Shan Dai Advocacy » Old Testament

Malachi

admin — Fri, 23 Mar 2007 20:04:34 +0000

In the time of Malachi, God’s people had given up waiting for a king, and without hope, like a whole nation experiencing a midlife crisis, they sought after carnal desires to satisfy their emptiness. Men took foreign wives seeking excitement; divorce became rampant as covenants and families were broken. Money was no longer given to the causes of the Lord but instead sacrifices were made with blemished animals; going through a ritual as if to fool the Almighty. Even the priests despaired and stopped teaching God’s truth to a nation that desperately needed it. Thankfully, God did not remain silent but again extended His care to a hopeless turned rebellious, self-centered people. How our disheartened hearts long to know belonging and love. It is no different with the Shan Dai. With new found joy and peace young believers were baptized in a small market town in China. Can their hope withstand doubt and discouragement as opposition increases? How will they respond to the village headman who says Dai should not be Christians? Will they give up hope when faced with persecution from their own families? What will keep them truly anchored in the Lord? Father, we all need Your love in our lives, for without You we have no real hope. The arrogant and evil-doers will come to ruin yet Your Word gives us great hope: “But for you who fear my name, the Sun of Righteousness will rise with healing in his wings…” (Malachi 4:2). We pray for new Dai Christians to know You as the Sun of Righteousness, bringing meaning, belonging, healing and love.

Zechariah

admin — Fri, 23 Mar 2007 20:04:16 +0000

God values right relationships. Reflect on how you live out your faith in God in comparison to what Zechariah was told. “This is what the LORD Almighty says: Judge fairly and honestly, and show mercy and kindness to one another. Do not oppress widows, orphans, foreigners, and poor people. And do not make evil plans to harm each other” (Zechariah 7:9-10). Sadly, even after generations of godly teaching, we can still miss God’s point. Father, we ask for Your forgiveness when we fall short of Your way for our lives. God, we pray we would get back on track with You. Out of gratitude to You, we pray today for a variety of Christian ministries that prove a new community for many orphans and Shan aliens that now live in Northern Thailand. May Your mercy and compassion continue to extend to these children and young adults, many who have lost parents while fighting continues in Myanmar. Although few outside of Asia know of the daily violence and the heartbreaking situation in Myanmar, You God, know all things and we ask for Your true justice. We pray for the strength to overcome the desire to repay evil for evil in our own lives and in the lives of those affected by war. Lord, as You change individuals with Your love and Your truth, whole communities can have hope. Jesus, You are the Prince of Peace. May we show honesty, mercy and kindness to one another. Let Your peace reign in us and through everyone that has interaction with camps for the displaced and orphans.

Haggai

admin — Fri, 23 Mar 2007 20:03:55 +0000

Do you feel too old to make a difference for God’s Kingdom? Haggai was qualified for all of the senor citizen discounts of his time when God chose him to stir up the Jews. Complacent in making their homes just a little cozier, they neglected God’s temple and their individual spiritual condition. God warned the people to give careful thought to their ways. “Wei” thought carefully about how he lived so he diligently followed the eight-fold path of Buddhism. Living in the bamboo back woods of Dai-land, he was a Buddhist temple leader, highly respected and prosperous. Then Wei heard that Jesus not only pointed the way to meaningful life but Jesus is the Way. He placed his trust in Christ and burned a lifetime of Buddhist paraphernalia. Giving up his social security as a Buddhist elder and in his second half of life, he was born again. Now it is the Lord who directs his priorities. Wei excitedly teaches others to give careful thought to their ways and leads them to Jesus. These new Christian bothers and sisters need our prayers. In a society where there is not a church on every corner with hot coffee and a welcome committee, these believers face hardships from many directions. As they live out life with honor to You God, may they experience this simple yet powerful blessing that the Jews received, “I am with you, says the LORD!” (Haggai 1:13b). No matter what their age, may the Shan Dai truly find new life in You and comfort and strength in knowing that You are with them.

Zephaniah

admin — Fri, 23 Mar 2007 20:03:39 +0000

Destruction will come to all that attach themselves to sin, regardless of the nation. Zephaniah’s message embraces the same truth today. But there is a way to avoid being slain by the sword of the Lord. It comes with a price; self-pride must be cut off. We are advised to humbly seek the Lord. God will purify the lips of the people so that all of them may call on the name of the Lord and serve him shoulder to shoulder. God gives us promises that extend beyond the boundaries of our neighborhoods, reaching into the Dai neighborhoods as well. God’s Word says that the nations on every shore will worship Him, everyone in his own land. Father, give this encouragement to Shan Dai leaders who seek to live in purity and reach out to their neighbors with the good news of living life immersed in God. The same God who is capable of devastating justice is also mighty to save. Our God is also a God of gentle loving care. Have you experienced this week how the Lord takes great delight in you? Have you felt His nearness as He seeks to quiet you with His love? “For the LORD your God is living among you.
He is a mighty savior. He will take delight in you with gladness. With his love, he will calm all your fears. He will rejoice over you with joyful songs” (Zephaniah 3:17). Father, we pray that we and the Shan Dai will hear Your voice as You rejoice over us with singing.

Habakkuk

admin — Fri, 23 Mar 2007 20:03:23 +0000

God will not tolerate idolatry. There is no sense in pursuing guidance from a piece of wood that man has carved and covered in gold, in fact, God says woe to those who follow such foolishness. The people of Judah were influenced by the surrounding nations and they began to value idols over the living God. Can you imagine pursuing direction from mute gods covered in gold and silver? Sadly for many Shan Dai, they too take the route of Judah when they bow down desiring guidance from a golden Buddha. As we pray for the Dai who lift up idols, let us keep in mind that an idol is anything we value more than God. What are we pursuing, bowing down to or lifting up? Anything we trust in outside of God is our idol. But just as God offered hope to Habakkuk to pass on to those in his realm of influence, and for all who read his conversation with God, there is hope for us and the Dai people. Even though things around him looked bleak at best, Habakkuk learned to trust that God was worth the pursuit. Habakkuk recounted several times “even though…” concerning his difficult circumstances, and then proclaimed, “yet I will rejoice in the LORD! I will be joyful in the God of my salvation! The Sovereign LORD is my strength!” (Habakkuk 3:17-19a). This is not an easy proposition, but may our prayer today be “even though ________________________________, yet I will live in joy for God is my Savior and He alone is my strength.”

Nahum

admin — Fri, 23 Mar 2007 20:03:00 +0000

Picture your neighborhood; your home, neighbors, the church where you worship; the school where your children learn. Imagine that during dinner one evening your country’s military enters your neighborhood with loaded weapons, forcing everyone to leave their home. The strong are enslaved with unbearable labor, children are separated from parents, women are violated, and the elderly are brutally killed. Neither you nor your neighbors have broken any law; the government wants your community weakened, so they destroy it. The military controls the media; no news of this atrocity will reach the outside world. Who will help? Pain and suffering wear you down until you are no longer an asset. You die of starvation; another body thrown on the heap of those who have perished before you. What you have just pictured is actually happening in present day Myanmar (Burma). Hundreds of Shan neighborhoods have been invaded by the Burmese military. Some Shan people have escaped and are living in Thailand as refugees, seeking to piece together a life. The less fortunate Shan live each day in endless brutality. The prophet Nahum wrote of the stunning cruelty experienced by God’s people from the ruthless Ninevites. Just like in Myanmar, even if CNN had been there broadcasting, it would be difficult to believe. As a seemingly elusive promise, the Lord assures ultimate deliverance. Just revenge will come at the hand of the Lord to the oppressors. We plead for the suffering Shan to experience, “The LORD is good, a strong refuge when trouble comes. He is close to those who trust in him” (Nahum 1:7).

Micah

admin — Fri, 23 Mar 2007 20:02:38 +0000

Jin San, a man concerned about doing right, secretly made sacrifices to Buddha during China’s Cultural Revolution. Years later when he learned of the Most High God and His Son Jesus Christ whose sacrifice on the cross paid the penalty of all sin, Jin San believed. Enthusiastically he desired to honor and serve his new Master. So he asked questions, much like the questions asked in Micah 6:6-7: “What can we bring to the LORD to make up for what we’ve done? Should we bow before God with offerings of yearling calves? Should we offer him thousands of rams and tens of thousands of rivers of olive oil? Would that please the LORD? Should we sacrifice our firstborn children to pay for the sins of our souls? Would that make him glad?” The answers to Jin San’s questions are the same answers that God has given throughout history: “No, O people, the LORD has told you what is good, and this is what he requires of you: to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8). Daily seeking justice, balanced with mercy, keeping in step with the God of the universe, knowing that He is God and not me, is life-changing. Sometimes offering rams would be easier. God doesn’t want rams but the closeness of His children and for love to be extended to all He has created in His image. Lord, we pray for Jin San, for us, and for all Dai believers, to live faithfully honoring You by how we treat others.

Jonah

admin — Fri, 23 Mar 2007 20:02:23 +0000

The Lord provides and the story of Jonah is evidence to this. God provided Jonah an opportunity to be His witness. Jonah hid out in a ship so God provided a tempestuous storm. When thrown overboard, God provided a great fish to become Jonah’s sanctuary. Jonah was spit out upon the shore and God provided a second chance for Jonah to preach repentance to the Ninevites. Message proclaimed, mission accomplished and the Lord provided a vine to grow over the missionary’s head to give shade and comfort. This provision pleased Jonah. But God knew Jonah’s need was for more than his own comfort; Jonah had a need to understand God’s view of compassion. The rest of the story reads: “But at dawn the next day God provided a worm, which chewed the vine so that it withered. When the sun rose, God provided a scorching east wind, and the sun blazed on Jonah’s head so that he grew faint” (Jonah 4:6-8a NIV). All provision is from the Lord and God wants His provision of restoration to reach everyone. God provides what is needed for our character to be transformed to the character of Christ—His ultimate Provision. Today, as we thank God for His many provisions, let us not neglect to thank Him for those times that He provides challenging ways to help us grow and change and be more fully aware of Him. Lord, we pray for the Shan Dai people; they receive Your provision of rain and sunlight, may they also receive the provision of Your compassion and forgiveness made possible only in Jesus.

Obadiah

admin — Fri, 23 Mar 2007 20:02:00 +0000

Obadiah’s one chapter prophecy shouts loud and clear of God’s faithfulness to justice. Jacob and Esau were rivals, some would say since birth. Later in life the two brothers made peace, but the nations bearing their names continued on in conflict. It is heartbreaking when “brothers” struggle against one another. Unfortunately, Christianity within China is not exempt from these struggles. In Shan Dai areas there have been times when church members of the government sanctioned Three-Self Patriotic Movement have infiltrated underground house churches to inform the police. In one particularly petty betrayal, Bibles, teaching materials, and even chairs were confiscated from the house church and given to the Three-Self church. In other locations the strife between registered and unregistered Christians has been more extreme. The Three-Self Church has had times when it has gained favor with the government by turning against fellow Christians, even to life threatening harm. Where is the justice? God is not blind and His justice will prevail. “The day is near when I, the LORD, will judge the godless nations! As you have done… so it will be done to you. All your evil deeds will fall back on your own heads” (Obadiah 1:15). Father, we pray today for unity with Your family in our own churches as well as with our brothers and sisters in China. Lord, when injustice appears to be thriving, we pray for the wisdom to look beyond the present time. Jesus, grant Your peace to the Shan Dai Christians undergoing persecution and for the strength to suffer well, knowing that Your eyes see all.

Amos

admin — Fri, 23 Mar 2007 20:01:44 +0000

Out of love, God strongly rebuked the “health and wealth” religious assemblies in the time of Amos. “I hate all your show and pretense—the hypocrisy of your religious festivals and solemn assemblies. Away with your noisy hymns of praise! I will not listen to the music of your harps. Instead, I want to see a mighty flood of justice, an endless river of righteous living” (Amos 5:21, 23, 24). The Dai are a people that generally live along the river valleys; they know the power of floods and they benefit daily from rivers that do not run dry. Yet they have much to learn about justice and righteous living. Their temple worship is not pleasing to God, as He is not honored and adored in mainstream Dai life. Many Shan Dai still do not know God but they do live in the nature He has created. We pray for the truth of who God is to reach them. God forms the mountains, causes the wind to blow, reveals His thoughts to mankind and turns dawn to darkness. He is the author of everything good. Creator God, we pray that You would turn our hearts, and the hearts of the Dai, to You that we may seek You above the good that You give. As the Dai fish in the rivers, plant crops in the valleys, see the sun rise and then set over the mountains and feel Your wind blow, may they know that You are the richness in their lives.