It is said that the number of foreign Christians in Japan is almost the same as the number of Japanese Christians, only a small number of those are missionaries. What’s God doing in Japan?

After several years in Vietnam Tina had the opportunity to get involved in a small local church. Like many newer churches in the city, the members of the church were largely students and young people who had become followers of Jesus in the last two or three years. In fact Vietnam has a very young [...]

What does sharing the Good News look like in Vietnam? For Kate* this has meant moving to a suburb of the city where she works in order to be part of a small, local church and participate in the life of that fellowship. With the intention of sharing the gospel in all its fullness at [...]

    A Mien believer is very sick and nearing the end of his life. His younger brother asks him if he can perform a big, two or three day, spirit ceremony for him after he dies. His brother, however, is so sick that he cannot talk. He takes a piece of paper and writes: […]

“God set up divine appointments to convict me of how He listens to every prayer we utter.”

As Taiwanese women start receiving a better education than in the past, many are choosing their career over marriage. Taiwanese men are finding it harder and harder to find Taiwanese wives and are increasingly starting to marry overseas brides. Currently in Taiwan there are over 80,000 Vietnamese brides. Mr. Gao (pronounced “gow”) owns a small [...]

  We had ridden the bus for two days and then another ‘short’ 4-hour van ride when we arrived in this small migrant worker slum. As soon as we arrived, the word spread by mouth and cell phone. That evening we had a meeting, sharing words and songs of encouragement until the early hours of [...]

“An inspiration & privilege for both of us was listening to the stories of missionaries we met.”

“They grew in their understanding and heart for God and mission and so did their church. “

High flyer Hạnh experiences disillusionment as a student in college, putting her future career at risk. Struggling to make sense of her time there, she hears the Gospel for the first time from missionaries. ADDITIONAL INFO: Music: “Only Sadness Knows” by Judson Lee; and “Moments from the Heart by Jason Donnelly. Produced by KIND Studios [...]

High flyer Hạnh experiences disillusionment as a student in college, putting her future career at risk. Struggling to make sense of her time there, she hears the Gospel for the first time from missionaries. ADDITIONAL INFO: Music: “Only Sadness Knows” by Judson Lee; and “Moments from the Heart by Jason Donnelly. Produced by KIND Studios [...]

“Vietnam, though one nation, is in fact a colourful tapestry of 114 minority people groups…”

Lam became a Christian when he was 17. He moved to the town looking for a job and a house church there. Being the best educated among them, he quickly ended up leading the group. Lam didn't think he could take on the job, but who else was there? The single Bible College in Vietnam [...]

"Would you like a glass of grape juice?" Hien asked. It seemed like a straightforward enough question, but the grape juice had just been taken from the family altar. Hien makes daily offerings of incense, food and flowers to the spirits of her deceased parents. According to her ID card and her own description, Hien [...]

“And no pastors preaching a sermon in the church!” This was one of the instructions given to rural churches distributing Christmas gifts to local children. Instead, the churches were encouraged to send their young people out into their local communities to meet children and share the story of how Jesus came to the earth to [...]

“I thought the women in my church just couldn’t grasp the Bible.” A pastor with 15 years of teaching experience was talking about the impact of a new way of communicating the Bible. He had attended a training course to learn how to use storytelling to engage more deeply with God’s truth. This pastor had [...]

Thai and his friends gathered together one evening to pray for the Tho people. Though truly urban Vietnamese, Thai and his friends are burdened to pray for the many rural minority peoples of Vietnam. They have a regular prayer meeting, each time learning about a different people group and crying out in prayer that each would [...]

In recent years a university education has become a difficult but attainable dream for those living in remote Vietnamese villages. For the few who are accepted into university, they dream of finding a good job that will pay enough money to change the lifestyle of their entire family. Some of these students study English which [...]

Thắng from OMF International Media on Vimeo. After dropping out of school, Thắng and his brother left Vietnam to find a new life elsewhere. In the depths of his personal struggles, the message of the Gospel reached him and changed his life forever. ADDITIONAL INFO: Music: “Solace” by Keith Holden Produced by KIND Studios in [...]

Thắng from OMF International Media on Vimeo. After dropping out of school, Thắng and his brother left Vietnam to find a new life elsewhere. In the depths of his personal struggles, the message of the Gospel reached him and changed his life forever. ADDITIONAL INFO: Music: “Solace” by Keith Holden Produced by KIND Studios in [...]

“My father would be so pleased”, Tran declared at the official rededication of the family worship house. The house had become a virtual ruin since Tran’s family fled Vietnam in the 1960s, with only an elderly former servant keeping it from collapse. But Tran, now a successful businessman in the US, has funded the restoration [...]

Vui’s family was poor, so they moved to Ho Chi Minh City to find a better life. They struggled to scrape enough money together to pay for Vui’s university education, and all their efforts paid off. After graduation, Vui started her own business and it grew and grew. She travels internationally and earns ample to [...]

“My father’s side of the family follows Confucianism. I like it and follow some of the teachings, but not all of them. My mother’s family is Buddhist. Again, I like to follow some of Buddhism, but not all of it. Now I’m learning about Christianity ... I’m feeling confused and disturbed. Is it okay to follow [...]

At midnight of the lunar New Year, the rooftops and balconies of any Vietnamese town are crowded with people. The streets below are alive with a plethora of sounds and sites; singing and dancing revellers and the steam and smells from snack vendors lining the streets. Fireworks flare up and sparkle between the numerous high [...]

Vietnam is the Lord’s and everything in it (Ps 24:1), from its human and animal inhabitants to its vegetation, both natural and cultivated (rice, coffee, fruit). Its land, from sea-level deltas to mountainous highlands, its natural resources (minerals, gas, oil and timber) and its water and air ... All belong to the LORD! The nation [...]

Buddhism was adopted as the state religion of Vietnam in the first century AD, but when the communist government came to power, all religion was suppressed. Despite years of suppression, the united Buddhist church is now sanctioned by the government, and Buddhist thinking remains ingrained in the national mindset. Approximately 54% of Vietnamese people call [...]

Ong Troi, the “Honourable Mr Heavens”, is the creator of the heavens and the earth. The highest authority who knows right from wrong, he is the judge who will influence daily life, rewarding the good and punishing the bad. Buddha and other deities and spirits may exist, but Ong Troi is the highest-ranking and most [...]

Vietnam has the fifth largest population of the countries OMF works in – and one of the lowest Christian populations. OMF’s first workers arrived in 1961 but had to leave at the end of the Vietnam War when the whole country became Communist. However, since the 1990’s, Christian professionals have been welcome. Most Christians in [...]

    “If he does it, he will be dead within three months.” That was the word that was spreading around the village about Uncle Som. For some time he was the main topic of gossip and conversation at the morning market. People couldn’t believe that he was going to publicly renounce the way of […]

Vietnam - For decades a country closed to foreigners, where the stigma of war has loomed large. The country has been one of the most neglected frontiers in missions. But now the situation has changed. With a fast growing economy, and sixty per cent of the population below 35 years old change is afoot and [...]

A typical Vietnamese game is Ti Jianzi; a game where you keep a shuttlecock in the air as long as possible with your body. However, you are not allowed to use your hands. A ‘Jianzi’ or ‘shuttlecock’ is really easy to make yourself from a plastic bottle or some metal rings and feathers. So, if [...]

Vietnam’s Pho noodle soup is almost elevated to the dish of Vietnam. Chicken, vegetarian or beef are all possible. It started originally as street food in Northern Vietnam, but due to domestic indifference, people spread over the country and crossed borders bringing their recipes with them. Luckily we can eat this delicious food at home […]

Mr. Mai lives with his wife in a small hamlet in central Vietnam. They have three children. Mrs. Mai earns enough selling rice porridge and noodles to feed the family and buy medicines for her elderly mother. The two daughters fund their own education by selling drinks at construction sites, but Mr. Mai must find […]

Huyen had only been dating her boyfriend, Duc, for a few months when she found out she was pregnant. Huyen didn’t love Duc and knew he wouldn’t make a good husband, but in Vietnam having a child outside marriage is unacceptable. If her parents and neighbors found out, she would be cut off and the […]

During a missions trip to the central highlands, I met a 20-year-old man who had fallen in love with a girl who spurned him, and as a result, he committed suicide. He was dead. None of his family were Christians, and they were desperate. They knew of a Christian in the area and called him, […]

Ong Troi, the “Honorable Mr. Heavens,” is the creator of the heavens and the earth. The highest authority who knows right from wrong, he is the judge who will influence daily life, rewarding the good and punishing the bad. Buddha and other deities and spirits may exist, but Ong Troi is the highest-ranking and most [...]

Forget your sugary energy drinks and double ristrettos. Get your pick-me-up from this East Asian rocket fuel and share it with your friends. Vietnamese iced coffee, also known as cà phê đá, literally 'ice coffee', is a traditional Vietnamese coffee drink. Cà phê đá is made with finely ground Vietnamese-grown dark roast coffee. It is [...]

The phone rang and on the other end was Thuy Anh. Though it was late at night, she couldn’t wait to share her news. Her parents had arranged for two American men to come to her home the next morning, and Thuy Anh wanted us to help her choose which one she should marry. She […]

Although she was a Christian, at 25 Hoa married a Buddhist. Like most Vietnamese, she moved into her in-laws’ house immediately after the wedding. From the first day, Hoa’s in-laws made life unpleasant for her and her husband. They hated Hoa for being a Christian and tried to force her to worship the family’s ancestors. [...]

“After they heard the Christmas message, so many people left smiling and happy.”

During a turbulent period spent at an orphanage in rural Vietnam, young Phuong was thrown a lifeline in the form of visitors who came to the centre and shared Christ’s love with her. Phuong became a believer, and dreamed of one day returning to share her faith with the children at the orphanage. Phuong now [...]

The cocks crow and my neighbours are nattering outside- it’s only 5.30am but life starts with the sunrise, even in a big city. Happily, after 5 years in Vietnam I can sleep through the high levels of background noise, which varies from family karaoke parties, three days of intermittent drum beating to keep the spirits [...]

Đại Mạng Lệnh của Bà As part of our training, Bible school students have to visit other provinces to tell them about Jesus. In July 2013 I went on a trip to the Highlands. There I met an amazing 76 year old woman, who turned to Christ in 2004. She was illiterate, but wanted to […]

Hoa is an energetic Christian businesswoman in Ho Chi Minh City, married with two young children. For all her liveliness, her eyes brim with tears whenever she talks about her children and how she longs for them to grow up to love and serve the Lord. Hoa was raised in a Buddhist family, but became […]