On the northeast side of the Bay of Bengal sits one of Southeast Asia’s hidden jewels: Myanmar (Burma).
Myanmar is home to more than 55 million people and 135 ethnic groups. If London is the “whole world in one place,” then Myanmar is one place with hundreds of worlds. Different faces. Different foods. Deep sociological and economic divides. This is a complicated nation, and I’ll leave it to others to unpack why. I got spend a few weeks there in late 2019 early 2020, and I am well aware of the state of the nation post-2021.
My trip there was quite an adventure. I left winter behind and landed, after more than a day of travel, in heat, humidity, and exhaustion. I slept through my alarm for twenty-five minutes before I even knew what day it was. The next several days were full. Conversations, meals, ministry, heartbreak, encouragement, and clarity.
It’s one thing to read about a place, but there’s nothing like being in it.
Here is what Myanmar exposed in me.
First, I have everything I need.
Myanmar is economically complex and challenged. I saw poverty up close. And yet, the people I encountered were consistently generous, kind, and content. There was a steadiness that stood in contrast to what I often see in the West.
In the United States, we search for peace and contentment in places that cannot hold them. In Myanmar, I was reminded that if I have the love of God and a love for people, I am not lacking anything essential.
Second, I really love leaders.
I spent time in orphanages, and those moments mattered for sure. However, what stirred something deeper in me were conversations with pastors, church planters, and Bible college leaders. These men and women were building something that will last with very little recognition and even fewer resources.
I found myself wanting more time with them. More questions. More dialogue. More investment.
Sometimes calling becomes clearest when you are outside your normal environment. Pay attention to what draws you in when nothing is expected of you. That often tells you more than any assessment ever could.
Third, I am a Kingdom citizen.
I stood barefoot at the Shwedagon Pagoda, one of the most sacred Buddhist sites in the world, surrounded by people on a spiritual journey very different from my own. I am not a Buddhist. I am a veteran. I live and lead in the American South. I love my country.
But in that moment, I was reminded that the world is bigger than my context.
I have friends in Myanmar. Friends in Nepal. Brothers and sisters across continents. The Church is not confined to a nation, a culture, or a preferred Christian denominational expression.
That trip reinforced something I have experienced repeatedly, especially in my seat as president of Manna University.
The global Church is not a case study.
The global Church is a living, breathing, and moving reality.
I’ve seen it in North Africa, where believers gather with quiet (and loud) courage. I’ve seen it with our Uncharted International team and what God is doing through the church in the Balkans and Central Asia. I’ve seen it in Romania with our Manna University students and partners.
When you treat the global Church like a case study, you stay in control, evaluate, categorize, and compare.
However, when you encounter the global Church as family, you listen, receive, and are changed.
That shift matters for emerging leaders.
If we are not careful, we can reduce what God is doing around the world to information rather than formation. We can talk about “global Christianity” without ever allowing it to confront our assumptions, challenge our preferences, or expand our imagination.
At Manna Church we often say, “The Church is a Force.”
Not a force in the way the world defines power, but in its endurance, its faithfulness, and its ability to take root in places where it should not survive.
While headlines focus on conflict and decline, the Kingdom of God continues to move. Quietly. Consistently. Globally.
The algorithm is not telling that story.
But it is true.
Hope has a name, and His Kingdom is not stalled.
For those of us involved in theological education and leadership development, this has real implications. We are not forming leaders for a single context. We are forming leaders who must think globally, engage cross-culturally, and remain theologically grounded in environments that are complex, diverse, and constantly shifting.
The global Church is not a case study.
It is our family.
When you begin to see it that way, you do not just learn about what God is doing.
You start to recognize your place within it.
* Adapted from a previously published post; revised and expanded for this series.
Dr. Carlo A. Serrano, President