Trusting God with My Testimony

Nepal was the 5th country out of 6 on the World Race and the only one we didn’t originally plan to visit. Jordan was on our route when I signed up, however the war broke out in Israel after we’d just gotten on the field. I was a bit distraught, it was one of the things I was most excited for in joining the World Race, but little did I know that Nepal would end up being one of my favorite places on earth.

It wasn’t the stunning views of the snow-capped, towering Himalayas; nor the experience of camping in the jungle next to the shallow, freshwater-crab-filled stream that we drank from, washed our clothes in, and bathed in after dark. (Was that semi-traumatic? Did we, as a team, perhaps trauma bond a little? Who's to say, really.) My favorite part wasn't even the extreme sports excursions, trekking village to village to share the gospel, or the excitement of hearing about wild rhinos charging the streets! If I’m being honest, all of those things were pretty significant highlights, even despite the newly discovered land leaches wriggling their slimy ways into my nightmares a time or two. But more than anything else I fell in love with the culture and made deep connections with newfound friends in the churches there. I felt loved, deeply seen and appreciated, and humbled by their significant strength in the Lord and perseverance in the faith amidst potential adversity. Worship was all hymns in Nepali but filled with the power of God in awestruck, reverent worship. Life seemed simpler there, and the believers we were sent to encourage radically changed my perspective on what it means to be loved and taken care of by God. I firmly believe the impact the Church in Nepal had on my Squad was far greater than our impact on them could have ever been.

But the transition to this new place was quite the culture shock. Coming from my experience in Turkey where it was a chill ministry: hiking and reaching tourists, hanging out with families from the church and encouraging them, and resting while growing in the Lord’s presence daily, we hit the ground running here. We showed up in the jungle planes of the Chitwan National Forest on a dusty, oven-roasted, and thoroughly rocky 7-hour bus ride. Truly, the mid-construction roads themselves made it feel as if we were off-roading in our charter bus, which I must say should be an extreme sport in itself! Some of us were strapped with Dramamine and Zofran while others were, in fact, flung across the aisles.

Our host gathered us about an hour after arrival, our bags still in heaps on the barren church floor that we’d learn to call “bed”, and he informed us to be ready for ministry after the heat of the day (only a few hours later) with two of us ready to share our testimonies and one giving a sermon. This was to be the expected format twice a day. We had 20 people on our Squad spread between 4 smaller teams and since there were only 5-10 of us going to each ministry location at a time (house visits, Bible studies, or larger church gatherings) we’d all become well versed with public speaking, and very soon. Shocked and terrified as most of us had never done this, one girl on my team gave us a quick lesson in how to give a simple sermon, praise the Lamb. It was on my heart to share my testimony that Saturday for whatever reason and I was a bit relieved thinking it would probably be at a smaller gathering. Because surely main church is on Sundays everywhere, right?

I emerged from our 18-person all girls room Saturday morning ready to share, heading upstairs to the meeting area to find rows and rows of chairs packed in the main gathering space for the weekly Saturday church service. And the longer we sat, the more people filed in until probably well over 200 people were present... Hands clammy, legs shaky, and heart palpitating I walked the long aisleway up to the church stage. “I’m doing this for you, Lord. Use me as your vessel any way you’d choose. I said yes to you before and I say yes to you again! All glory by Yours!” I shared my testimony for the 2nd time ever publicly that day with the help of a translator and the Lord surely moved. Two others on my team shared as well, and they both did an amazing job. A few church members expressed that they were deeply encouraged by hearing how God has shown up and transformed our lives, even that He’d send us halfway around the world to remind Him again of His great love for them. A whole group of people asked for prayer after service, and we laid hands and prayed over them all.

Throughout my time in Nepal and later in our 6th country as well, the Lord would prompt me to share my testimony and give short messages almost everywhere we went… churches, house visits, women’s meetings, spontaneous jungle hikes with local nonbelievers, rehab facilities, and more. He’d always give me the words or the specific memories and lessons I’d learned in life to share even if I didn’t understand why in the moment. I’d practice walking in faith and obedience, not shying away from boldness and vulnerability, and somehow the message always seemed to resonate with at least one person, ministering to their own lives and stories. I learned how true it is, we overcome not only by the blood of the Lamb but also by the word of our testimony. How many times have I found greater healing or freedom because of hearing the words of another’s breakthrough in being helped and rescued by the Lord? And what an honor to be able to be used like this, I’d prayed for a long time asking God to work through my story, that if even one person could be impacted by a single part of my life then every tear, every trial, every difficult memory would be absolutely worth it. And it is! Praise the Lord.