Two prayers were on repeat in my mind as we headed into ministry for the month of February in Nepal: the first was that we would not be in a village, and the second was that if we did end up living in a village, that we wouldn’t be teaching English. The previous month in Cambodia was hard, and I wanted to have a different ministry, living conditions, and a new experience. When we arrived to Nepal on the first day and met with our ministry contact, we were told we would be working with a pastor in a village… teaching English. Complete repeat from last month. I struggled to hold back tears and was nervous/ scared to have the same experience from the previous month where I had to constantly fight to have joy everyday. I thought the hardest month was over and was frustrated at God for not answering my prayers. The hardships of the race were weighing on my heavily at that time – missing all of the small things from home, a bed, a normal/clean bathroom, and warm water. The last place I wanted to be was in a remote village doing a ministry where joy and excitement does not come naturally for me. I had no idea how I was going to push through this month when I felt like I had fought so hard to get through the previous month.
We left the next morning for Sarlahi, a district close to the Indian border that was seven hours away from Kathmandu. We were told when we met with our ministry contact that the van ride there would “increase our prayer life”. As if I was not already nervous and anxious enough about this month, the scariest van ride through the Himalayan mountains did not make it any easier. The ride there was as scary as a thrill ride with no safety checks – driving on gravel and rocks on a one-lane road on the edge of the Himalayan mountains. We had checkpoints on the way there and later found out that they take your license plate number in case you don’t arrive at the next check point so they know to go look for your car in case of an accident. During the drive there, one of the tires went off the side of the mountain when another van almost hit us head on. We saw cars flipped over and a motorcycle accident. It was terrifying and my prayer life did increase on the way there.
Picture of our van and view from the drive. *Photo credit Victoria Castillo
After arriving safely to Sarlahi, we quickly realized that this village was more remote than the where village we stayed in Cambodia. We slept two to a tent in a small classroom in the school that we taught in during the day. I was frustrated the day we arrived there and was nervous for how this month was going to turn out – I didn’t just want to “get through” the month of Nepal but enjoy it and experience all that God has for me.
Picture of the school we taught at and slept in during the month.
I went into this month dragging my feet and came out with joy. The first couple of days there I prayed that God would give me joy that surpasses understanding – and I had the support of my team and friends and family back home. God delivered – I loved Nepal and the ministry we served in. Even though I was frustrated that God said “no” to my first request, He didn’t let me go through this month alone, and I would have missed out on so much if He would have answered my request. I am constantly reminded that God does want what is best for me even when it looks different from my plans.
The ministry we served at was called New Light Nepal. We worked with a Pastor there, Pastor Achut Mainali (we called him “Pastor Uncle”). His wife, who we called “Auntie”, made all of our delicious meals and my favorite chai tea. We helped teach English in the school that they run and were each assigned to a classroom. The students were all different ages in my classroom and were some of the most adorable students I have ever met! We also made a bamboo fence, attended Bible studies in other villages, helped build a house, and preached during church (which in Nepal is on Saturday).
Pastor Uncle and his family are amazing,godly people and are an inspiration for me. Pastor Uncle told us how he became a Christian after his sister shared the gospel with him and gave him a Bible. He was raised Hindu and married Auntie while they were both Hindu believers. He told us how their marriage changed after they became Christians. In Hindu culture the wife serves the husband. In some marriages a wife would clean her husbands feet and drink the dirty water from his feet to ‘cleanse’ herself — some people would drink cow urine to cleanse themselves. Pastor Uncle would talk about how he loved “his honey” and how they both serve each other now. Pastor Uncle is hilarious and would always make us laugh. We would end each day by sharing what we were thankful for and praying together.
Pastor Uncle has a calm, strong, and, persevering spirit. He has been imprisoned and tortured before for baptizing people and told us how demons would shake their house. He and his family are not threatened by these things and continue to praise God even in hard times. When we were there the government came and told Pastor Uncle to stop sharing the gospel – and the next day I preached at church! As of March 1st it is illegal to share the gospel in Nepal. When we asked Pastor Uncle and other Christians about this they did not seem threatened or concerned about it because they are already facing persecution. Our contact that we first met with told us how people would burn down his church and how he and his family would have to go into hiding for weeks. These people are incredible and are such an inspiration for me.
Pastor Uncle and I when we celebrated the half way day of the race!
Nepal was one of my favorite months so far. I would never have guessed that at the beginning of the month. But God placed me exactly where I needed to be, and I learned to trust Him even more from this experience. Although it is hard to understand when God says “no” to our requests and easy to question His answers, I learned that I am not always going to have an immediate realization for why God denies me at times, but I have to trust that His plans for me are better than what I ask for or imagine. I am so blessed and thankful that I got to meet and serve such great warriors for Christ!
I am 93% funded and only $1,074 away from reaching my final deadline of $16,264. If you would like to support my trip, refer to my blog ‘financial breakdown’ on how you can donate. Thank you to everyone who has gotten me this far, every little bit helps!
