Mission Trip to East Nepal 12-18 Feb 13
This is the third trip of the year
and the most dangerous and physically torturing trip I have ever undertaken in
my whole life. It’s really a miracle we came through this. I truly praise God
for His mercies and protection. The team comprised the following:
a. Rama
b.
Pst Samuel Sharma (PEC North East Coordinator)
c. Pst Santhosh (PEC Church
Planter in Damak, Nepal)
Objectives
The purpose of this trip was to see and assess the church
planters' work in Nepal, before deciding to support them.
Visit Church Planters
I arrived Bagdodra, West Bengal on 13 Feb at
about noon. Pst Samuel Sharma was at the airport to receive me. I
praise God that I survived this trip. We praise God for Pst Samuel Sharma and for the partnership we have
in the ministry. It’s not easy to serve God in these areas. It takes a lot of
patience and perseverance.
We set to visit our church
planter Pst Dinish who is pioneering a work in a village called Katarey. We
left the Nepali border at 2pm and travelled along the National Highway (not too
bad road) for about six hours. It was dark and we need to get some food and
rest at least for a few hours. I was not well. We stopped at a place called Kathali,
where we had dinner and a short nap.
At 2.30AM we hit the roads
again in pitch darkness. After an hour we turned off the highway and thereafter
it the worst roads you can ever imagine. In fact there were no roads, just
sandy tracks. We were on an upward climb up the Himalayas. Because it was dark,
we had no clue where we were heading, even our driver was not sure of the way.
We had to stop at many places to ask for directions. But once up the mountains, it was like a roller
coaster ride. At some point we had to cross a stream, remove big stones from
the tracks. There was no sign of life for most of the five hour ride. At day
break we reached a tiny village. We stopped for a hot cup of sizzling tea and
biscuits. It was cold. No sleep, no toilets, no good food. You can imagine what
was going though my mind. Pst Samuel did his best to keep my spirits up. I just
wondered how the early missionaries to India must have felt. They really paid
the price.
We continued our journey for
another three hours in the atrocious road conditions. The tracks were very
narrow, space enough for only one vehicle at a time, supported by deep ravines
that plunge to 3000 to 4000 ft. This is not the place for those who are afraid
of heights. But the view was panoramic. Majestic is the closest adjective I can
find to describe God’s creation. By now
every bone in my body was crying for help. But the worst is yet to come.
On 14 Feb at about 10.30AM, we
finally arrived at Ketike, in Okhajdunga District, the “main” village in that
particular locality. Pst Dinesh had sent some of his friends to meet us and
bring us to his village. They told us we
need to walk for 2-3 hrs to reach the village.
It was the worst mountain tracking I have ever done. Sikkim climb was a
minnow compared to this. We had to traverse two mountains and descend/climb a
few thousand feet to reach the village. The only consolation was the
picturesque view but the journey was torturous and dangerous. The tracks were
narrow, at some point about one foot, filled with sand and pebbles. It was like
walking on ball bearings. The ravines by the side were terribly
threatening. If you are not careful, you
can fall off the ravine and that’s then end of you. We struggled, our knees
began to wobble. We took three hours to
reach the village.
It was a joy to see Pst
Dinesh. He is 24 years old and he was the only Christian in the village and the
surrounding villages in the mountain. He graduated from our training centre in
Jaigon, West Bengal last year in Jun. He has gone back to his own village to
pioneer a church. The villagers are simple farmers who believe in spirits and a
remote form of Hinduism. Its really a hard ground, spiritually speaking. But
God has blessed our church planter and in the last few months about a dozen
have accepted Jesus as their saviour. Dinish said that he has walked, sometimes
2-3 hrs, to the surrounding villages to share the good news. I was moved by his
passion. I could sense his discouragement. We discussed new strategies and ways to reach the people.
Then it was time to make our
way back. Another three hours up the mountain. This time it was a test of
endurance and patience. We finally make it to Ketike at about 6.30pm.
Dinesh made arrangements for
us to stay in a “guest-house” at the cost of $2 a night. You can imagine the
condition for such a rate. Common toilets
and no lights. It was cold and dark. The rest of the team said they are not
taking a shower. I needed a hot shower badly. The house keeper then boiled a
pot of water with firewood. It was like a “field camp”. Even taking a shower in the total darkness,
in that condition was a challenge.
That evening after dinner,
we had a house meeting in the village. About eight believers were present for
the meeting.
Next day we set off at 3AM.
The tracks were so narrow that at some points only one vehicle could pass at a
time. Half an hour into the journey, we saw a lorry stalled on the track and no
possibility of our vehicle passing through. . “No petrol”. We had to wait for 2
hrs in the cold weather before another vehicle arrived and transferred some
petrol to the lorry.
Pst John Signey’ church
On the way back I stopped at
Chennai and preached at Pst John Signey’s church during the Sunday morning
service. It was a great time.
I returned home on 19 Feb in the morning.
Conclusion
There
are many un-reached villages in the mountains of Nepal. These are very
difficult areas. We need to send trained church planters there.
Although
the trip was difficult, we were able to see the ground realities and take the
necessary corrective actions. Thanks all for praying. Together we can fulfill
the Great Commission.
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