By this time, the brothers had moved the branch office from 39th Street to a two-story home on half an acre of land on Inya Road, in a well-to-do suburb north of the city. However, the new facility was now strained to the limit. Viv Mouritz, who at that time visited Myanmar as zone overseer, recalls: “The 25 members of the Bethel family worked under difficult conditions. The kitchen had no stove​—a sister did the cooking on an electric hot plate. The laundry had no washing machine, so a sister washed clothes in a hole in the floor. The brothers wanted to buy a stove and a washing machine, but the items simply could not be imported.”

Clearly, the brothers needed a larger branch. Consequently, the Governing Body approved a proposal to demolish the existing two-story home and erect a new four-story residence and office building on the same site. Nevertheless, before the brothers could implement the proposal, some major hurdles had to be overcome. First, approval was needed from six levels of government. Second, local building contractors, who were unfamiliar with steel-frame construction, could not do the work. Third, Witness volunteers from overseas could not enter the country. And finally, the building materials could not be obtained locally, nor could they be imported. Needless to say, the project appeared doomed. Just the same, the brothers trusted in Jehovah. If Jehovah wanted it, the new branch office would be built!​—Ps. 127:1.

‘Not by Power, But by My Spirit’

Kyaw Win, from the branch’s Legal Department, picks up the story: “Our building application moved steadily through five of the six layers of government, including the Ministry of Religious Affairs. Then the Yangon City Development Committee claimed that a four-story building would be too high and rejected our application. When we resubmitted the application, it was rejected again. The Branch Committee encouraged me to persevere. So I prayed fervently to Jehovah and submitted the application for a third time. It was approved!

“Next we approached the Ministry of Immigration. There, officials told us that foreigners could enter the country on seven-day tourist visas only. But when we explained that our skilled foreign volunteers would train locals in advanced construction techniques, they granted our volunteers six-month visas!

“Then we went to the Ministry of Trade, only to learn that a freeze had been placed on all imports. However, when we informed the officials about the nature of our project, they granted us a license to import building materials worth over one million dollars (U.S.). What about import tax? A visit to the Ministry of Finance resulted in their allowing us to import the materials tax-free! In these and many other ways, we experienced the truth of God’s declaration: ‘“Not by a military force, nor by power, but by my spirit,” Jehovah of armies has said.’”​—Zech. 4:6.

In 1997, volunteers converged on the building site. Brothers in Australia donated most of the building materials, while other supplies came from Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand. Bruce Pickering, who helped oversee the project, relates: “Several brothers from Australia prefabricated the entire steel frame and then traveled to Myanmar to bolt it together piece by piece. Amazingly, not one hole was out of place!” Other volunteers came from Britain, Fiji, Germany, Greece, New Zealand, and the United States.

For the first time in 30 years, local publishers could freely associate with foreign brothers and sisters. “We were so excited; it was like a dream,” recalls Donald Dewar. “The spirituality, love, and self-sacrificing spirit of the visitors encouraged us tremendously.” Another brother adds: “We also learned valuable building skills. Publishers who had used only candles learned to wire electric lights. Others who had used only hand fans learned to install air-conditioning. We even learned to use power tools!”

In turn, the foreign volunteers were deeply moved by the faith and love of the Myanmar brothers and sisters. “The brothers were poor, but they had big hearts,” says Bruce Pickering. “Many of them invited us to their homes for meals and shared food that could have lasted their families for several days. Their examples reminded us of what is truly important in life​—family, faith, our brotherhood, God’s blessing.”

On January 22, 2000, the new branch facilities were dedicated at a special gathering held at the National Theatre. The local brothers were thrilled to have John E. Barr of the Governing Body deliver the dedication talk.