Saturday, November 19, 2011

Pravu le timilai Aashish Diun

It means, "God bless you" in Nepalese.  Yes, Nepal.  8500+ miles from here.

I'm quietly ecstatic about a new project that I believe the Lord has birthed in my heart over the last couple of weeks.

Beautiful children of Nepal
Fr. J came to our church to speak to us about missions at the end of October, and though his main field is Zanzabar, he brought up his work in Nepal.  I was immediately bonded to the people in that country in a way I can't explain.  I want to work with them and help their ministry, and the thing I know the most about is wool.  I asked J if he had any contacts in Nepal and he hooked me up with Pastor Satis.  This man leads a small church and was very interested in my idea of importing handmade woolen items from his church members to sell here, and sending the money back to Nepal for their ministry.


It sounds so crazy!  But... it's working!  Tonight I sent a bit of venture capital to Pastor Satis in Bhaktapur, and by the wonders of technology, he is picking it up today.  (It's 12 hours later there.)  I sent money to Nepal, people!  Unreal.  And in a week or so, he will be sending me wool products made by his church members: hats, scarves, mittens, slippers, etc.  Not sure how long it will take them to arrive here, but when they do, you'll be the first to know.  It's hard to imagine that I'd have them in time to sell for Christmas, but stranger things have happened.


Please pray for this church and its pastor.  I've been doing some research on the country, and it's an enormous spiritual war zone.  The country is almost entirely Hindu and Buddhist, with some Muslims also present.  There are Maoist insurgents, a pervasive caste system, wild topography, spotty infrastructure, and not nearly enough Christian missionaries.  Pastor Satis says they are free to worship openly, so that's a plus, but evangelism is not encouraged.  The people need Christian study material in their own language.  Where on earth does one get Bible study materials in Nepalese? (Note to self, tap my contacts at Wycliffe Bible Translators...)


These are some of the issues I'll be researching in the coming weeks and months.  Please pray with me for the Lord's beloved in Nepal.  He died for them, too.

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