Nepal Update 2 - Kathmandu

As we are finishing up in Kathmandu, so many good things happened and as the apostle John said that we just can’t include all of them in this writing as there would not be enough volumes to contain them, and I have to leave some stories for the students to come back and share. But here are a few.

There is a monkey temple here that sits on a big hill (with an ungodly number of steps) in the center of the city. It is a Buddhist temple but naturally they mix in a few Hindu parts just to get all the bases covered and all the incense odors in.  However, at the very top is a shop that at first glance appears similar to all the 12,000 other paintings shops (galleries) in Kathmandu. Except this one is a little different. In some of the paintings in this gallery you find words like “Be still and know that I am God” written on the paintings. That is because the owner is a Christian and yet is located on top of a mount at the center of a Buddhist temple. Our students were so excited to see them there that they purchased several paintings from her.  They were real eager to support her and her husband and what they are trying to accomplish in this place. I will not give away who purchased any in case their purchases are surprises for you when they get home, or you may just be getting a rock from the upcoming hike.

We ended up going to a home for girls who have been rescued from human trafficking. The home hosts these girls and their children, for as long as it takes. Some are there for a few months and others for several years. While there they will learn skills that they can use to support themselves on their own, if need be, but also with hopes that their families will take them back in, which sadly does not always happen. As well the young women are introduced to Christ giving them opportunity for a complete new start in life. At this stop our puppet team really stole the show again and the students were able to interact with the women and love on the children. Isabel P was moved by how young many of the women were in the program as that moved her to serve them.

The most chaotic day of our lives happened at the slum in Kathmandu. I love the work our dear brother is doing with the children here, as he is providing education for them, and showing them the love of Christ. Due to the obvious financial deficit, they have very limited room and teachers to keep order of the 50 or so children. We ended up meeting in a windowless 20x15 room in which, besides holding all the children and teachers, we also carve out a section of the floor in which we call a stage, to do our performances. We can only fit about 6 or so of our team in this brick oven of a room, where we turn loose our students, often in condensed size groups to do their performances and then to engage with the children after. Madelyn O was consumed by children, the second she finished her dance performance and she loved it. As well Noelle K and Reiley W tirelessly loved on kids who came running from the adjacent streets when they heard the music and excitement coming from this dank sweatbox.

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