good post from a friend…

Our friend, Dr. Richard Bacon, has several  good posts up on the situation in Burma -

you can read at this SITE

the storage buildings are full!

I had a good friend tell me once that America could be described as a “storage building culture”.

He went on to say that it seemed like we had all of this “stuff” that we didn’t want any more, and yet we paid somebody else to keep it for us in these little “garage communities”.

His conclusion was something like this, “If that doesn’t speak of the affluence we enjoy, I don’t know what would.”

Back to that story in a minute.

This morning I was reading in  1 Thessalonians 2, and in that passage, Paul makes it very clear that he is longing to see the believers in Thessolonica in order to build into their lives – but that Satan is preventing that from happening.

Wow – that’s exactly how I feel!  Our team longs to see our brothers and sisters in Burma, face to face, and continue to build into their lives – but it seems to be such a struggle to make it happen.

Now, I’ve never been “wired” to see a demon behind every bush, and blame Satan for every bad thing that happens – but the Scriptures are clear that his influence is that of a liar, theif, and destroyer.

He is the ultimate de-railer — attempting to get our focus on everything other than the main thing.

I think that’s what is going on in America right now. We, faithful believers, have been de-railed, in a sense.  We have our eyes on so many “what if’s” in regard to bank accounts, 401K balances, and budgets.

Truth is – we are still the most affluent culture in the history of the world.

And, we have enough stuff (that we evidently don’t want) packed into little (or big) storage buildings to prove it.

How about selling some of that stuff and funding the cause of Global missions? I bet there are millions of dollars worth of “treasure” simply rotting away in shed (that we pay somebody else to keep).

Just a thought!

Growing leaders…giving Hope!
David

PS: Would you join me in praying that God would bind Satan from de-railing our effort to be in Burma beginning on Sept. 9th!  Thanks in advance.

Pray for Burma!

The following story is from the BBC:

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is set to hold a second meeting with Burma’s top military leaders.

Mr Ban has asked to meet jailed opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, and says he is awaiting a reply while he remains in the country.

In his first meeting with General Than Shwe, Mr Ban asked for the release of all Burma’s political prisoners.

Ms Suu Kyi’s trial on charges of breaking the terms of her house arrest was postponed again on Friday.

A BBC correspondent says these delays suggest Burma’s military rulers may be having second thoughts about the trial.

Two-hour meeting

Mr Ban’s two-hour meeting with Gen Than Shwe took place in the remote administrative capital Nay Pyi Taw on Friday.

A LIFE IN DETENTION 1988: Junta comes to power after crushing pro-democracy uprising 1989: Martial law declared; opposition NLD leader Aung San Suu Kyi put under house arrest 1990: NLD wins elections; result rejected by the ruling junta 1995: Suu Kyi freed from house arrest; movements restricted Sept 2000: Under house arrest for trying to defy travel curbs May 2002: Released unconditionally May 2003: Detained after clash between NLD and junta forces Sep 2003: Home after surgery, under effective house arrest UN chief’s big gamble Why is junta afraid of Suu Kyi?

“I told him [Gen Than Shwe] that I wanted to meet her [Aung San Suu Kyi], but he told me that she is on trial,” Mr Ban later told reporters.

“I told him that this is my proposal, and this is important, and I am waiting for their reply.”

Mr Ban said he had been assured that elections planned for 2010 would be “held in a fair, free and transparent manner”.

The UN chief’s second meeting with the Burmese leader is scheduled for Saturday morning and later he is due to make a speech outlining his vision for Burma.

If Mr Ban is allowed to meet Ms Suu Kyi, he would be the first UN secretary general to do so.

Ms Suu Kyi, a Nobel Peace laureate, has spent much of the past two decades in prison or under house arrest.

She was transferred from house arrest to prison in May after an American man swam to her lakeside house. She faces up to five years in jail if convicted.

Next year’s elections are part of the military government’s “roadmap to democracy,” but critics say they will be a sham designed to strengthen the generals’ four-decade grip on power.

Opposition activists say Ms Suu Kyi’s trial is designed to keep her out of the way until after the elections.

Update on “the Lady”…

I thought you might like an update on the trial of Aung San Suu Kyi.  The trial has been delayed, but experts say the decision is already made and a guilty verdict will be handed down.

However, defense lawyers requested and received permission to include additional witness(es) on the June 26th resumption of proceedings. Article here.

The military-led governement is expressing its displeasure over the worlds negative response by cracking down on Suu Kyi’s political party – many arrests and harrassments.  Article here

Also the military is flexing its muscle in the ongoing battle with Kayin rebels in an attempt to make the country ’safe’.  More here

In the midst of all of these struggles the church is attempting to speak peace and hope in the lives of people.  Pray for the church planters that we have equipped and encouraged – that they will be bold in the face of opposition, and that they will use this opportunity (the government’s distraction to thwart democracy) to do all they can to boldly reach people for Christ.

Growing leaders…giving hope,
David

Today’s Quote

“If you give God the right to yourself, he will make a holy experiment out of you. God’s experiment’s always succeed.”
Oswald Chambers

Pray for “The Lady” in Burma

Please continue to pray for the ongoing situation in Burma (Myanmar).  Aung San Sui Kyi is on trial (again) and it looks like the government is set on keeping her in prison/house arrest for the rest of her life.  It is actually illegal to mention her name in public in Burma, so the people have resorted to calling her “The Lady”, so if you can’t pronounce her name simply pray for the Lady…

Here is the latest on the trial which is going on in Burma right now…  http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiapcf/05/26/myanmar.suu.kyi.trial/index.html

As you are praying for the trial also be sure and lift up our work in Burma.  We are working hard to raise the funds for a trip to Burma this summer….

J

Pray for Burma

Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, Aung San Suu Kyi (pronounced Awng Sawn Sue Chee) has been arrested and taken to Insein Prison.

She was nearing the end of her 6-year period of house arrest. She will be facing trial this week on phantom charges.

As the leader of the democratic movement in Burma – her freedom is key to moving the country away from this brutal regime.

For more news on Burma visit HERE

Thanks for taking this journey with us!

David

Day of Prayer

Monday, Dec. 1st is our 4th Annual Day of Prayer. It is our belief that the faithful prayer of God’s people on behalf of others is the most valuable investment we can make.

Thank You for taking a few moments today in specific prayer, and for keeping an attitude of prayer on behalf of deserving leaders in SE Asia.

We have received some specific requests from overseas partners, and may receive more that we will pass on to you promptly.

If you and your family have prayer requests that you would like to share, just reply to this email with the request and we would be honored to join with you in prayer.

Below are some specific requests:

Pray that we will have wisdom in regard to our 2009 schedule. Economic conditions are currently difficult – and we must squeeze maximum impact out of every dollar invested.

Pray for U.S. Financial Partners – that each partner will continue to see the value of this ministry for the advance of the Kingdom of God, and will covenant to continue to give sacrificially (even in trying economic times).

Pray for new opportunities to tell the story to groups of new people in 2009 – that doors will be opened to invite new partners to join with us.

Requests from Myanmar:

Please pray that we are preparing to have our last Aquila project for this year with Phu Kayin tribe.
. Please pray for next year projects that the Lord will enable us to do well.
. Please pray for IMCP that we are planing to have mission trip on December 18 to 23.
. Please continually pray for the people here in Myanmar that God will soften their heart and that more people will come to Christ.
. Pray for those pastor that Aquila is training that the Lord will guide them and strengthen them as they are serving the Lord in remote situations.
We will be praying also at IMCP on Monday.

Thank you and God bless you
Thomas - Aquila National Director, Myanmar
——

Here are our prayer request!

1. As we are focusing the unreached area it has taken years together for our missionaries to get close to the local people. But they have just started preaching the Gospel.  Please pray that the Lord may bless and anoint their sharing for those who never heard about Christ.

2. 8 of our missionaries will need a small bamboo house each where they are living – pray for their provision, and for the financial provision of all of our church planters.

3. In the Innle Lake mission field the government sent a letter to us not to hold any kind of meeting on the lake as we always have a Sunday worship service at one of our newly convert believer’s house. But after praying for weeks we have decided to continue our worship service and face the government if needed. Please pray for that matters so that we may know what is the will of God for us.

4. As people those who are living on Innle lake have tiolet on back of the house and use front of the water for cooking, drinking etc. they need to have a hand pump. In our mission field we need at least 5 hand pump.

5. Please do give thanks to God for us for adding more than 10 more people in His Kingdom list in our mission field this year (new converts).

6. Please pray that we may be able to reach many more people in coming Christmas time which is one of the best time for us to reach the people with the Gospel.

Yours in His vineyard,
John (Leader in Myanmar and teacher in Aquila National to National Ministry)

need for training in se asia

The need in Southeast Asia is acute, the Church is growing very rapidly and this places a tremendous strain on existing leadership. It is not uncommon in countries like Myanmar or Cambodia to visit a rural village with a small church and no trained leader. Our experience in Southeast Asia has been that there is a genuine hunger for the gospel and an openness to faith in Jesus Christ. The future of the church in Southeast Asia will hinge in great part on the availability and preparation of leaders in the church.

In Myanmar, a country which has been under the heavy hand of a military junta for more than a decade. The church is viable although very small and enduring a great deal of oppression and persecution. The need for trained leaders and evangelists continues to grow on a daily basis. On a recent visit to this beautiful country, we were able to visit with several leaders of the church, and to hear the cry for help. We were told that we could help train leaders on a weekly basis if it were possible.

In Cambodia, a country which most North Americans know only from the infamous “Killing Fields”, the church continues to try and recover from decades of war and terror. During the reign of the Khmer Rouge approximately 95% of the churches leaders were either killed or disappeared. This has left a void of experienced, trained leaders for the churches. The exciting news is that the church is growing very rapidly through an extensive church planting movement, which has seen the number of churches growing at a rate that is hard to quantify. In 1990 there were only about 30 Baptist churches, today there are over 260 churches!

There are several other countries in Southeast Asia who have similar situations. These would include countries like Bhutan, Nepal, Laos, Vietnam, and Thailand. Many of these countries are closed to traditional mission efforts, however it is possible for indigineous leaders to impact their countries. If these nations are to be reached with the gospel it will not be North Americans doing the work it will be national leaders.

In most of the countries of Southeast Asia the idea of being able to attend a traditional seminary for training is restricted to a very limited number of people. So these leaders must be trained in more non-traditional ways, this is the vision of The Aquila Project.

We’re Back!

Just a quick note to let you know that we are reactivating our blog and look forward to several new posts in the next couple of days.  It’s been a very busy summer and fall, God is continuing to open doors for this work and we are excited about the coming days at The Aquila Project.

Please begin praying now for our upcoming project in Cambodia.  We will be leaving on November 10 and will return on the 22nd.  Much more info coming soon…

J