Asia…
The continent I thought VERY little about. Honestly, I did not even realize Nepal and India were in Asia (geography is not my strong suit) but hey, I learned.
So here are a few lessons/fun facts I have learned from this part of the world (and I am going to bold in pink because fun fact: it is my FAVORITE COLOR!)
1. THE FOOD…rice, curry, and bread are the main food groups here. And before you know it, you will begin to smell like them (wish I was kidding). They also LOVE to give you large portions of food and are VERY flattered when you finish your plate…so no matter if you like it or not, finish your plate. It’s the nice thing to do.
2. My second day in India, I went to the hospital to get my foot checked out (later to find out…it’s broken) and was blown away by their kindness. The doctor went out of his way to make sure I was taken care of and the man at the pharmacy went out of his way to drive to another pharmacy area to pick up my boot. He even stayed past his shift and it was close to almost 10 pm.
3. The cities have really high pollution and wearing a face mask is 10/10 recommended. The locals do it and you should to.
4. Land leeches exist and are probably the closest thing to death I have ever experienced (slightly dramatic) but seriously, they are terrifying and the blood never stops (I say this from a LOT of experience). Tip: wear boots and extremely high socks for SOME protection. But be warned, they do not discriminate and will attack you no matter what shoe or weapon you choose.
5. Trekking across the Himalayas needs to be added to your bucket list. That is all 🙂
6. Sharing the gospel is different here. The culture is very oppressed by Hindu beliefs and Christians face a lot of real persecution. Sharing the gospel is even illegal in Nepal, so basically, we lived our life taking risk (possible jail time even, sorry mom) for the gospel. It is difficult and there is a lot of fear in the people here, but just seeing even one person accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior is worth it every single time. Even jail time if you ask me 🙂
7. Can we just talk about the random cows/water buffalos/goats that stroll the streets and literally stop traffic?!?!
8. Spiritual Warfare. It’s real and is something we had to fight daily through prayer and worship.
9. The introduction to…SQUATTY POTTIES. Yeah. No thank you. Hated those things BUT after using them for so many weeks, they start to become less terrible (not complaining. Just keeping it real with you guys)
10. This was the first time I have gone more than 3 days without a shower. If you know me pretty well, this is so NOT how I roll. So it was weird. Never want to do that again but sometimes it is out of my control.
11. And lastly, there is beauty everywhere you look. The people. The vibrant colors. The kindness in the culture. The tea time. The love for foreigners. The openness to hearing whatever you have to say. And I truly believe, from the depths of my soul, that there will be a day when this entire continent will turn to the one true God.
So Asia…
from the top of the mountain,
to the valley where the leprosy colony is hidden,
to the girls home that is filled with the innocent,
to the depths of a village,
this is a place that is hungry for Jesus
And whether they know it or not, He is waiting for them with arms wide open (He’s good like that). So with all that being said, we are now in Africa and a blog about it is soon to come! It’s time for Africa 🙂
