Testimony of Panci (Revised Abridged Version)
Sawa-dee…karp.
My name is Panci. I am born a poor Buddist family in Myanmar.
Life is hard and poverty force me to leave school (in Grade 7).
A big (hospital) operation to save my father’s life leave us with much debt. With no way to turn, my mother sell me into slavery (for 2 years).
After this, I run away from Myanmar, look for work and go to Thailand.
I meet a friend who ask me to follow him to Bangkok, to find a new beginning.
I remember it like yesterday, the train to Bangkok, the checkpoints, the police searching fiercely all the (passengers) bags.
Then police find a parcel in my friend bag. More searching find 2kg of heroin in my bag.
I was trapped. Eight month later, I was sentence to life in prison. My life start as a prisoner – I am 20 years old. I have not see or hear my parents since.
I become very sick. I cannot sleep or eat. Half my body is paralysed.
A hopelessness has taken my spirit. I just want to die.
Then I meet a man, who become my friend. He tell me the good news of a new life in Jesus. He take me to church in prison. It is the start of my journey with God.
In year 2000, I get baptised. My life changed.
I spend my time to read, study and pray to God everyday.
God listen to my prayer. He show His love to me. He heal my illness.
He send me new friends, outside of prison. People I can trust, people who help me with many things.
It so good. God is good. He is my light, my friend, shelter, peace and freedom.
I serve Him in prison. Show God’s love to other prisoners. I teach English in prison.
Many student have never hear about Jesus – now, everyone in classroom knows.
I follow the way my Christian friends show me. God’s love is great.
My (pen) friend write to me to encourage me to keep going. She tell me my life is valuable.
I am a light that can shine for God in prison. That I belong to the family of God.
I thank God for her prayers and love. After many years, I know I am more mature in faith.
Even though I am in prison, nothing stop me to serve Him here.
I thank Him for this. I live in hope. I know I am forgiven.
Thanks to God for His mercy and love.
Sawa-dee…karp
Testimony of Tun 29 November 2010
I am 29 years old. The testimony I would like to share with you is my new life. When I was outside I didn’t know God at all. There is no peace in my life. My life was in hard times and trouble a lot. That’s why I struggled and followed my self-desire and had done wrong against the law. Finally I was arrested and sent to prison at Chiang Mai Central prison. The judge sentence me 20 years. At that time I was in fear and almost crazy. As I don’t have any relatives come to see me, my life was in darkness and I felt hopeless.
After that I had met a friend who we were arrested the same day and sleeping in the same room. At the first day a friend was holding a book and reading it. I asked him what kind of book did you read. He replied, it was the Holy Bible. At that time I cannot read. My friend took me to prisons’ school in order to study Thai. He gave me book, pen, and eraser. He also took me to Sunday church for many times. From there I started to hear the word of God from the leader of the church. From then on I would love to know more about Jesus Christ and want to read Thai characters. Then gradually I can read it. I studied Bible lessons and was a member of the church. Especially Panci, he taught me reading the Bible and changed my old life to a new life . I was moved to MaeHongSon prison. I also came to meet Panci again and living with him in this church. I have privilege serving God in this church with many friends in this church.
I have learnt more about God and my life is completely full of joy and understanding and God’s love to every one of us. It’s unbelievable that I could change my life. Thank God that he changed my old life to new life. Finally I decided to get baptized and believe God without doubt. I was baptised on May 2nd 2010. I gave my life to him all. He is my everything. He bless me to be a good man and new born in Christ. I thank God. Also thank God again that he enable us seeing each other in prison. It is a wonderful miracle. For the past 5 years nobody came to see me. But God feed me and care for me. I didn’t lose chance when I came to know him. I will try my best to serve him and extend my testimony to other people. Thank God that I have chance to share this testimony to you all.
Reflections on life in prison
Panci – September 2011
Dear reader
Life in prison is surprising. Sometimes it is sorrowful, sometimes tearful and regretful. My sin of the past led me into demolition. When I entered into prison as a new prisoner, I was threatened, beaten and abused. People treated me like I was the garbage of the earth , the dirt of the world. There was no peace in my mind and the tormenting continued daily. This caused many prisoners to die in prison. Many prisoners were separated from their families and loved ones and were in a hopeless position. These things were unavoidable for all who were placed in prison.
The painful things that I am now suffering is testing my faith. I don’t think that something strange thing is happening to me. I do think that I am sharing in Christ’s suffering and there is a way that I can be able to overcome all this pain and failure. I have to confess my sins to God and have someone who understand me, encourages me and reaches out to me. This is the best thing that everybody needs while in prison.
At present the influence of Christendom is growing in the prisons. Missionaries from abroad and locally are reaching out with the Word of God and sharing with us. Thank God that He has given me this privilege and allowed me to keep in touch with His love.
The reaching out of missionaries are very useful and changes the sinner’s hearts. Prison is the ideal place where sinners and criminal can be changed by missionaries around the world. As God has said, He has come to open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners form the darkness out of the prison house. Christ died himself for our sins on the cross. He offered a sacrifice one time to take away the sins from us. This is a wonderful miracle. Did anyone dare to die for someone on this earth? No. There was no- one. But Jesus Christ dared to die for all who believe in Him.
We are like visitors and strangers in this world, we come for a short time. I beg you to stay away from the evil things your bodies want to do. These things fight against God. People who don’t believe are living around you. They will persuade you to go the wrong way. Be careful, the devil is your enemy and he goes around like a roaring lion looking for someone to eat. Please, I beg you to refuse to follow the devil and stay away from foolish and stupid men. Stand strong in your faith by praying to God every day, live good lives. Then people who don’t believe in God will see the good things you do and they will give glory to God, Show then with the things you say truth, with the way you live – faith , with your love your pure life. Love each other deeply. Love hides many sins.
When I was a new prisoner, I was persuaded to do evil and bad things such as homosexuality, selling and using heroin in prison and gambling. These things were popular and attacked my faith strongly. It was hard to avoid doing these things and I was able to endure them.
I managed to overcome all these things by praying to God. If He didn’t save me from doing these bad things, I will not be alive today. I would have died a long time ago. This is miracle that God has saved me.
The studying of the Holy Bible is very precious and useful to everybody’s life. If you study you will see the advantage of it soon. The word is the light of the world. Jesus said; I am the light of the world, whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life. John 8:12
Therefore be light with God. As we have been made right with God because of our faith and have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
I thank God with a sincere heart and I want to tell you by the power of God to read the Holy Bible every day. The peace and the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you forever.Watch Full Movie Online Streaming Online and Download
Testimony of Debbie September 2011
(not real name)
Our family is Hindu. My father is Burmese and in the army. I grew up in Myanmar and when I was 22 years old I met a soldier whom I fell in love with and married. We had one girl and a boy. I lived a middle class life until my husband died. I had the two children and was still young with no income. I then moved back to my family home but one year later my father died.
A friend encouraged me to go to Thailand to work as a house keeper. I came to Thailand and worked as a house keeper at a foreigner’s house where I took care of the baby and did house cleaning. I was able to earn a salary and send money to Myanmar.
One day a friend told me if I carried drugs to Indonesia me and my mom will get $US200 each. We needed the money to take care of my children and provide a future for them.
In 1995 the police caught me and my mother. My life was finished.
When I entered jail I suffered and life was very hard. I had no money and no will power. I told myself that this time I was going to die and there was nobody who could help me. My Hindu gods did not come to help me. At that time missionaries came and shared the word of God. I went to listen but didn’t believe what they were saying, I thought they were lying. Then I had a dream where Jesus told me that He is my Abba Father. He told me he would take care of my family and children. I accepted Jesus and gave my life to follow and trust Him. I thank God day by day for giving me a chance. God knew that I loved him with my heart and that I needed help in prison and He sent people to help me in prison.
God also sent my family an angel to help them. My brother was very ill and needed to go to hospital. A Christian man paid for the hospital bill. Also, my mother was very ill in prison and had to stay in the outside hospital for very long. I didn’t have much money and couldn’t go and visit her. God healed my mom and she came back healthy and strong. God has shown me His true love and how powerful He is.
Remember to keep the faith and love will be there to guide the way. I pray and obey what God says. This is the great love of my lord Jesus.
October 2011
Thank you for loving me witht the love of Christ, especially your letter and the Bible material for me. Although I do not understand English here in prison there is a small chapel and some of my friends from Europe understand English. They explained the words to me verbally. Three are services every Friday and Sunday. Sunday has special sermons for the pre-believing prisoners. I now believe the Lord loves me, He will bless me with a bright future to come out of prison. In prison for the past 13 years, like a boat lost in the ocean. Now I have found a harbor. Therefor, I wrote letter to you to greet you with peace, you and the brother and sisters who help gain pardon for me from the Thailand king. This has eased my heart ache. Thank you for loving me with the Lord’s love. I thank the Lord, He changed my life through the Bible’s truth and teachings. From now on, the road I have to travel, the difficulties and everything I offer to the Lord. All glory go to the Lord.
2003
MT
I have spent the past several days deliberating, as to how to thank all of you properly. No matter how I tried, I know I will never be able to fully express my gratitude , indebtedness , thankfulness for what you have given me: HOPE. Hope is the only thing we inmates hold on to and carry on living for despite all odds.
Can you please try and imagine yourselves inside a prison as an inmate, with 40 years sentence of which you must serve in full. No rebate or early parole for good conduct. Then, imagine as you served the first few years your relatives and friends desert you.. forgot about you as if you are already “dead” Can you imagine what kind of feelings and thoughts will be going through your head? The emotional and mental distresses daily?
All because somebody told you to carry “this bag” from point A to B and he will pay you US dollars to solve all your financial problems of which you have to solve in order to keep the “loan sharks” from harassing your mom and dad at home. You got no other choice and decide to do it just this one time. Besides, it’s an easy job. Problem is, you are so very desperate that you failed to see that you will never even get through customs. Next thing you know, you have ‘leg- irons” cramped to both your ankles and the judge who jsut took down the black cloth from his his head after giving you a ‘death sentence’ said that because you pleaded guilty, the sentenc is reduced to life imprisonment. The rest of your life in prison!
But thanks be to God, our father in heaven who not only saved me from killing myself but also pour His love and grace into me, thus healing my broken heart and soul. Also , I would like you to know that it was after spending a few years in prison , after I became a Christian that I finally realised the devastating consequences I would have caused to society if I had gotten to my destination.
Great is my God, for I believed He used me, putting me through various trials and tribulations in order that I might repent and mend my evil ways, that I may be ‘complete’. I did not become a Christian to seek slavation but through the ‘too many coincidences’ I called it God incidences it is HE who made me believe. The scar stitches marks (12 to be exact) on my left wrist bears testimony of this fact.
All in all , I am deeply grateful and indebted to you ladies for your mercy, kindness, forgiveness etc for a sinner such as me. I thank you all from my heart. Grace and peace to you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
