{"id":3896,"date":"2022-09-09T07:58:00","date_gmt":"2022-09-09T07:58:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.persecution.com\/stories\/?p=3896"},"modified":"2022-08-26T21:17:09","modified_gmt":"2022-08-26T21:17:09","slug":"myanmar-couple-save-children-of-christians-from-forced-recruitment-child-marriage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.persecution.com\/stories\/myanmar-couple-save-children-of-christians-from-forced-recruitment-child-marriage\/","title":{"rendered":"Myanmar Couple Save Children of Christians from Forced Recruitment, Child Marriage"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Kan and his wife, Maiah, host children of Christian workers in their home so the parents can continue their work without worrying that their children will be taken as soldiers or brides.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

After Kan completed seminary in 2009, a friend in Myanmar<\/a> asked him a pointed question: \u201cCould you and your wife take care of two boys?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The boys, ages 5 and 7, were children of new believers from separate families who were working in the fields. Their parents feared that since they were now Christians, rebel groups would take the boys for use as child soldiers. Families in areas where rebel groups are active are commonly expected to give up a child, and Christian families are often forced to give up all their children as a penalty for being Christians.<\/p>\n\n\n\r\n\t

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Request your free magazine<\/p>\r\n\t\t\tSubscribe<\/a>\r\n\t\t<\/div>\r\n\t<\/div>\r\n\r\n\t\n\n\n

At the beginning of this century, Myanmar<\/a> was reported to have the highest number of child soldiers in the world. At that time, an estimated 20 percent of the country\u2019s 350,000 soldiers were children. While boys are recruited by rebel groups and the national military, girls in rebel-held areas can be married off or trafficked into China.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kan prayed about how he and his wife could help the families. But three days later, before he could send a reply, his friend showed up at his house with the two boys. \u201cIt was a shock and a surprise for me,\u201d Kan said, smiling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When Kan learned that one of the boys didn\u2019t have a father, he realized maybe his friend\u2019s question was an answer to prayer. \u201cI grew up without having a father, so I know how difficult it is to not have a father or parents,\u201d he said. \u201cWhenever I meet a child without a parent, if there\u2019s a way I can help these children to be as their father, I\u2019m willing to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Myanmar<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Kan and his wife, Maiah, already had five children of their own, ranging in age from 1 to 13. They didn\u2019t know how they would be able to feed two more, but they knew God would provide. So they committed themselves to loving the children as their own, providing them with an education and helping disciple them in their faith as long as they lived with them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The boys stayed with Kan and Maiah until 2011, when they were able to return to their parents. Then, in 2013, after helping build a church in an area where many missionaries worked, Kan and Maiah took in four more children whose parents were unable to care for and protect them. \u201cYou must take my daughter out of here or else she will be taken as a wife,\u201d a missionary told them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kan and Maiah strive to nurture the children they care for and build them up in their faith, the opposite of how the rebel groups would treat them. \u201cWhen they first arrive,\u201d Kan said, \u201cI tell them, \u2018Welcome to the family. This is your home. But you have to know it is not me who feeds you or gives you everything. The One who gives you everything is God, so we will pray and you will learn more about God because everything is under God.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSeeing them grow spiritually is the best part of this mission work,\u201d he continued. \u201cMy promise is to treat them the same as my kids. I want them to share everything, but practically it\u2019s very difficult. I try to buy the same thing for all of them. My wife and I try to do the right thing.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although the children are separated from their parents for long periods of time, they enjoy interacting with all the children at the home and being part of Kan and Maiah\u2019s family.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kan and Maiah currently care for seven children, in addition to three of their own who still live at home. They believe they have helped 17 other children throughout the years, the oldest 15 and youngest 3. As they consider how God has faithfully sustained their mission to care for children of Christians in Myanmar<\/a>, Kan and Maiah are overwhelmed with joy and gratitude.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Kan<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe don\u2019t feel we deserve to get this far, but first of all we give thanks to the Lord for helping us take care of these kids \u2014 to help them know Him more, to be educated and to be part of our family,\u201d Kan said. \u201cWe praise the Lord for His provision and His guidance. We feel that these kids are our own children; they\u2019re part of our family.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Peter, a 12-year-old boy whose parents are farmers and missionaries in a war-torn part of the country, said he has grown in many ways. If he had stayed with his parents, he probably would have been taken as a child soldier. Instead, he now leads worship, prayer and youth Sunday school at church.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen I was in the village,\u201d he said, \u201cI knew nothing about reading or playing guitar. I love to play guitar and I love to read now. I\u2019ve grown a lot in my spiritual life.\u201d Peter wants to study engineering in college.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ten-year-old Aye Chan Mae has lived with Kan and Maiah for two years. She is grateful for their care, for the many siblings she has under their roof and for her spiritual growth. \u201cWe do devotions, and they are always teaching us about God and reading the Bible,\u201d she said. \u201cEvery Sunday morning we recite verses and sing songs together.\u201d If not for Kan and Maiah\u2019s care, she likely would have been taken as a child bride.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maiah said the best part of helping the children is simply being with them. \u201cThe most important part,\u201d she added, \u201cis that they come to know Christ and they love God.\u201d And Kan has pledged to always be there for the children, just like his Heavenly Father has been there for him. \u201cI always tell them, \u2018Until I\u2019m breathing my final breath, I am your father.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Kan and his wife, Maiah, host children of Christian workers in their home so the parents can continue their work without worrying that their children will be taken as soldiers or brides. After Kan completed seminary in 2009, a friend in Myanmar asked him a pointed question: \u201cCould you and your wife take care of two boys?\u201d The boys, ages 5 and 7, were children of new believers from separate families who were working in the fields. Their parents feared that since they were now Christians, rebel groups would take the boys for use as child soldiers. Families in areas where rebel groups are active are commonly expected to give up a child, and Christian families are often forced to give up all their children as a penalty for being Christians. At the beginning of this century, Myanmar was reported to have the highest number of child soldiers in the world. At that time, an estimated 20 percent of the country\u2019s 350,000 soldiers were children. While boys are recruited by rebel groups and the national military, girls in rebel-held areas can be married off or trafficked into China. Kan prayed about how he and his wife could help the families.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":3898,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[41],"class_list":["post-3896","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-field-stories","tag-myanmar","","tg-column-two"],"yoast_head":"\nMyanmar Couple Save Children of Christians from Forced Recruitment, Child Marriage - Stories<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"At the beginning of the century, an estimated 20 percent of Myanmar's 350,000 soldiers were children, the highest in the world.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.persecution.com\/stories\/myanmar-couple-save-children-of-christians-from-forced-recruitment-child-marriage\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Myanmar Couple Save Children of Christians from Forced Recruitment, Child Marriage - 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