December 1, 2003

So the poor have hope, and injustice shuts its mouth.
Job 5:16

Dear Friends,

Sawasdee and Ha La Gkeh! (“Hello” in Thai and Karen languages). Greetings from Thailand.

A young Karen man just handed me a bowl of “Karen granola” for lunch. I am lacking a better description of it because I have never seen it before. It is rice kernels fried with fresh honey and cooking oil. I am visiting a place with no electricity or running water, and my time here has been full of surprises and new experiences like this. With rice, we have eaten lizard, snake, and a lot of small fried fish. I am traveling with a group visiting clinics that we coordinate support for on the Thai-Burma border. These trips are an opportunity to see how the medics and villagers are doing, and to pray for and encourage them.

In the areas I have visited recently, some needs they have expressed are for the security of the IDPs (internally displaced people), food supply, educational needs, and requests for funds to send new students to Bible school.

This year has been busy and good so far. Communication training that included representatives from eleven of the major ethnic groups of Burma was held earlier this year. The participants were able to work with people from groups they had never encountered before. They said they thought trust and reconciliation was built during that time. They received training in basic communication and produced radio programs, audio cassettes, videos, brochures, and a press release, all focused on the Global Day of Prayer for Burma.

Relief missions to the IDPs in Burma continue, with the purpose of giving medical help, food, clothing, other basic necessities, and encouragement to those who are displaced from their homes and hiding in the jungle or living in relocation sites.

The people struggling for freedom in Burma said that the Global Day of Prayer for Burma was again an encouragement and blessing for them. On March 9, 2003, many church services, prayer meetings, and other meetings focused on Burma were held around the world. I have heard from many churches and individuals from the United States, England, Scotland, Australia, Thailand, and many other countries. People inside Burma and in the refugee camps also held services to pray for their country. God will hear and answer. The IDPs, refugees, and others in exile from Burma are encouraged by this united effort, which communicated that people have not forgotten about them, even in the midst of many other conflicts and wars going on around the world. Recently the U.S. Department of State spoke out against the military dictatorship in Burma and the United States has renewed sanctions on the regime in power there. This gives heart to many that they have allies and others who share their hope of freedom. Next year’s Global Day of Prayer for Burma is March 14, 2004. For information please go to the www.prayforburma.org Web site or write to me.

The long fight for spiritual and physical freedom and justice continues in Burma, as it does in many places around the world. There is hope. God hears our prayers and sees what is happening as unjust. See Job 5:9-16.

As I get to participate in these and other projects, I get into deeper, lasting relationships and share with these friends how much God loves them and wants to know them.

If you think about it, could you pray for me for:

• good health
• protection from malaria, dengue fever, and an end to the allergies I have
• wisdom in all decisions
• that I will be doing my best to follow God’s will.

I praise God for the innumerable ways he has blessed and remembered me personally. Some ways I think He has done this are: The people I work with are wise and good examples of sacrificial service. I am challenged in my work and enjoy it immensely. My family and friends from all over the world encourage and pray for me. Co-workers from Thailand and Burma show such faith in the midst of great struggle, which encourages me in my own relationship with God. Please keep in touch and come to visit!

With Love,

Amy Davisson