Nepal Mission, 2018--"Zaia Masia"

The 36 hours it took to get to Nepal, plus the 12-hour 45-minute time difference, and the tearful goodbyes to the family, together make a small price to pay compared to hearing, "Yesu," and "Alleluia," and "Zaia Masia" (the spelling is questionable, but the meaning is sure: Victory in Messiah) dotting our first church service in country. 

Dhapakhel Baptist Church in the heart of Kathmandu, the sprawling 1.4 million-person capital of Nepal, was a feast of color and sound. The worship band was amplified far beyond the capacity of their meeting space. The shoes of all the worshippers were neatly lined up outside the door. A very spicy lunch was cooking for sharing after the service. The sermon on unity in the Body of Christ as explained in Philippians 2 was translated from English into Nepalese, although most of the people spoke at least those two languages fluently. After the message, the elderly pastor--who was instrumental some decades before in bringing the gospel to Nepal, after he first heard and responded in faith to the gospel as a temporary worker in India--gave excellent commentary to the theme of unity. "Thank you, Pastor. We needed to hear that important message, because we are so easily divided."

So easily divided are all Christians in all people groups when we stray from the main tenets of our salvation, namely "God and the Word of His grace" (Acts 20:32). So the pattern continues, as it has wherever and whenever I travel: people are the same, we all need the gospel as acutely as ever, and the students always give to the teachers more than they receive from the teachers. 

But one thing that I earmarked in my notebook today that captured the heart of the mission is the testimony of Sanu (name changed for safety). He told us that he was like 83% of all Nepali people--a nominal Hindu--who had many questions about life and death, but who never had the freedom to ask those questions inside the Hindu culture. It was only when outside the heavy gaze of family and neighbors that he openly began to ask about the unifying philosophy of life and the holes in the Hindu worldview. In that posture of curiosity, Sanu met a man--a foreigner (who turned out to be a missionary)--who volleyed a question back for Sanu to answer. "Who is the light of Asia?" Sanu grinned because every Nepali boy and girl knows that answer from grade school--"Buddha is the light ... the enlightened one ... of Asia." "Ah yes, that is what they say, so then, who is the Light of the World?" the foreigner continued. Sanu did not know for he had never heard of someone who was Light of the whole world. 

The foreigner connected the dots in Sanu's unspoken thoughts and said, "Jesus Christ is the Light of the World. Would you like to learn about Him?" "Of course I do!" was the reply and a Bible was given with a marker at John 8:12, "Then again Jesus spoke to them saying, 'I am the Light of the World; he who follows Me will not walk in darkness, but will have the Light of life.'" Although Sanu was from the highest caste, and very wealthy, he joyfully followed Jesus Christ that day even though his father pronounced him dead and cut off. Sanu smiled as he retold his story, saying that he has never regretted his decision to follow Jesus; and never looked back.