Fleeing from Myanmar by photographer
Dear supporters,
I haven’t written much about the work I’m doing for and with the Rohingya refugees. There is just too much to tell. It’s overwhelming.
I continue working daily to encourage refugees as they tell about their experiences, assuring them of the unconditional love Jesus has for all people. I’m truly on the front line, with over eighty Rohingya now connected with me via LinkedIn. I’m hearing what is happening to them from their perspective. I’m learning about the crisis they’re facing in a way that is not being made known to the world. I would so much like to tell you everything so that you would know how to pray for them, but it would take too many pages of writing.
Since I started working with them, the crisis has greatly escalated. No matter where the refugees go to find safety, they are pushed away, in one case pushed into the sea by an Indian naval vessel with only a life vest in an effort to “dispose of them.” They would like to go back home to Myanmar, but it’s unsafe to do so. A new wave of genocide is occurring. Conditions in the Bangladesh camp, housing over a million refugees are for many impossible to cope with. They pay human traffickers all they have to buy passage elsewhere, loaded onto unsafe vessels. In May, two ships capsized in a turbulent sea, taking the lives of over four hundred.
They are a stateless people with nowhere to go. Forgotten by the world. Unwanted. Aid to them reduced until there’s little left for their survival.
I message in real time with individuals almost daily. They appreciate how I stand with them and how I encourage them. My words in support of them are published liberally on LinkedIn, not only through posts I write, but also in reposting their stories with my comments. They trust me and welcome everything I have told them about Jesus and his unconditional love for them. Often, when I tell them about Jesus and what he’s like, I’ll get a comment like “exactly!” I love them with the love that God has filled me with, and I feel loved back by them.
What has become a big problem is that almost each one ends up asking for financial support. How could they not with the great needs they have?
I’ve been asked for paper, pens and books by a teacher. Money for medical care for a father who is sick. Money for food to feed the hungry. Help to emigrate. The list goes on.
I have had to say no in each case, because if I were to help one, I would have to help all. I couldn’t hope to meet the many needs. I will donate to agencies that can help all of them equally. I’ve had to tell them that this is not what God has called me to do. All God made me to do is to give spiritual support. It has caused some to lose faith in me, but maybe only temporarily.
I hoped to start Living Room groups in the camps, speaking at length about it to some of their leaders. They like the idea, but communication is poor and nothing has happened so far.
Two Muslim Rohingya leaders spent several hours studying the explanation of the Open Door concept on the new web page, https://marjabergen.com/support-groups. I was delighted with their response:
Thank you so much for your heartfelt and honest message. I truly appreciate the time, thought, and spirit you’ve put into creating Living Room and its Open Door. Your words helped me understand your vision more deeply — that this is not about promoting a religion, but about sharing unconditional love, acceptance, and healing, using the life of Jesus as a universal example for all people.
I respect your view that Jesus, the man who lived 2000 years ago, came to bring dignity to those who were rejected, and that the love he embodied can be a unifying force across faiths. It’s a beautiful and inclusive message, and I see clearly now how your approach is meant to build bridges, not barriers.
How well Muslims are understanding it! Where friends of my own faith cannot accept it. Nevertheless, wide-spread acceptance is starting to happen, including among mental health professionals. On LinkedIn I find many opportunities to build awareness of this form of spiritual support. As a result, my following is growing.
I have the trust of these Muslim brothers and sisters. And I’m finding that their response to the spiritual messages I send out are as it was for the original Living Room members. They find ways of coping. They find healing. I’m going to focus more on sending out such devotional material. Words from Jesus is what they need more than anything right now.
Through Jesus, Rohingya are finding hope. They are finding courage and strength to continue with their lives—lives that in so many ways seem hopeless.
Although I’m often discouraged, feeling the great pain of the people I minister to. Encouraging them with messages from Jesus encourages me at the same time.
And I know that God is good. We’re in his hands.
I would very much appreciate your prayers—for myself and for the many I serve.
Blessings,
marja
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