Missouri Missions Offering

Ngun lap and his family.

God is so good! Yes He is! On December 31, 2005 my family of five moved to Springfield, Missouri. We are part of the Chin people who are from Burma (Myanmar). Many of our people came to know the Lord Jesus Christ through the initial efforts of missionaries many years ago. Like many other people groups in the United States, the Chin people are refugees. Our family initially came here for business purposes, but my dream was that one day our community would be reunited and become a church here. One year after arriving, a family of seven who are good friends came to join us. Two months later my niece and her husband came, too, and we began to have Sunday night prayer meetings.

God is so wonderful. He brought our people one-by-one to Springfield. When they first arrived they were highly dependent on our family and I believe it is my God-given assignment to serve them. After we had been here for two years our congregation had grown to thirty people. We are growing slowly, but steadily.

Chin congregation at Second Baptist Church, Springfield.

The most important thing for our people when they arrive is to find employment so they can sustain their families. Since we did not have a long reference history this was often difficult, but we prayed ceaselessly for God to provide for the needs of the Chin people. We were discouraged, but God began opening doors. When we were so discouraged, Rev. Ken McCune (who is a member of the MBC staff) began sharing with me about possible employment opportunities in the area. One of those was at a poultry processing plant in Monett. After that, Barbara Phillips, a very wise and helpful lady from Second Baptist Church, went with me to Monett in search of employment for our people. We met the plant manager who gave us hope that there would be employment available for some. Two weeks later he called and asked for five people to come to work. Praise the Lord! There are now fifteen people who are working there.

Meanwhile, our church has continued to grow. So far this year our membership has tripled—there are now about ninety of us. More of our people continue to come to Springfield and we believe there may soon be more than 100 in our membership. Because God is using me to serve and help our people I am constantly busy and travel a great deal.

Samuel Gonzales, Ken McCune, and Ngun lap.

God has provided in so many ways. Our mother (sponsor) church is Second Baptist Church of Springfield who has been so gracious to provide so many things. We have also been assisted so much by the Greene County Baptist Association and the Missouri Baptist Convention. We still have many needs, including a van for transportation and gas money for travel, but we are confident the Lord will provide.

Because of Missouri Baptists giving through the Missouri Missions Offering, the Chin will receive special discipleship and leadership training from one of their own leaders from another state during the Glorieta in the Ozarks conference. Thank you Missouri Baptists for caring for our people. We know that God will continue to bless our congregation as we serve Him.—Ngun lap, pastor of Chin Community Church, and Ken McCune, Church Planting Specialist, Missouri Baptist Convention.

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