The world race team is now in Nepal!!! The first day we all expressed our desire to climb the surrounding mountains. In fact the next morning a group of kids led us up a mountain without even breaking a sweat. The top of the mountain was amazing but the climb was a struggle. The situation somewhat juxtaposes our journey to ultimate rest with the almighty because on earth we will struggle but the end result is breath taking.
After a couple of days in Nepal the teams went out to their ministry locations, which were scattered all over. My team took a one-hour bus ride then a thirty-minute walk. Well a one hour bus ride is a joke on the world race, and a thirty-minute walk could not be that bad. After the bus ride was over we started our walk, which consisted of a steep muddy hill, a 50lb pack on my back, and a 25lb daypack on my chest. When these conditions take place then a thirty-minute could feel like forever.
The next day we got up early, and went off to church with the ministry host. We all noticed the present struggle that exists for Christians in Nepal but despite that issue the church members embraced the Holy Spirit. The persecutions that Christians face stem from a long history of hatred. Before the year 2000 people would be put in jail for converting religions so the churches struggled to gain new members. But in that struggle a preacher told us that the church was strong, and that they would stay focused on the task at hand. The preacher even said that he wishes the church would struggle again so that they could regain their focus and trust the Lord for everything. Could you imagine a preacher in America asking for struggle? Probably not but out of struggle comes a faith that is so pure, and an eagerness for more of God and not more of the world.
First day of big time ministry consisted of a three-hour hike up a mountain to spread the gospel to all the villages, and then a two-hour hike back down. I was pumped because I love nature, and the ministry was going to be extremely different. Our goal was to pass out tracks to the Nepali people, and if they were interested in the track the translator would help us share the gospel. (For some more background, Hinduism has swallowed up most of Nepal so Christianity is scarce.) The first house was a Hindu family and I gave the man one of the tracks. He was not interested in Jesus or us praying over him, so we got a reality shock to the struggle in Nepal. The next house brought some peace because the woman was Christian, and she was eager for us to pray over her back. As we continued up the mountain we ran into another Hindu family, and they let us sit with them and share the gospel openly. The man of the household said that he had read the bible, and that he prayed to Jesus. This was a shock because there was no doubt that he was Hindu. As we told him more about Jesus and asked what he believes, he confessed that he could not fully believe in Christ because if he left the Hindu religion he would be disrespecting the culture. Also he added that if he converted from Hindu to Christianity that he would lose his entire family. Wow! This reality never crossed my mind, and the intensity level jumped big time. Just imagine growing up in a Hindu household, and knowing that your family only accepts that religion. Would you be able to take that leap? Now God is definitely bigger than this situation but you still have to endure some pain. For me, I was born into a Christian family and Christ was an easy choice. These people do not have it easy, and it makes sense that if we were given it so freely why would you not help them to receive it the same way. One preacher told us that his family totally abandoned him but he knew that Jesus’s love was enough to satisfy him. God has placed everyone according to his great plan, and maybe Americans that are so free in Christ are meant to help others that do not have that freedom. After we left the house we continued doing ministry all the way up the mountain or to what we thought was the top of the mountain. At this point we had been hiking for five hours and we were still going up. When we asked the translator how far we have left he said that we are only 1/3 of the way there. I thought to myself a two-hour hike up and now it’s become a ten-hour hike up. We decided to head back down, and not to push on through the 2/3 that we had left.
The next day we knew what to expect when they said we were going on a hike. When they said that we would walk two-hours to the leprosy hospital we knew they meant a four- hour walk. Well the walk ended up being exactly four-hours long. After the four-hour walk we were only able to stay at the hospital for one-hour, but that one-hour was so incredible. First we prayed over a man that had trouble hearing, and was severally suffering from leprosy. The spirit was moving throughout that room, and we were able to pray healing and blessings over multiple patients. The four-hour walk was worth it because those men that heard the gospel brought so much joy to the gates of heaven!
Nepal has continued to surprise me time and time again and I cannot wait to see what else God has planned for us this month. Before I end this blog I would love to share a verse that expresses how we should use this precious time that we have left here.
Ephesians 5:15-20- “Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
If you truly believe in the Father then you cannot sit back any longer, you cannot make up excuses, and you cannot run. I tried to run my own race while also being on fire for Christ, but he showed me that if I truly want to be on fire then I need to follow His perfect will. We as Christians are made in the image of Christ. Did Christ sit back? Did Christ seek after what made Him happy? No and sorry to burst a worldly bubble but we should live the same life He lived. Yes it’s hard, yes it’s a struggle, yes it’s stepping outside the worldly box, and yes it’s a sacrifice. But being with the Father out weights the negatives, and makes them almost seem nonexistent. I’m not saying that everyone should jump on a plane and head over seas but I do ask for us to acknowledge the true task given to us as Christians. I want myself to totally embrace this fact, and for this to not be some phase but instead a lifestyle. God is real, the Christian life is not easy, his followers will struggle, but he will satisfy us like nothing else can. We always seek after satisfaction so why not become fully satisfied in Christ then you will never be thirsty.
