A Burmese pastor has been describing how the military regime made him tear down his orphanage stone by stone, forcing the children in his care to live in a tent – in the ruins of their former home.
Before pulling his orphanage down Pastor Stephen held a funeral service for it – in the hope that his work for the children might be resurrected.
"The time that we dismantled the building it was like the funeral service, because we have no shelter for our children. We invited some pastors and they prayed for us. And then we begin to dismantle the building. It took about seven days."
Pastor Stephen tells his story in the latest edition of the award-winning webcast World Update on the Persecuted Church. World Update is produced by Release International, which serves persecuted Christians worldwide. The programme is on two TV channels and a range of websites, include www.releaseinternational.org
The turmoil inside Burma, or Myanmar as the dictatorship has renamed the country, has left many orphans. Such children are often taken in by Christian pastors. But instead of offering support for these orphanages, the regime sometimes just closes them down. Some pastors have been accused of people trafficking and sent to jail.
Pastor Stephen was ordered to tear his orphanage down. The demolition order left 40 children living in a tent amid the rubble of their former home. But Pastor Stephen is not discouraged.
"In our land, even if we have different kinds of hardships and sufferings, the Lord has been so good to us," he says. "He blesses with spiritual blessings, so the more we face problems and hardship, the more our spiritual life has been growing to maturity. Hardship and problems perfect us in the lives of our ministry.
"The Lord has been so gracious to my life and to the life of the orphanage," Pastor Step
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