Recently, I received this message from IMB missionary friends in Thailand. Dr. Paul Chitwood, the President of the International Mission Board gave me permission to publish this information and make this appeal. Here is the message:
We hope you all are doing well. We have a prayer request and opportunity for you to help. As you may be aware there is a coup happening in Myanmar (Burma). Our national partners who live on the border of Thailand and Myanmar have informed us that the Myanmar military has been bombing Karen villages. The Karen people have fled to the border of Thailand. The Thailand government will not allow these refugees to enter Thailand, but they will allow food and supplies to be taken across the border to the refugees. These refugees are in fear for their lives and are living in open forest without any shelter or food. Please pray for these refugees.
You have the opportunity to give financially to help provide food and supplies for these refugees. A $10 donation will provide a tarp for a temporary tent. A $10 donation will also provide food for a family of 5 for two weeks.
If you feel led to give, you may donate through this link: Planting FAITH in Southeast Asia – IMB.
Let me (Mark) provide some background information.
In 1813 Adoniram Judson and his wife Anne arrived in Burma. They were the first missionaries appointed by the Triennial Baptist Convention. One of their first converts was a Karen man, named Ko Tha Byu. When George and Sarah Boardman arrived in Burma in 1825, Judson asked them to work with the Karen tribe.
George Boardman and Ko Tha Byu evangelized the Karens with great success. Now, there is a Karen Baptist Convention, twenty local Karen Baptist associations, the Karen Baptist Seminary, and a Karen Baptist hospital.
On February 1, 2021, the Myanmar military staged a coup and deposed the democratically elected government. Soon after that, Myanmar military forces began attacking Karen villages. Now, there is a crisis at the Thai border, as you read above.
If you or your church would like to donate to meet this need, you can donate through the link above, or you can send a check to the International Mission Board and designate it for Karen relief. My church will donate, and I hope yours will, also.
