Story number 3 for 31 Jul 2002

(Myanmar)–As a regional security forum gets underway in Brunei this week, Myanmar’s leaders are having to answer for the brutality of the last few months. As if in an early preparation, Global Advance’s David Shibley held a Frontline Shepherds’ Conference in Myanmar, where nearly 500 church leaders came for encouragement and teaching. Shibley says there was evidence that the tensions were wearing. “I spoke with several pastors who said that their church planting efforts in the areas that have been effected by the skirmishes have been curtailed because of the conflicts that have been currently going on.” Shibley says in spite of the challenges, he is sure that the Gospel will go forward. “This is a very heavily Buddhist nation, and yet these particularly young pastors were very committed to seeing growth in their churches, and also to planting new churches particularly among the unreached peoples of Myanmar.”