Pastoral Self-Support Program

In Myanmar—especially within Chinese churches and among those serving in rural mountain regions—pastors are often regarded as poor, due to unique church traditions and cultural expectations. This perception has even affected marriage, as choosing a pastor as a spouse requires both courage and faith. Furthermore, due to theological misunderstandings, many congregations believe that pastors should not be wealthy. As a result, some traditional churches intentionally keep pastoral salaries very low, to the point where pastors struggle to meet even their basic living needs.

Under such conditions, fewer young people are willing to enter seminary or pursue training to serve the Lord, which has left the church with an insufficient number of pastors. In the past, churches and pastors in Myanmar relied heavily on financial support from churches and mission organizations in South America, Taiwan, Korea, Malaysia, and Singapore. However, since the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and the military coup in 2021, Myanmar’s economy has suffered severe setbacks, and foreign currency restrictions have intensified. As a result, many churches and centers, lacking international support, have been forced to close. Some pastors, unable to receive overseas funding and without sufficient income from their local congregations, were left with no choice but to abandon their ministries. Tragically, a number of Chinese-speaking pastors, under pressure to provide for their families, have even turned to fraudulent activities as a means of survival.

In response to this painful reality, Myanmar Theological and Mission Resources has launched the Pastoral Self-Support Program, aimed at providing pastors in poverty with a stable source of livelihood. By supporting small-scale livestock farming or technical projects, pastors can gradually become self-sufficient and no longer dependent solely on outside financial aid to determine whether they can continue in ministry. In addition to providing flexibility in their pastoral service, these self-support initiatives also enable pastors to model stewardship, develop practical management skills, and even contribute to the economic well-being of the communities they serve.

We sincerely invite you to partner with us in this ministry. By helping pastors develop self-sustaining income through livestock farming and technical projects, you can play a vital role in enabling them to overcome poverty and achieve the vision of self-support, self-sufficiency, and self-propagation.

Currently, the Faith, Hope & Love Mission Mobilization Fellowship is sponsoring two initiatives: a five-year sheep farming project and a computer and printing services project, both designed to empower pastors to sustain their lives and ministries with dignity and stability.