Wisdom & Grace: It was a good trip to Myanmar

"So, you had a good trip?" a friend recently asked at the grocery store.

"Oh yes. I had a great trip!" I answered.

"Even with being stopped by the immigration officials and having to return to Hong Kong?" my friend asked, inquiring a little deeper.

"Yes, even with all those troubles. It just got better and better. I believe we made a difference in the students at Faith Theological Seminary. And without a doubt, I know they made a difference in my life."

"How is that, Ila?"

"The first thing is that my faith in God is stronger than it has ever been in my life. I experienced answers to prayers over and over and over. And then there is the students. Never in my life have I ever had such attentive students. They thrived on every word that we spoke. They were so appreciative that we had left our families and homes and come so far to teach them. At the end of our two weeks I realized that I was the fortunate one to meet and get to know them and witness their love and devotion to God."

Nov. 18, I left Montana and flew from Great Falls to Denver to San Francisco and then a 15-hour flight to Hong Kong. In Hong Kong, I met Linda Gudahl Smyth, a Bible College friend and 40-year veteran missionary in Hong Kong. She had been asked to go to Myitkyina, Myanmar and teach a two-week course in "Christian Ethics" at Faith Theological Seminary - five hours each day.

"Would you go with me, Ila?" Linda asked the first part of 2019. It was hard to say no when I had recently retired from being the chaplain at Northern Montana Health Care for nearly 20 years and had promised "Lord, if you have anything else for me to do, I'd be willing."

Faith Theological Seminary is a relatively new college located in Myitkyina, Myanmar. It is part of the university system offering Bible and Christian Education classes. Students are interviewed and screened before they are able to attend. Several precedents were explained.

"Students are to speak English while they are on campus," said Abel Sarsay, one of the professors. "Whether the students are in class, in the dorms, or the dining hall ... we ask that they speak only English."

"Why?" we asked.

"We know that if the students know English, and can speak it proficiently, they can succeed at any profession in Myanmar. Whether it is working in banking, for the airlines, as a teacher or wherever ... if they know English, they will be very successful in their professions."

And then Abel added something that truly challenged my innermost spirit, "If they are competent in English, they will be able to go into countries such as China and India and share the Gospel."

"They are self-governing in adhering to the "English Only' policy," Abel added.

On the third day, we were showed a cupboard with boxes and student's names on them in the Administration Office. Students leave their cell phones Sunday evening when they check in after being gone for the weekend. Saturday morning, they can pick them up. The professors explained, "They know they are here to learn and the cell phones are distractions. They do it voluntarily. Parents have our numbers, if there is an emergency."

Throughout my years I have taught many classes but never, never have I had such wonderful attentive students. They were glued to every word we said and so appreciative that we would leave our homes and families to come and teach them.

We shared such topics as: "Who is God?", "Who is man?", and "What is man's relationship to God?" The final portion of our teaching time dealt with the ethical questions of today's society: euthanasia, drugs, sexual promiscuity before and after marriage and civil responsibilities. Always, we sought the Bible, God's Holy Word, as the final and only answer to today's dilemmas of life.

I believe that we made a difference. But it wasn't just Ila and Linda that made the difference. It was the friends and family who came along side of us. Without their financial gifts and prayers, that difference would not have been made.

The goal of Faith Theological Seminary is to train young men and women to take the whole Gospel of Jesus Christ to the whole world before He comes again. May God bless them as young people are trained.

Please allow me to share a connection that Montana now has in Myanmar.

Many knew a woman in Havre named Julie Turbak. Julie was a resident at the Care Center when I worked there. She had cerebral palsy, but was for the most part a positive, appreciative young woman. Without a doubt Julie loved the Lord.

When Julie passed away, her family came in and cleaned out her room. When they were finished they invited the staff to come in and take something that would remind them of Julie. Clint Widdekind RN chose a gold cross about four inches tall.

When Clint and his wife Loretta heard about my upcoming trip they requested, "Please take this gold cross and give it to a deserving student in Myanmar."

On the final day that Linda and I were at Faith Theological Seminary, students serenaded us with songs and prayed for us. When it was my turn to speak, I held up Julie's gold cross and told them about Julie Turbak. Of how she was so happy when special people visited her, and how thrilled she was when she received gifts. But most of all, I shared with them how much Julie loved the Lord.

Clint and Loretta had asked me to give it to a deserving student. But I could not give it to just one student. All the students were deserving.

I told them some people in Havre, Montana had given $1,000 for a new girl's dorm. "Please hang this cross in the new dorm. And remember a special lady who loved life and loved God. May you, also."

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Ila McClenahan is a retired chaplain and activity director living north of Havre in the Amos Community where she was raised. She spends her time speaking for Christian events, volunteering for community organizations, and chauffeuring grandkids.