Nepal seemed to fly right by without me blogging about it at all. I found myself surrounded by God’s grace lived out through our ministry hosts and what the impact they were making in Nepal. My team and I were partnered with another World Race team and given the opportunity to work with a program for women and children in need (out of protection for those involved I’m unable to give the name of the organization). During our stay in Nepal we were given the opportunity to work with local children in the nearby slums, participate in the rescuing of women and children from trafficking, and take a trip to a village where we were able to intercede with a pastor there and spend time covering the entire village with prayer.
God taught me many things in Nepal; with the predominant religion being Hindu it was common to see people offering sacrifices to idols and worship Shiva (one of the main Hindu gods), and it became vital to cover ourselves in constant prayer and to remember that we worship the one and only God.
Our host explained to us that the children we would be working with in the slums were the children of the radical monks, and the monks asked us to spend time with them knowing that we are Christian. Each morning and afternoon we would play games, sing songs, and end our time with the children by telling them a Bible story. Their attention span was short-lived so we’d usually act out the Bible story.
As soon as the children would see us walking in the street toward the building we’d meet with them in, they would come running and grinning with excitement. The first thing they would do is jump in our arms or cling onto us. I’m going to be honest: it was difficult on several levels. I don’t even like referring to it as slum ministry, but I suppose that’s what it was. The neighborhoods were poor, and the odors that would rise from the trash that covered the ground was sometimes hard to bare. The air was dusty and I’m still recovering from the congestion. The children had lice and would occasionally pee or poop on us, but all they wanted was love. They wanted to be loved as they were and they wanted us to love them, and spend time with them, take them in our arms, and simply hold onto them.
During my time in Nepal the other World Race team we were partnering with was able to be directly involved in the rescue of a child whose mother is being trafficked. Because of this, my team was unable to participate in the ministry, however it was because our host was focused on the needs of this rescue. Although we were not directly involved, my team was able to witness God move and see something that you normally only hear about.
The village was an experience. We found ourselves sharing one room between thirteen women: it was hot, small, and at nighttime we’d have the company of rats who thought it was okay to crawl over our legs. If I’ve learned anything about villages, it’s that they have their own way of doing things and you just have to roll with it. Nepali people eat two meals a day (that means even if you’re hiking that’s what you’re going to get) one meal in the morning and one at night. Also, our shower was the most interesting shower I’ve experienced in my entire life. There was a spring of water off the side of the road, and the entire village would walk there to bathe and fill water jugs up for drinking and cooking. One night, after a five hour hike, we took with our host, some girls from my team and I made our way down to the showers with one of the female leaders from our ministry. We stood, (clothes on) lathered up with soap, and shoved our heads under the cool water.
Although ministry was busy in Nepal, I feel like God used it to refresh my spirit. By being surrounded by all of creation I couldn’t help but see Him everywhere. He used slum ministry to open my heart to loving unconditionally in ways I hadn’t been challenged before, and He used our ministry host’s heart for women and children to testify to His own love lived out through them.
