MERCY. love. care.
A ministry that gives and provides equal love, justice and opportunity to Tribal Kids.
Motto: ARISE AND SHINE
White House Ministry is a residential cum-educational center for the underprivileged children among the Zo children in the remote hills of India to bring justice to all tribal children who are affected by parents’ love and affection, whose parents are addicted to drugs, divorce, and civil wars among the inter-tribal fightings in 1997.
God has led Max through an amazing and diverse journey and allowed him to build an adaptable ministry that supports children and their families in his people group, and others in need, across multiple countries. Max’s first experiences were formed around his upbringing and education in the Indian state of Manipur. Equally important was the heritage into which he was born – both ethnic and faith-based. Max is part of the Zo people group which exists in North East India and parts of Bangladesh and Myanmar, as well as a large diaspora in the USA and worldwide. Broadly speaking, “Chin”, “Zomi”, “Mizo” and “Kuki” are additional names by which the Zo people group is known. Due to God’s mercy, many Zo people were evangelized in the 19th and 20th centuries, and Max was born into a Christian family whose father was a tribal leader. Max was influenced early on by the work of Herbert Cope, a Baptist missionary who focused on literacy and education as he ministered in the Chin state in Myanmar (Burma); this created a platform for the Gospel and the first translation of the Bible in the local dialect, leading to many conversions and improvements in livelihoods. The Lord opened Max’s eyes to see the challenges in the children’s lives in India, particularly in his home state. The entire region of North East India has been beset by internal tribal crises and conflicts with the central government for many years. Additionally, it is geographically located near the infamous ‘golden triangle’ where drug production and trafficking thrived, and accompanying societal ills such as prostitution, poverty, violence, and disease were prevalent. After his undergraduate studies, Max did volunteer work in a home in the border area that served children made orphans by AIDS. He returned to Churachandpur in Manipur and continued to be actively involved in social causes, including independent journalism, while he partnered with his local evangelical Presbyterian church to support their outreach to at-risk children. Max was sponsored by his church to obtain further Biblical training in Singapore and while there he was also able to provide support to the Zo diaspora in Kuala Lumpur who was often victimized by unscrupulous employers and officials. He continued to learn about the effective delivery of social services from partnering with organizations such as the Roman Catholic Church and Doctors without Borders. Max had been praying for over a year and a half for guidance on his next step in God’s journey and he then launched the “White House” in Churachandpur. This residence provides a loving “family” support to 15 underprivileged children and teens who have no nearby family structure. It includes education through local private schools, additional tutoring, and skills development training. The White House is strongly connected with the local church and a network of churches and individuals with whom Max has networked in India and the USA. The White House is open to children of all faiths; Max’s social goals include building positive relations between children of different faiths while also celebrating the many children who have come to trust Jesus as their Lord and Savior. White House has been operating for nearly a decade and, sadly, it is facing some of its most challenging times. Some parties in the Indian government have grown increasingly and violently hostile to all non-Hindu faiths including Christianity. Legislatively, this has led to ongoing restrictions on overseas direct financial support even to multi-faith, service-based ministries like the White House. Although the inter-tribal conflict has lessened, any event provides a useful reason for even more security restrictions. Max’s own family has been targeted for persecution. Thankfully the local church and local network continue to provide some level of direct support to the children in their spiritual, physical, emotional, and educational needs, remaining consistent with the White House mission. Max’s ministry continues to provide strategic support to the White House in an ‘indirect’ manner while also building the local community through conferences for families and ministry leaders. While the children at the White House are supported locally, he is creating similar direct support models for the Zo community and their neighbors in Myanmar (Burma). He is also active in the Zo community in the USA – many have arrived through asylum (due to ethnic and religious persecution). Many struggles economically, including a large portion who work in industries seriously impacted by COVID, i.e. meat processing. Whether in India, Myanmar, the USA, or elsewhere, Max’s ministry follows the same principles:1) A ‘holistic approach to ministry – addressing social and spiritual needs which leads to a personal relationship with Jesus Christ2) Understanding eternal Biblical truths in local culture and environment3) Focusing on education and skills development, particularly for at-risk children in challenging locations, and their support network4) Building partnerships to get the best insights and build effective, sustainable, and measurable approaches to meeting local needs.WHAT IS NEEDEDThe funding for this ministry relies on individuals and churches. Max and the other ministry workers are volunteers and support themselves through secular vocations. Fundraising occurs through Modern Day Missions (501c3) and Max’s link is:Long-term goals of the ministry include the purchase or building of a boarding school for students as well as ongoing investment in children’s college education. Alternatives exist for funding individual children’s efforts (monthly donations) or capital contributions. Please reach out to Max if you are interested. More information can be found on the Hearts that Care (HtC) website. HtC kindly allows Max’s ministry to use pages on its website. Although HtC ministers locally in Pennsylvania and are formally affiliated with this ministry, they have connections to other Zomi efforts in the USA.Further dialogue from Max on key issues impacting the White House: What does poverty mean to Christians? Some members of the Christian community perceive poverty as a social stigma or taboo and tend to equate it with laziness. But Max believes poverty is not limited to the physical. It is also part of one’s spiritual life. He believes spiritual development can come through a physical transformation, which he believes is an integral part of his holistic missions. In the Bible, John 10:10 says “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” Jesus focuses on the poor and the needy just as He promised in the Beatitudes to those who are less fortunate than the others. Max also wants to proclaim the good news to the young children, especially in India and Myanmar, and other neighboring countries. There is a lot of work to be done, some of which is in isolated places that never heard about Jesus Christ’s love. Overseas, Max prioritizes India and Myanmar because he is more familiar with the language, local culture, and is passionate about the people. He also knows it is a great place to minister because of the large numbers of the non-Christian population in those areas. “A relationship between Christians and unsaved people has proven to be the most effective means of influencing unsaved people to get saved.” Christians often perceive helping the poor as something not related to evangelism. Max thinks poverty can be defeated through the Gospel. The poor don’t have the same opportunity as others, So, it is not about laziness. It is about a lack of opportunity. What is the role of education? In the long-term, Max is also interested in starting a mission school where children can be taught Bible classes as well as general education. It will significantly affect impact their life positively as they grow. Education is an essential part of life because proper education improves their level of employment and progress. The functionality of any school should embrace a diverse community. At the White House, Max set up a place for tutorial services for needy students who couldn’t afford to send their kids to an expensive private tutor. As the saying goes, “knowledge is power,” which is the tenet of education and pillar to success. Due to the scarcity of jobs/employment in the private or the public sector in these target areas, people take education very seriously. However, this does not in itself help the poor. Educated folks are looked up to and respected by society, whereas the poor children are deprived of their rights, freedom and economically oppressed by the rich and powerful people. Healthy macroeconomics plays a vital role in uplifting individual economic status. The residential school/boarding is an example where everyone can reflect on their relationship with God building on a foundation of his experience with the White House. Max’s interest in transforming the community and individual’s lives by serving them with love and utmost care. His ministry focuses on community development for poor people who know or don’t know the love of God, as he is motivated by Jesus Christ’s heart of compassion and social justice for the poor and needy people. He partners with local churches and local organizations to share skills and experiences and is committed to reaching out to the most marginalized society, physically, economically, and spiritually. He wants to rebuild and restore a broken community of faith through reconciliation, love, and share the gospel of Jesus. He deploys the most talented and dedicated people to lead projects initiated and guided by local volunteers. To have a long-term impact, he makes sure the mission is sustainable, producing high-quality results as he was called to serve in the most challenging places in India and Myanmar. He always promotes the gospel which helps relieve individuals’ sufferings/ burdens through the transformation of life. He supports fighting for social justice and shares the eternal joy and hope in Jesus Christ. His personal mission statement is following the savior of Jesus Christ by working with the oppressed people, advocating human transformation, seeking justice, and being the witness to the good news of Jesus Christ. Overall, Max’s ministry aims to bring the eternal hope of Jesus Christ to the tribal people of India, Myanmar, and those scattered to the USA and elsewhere by addressing their spiritual, physical, educational, and emotional needs.”What are some of those needs?
Educational Needs
A good education is the surest path out of poverty, but the educational situation in India remains very bleak for the vast majority of the population. It is especially troubling for children living in rural areas. Only a fraction of children in Manipur State, India makes it to high school, and an even smaller percentage actually graduate. Most children attend a few years of public school and then drop out because of poverty and hopelessness. These children end up working in the fields, or in the markets, or wherever they can, to help provide food for the family. In India, White House Ministry is providing rural children with the opportunity for a better future through current residential efforts.
Physical Needs
The current population of India is 1,378,529,934 as of Saturday, May 23, 2020, based on the Worldometer elaboration of the latest United Nations data. India 2020 population is estimated at 1,380,004,385 people at mid-year according to UN data. In 2008, when White House began working in Manipur state, the country of India ranked as the seventh poorest nation in the world. The ethnic tribal groups are especially underdeveloped. India is the largest democracy in the world and is a prosperous nation, but the minority tribes like Zo and minority religions like Christians are neglected in all-around development due to corruption and racism. The result is an economic and humanitarian disaster for many people; extreme poverty is still the normal way of life for millions. White House Ministry is working to end poverty through education, training, sustainable agricultural projects, and economic development, while still addressing short-term and immediate needs through our various aid programs.
Spiritual Needs
With less than 3% of the population defining themselves as Christian, there is a huge need is to preach the Gospel to the unsaved. But who is best equipped to do that in our day? We believe the Indian Christians should be evangelizing the lost in India, and so we work to build up Church by providing them with spiritual, theological, and financial resources. One way we are doing this is through our bi-annual Christian Conferences, and through White House Ministry.
Emotional Needs
In particular, the ethnic tribal people have suffered through years of adversity, political and economic oppression. An example is a suspension of FCRA account holders that allows transmitting money from overseas to Indian faith-based organizations. There are many unreported cases of discrimination, oppression, and physical persecution which are daily realities for Christians living in the metropolitan cities and other parts of India. The central government had tried all efforts to dictate various lifestyle issues for non-Hindus, including regulations on what they can eat. There is also tacit and active encouragement of violence against non-Hindus.
Please support our missions that serve the underserved children in India
Your support is vital for the continuity of our good work
We are providing rural children with the opportunity for a better future through current residential efforts.
The Gospel song is sung by children in collaboration with other local Church ministries.
Educational Needs
A good education is the surest path out of poverty, but the educational situation in India remains very bleak for the vast majority of the population. It is especially troubling for children living in rural areas. Only a fraction of children in Manipur State, India makes it to high school, and an even smaller percentage actually graduate. Most children attend a few years of public school and then drop out because of poverty and hopelessness. These children end up working in the fields, or in the markets, or wherever they can, to help provide food for the family. In India, White House Ministry is providing rural children with the opportunity for a better future through current residential efforts.
Physical Needs
The current population of India is 1,378,529,934 as of Saturday, May 23, 2020, based on the Worldometer elaboration of the latest United Nations data. India 2020 population is estimated at 1,380,004,385 people at mid-year according to UN data. In 2008, when White House began working in Manipur state, the country of India ranked as the seventh poorest nation in the world. The ethnic tribal groups are especially underdeveloped. India is the largest democracy in the world and is a prosperous nation, but the minority tribes like Zo and minority religions like Christians are neglected in all-around development due to corruption and racism. The result is an economic and humanitarian disaster for many people; extreme poverty is still the normal way of life for millions. White House Ministry is working to end poverty through education, training, sustainable agricultural projects, and economic development, while still addressing short-term and immediate needs through our various aid programs.
Spiritual Needs
With less than 3% of the population defining themselves as Christian, there is a huge need is to preach the Gospel to the unsaved. But who is best equipped to do that in our day? We believe the Indian Christians should be evangelizing the lost in India, and so we work to build up Church by providing them with spiritual, theological, and financial resources. One way we are doing this is through our bi-annual Christian Conferences, and through White House Ministry.
Emotional Needs
In particular, the ethnic tribal people have suffered through years of adversity, political and economic oppression. An example is a suspension of FCRA account holders that allows transmitting money from overseas to Indian faith-based organizations. There are many unreported cases of discrimination, oppression, and physical persecution which are daily realities for Christians living in the metropolitan cities and other parts of India. The central government had tried all efforts to dictate various lifestyle issues for non-Hindus, including regulations on what they can eat. There is also tacit and active encouragement of violence against non-Hindus.
Please support our missions that serve the underserved children in India
Your support is vital for the continuity of our good work
We are providing rural children with the opportunity for a better future through current residential efforts.