is still single, available, and searching...












Seng Htoi's uncle walked her down the aisle because her father felt he would get too emotional when it came time to give her away. 







At the altar.







The sword and bag Kap wears on his side was handed to him by Seng Htoi as part of Kachin tradition symbolizing his responsibility to protect and provide for her now that they are married.  In the courtship and wedding process, Kap received a total of 3 swords and a spear.





Me praying for the couple.








Pastor Carlo shares from the Word. Pastor Carlo and Sandra Ratilla, with children Chloe and Justin were missionaries to Myanmar for 6 years.  Pastor Carlo now serves as the associate pastor in EN Houston.  They are converted Rockets fans.






For the reception, the bride changed into a traditional bridal gown which was a gift from Ms Virgie Llonto of Victory and which I handcarried on the plane.  She only saw it 2 nights before the wedding but it was a perfect fit!










Notice the backdrop.  Kap’s fullname is Thang Lian Kap.  His new adopted Kachin name is Laphai Zau.








Over 300 guests









The three Filipina angels – Rissa, Erma, and Anna.  They are tentmakers in Myanmar and faithfully served the Ratillas during their stay in Myanmar and now serve the local leadership.  Anna will get married in July to Pastor Julius Co of Victory Tarlac.  Rissa and Erma are also getting married…. soon….





Three of our young leaders.  Matthew (2nd from right) was in Manila for EN ’07 and celebrated his birthday in Victory Cabanatuan.  They arranged for the local radio station to greet him on his birthday to his great surprise.





 
Pastor Carlo and myself with Mimi.  Mimi and her late husband Dr. Zam opened the door for Every Nation to plant a church in Myanmar.  Dr. Zam was one of the most respected pastors in Myanmar.



                                           
Nono has been a longtime member of the church and the music group.  He became the hottest rock musician in Myanmar when he was asked by the top rock band (Iron Cross) to be its lead singer.  His videos are now shown on local MTV as well as a giant video screen across the biggest mall.   The church members used to be the only one to listen to his songs when he was just a struggling artist.  Now that he is famous, everyone in the country knows his songs.  The guests erupted in applause when Nono stood up to perform.



EN Myanmar members at the wedding.









The Kachin Baptist community prays for blessing over the couple right after the ceremony.








Blessing the newlyweds apartment.









Kap addresses Seng Htoi’s side of the family during the get together at Seng Htoi’s house right after the wedding.








Chin pastors, representing Kap, computing the dowry to be handed to the bride’s parents and to be distributed to all the relatives.