More than 13,000 Myanmar Youth Gather for First International Acquire The Fire Event

Contact: Kerry Park, 405-568-7482, KerryLPark@msn.com

DALLAS, July 28, 2015 /Christian Newswire/ -- Teen Mania International made history July 16-27, 2015, with its nationwide evangelistic outreach to the people of Myanmar (formerly known as Burma). The initiative, known as Mission Myanmar, also featured the ministry's first international Acquire the Fire event that saw an astounding attendance of around 13,000 each night.

Mission Myanmar began July 16 when 50 young missionaries from the U.S., and additional teams from China, South Korea, and Taiwan converged on the city of Yangon. Following two days of intense training, the young people provided support for a variety of partner-led initiatives designed to aid and impact some of the most underserved people groups in the region.

Teen Mania was invited to share the gospel by Myanmar Evangelical Christian Association, and was soon joined by CBN's Operation Blessing International, Joyce Meyer Ministries, Mercy for the Children, and Within Reach Global.

In addition to performing children's ministry at several orphanages, teams assisted ministry partners with medical missions, and joined area churches in visiting destitute communities to extend invitations to the upcoming two-day youth rally.

The Acquire the Fire rally represented landmarks for both Teen Mania and the nation of Myanmar. "Beyond being the first international Acquire the Fire in the history of the ministry, this was the first event—of any kind—for the youth of Myanmar," explained Ron Luce, ministry founder and president. "It's such a tremendous privilege to point thousands of precious young people to the One True Living God, and to inspire them to take their tribes and nation for Him."

Friday, July 24, Myanmar's young people began streaming into Yangon by bus and train from every region of the nation to attend the much-anticipated Acquire the Fire youth rally. The event introduced attendees to Christian leaders from throughout the area. The crowd was delighted with the participation of Phyu-Phyu, one of Myanmar's best-known and beloved music artists, and were blessed by anointed praise and worship led by U.S.-based Austin Adamec and his band.

The rally was held at Yangon's outdoor Insein Football (soccer) Stadium, and not even the rainy season could dampen the spirits of thousands of attendees. Teen Mania friends and donors helped keep the crowd comfortable by renting enormous tents that provided cover for 10,000 seats on the field. Another 1,200-1,500 attendees were seated in covered stadium bleachers that surrounded the field.

More than 13,000 people in all had registered to attend both Friday and Saturday nights of Acquire the Fire, and countless others were welcomed to walk in without having registered. Seven hundred people from area churches served as volunteers who assisted with both practical and ministry aspects of the event. One group of ladies prayed on location for 24 hours prior to the event. When the time for the first altar call finally came on Friday night, no less than 3,000 came streaming through the aisles to profess their new-found faith in Jesus Christ.

Reflecting on the historic nature of Mission Myanmar, Luce said, "It's been 60 years since the gospel was publicly proclaimed to this predominantly Buddhist nation. We pray this will be the start of a new day of ministry in Myanmar. The prayers of Myanmar's faithful are being answered. God has not forgotten them, and neither have we."

While this was the first international Acquire the Fire, it won't be the last, Luce said. "There are 1.8 billion young people in the world, and many of them have become so saturated in Western media and entertainment that they are more like American culture than their own. As a result, pastors everywhere are calling and pleading with us to help them reach their young people for Jesus Christ."

The success of Mission Myanmar offers a promising indication of Teen Mania International's unique ability to respond to the global needs of young people. Similar dynamic international partnerships are being considered currently in the northern part of Myanmar, as well as in South Africa.

Please check www.TeenMania.com for new photos, stories, and videos about Mission Myanmar.

About Teen Mania International
Teen Mania International and its partners are engaged in a mission to provoke a young generation to passionately pursue Jesus Christ and take His life-giving message to the ends of the earth. Since its founding in 1986, Teen Mania's Acquire the Fire has reached more than 3 million teens; Global Expeditions (GE), the worldwide leader in teen missions, has taken 76,876 teen missionaries to 67 countries, and won 1,318,647 souls for Jesus Christ. Visit TeenMania.com, GlobalExpeditions.com, and AcquireTheFire.com for more information.

For more information, contact:
Kerry Park
Mobile: 405.568.7482
Email: KerryLPark@msn.com