Transparent Fish Fund
  • Home
  • Projects
  • Track
  • Blog
  • How It Works
    • About Us
    • Annual Reports
    • Get Involved
    • Grant Application
    • Media
    • FAQs
    • Contact Us
  • Donate

Grant Report 2015: Taiwan Prison Ministry

4/7/2016

 
Picture

"The inmates are very impressed with our care and often send letters to express their appreciation.  Currently more than a hundred inmates have been converted in prison." 
Pastor Thu

(Read examples of letters from a prisoner in this blog post.)
Picture

Ministry Overview

As 2015 comes to an end, the Vietnamese Diaspora Outreach Ministry in Taiwan thanks their supporters for their care and prayers throughout the year. They are now responsible for 3 main ministries:
  1. Agape Vietnamese Church in Vietnam
  2. Ministry in detention centers
  3. Ministry in prison

1) Agape Vietnamese Church in Vietnam

The believers at this church include workers and migrants who still suffer from economic difficulty and work pressure. The church, in the love of God, still has areas of development and achievement in both human resource and financial aspects.

Chinese-Vietnamese Students
In the summer of 2015, there were 5 new Chinese-Vietnamese students attending Chung Yuan University, bringing the total number of students in the church to 7. They are children of Sanh Manh Duong church's believers in Vietnam, thus having been gifted with musical talent. In the Lord's love, they provide assistance in praise, leading the group to worship God every week. Thanks to them, we have a live band for worship.
​
The Church's Activities
  • Sunday worship: Approximately 25-30 people
  • Baptism: 6 people, including 1 Taiwanese who is the husband of a Vietnamese bride
  • Baby dedication: 5 children
  • Evangelism: 6 people
  • Children's group: 6 children speaking Chinese
  • Worship in Chinese: service in the 2nd week of each month for Taiwanese people
Picture
Picture
Financial Situation
The church has been sponsored with a 25% decrease in rental expenses every 3 months for the last 2 years until the end of 2015. We thank God that our believers realize the importance of financial independence starting from 2016, thus the financial condition of the church has improved with more support. The church's essential expenses include:
  • Monthly rental expense ($500 USD)
  • Administrative expense ($600 USD)
  • Sponsoring a Taiwanese theological student who is an intern and assistant to the pastor ($170 USD)

2) Ministry in Detention Centers

Picture
Picture
Picture
There are 4 large detention centers in Taiwan, each of which has nearly 100 Vietnamese people detained for illegal immigration or other violations. We carry on ministry every week. Most people are unprepared for their detention, thus being in need of necessities, so we provide them with tissues, towels, and instant noodles.

During our weekly mission, there are always God's believers who attend. The number depends on the permission of the detention center's administration board. In the last 6 years that we've done the detention center ministry, many people have become believers before they went back to Vietnam. As the detention time is usually short, our mission is aimed at people who have never learned about the church before they leave Taiwan.

3) Ministry and Spiritual Care in Quishan Prison

Picture
There are more than 100 male prisoners in Quishan prison. They are sentenced from 6 months to life imprisonment. They used to have resentment and guilt for themselves and their families. Some of them even tried to commit suicide for suffering from improper sentence or losing hope for the future due to the long sentence. It is our gratitude to God that those prisoners with resentment easily become Jesus's believers to embrace God's forgiveness.

Ministry Achievements
  • About 85% believe in Jesus.
  • About 5% are Catholic. They still attend our ministry, but we don't try to change their belief.
  • About 10% are still undecided. Most of them have short sentences.

Expenses for Prison Ministry
  • Birthday gifts
  • Encouragement for people under special care
  • Christmas gifts every year
  • Cooking or buying food supplies in several occasions
  • Awards for Bible Contest

Bible Contest
Last year we organized a contest on Psalm 91 and 21 Bible verses. There were 24 contestants in total; 8 of them won first prize with perfect results. They were awarded $70 USD. Others who made some mistakes in the contest were encouraged with small awards of $10 or $20 USD, depending on how many mistakes they made.

This year we plan to organize a contest on Psalm 23, 20 Bible verses, and the Bible's table of contents. There will probably be more contestants. The results will come out in mid-2016. The amount of money used for the prison ministry depends on God's love through our donors, thus relying on your support.

Ministry for Believers in Prison
There are 3 people following the theological curriculum "The Life of Jesus Christ," and they are close to the end of Book 5. Some are following "Abundant Life" and other materials.

Care for Believers After Prison
During the last 6 years, there have been about 50 believers who returned to Vietnam from prison in Taiwan. A small number of workers received training under Agape Vietnamese Church, and a bigger number of believers in detention centers. It was out of our compassion for them, since they received neither attention nor spiritual care after returning to Vietnam.

To follow up from the ministry activities in Taiwan, Pastor Thu went to northern Vietnam in the beginning of 2015 to visit returnees. In 2016 he intends to go back again, to establish communication with the returnees and to connect with the local church. He also plans to support the local church in resettling believers who returned from prison through several community development projects.

Prison Ministry Updates from 2016

Picture

​Group Meetings and Evangelistic Services

We have a regular Vietnamese group big meeting at the Taipei prison, usually on the first week of every other month. We also have a weekly evangelistic service at the immigration detention center every Wednesday.

​Scripture Memorization Contest

This year we continued the Bible memorization contest. The challenge is to memorize Psalm 121 & 23 and the whole Bible index. This year we have more Vietnamese inmates participating in the contest than last year, and the number of winners with zero mistakes has also increased. ​​

​Compassion Ministry Gifts

During the Lunar New Year we just had in January we made Banh Chung and Gio Thu (Vietnamese New Year traditional food) to distribute to them. The year-end gifts and assistance for their special needs are also continued as a mandate of our compassion ministry. ​​

​A Growing Harvest Field, Laborers Needed

The number of Vietnamese inmates increases yearly, and the releases are fewer than the incoming ones. It is so sad, but we try our best to share love to them. Currently more than a hundred inmates have been converted in prison. We are overwhelmed with the task. In order to add more workforce, we are paying transportation expenses and a little sum to a sister in the church, sister Diep, to assist us in our prison and immigration detention ministries. She is faithful and very helpful for us in this outreach ministry. We anticipate raising her up for the pastoral ministry.

​Theological Studies

This year we also start the distance theological study under the sponsorship of Vietnamese C&MA Divinity school in California for three students. They are very eager to study and appreciate this opportunity.

​Community Development, Chuch Planting, and Medical Missions

We are also writing the formal community development project integrating with church planting among the Tin Lanh North church. We also cooperate with Chia Yi Christian hospital in Taiwan to organize the medical short term mission supporting Tin Lanh North church. Sister Lilies Yeh, currently a Bible school intern at our church, is on staff at this medical firm. Hopefully, one Taiwanese medical mission team can be sent some time early next year.
Picture

Prayer Requests: Spring 2016

Please pray for the following issues:
  1. The sponsorship process for a Vietnamese Bible School student to intern at the Agape Vietnamese Alliance Church. This strategy is to encourage the church in Vietnam to send missionaries to serve in Taiwan.
  2. The church is seeking another Taiwanese student intern as the current intern will finish her term in July 2016.
  3. For the reopening of the immigration detention centers for evangelistic activity. The high authority of the immigration department has ordered the termination of all activity after 10 detainees used force to escape one detention center. In the past 8 years over a thousand people have been converted in immigration detention centers.
Thank you for the support of Transparent Fish Fund to make this result for the glory of our Heavenly Father.

Thu & Hanh Nguyen
Vietnamese Diaspora Outreach Ministry in Taiwan

Comments are closed.

    TFISH FUND BLOG

    We update news and reports directly from the field written by our NGO partners daily.

    DONATE NOW

    Top Posts

    1. Winter Coats Distribution in Gansu
    2. Water Reservoir at Zhengjia Elementary
    3. Adonai Child Rehabilitation Mid-Year Grant Report
    4. Water Wells Project in Vietnam
    5. LRS Follow Up with Caiping

    PHOTOS & VIDEOS

    Picture

    IN THE NEWS

    • Little Red Scarf, Stanford Journal of Public Health
    • TFish Lab, China Weekly

    Categories

    All
    1001 Fontaines
    ACR
    Albinism Home
    Albinism Home
    Allianz Mission
    Anhui Farmers Cooperative
    Annual Report
    Awareness Event
    Bayshore
    Behcet Association
    Bird Home
    Bird Home
    BJ Behcet
    Blog Topic
    Blue Sky
    Bo'Ai Humanitarian Team
    Boya
    Burma Humanitarian Mission
    Caidie
    Changing Young Lives
    Changzhou Volunteers
    Chao Foundation
    Chengdu University Public Welfare Association
    Chengdu Volunteers
    Children On The Edge
    China Cal
    Clover Youth
    Daba Council
    Dandelion
    Design That Matters
    Dingxi Loving
    Disaster Relief
    DloHaiti
    D-Starine
    Du'an
    Due Diligence Visit
    East Villagers
    Event Recap
    Events
    Everydayheroes
    Fall Campaign 2014
    Fangzhou
    Field Visit
    Fundraiser
    Gansu Care
    Gansu Micro Loans
    Grant Report
    Green Olive
    Green Wind
    Heart To Heart Center
    Hefei Happy Childhood
    Helping Orphans Worldwide
    Hemophilia Home
    Henan Volunteers
    Heyue Free Library
    HIS Foundation
    HIS Foundation
    Home Of Chivalrous People
    Hongshan Street Disable Service Center
    Hope Volunteer Association
    ICC
    Intern Updates
    In The Community
    ISeek
    Jian’ai Art
    Jiaozuo Education Aid Association
    Jinshui Service Center
    Lanzhou Greenland
    Lianhu Thousands Love
    Light Of Love
    Little Bee
    Little Sapling
    Longwan Caring Home
    Longwan Home
    Longxing Public Welfare Association
    Loving Public Welfare Association
    LRS
    Lrs Care
    Lrs Summer Camp
    Lrs Surgery
    Magnolia
    Mianyang Public Welfare Forum
    Mianzhu Family
    Mianzhu Heart To Heart Charity Team
    Migrant Art School
    Migrant Art School
    Migrant School
    Mingda School
    Miscellaneous
    Mrs. Zhou
    Mulan Community Activity Center
    Myasthenia Gravis Care Association
    Nanjing Foster Service Center For Disabled People
    Nayong Loving
    Nayong Loving
    New Project Partnership
    Newsletter
    Okeefe
    One Heart World Wide
    Organizing Capacity Building Center
    Orphan Impact
    Overseas Volunteer Team Of Beijing University
    Panda Care
    Pok Oi Team
    Press
    Press Release
    Project Updates
    Rainbow Village
    Rcef
    Rural Experts
    Sahaya
    Sarta Volunteer Association
    SEAPC
    Senior Center
    Shanquan Youth Public Welfare Development Center
    Shenzhen Friendship Community Services Center
    Shenzhen Pengbo
    Simple Scholarships
    Soul Of Life
    Spine China
    Spring Center
    Star Hope Special Education
    Stepping Stones
    Taiwan Labor Concern
    Taiwan Prison Ministry
    Taiwan Root
    Testimonial
    Tfish China
    Tfish Events
    Tfish Fund
    Tfish Volunteers
    Thank You Letter
    Tianlai Speech Therapy Center
    Tribal Poverty Relief
    Vietnamese Christian Rehabilitation Ministry
    Vietnamese Laborers Ministry
    Vietnam Missions
    Volunteer Association Of Tai’an City
    Warm Love Home
    Wild Lily
    WTO
    Xi’an Heart To Heart Community Service Center
    Xi'an Volunteers
    Yangling Environment Protection Association
    Yichang Civil Public Students
    Yinfeng Loving Service Team
    Yongning Students
    Youth Social Responsibility Center
    Yu Disability
    Yunmeng Volunteers Association
    Yunnan
    Yunnan Care
    Yunnan Leprosy Village
    Yurun Micro Public Good Alliance
    ZOE

    Archives

    August 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    June 2011

    RSS Feed

© Copyright 2011. All rights reserved.
445 S San Antonio Rd Suite 204 Los Altos, CA 94022  | info@tfishfund.org | 501(c)(3) Tax ID: 45-2885139
  • Home
  • Projects
  • Track
  • Blog
  • How It Works
    • About Us
    • Annual Reports
    • Get Involved
    • Grant Application
    • Media
    • FAQs
    • Contact Us
  • Donate