A dream come true! Hiking and Ministry in the Himalayan Mountains of Nepal. It does not get any better than this.
We started off our month with a new, dynamic, adventurous team:
Rachel Ritsema, Me, Katy Gurley, Tiffany Hanes, Kim Brown, Justin Hanes
After arriving in Kathmandu, Nepal, we traveled north 3 hours by bus through the most beautiful, majestic mountains. God is so awesome! I was in awe of His creation our whole ride though the mountains:
The bus went along a very narrow road with steep drop offs and no barricades. A very thrilling ride but well worth it. We even rode on top of the bus which provided a spectacular view and great photo opportunities:
Even goats travel on top of buses:
We arrived in Kothe, Nepal, a very quaint village with one street of small shops right in the Himalayan Mountains:
The local villagers are very friendly and are often hanging out on benches outside the shops or at the public water fountain:
Here at the public water fountain, locals gather water in jugs to carry up the mountain to there home, wash clothes, take showers, share stories, and more. It reminded me of Biblical times where people gathered a community well such as the story of Jesus and the Samaritan women in John 4.
This month, we ministered with Jyoti Niwas Church (which means Light Stays): Pastor Tara Shrestha.
Here is the outside of the church:
Our lodging facilities with….
My view from my bed. I could here the raging river all night!
and my personal Bible Study location..
The church attendees at Jyoti Niwas Church love to worship:
Pastor Tara Shrestha leading worship and prayer.
Offerings at church can include a goat, this goat was brought in and given to the church as an offering:
I preached 2 of the Saturdays (In Nepal, church is held on Saturdays). One message was from Colossians 1 on the Supremacy of Christ including reconciliation and salvation through Christ alone. The next message was on the Father’s Love from 1 John 4.
Pastor leading a gentleman to Christ following a service:
Many villagers asked for prayer following the services…
One Friday evening, this young boy was brought to Bible Study for prayer as he was very ill. He had not been eating or drinking much for a few weeks prior, was very weak, and sleeping most of the time. Our team along with the Pastors laid hands on him and prayed for his healing. We prayed that he would be eating and drinking by the next day. The next day, he was running around the church, eating, drinking, and mom reporting he was back to his “normal” self. God healed this boy!
During most of our time in Nepal, we hiked up many steep mountains for 2-3 hours at a time in order to share the gospel in homes, schools, and village churches in the remote areas of the Himalayas. I was surprised at the number of people who had never heard of or very little about Jesus. How exciting it is to share the good news of Jesus and my testimony with someone new to the gospel.
Here we are hiking up the trails…..
we hiked through many corn field and up many steep hills…
saw spectacular views….
until we reached our destination each day which was often a village shack near the top of a mountain.
Here are some amazing people we met…
Even schools were located was up in the mountains where children hike long distances to school in their uniforms. The students were always very excited to see foreigners and interested in what stories we had to share.
We handed out tracks at the schools…
Shared the gospel in the school yard….
and in classrooms….
taught children to sing “Father Abraham”…
played games with the children….
and shared the gospel through skits.
One of our many hiking days, we hiked up a very steep mountain for 3 hours thinking there was nothing up here until we ran into a village church full of worshipers who traveled far to worship God …
While in Nepal, I got a glimpse of how big and majestic our God is. All I wanted to do was praise and worship God when in these mountains. Psalm 148 is a Psalm of praise. All the creatures of the earth along with mountains, hills, trees, wild animals, kings, princes, rulers, men, women, children, etc are called to praise the Lord. The quickest way to get into the heart of God is to praise Him. Take the attention of of our selves and focus on Him.
As we were hiking through the mountains sharing the gospel, the following song by Lee McDerment came to my mind. Is is an updated version of Go Tell It On The Mountain entitled Go Tell It. It is a great description of what we as Christians are called to do: GO and share the story of Jesus dying on the cross, how Jesus loves them, how Jesus saved us and made us new, our own story of redemption, the truth, and that Jesus Christ is Lord!
Go Tell It:
Go tell it on the mountain. Over the hills and everywhere. Go tell it on the mountain that Jesus Christ is born. Tell them he loves them. Tell them the truth. Tell them He died on that cross for me and you. Tell them your story. How he made you new. Isn’t He the best thing thats happened to you. (Chorus) He saved your life. He saved your life. He came through for you right in the nick of time. He saved your life. He saved your life. He is the best thing thats happened. He is the best thing thats happened. Oh He is the best thing thats happened. Tell them He loves them. Tell them the truth. Tell them He died up on that cross for me and for you. Tell them your story. How he made you new. Isn’t He the best thing thats happened to you. Go tell it on the mountain that Jesus Christ is Lord.
