Nepal has been breath taking, literally and
hypothetically. Ice cold bucket showers
await us each day – the type that are the most difficult to take because every
phalange is already permanently stiff due to minor hypothermia from being
outside. This is the first month I’ve
begun to skip showers (in case you wanted to know…). World Race, as we commonly say! The scenery is unreal in Nepal, definitely a
haven for naturalists like me. Huge
mountains, green grass, animals of all kinds and colors, stunning sunrises and
sunsets – the Lord’s creation is all around! Tommy and I have been staying with
a team in a small village about 15 hours outside of Kathmandu and it has been
one of the best experiences on the Race, thus far. We awake each day with a schedule that
varies. Our days consist of helping
build an orphanage that has been a vision of our wonderful contact for the last
2 years and also help out with his futbol (soccer, for us Americans!) league
that traveled with us here. We assist
with medical needs, water/snacks, and praying and encouraging the players as
the tournament starts. We’ve met some
professional Nepalese soccer players in the process and it’s been pretty
sweet! I never thought I would be
helping out with a ministry that consisted of soccer and it’s been such a
treat!
The village is quiet, but filled with wonderful,
welcoming, beautiful people and tons of kids that yell, “HI!!!” as we walk by. They never forget to ask for our name or
question if we have chocolate to give them.
They are precious little gifts of God and never cease to bring a smile
to my face. (I’m definitely adopting
from this country one day!) Speaking of
the children, I’ve had a great time watching how they play with each other and
admiring the gadgets they build from trash and trinkets they can find laying
around. Jumping ropes and hacky sacks
made of rubber bands, vases of flowers made from plants and paper, and even
mini designs made in the sand by a 4-year-old from eggshells, leftover toilet
bowl cleaner, rocks and leaves that she found by digging in the pile of burnt
trash next to a house.
Coming from a background where I had been blessed with
all sorts of toys as a child, I found it eye-opening that with what would be
considered “nothing” in the culture I grew up in is actually everything to
them. My eyes were yet again opened as
we sat in a church service on Saturday (their Sabbath day here). We arrived to another small village with
houses constructed of bamboo and mud, which we questioned, might actually be
cow patties. The church service
consisted of 9 people besides the 8 of us from the World Race. It took place in the front of someone’s home
while we sat outside under a bamboo roof on floor mats, worshipping with only a
tambourine and the alluring noise of the Nepalese language. There were no flashing lights. There was no large building. There were no fancy pews or informative
handouts. There were no powerpoints
showing the lyrics to the music or the verses to the messages being
spoken. There were no loud
speakers. Only people of different
cultures worshipping their One true Father in Heaven under the same roof.
Sometimes I don’t understand why we desire to have so
much more. The more the Race progresses,
the more I truly understand our purpose in life. It is not to accumulate the greatest career,
the most money, the highest status, or more material objects. The more I walk this out, the less I want to
carry in my backpack and the more I realize that I hardly NEED anything! I’ve prayed to have the Lord’s eyes and I’m
beginning to see that we don’t need anything but the Lord to make us
happy. We can find ways to worship Him
without big churches or more material things.
We can find ways to live our lives happily even when we don’t have
much. Really, we already have it
all. We have a God who loved us SO
dearly, that He gave His One and Only Son to die for our sins.
I leave you with this prayer from a podcast I listened to
recently.
“One day when I stand before the Lord I want to stand
before Him face to face and hear Him say, ‘Well done, Good and faithful
servant. I gave you a lot and you gave it back.’ When I see Him I want to know
I lived my life for what mattered. I want to live the life that is truly life,
I want to strive towards what really counts.
I want to pursue the real purpose of God. I want to live my life with my hands open
grasping higher and higher for the purpose of God. God, we don’t want to be complacent. We don’t want to be those that hoard and
build bigger barns. We want to make more
room for you to work. We thank you that
the rich and the poor have this in common – THE LORD IS OUR MAKER AND WE ARE
BLESSED! You are our portion. You are our prize. You are what matters. You are what we care about. You mean more than any earthly thing. We only have ONE life. Let us live it for Your glory and Your
kingdom.”
“A man’s life does
not consist in the abundance of his possessions.”
~ Luke 12:15
**I’m still in need of $3,600 by March 1st to be fully funded. If you feel led to help, you can utilize my Support Me tab to the left! Thank you and God bless!
