Source: Asia Harvest Ministries, June 2020
My name is Samuel, and I have served as a pastor among my people since 1993. Long ago, when I went to Bible school, I had my own Bible, but during the war, Burmese soldiers came to our village and we had to run for our lives, leaving our possessions behind. Since that time, I have served the Lord without a Bible.
I later moved, but there wasn’t a single Bible in the whole village. Three years later, the church was able to obtain one Bible, but it fell apart from overuse. The Word of God was so rare and precious that the believers decided no one could touch the Bible except me. It had to remain in the church, and I could not take it home, for fear that I might lose it and they would again be without God’s precious Word.
On January 1, 1999, we started asking the Lord to provide us with our own Bibles. Now, after your workers visited, our hearts are overwhelmed with joy and gratitude! Not only did you provide one Bible for every family in our village, but they were completely free! Hallelujah!
Just one month after your visit, our church members were studying their Bibles every day, and great changes came to our village. People are now full of the joy of the Lord, they have stopped smoking and drinking, and they love one another. When I walk through the village, I hear people reading God’s Word aloud and singing praises. Our meetings have overflowed, and our church building cannot hold everyone. We have been so blessed by God that I feel like we now live in a heavenly village!
» Full article has more testimonies, photos, and background on the Karen.