Starting New in Kathmandu
Hey everyone! I’m so sorry it’s taken me so long to update you all. WiFi here is pretty spotty so I’ll try and update you all whenever I can get connection. I’m finally in Nepal! My team has been here for about a week now and it’s definitely been bittersweet. We had about 4 days of debrief and rest in Thamel, Kathmandu, and then we started our ministry here in Jawalakhel on Monday. We’ve gotten to try some different Nepali food and teas and it’s all been pretty yummy so far! We’re all super obsessed with these things called momos which are similar to Chinese dumplings/potstickers. We’ve already taken so many bus rides around the city and I swear the bus drivers here like to play this game we call “how many people can we squeeze onto this bus.” There have been multiple times where all the seats were taken up, the entire isle was filled, and people were sitting on each other’s laps, but then when I looked out the window I would see (I kid you not) 5 Nepali people hanging on outside of the bus!! It’s insane! And the bus ride is not exactly smooth, so how they kept holding on is beyond me haha.
These next few weeks we will be partnering with the Agape Mission. We will have the opportunity to work with street kids and kids living in the slums as well as with at risk women and children. One thing that is super cool about the organization we’re partnering with is that they believe in rescuing and equipping. So basically, we will be working with women who have been rescued from trafficking and we will be teaching them different trades like sewing, candle making, and cooking so that they will be able to go out and find jobs to support themselves. I’m so excited!! The first three days of ministry were mainly focused on prayer and intercession over the city of Kathmandu. We went on a different hike each day to different Hindu and Buddhist temples, and from there we talked with some of the locals and got to know what they believed. It was really interesting to see how many of them believed in doing good works to please their gods, and that a majority of their beliefs were based off of trying to please their gods to earn their favor. It really put it into perspective of how amazing I have it as a follower of Jesus. While doing good things is great and it should be something that I want to do as a Christ follower, I also believe that our God is a God of grace and love and kindness, and to think that I don’t have to do anything to earn His abounding love is so amazing.
While we visited different temples we also had the opportunity to take a bus ride and then hike up to the two highest points of Kathmandu, and let me tell you, I will never complain about Colorado’s mountain switch backs ever again! Our entire ride up and back down we were on this massive bus going up an unpaved, one-way road. At one point our bus was basically sideways, hanging off of the road while another bus was just barely squeezing by. As I was staring down the side of the mountain and clinging to the seat in front of me for dear life, I for sure thought I was going to see Jesus that afternoon. It was terrifying! But once we got to the top, it was totally worth it. The view was beyond amazing and we just worshiped together and had the opportunity to pray over the city. There’s just something about overlooking the city and seeing how massive it is and then thinking how much greater and vast God is that just puts everything into perspective and reminds me of how even though God is so massive, He still cares about the tiniest of details.
Today we started our ministry with the kids living in the slums. It was so much fun! We bought candy at the store last night and we partnered up and came up with a few little songs that we taught the kids. We didn’t have a whole lot of time with the kids today, but I can’t wait to share many more stories with you guys as we continue this ministry.
Our first month in India was full of so many blessing and I’m so thankful for all of your continued prayers. We’ve had such an amazing time so far in Nepal, and I can’t believe my trip is halfway over! Thank you all for your encouragement! I look forward to keeping you all updated.
~ Hannah