Hidden church, bold faith – Kanya and Phonesay

Exiled by their community for their faith, Kanya and Phonesay now live out their lives in the forests of Laos. Though their church’s existence is fragile, they worship the Lord boldly.

In the forests of rural Laos lies a handful of huts made of tarpaulin and planks of wood. From within one of the buildings comes the faint sound of singing.

It may not look like it, but it is, in fact, a church. But all around the huts are invisible boundary lines and markers designating government property. At any moment, the inhabitants could be chased away, their homes demolished.

Two amongst them, Kanya* and her husband Phonesay*, already know what that feels like.

Miraculous healing

In many parts of Laos, culture and identity are largely shaped by animist belief – the idea that spirits dwell within almost everything living and non-living. Angering a spirit is believed to be disastrous if expensive sacrifices are not offered.

Kanya and Phonesay lived out such rituals until Kanya fell ill. Already impoverished, questions about how they would restore her health pressed upon them. Their sacrifices weren’t working. And then a friend suggested a different approach.

“If you believe in God, He can help you,” he said.

And God answered their desperation.

“The Lord revealed something to me that made me want to follow Him,” says Kanya.  “So, I put my faith in God, regained my strength and was healed – thanks to the Lord.”

“Even if I die”

But with the healing came repercussions. After Kanya’s conversion, she and her Christian brother were celebrating. The authorities immediately confiscated her brother’s motorbike. “The officer said, ‘If you don’t recant your faith in Jesus, you must leave,’” Kanya recalls. “I firmly answered that I would not. Even if I die, I will never renounce Jesus.”

Pressure was arising from within her home, too. In the face of an ultimatum given by his family, Phonesay turned his back on Kanya.

“They forced me to leave the village,” Kanya says. “So, I fled and stayed with my relatives. During that time, I didn’t feel anything. My heart sought the Lord. Every moment I sobbed, I prayed – crying and asking God for help. But I was willing to sacrifice my husband and children for my faith.”

Overcoming evil with good

Over five years of separation, Kanya never stopped praying for her husband.

“Every time we’d have a call, she’d share the gospel with me,” Phonesay says. “She said, ‘Believe in Jesus, and we will be free.’”

Though Phonesay had turned to alcohol and drugs and was even remarried, God had not given up on him. His heart gradually softened – until he too decided to follow Jesus. His new wife left him and Kanya and Phonesay were reconciled.

When Kanya returned home to celebrate with other believers, the rebuttal from their neighbours was swift. With no help from the police, Kanya and Phonesay could only watch as their home was torn down. Then they were expelled from the community.

“I wasn’t afraid at that time,” Kanya says. “The Lord commands us not to repay evil with evil, but to overcome evil with good.”

A fragile existence

The persecution spread to other villages and eight other Christian families were exiled. The authorities permitted them to move to a farm in the forests. With the help of Open Doors, they built homes. But life is still very fragile.

“The villagers made a boundary around the land and do not allow us to expand the area,” Kanya says. “This land belongs to the government, but I am not afraid; I just lean on the Lord.”

Despite their poverty, Kanya and Phonesay had become rich in different way. “Living in the forest with other believers made me happy because we shared the same faith,” Phonesay says. “The Lord gave us time to worship Him every day.”

Now, they want to build a bigger church and enable more people to receive life in the gospel. A church forced into the forests, hidden away – but growing by the power of God.

*Names changed for security reasons