Below is a testimony sent to The Voice of the Martyrs from a believer in Myanmar (Burma). It is the account of a 65-year-old man from an devout Buddhist village who came to know Christ:
“One day we were sitting at the temple entrance receiving collections from the people, one of the Christians passing by gave me a tract. I kept it to take home with me and read it later. When I read this tract it spoke of receiving the gift of eternal life when believing in Jesus Christ. I started to question and wonder, ‘How can we know eternal life? What is this eternal life the tract spoke of?’
“I asked my wife and children about the matter of eternal life, and they simply joked about it saying, ‘Father you are a good man, you will surely be a rich man in your next life.’ But the thought would not leave me, I felt it deeply as I was growing older, When I die, will there be a place that I go to? So I kept thinking about this over and over in my heart and mind, until finally at midnight I called on Jesus, ‘Lord Jesus I believe, please give me eternal life.’ The Lord Jesus heard my prayer and answered my call.
“Then the light shone into my soul, light in my heart which was great joy. Simply stated, I am at peace, a real peace in my heart which I had never experienced before, which is difficult to put into words.
Early the next morning I knew in my heart that I must throw out the image of Buddha, which I had previously worshipped every day. Without speaking to my wife, I took the image and threw it into a small river near my village.
“When my wife woke up and was preparing an offering to the image of Buddha, it was gone! She was very upset asking, ‘What is happening here? Where are the gods?’ I told her I had thrown them away.
My wife was very angry, crying and shouting and went to the local authorities to report the matter.
Immediately they came to my home—policemen, firemen, the local security forces, in all about 25 people. All asking at once what had happened. I told them that I had found the True and Living God, Who loved me and had given me eternal life.
“They then proceeded to tell me I was not worthy to live. Then I was imprisoned for five days when they tried to convince me to give up this foolish belief and convert back to Buddhism. Thank God, the Lord Jesus gave me strength to face and overcome these trials, and gave me words to speak and answer my accusers.
“Please pray for me as I have been forced to leave my village, my wife and my two children who I love dearly. I pray that I may soon be able to return back to them. I love them but I cannot do what they have asked me to do—curse my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, come back to Buddha and my family.
May our Lord Jesus Christ have mercy on my family and my fellow-villagers.”
