Month Review AND Our First Week

For many, you have followed Elena's Facebook, but we've decided to keep a blog with comments on significant events.  Since, we just started, there is a lot to catch up on in the last month.  So far, we have: visited Hong Kong (while we waited for the flight to Nepal), taught several classes in the hospital school, preached many times, visited remote SDA Christian villages in the mountains, done site seeing through the Valley region where we live, encountered majestic views, shadowed medical missionaries, had flashbacks to Bible times during Hindu festivals where animal sacrifices were being done (issues of Romans 14-16 are significant here!).  We have had quite an adventure so far, and we plan on keeping you posted!

First Week Review:

As Filip and I discussed, it hasn’t felt like a mere week of being in Nepal but many weeks. Nothing here in Nepal provides any resemblance of our world.  This is a third world.  The nations of the world truly sustain Nepal with aid of all kinds.  The Japanese are building roads, the US send money for schools, the UN provides protection and humanitarian aid, along with many other countries. 

We first set foot in Katmandu, Nepal around 11:30 pm local time. Our first impressions were quite daunting as most of the city either does not have electricity or chooses to scarcely use it because of the its tremendous cost. Even the airport parking lot was completely unlit. Therefore, as we stepped from the baggage terminal to the parking lot we were immediately uncomfortable to find ourselves surrounded by men, all vying for their taxi surface, an in nearly pitch darkness. Just as we began to fear that our ride wasn’t aware of how delayed our plane was, a well dressed, gentle man, Dr. Cordona, the medical director, approached us and extended his welcome and quickly ushered us to a vehicle.  As we drove from Katmandu to Banipal, My first impression was quite daunting as we jolted around in the car we slowly made our way over large mud pot holes and mounds of dirt in the road.

However, as we woke the following morning, to the sound of a close Hindu temple playing their morning worship.  We also we awoke to find ourselves with an incredible view of the rice fields and mountains stretching out beyond. The view is truly beautiful.

We have been more warmly welcomed than I’ve ever imagined possible. Already we feel such a kindred spirit with many of the missionaries working on the base. Their hearts from sharing the gospel message of Jesus Christ is unlike anything I’ve every witnessed before in my life. Many are busy preaching, teaching in their homes as well as traveling to remote villages multiple times a day. Even many of the Nepali youth have caught the fire of sharing the good news. Some of the young men from the church that Filip is working with regularly attend high school from six to ten in the morning and then use the rest of their day to travel and preach and teach in various villages. Filip is so excited to partner with them in their work.

During our first weekend, we had the opportunity to travel with the Cardona family as well as several pastors and bible workers from local churches, to a small, isolated village located in the mountains about an hour away from the Chinese border in order to celebrate a communion and foot washing service with them. Though the church was about eight years old and had grow to about fifty members, this was something they had never done before. Therefore, much instruction was needed and demonstration of the communion significance.

The work in Nepal is great and already weighs so heavily on our hearts. Christianity is but a very small voice in culture so dominated by Hinduism. Many of those who claim to be followers of Christ have merely added Jesus as an addition to their collection of many deities. Also, so much teaching and training of the believers is needed. Most believers are the only ones from their families and therefore lack a foundation of knowledge often acquired from hearing scripture from a young age.

As one of the missionaries told us, “the people are hungry for theology. They do not merely want to hear stories, they want to study the bible.”

Filip and I spend several hours every day working in Esa Memorial Elementary School located on the compound. In spite of it being a Chrisitan school, there is only one part-time SDA Christian teacher on staff. The reason for this is that to date, the school simply has not had many Christians or SDA teachers both willing and qualified to fill such positions. This grieves our hearts tremendously. In past, the school has been and still is a primary outreach tool of the church that has brought many of the current members into the church. The same high school boys and girls that daily teach in the villages around Banepa were converted through their experience at the school. Now however, the Hindu teachers are anything but desirous or knowledgeable to teach bible classes or inspire children with the good news of the gospel of Christ.   Thank-fully Cathy, an educated teacher from the states and wife of one of the doctors is able to teach Bible classes and English on a daily basis.