Our last few days in Bangladesh were spent in and around Chittagong, in the southeast part of the country. The contrasts were extreme. We started in the Bandarban Hill Tracts, visiting K.L. and Jasmine, some of our first IGSL students from Bangladesh.
This is a tribal area, and is totally different culturally from the rest of Bangladesh. The tribes in this area are ethnically related to the Chin tribes in Northwest Myanmar, and both their language and their appearance is more similar to what is found in Myanmar. This photo is from a village school.
We also visited a Christian boarding school that was established to educate children whose home villages have no schools. When we arrived there, the kids were all lined up to perform for us and present us with flowers! Celebrities . . . again!
One of my highlights was meeting K.L.'s father-in-law, an old pastor who told us stories of how the Gospel came to their area.
It was encouraging to see how the tribes who have already been Christian for many years are now taking the challenge to bring the gospel to unreached tribes. K.L.'s tribe (Bawm people) are one such group. In this photo, you can see K.L. and Hirak along with two young Bawm evangelists who have started a church in an unreached Mru village.
K.L. is showing me the correct way to play the drums.
This elderly man and his family are the first believers in the Mru village. Reaching this village entailed a lot of hiking!
We did our women's conference for the third time, this time in a very old Anglican Church in the city of Chittagong. The plaque on the wall said that it was built in 1844. It had high ceilings, stained glass windows, wooden pews -- all very British and very traditional.
And then . . . we raced to the airport for our trip home. It was a wonderful twelve days. I am so grateful to God for letting us take this trip and experience the world of our graduates.
This is a tribal area, and is totally different culturally from the rest of Bangladesh. The tribes in this area are ethnically related to the Chin tribes in Northwest Myanmar, and both their language and their appearance is more similar to what is found in Myanmar. This photo is from a village school.
We also visited a Christian boarding school that was established to educate children whose home villages have no schools. When we arrived there, the kids were all lined up to perform for us and present us with flowers! Celebrities . . . again!
One of my highlights was meeting K.L.'s father-in-law, an old pastor who told us stories of how the Gospel came to their area.
It was encouraging to see how the tribes who have already been Christian for many years are now taking the challenge to bring the gospel to unreached tribes. K.L.'s tribe (Bawm people) are one such group. In this photo, you can see K.L. and Hirak along with two young Bawm evangelists who have started a church in an unreached Mru village.
K.L. is showing me the correct way to play the drums.
This elderly man and his family are the first believers in the Mru village. Reaching this village entailed a lot of hiking!
We did our women's conference for the third time, this time in a very old Anglican Church in the city of Chittagong. The plaque on the wall said that it was built in 1844. It had high ceilings, stained glass windows, wooden pews -- all very British and very traditional.
And then . . . we raced to the airport for our trip home. It was a wonderful twelve days. I am so grateful to God for letting us take this trip and experience the world of our graduates.
1 comment:
So neat to see these pictures and hear the stories from you trip! God is so good!
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