There is nowhere else I'd rather be than here. There is a time for everything (Ecclesiastes 3). The timing of Nepal is just right. I sit amazed at God and His perfect will for our lives. Knowing that I visited a village 10 hours away and hiked to in the Nepalese mountains, all because God wants this people group reached. He is using ME? I gulp. This is what I'm here for, God is my strength. He is my fortress and my words, amongst everything else, I trust in Him.
The street is nothing like America. It's a dirt road with huge rocks used as filler. There are old buildings with wooden doors and windows, foggy glass, and old rustic charm. The Nepalese people look like a mix of indians and eskimos. They are beautiful with dark brown or even black hair, dark brown or hazel eyes and tan skin. They stare at your white skin. They bundle in loud colors and patterns. Their hearts hungry.
Most Nepalese are Buddist, after all, this is where Buddah was born. Some parents even send their children to monestaries if they can't take care of them. This results in children being pawned off and enticed into buddism because they are taken care of this way. Yet there are some who know the true and living God, and these people are the lights of Nepal.
Today, I met a lady who just turned to christianity but whose husband hates Jesus Christ and will not support her in it at all. She is going to church regardless but her husband, leader of the household, is doing what he can to stop the change in her. Usually in buddist or hindu cultures, if you accept Jesus as your savior and deny your previous god, then you are shunned from the family and forced to fend for yourself. It is all about placing shame on the believer, as to manipulate them back into the previous religion. How crazy is the bondage that these people regularly deal with?! Some bondage, like this, is obvious. Yet in America I feel it is more unrecognized bondage. It is the unspoken, "let's not address it", hidden, shameful, "swept under the rug" kind.
Everyday we live our lives, going through the motions, keeping people at a distance and calling it "normal". We go through life with shallow relationships, "how are you doing", "hi and bye", "nice to see you". We go home to our couches and comfort zones and wake up the next morning to do another round. I sat and asked myself, "out of all the friends I have, who can I say I truley know their heart inside and out, their opinion on things, their likes/dislikes, their triggers for past hurts, their goals in life, their hidden desires….?" I could only pin point a few. I was dissappointed in myself for not digging deeper and investing in my friends and family. What was I afraid of? being hurt? was I being lazy? was I just wrapped up in my busy life and not self-disciplined enough? ……
I come back to reality at the popping of the wood in the fire. My eyes still sting and the flame is dwindling. This is life. We have a choice to fully invest, or not. To fully love, or not. To fully engage people, or not. We have a choice to love when it's hard. We have a choice to cooperate instead of walking away. We have a choice to be intentional with our loved ones…..so be courageous, be bold, and choose to invest, choose to dig deep, and choose life because it doesn't last forever.
God calls us to be relationship people, He calls us to invest in our brothers and sisters. He calls us to love regardless of how hard it is. He calls us to lean on Him for strength and endurance, and even suffer sometimes. He calls us to forgive, to share His love, to be obedient, and to follow His lead. In the end, God is not going to ask us, "What did you do?" ….He's going to ask us, "What did you do with what I called you to do ?"
