“The tasks of leadership are fulfilled most powerfully by a number of gifted players, not one.”
Local pastors and elders of the Kuki Christian Church in northwest Myanmar. These men share a vast wealth of life experiences and are growing daily in their knowledge of Scripture and practical ministry. As they become more confident they are able to take on more and more responsibilities of church leadership.
One of the first Leadership Training seminars held by Dr. Nehkholal
Dr. Nehkholal Khongsai (Palal) has long had a passion for training leaders for the local church. His six earned degrees, including a Doctor of Ministry (DMin) have prepared him well for this task. His doctoral thesis was “Servant Leadership in the Kuki Christian Church”.
The term “servant leader” very well describes Palal. He serves the Church in Myanmar in so many ways, and he works hard at developing the character traits of a good servant leader in himself and in those around him, knowing that he is only one person, and the Church needs many people to do the work of ministry.
Palal uses many different methods to help instill leadership principles, such as one-on-one mentoring, small group mentoring, and large group training seminars. And, as other leaders have watched him over the years and seen how he does not use his position of authority as a means for personal gain, but has sacrificed over and over again for them and the people, they have come to respect him and even to emulate his life.
Over the years his long hours and ceaseless efforts are bearing much fruit. Many elders and pastors have broken with the prevailing cultural norms of a top-down, power leadership style and are leading more like Jesus, with genuine compassion for their flocks.
Many of the current pastors and elders of the Kuki Christian Church are growing old, and a new generation of leaders need to be ready to step into their places. For this reason, Palal and the local pastors determined it was time to start a training institute for young people with a passion and desire for Christian service.
Hope Theological Seminary
In 2019, Dr. Nehkholal and a group of pastors and elders inaugurated Hope Theological Seminary to train young men and women to enter leadership ministry in the Church. Most of the current pastors and elders of the local churches are getting up in years, and finding young people to follow after them has been challenging.
This new ministry school is one way to address that problem. At this point, HTS is still quite small, has no buildings or paid staff, and is run entirely by volunteers. It is like all projects begun by MyHope and the local people, and we do not despise the day of small beginnings.
The students learn Bible doctrine, biblical theology, practical ministry, and life skills. The students pay no tuition, but they must work and help to provide for their food. One way they provide for their food is by gardening, and they also work at the East/West Garden Farm, helping out with planting, harvesting, and other tasks. For example, they learned how to mix, pour, and level concrete by hand when they helped install the floor of the new barn!
We look forward to many more years of working with Dr Nehkholal and the local pastors and elders to help the local congregations grow strong so that they can spread the Good News of Jesus Christ to northwest Myanmar and beyond. You can read more about HTS here.
