the Lord halts an entire nation for one man

Greetings in the name of the ONE TRUE GOD, Maker of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, his only-begotten Son, King of Kings and LORD of Lords.

Recently, I returned from a week of labor out in the western part of Nepal.  By God’s grace, I was given the opportunity to assist with discipleship trainings in both Surkhet (a small city nestled in the hills) and Nepalgunj (a large population hub in the Terai—the flat strip of land that runs the length of Nepal just north of the Indian border and just south of the Himalayan foothills).  In each of the trainings, more than ten Nepali local churches were represented, and numerous believers were trained in how to boldly spread the Gospel, disciple new believers, and plant new churches.  As I study the Scriptures, it is clear that the foundation of the Great Commission of our Lord & Saviour is bold evangelism (not the “lifestyle, keep your mouth shut, never never offend someone, water down the Gospel, blah, blah, blah” approach that modern-day churchianity suggests—see II Corinthians 4:13).  Upon a foundation of bold proclamation is to be constructed a solid framework for discipleship that ultimately results in the planting/growth of Bible-believing churches (the model clearly presented in the Book of Acts).  In Surkhet and Nepalgunj, it was a real blessing to be a part of bold evangelism on the streets as well as the discipling and training of existing Christians in such a way that they were equipped to go out, proclaim the Gospel, disciple fellow-believers, and start new churches.  Please pray that fruit is born all over Western Nepal (a section of the country where there is much political unrest, Maoist terrorism, and few Christians). 

In addition to helping with the trainings, I was also able to supplement the effort by hitting the streets with the Gospel while the trainings were in progress.  My motivation for doing so was two-fold:  First, bold proclamation was a way to abundantly scatter seeds on the same fallow ground that many of the recently-trained believers will now be targeting (i.e. preparing the way and putting the Gospel in the forefront of many peoples’ minds in these locales).  Secondly, it was my desire to model boldness and public proclamation for other believers.  Whether or not these objectives will bear actual fruit is in the Lord’s hands.  Obedience is far more important than results, especially when the latter is beyond human control (I Corinthians 3:7).

In Surkhet, many Gospel tracts and several Bibles got into the hands of the lost.  One evening, while walking back to the “less than one star” hotel, I paused to give out tracts to a group of young men. One of these followed me and started asking some questions about the differences between Christianity and Hinduism.  As best as I could in the Nepali language, I proclaimed that the Gospel of Jesus Christ was freedom from the bondage of Hindu religion and/or all of the world’s false religions. I showed him some Scripture verses in John and laid the salvation message out plainly.  When the conversation became too deep for me to follow, I petitioned help from a faithful Nepali believer from Kathmandu who was helping to interpret during the trainings. He joined the conversation, and many things of the Lord were spoken as we continued the long walk back into town.  At the hotel, we invited the young man and his uncle upstairs to our room.  For the next hour, the Gospel of Jesus Christ was proclaimed.  The young man (Jaya) then expressed a desire to be saved.  To make sure that he understood the seriousness of such a decision, I took him through the Ten Commandments to show him his guilt and his need for a Saviour.  I then explained that being born again meant completely giving up the lies and false gods of Hinduism and following the Lord Jesus Christ alone (Luke 14:33).  Jaya could not be talked out of salvation; he wanted it.  Right there in the hotel room, my Nepali brother and I laid hands on this young man as he knelt down and called on Jesus Christ to save him.  On January 21, 2007 a soul was born into the Kingdom of God.  All praise be unto the Lord God Almighty!  What a privilege it was to be a part of this.  Jaya’s uncle also listened with intent but was not ready to make such a decision.  At least he heard.

Now, here is the interesting thing about Jaya’s salvation.  He is from the backwoods of the Jajarkhot District, but he serves in the Nepali Army down in Nepalgunj.  Because of a nationwide strike that had the entire country locked down on January 21, Jaya was stuck in Surkhet when he should have been at his post.  But for the political unrest, I would never even have met him.  It occurred to me:  Sometimes, God has to do big things to get a man’s attention.  In this situation, the LORD literally shut down an entire country so that one man could get saved.  Isaiah 55:9 immediately comes to mind.  Another “coincidence” (not really!) showed that God was at work and confirmed that this decision was genuine.  Jaya just happens to work closely and on a regular basis with the brother of my Nepali Christian friencd (a solid believer with connections to other believers and churches) down in Nepalgunj.  Thus, the Lord had already set up an avenue whereby this young man could be discipled and equipped to serve the Lord.  Please pray for Jaya Bahadur Shahi as he begins his new life in Christ Jesus.

In Nepalgunj, I also hit the streets.  “The Gunj,” as it is sometimes called, is a depressing border town that sees much political unrest and Maoist-incited violence.  Tourists rarely, if ever, go to this place, and besides us, the only Westerners in town were United Nations Peacekeeping Workers.  In the center of town, and in the midst of bicycles, rickshaws, loitering masses, and chaotic traffic, I was able to hand out a multitude of Gospel tracts and engage in numerous conversations about the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  I think of a young Muslim rickshaw driver, a group of teenage boys, bus-stop crowds, and many others.  Many had never even heard of the Gospel.  Please pray specifically for Dhurga, a 50+ year-old female shopkeeper.  I shared with her for more than an hour, and the discussion drew a small crowd.  She appealed to her Hindu gods as I proclaimed Jesus Christ and showed the guilt of mankind according to the Law of God (see Psalm 19:7; Romans 3:20).  In the end, she accepted a Bible.  Please pray for her salvation.  Also, please pray for Murkhesh, a young believer who has not been properly discipled in his faith.  The Lord allowed me to exhort him unto boldness and obedience and to give him a new Bible.  I also introduced him to some believers at the nearby church where we were having the training.  On yet another occasion, a young female believer saw me handing out tracts.  She came over to thank me and promulgate that she, too, was a believer.  Her husband, a Nepali policeman, is also a believer.  To make a long story short, she urged me to come sit outside her front door, enjoy some tea, and share with her Hindu neighbors.  I had a small crowd of Hindu women that listened intently as I went through the entire Gospel.  Some were sewing, some were nursing their children, and others sat wide-eyed.   I then gave away my last Nepali Bible for these to share amongst themselves and further search out the truths of God.  These people were open and would have gladly had me return to their home to hear more.  Thankfully, I was able to relay this information to the pastor of the church where the training was being conducted.  I exhorted him to have some of his newly trained people follow up.  This home would be the perfect place to put into practice the things they were being taught.  Please pray that a new Bible-believing church is ultimately planted in this home.

In a few days, Jamie, Bethany, and I will be leaving the country for about three weeks.  Because one can only stay in Nepal for 150 days per calendar year on a tourist visa, we have to spend some time outside the country in order to be able to remain here as “tourists” until the people we are house-sitting for are able to return to Kathmandu.  There are other visa options, but they are very expensive, and the process is a nightmare.  Our plans initially involve transporting a supply of Gospel materials to existing workers who live in Darjeeling, India (at the foot of Kangchenjunga, the world’s third highest mountain).  Lord willing, we will stay in the Darjeeling area for about ten days.  While there, we will boldly target some Tibetan refugee camps with the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  Once again, this is a situation where we are coming in short-term to be bold in ways that longer-term workers are not able lest they run the risk of getting kicked out of this politically sensitive area.  There may also be an opportunity to do some evangelistic work up in Sikkim, a restricted section of India that is surrounded by Tibet, Nepal, and Bhutan.  Please pray for us as we make preparations over the next few days.  Our hope was to be able to take a van from Kathmandu all the way out to the eastern Nepali border town of Kakarbhitta, thus allowing the safe transport of boxes of Bibles and Gospel tracts.  However, political strife in Eastern Nepal has highways blocked and curfews being enforced.  Now, it seems we will have to fly to Bhadrapur and then find a vehicle to take us from there up to the border.  This could prove to be a nightmare.  Once in India, the political unrest will be behind us, and someone will be waiting to take us to Darjeeling.  My prayer is that the roads open up in the next couple of days.

From Darjeeling, we will travel by land down to Calcutta, hopefully hit the streets there for a day, and then, we will fly into Dhaka, Bangladesh.  We did successfully obtain Bangladeshi visas here in Kathmandu.  They are only single-entry for 15 days, but this will be sufficient.  Thanks for your prayers in that matter.  Lord willing, we will spend about ten days in Dhaka.  Again, our objective will be to go in with boldness and do mass dissemination of Bibles and tracts.  Bangladesh is a Muslim country where the work of evangelism carries with it real risks.  We will probably get kicked out of the country, but this will be no big deal.  The current workers faithfully laboring there need these materials to get out in the hands of the public.  We will assume the risks of this so these can remain behind for follow-up in a less vicarious manner.  Geographically and culturally, Bangladesh is the armpit of South Asia.  It is not a pleasant place to be, and Dhaka would be a difficult place to live.  Please pray for the workers with whom we will be partnering.  For security reasons, their identities must be kept anonymous.  Also, pray that if we get kicked out of the country, it will be on the tail-end of our visit.  Lord willing, we will return to Kathmandu around February 22.

In my last email update, I requested prayer for January 15th in Nepal.  At the present, the government of Nepal is going through transition (from a Hindu Kingdom to a “democratic republic”—at least that is standard mantra), and there is a lot of political unrest.  On January 15th, the interim government began.  There was potential for big problems with this, but the day came and went without major incident.  Praise be unto God.  Thanks for your prayers.  Presently, things are still pretty quiet in Kathmandu, but some cities in the east are under enforced curfews.  There are missionaries living out there who cannot leave their homes.  Please pray for the safety of these.  There still remains potential for trouble, and the open door for the Gospel that currently exists could slam shut at any time, especially when one considers the growing power and influence of the Maoists (on the United States’ official terrorist list, but a viable political party in the newly instituted interim government).  The Maoists will play a major role in the shaping of this country’s new government in coming months.  Presently, they claim to want peaceful coexistence and multi-partisanship with rival political parties.  Their endgame, however, is total control.  Once the “peaceful approach” loses its expediency, then violence and force will become the strategy.  Just look down the corridors of history at Russia, China, Vietnam, Cambodia, etc.  Despite the mantra about working for peace from Maoist leadership, Maoist cadres in more remote areas of Nepal are still forcefully recruiting young people, charging illegal taxes, stockpiling weapons, and killing innocent people.  At one of the church-planting trainings that I previously referenced, some Christians admitted that they had not been evangelizing and endeavoring to plant new churches because they were afraid of the Maoists.  Fear of those that can kill the body is never a reason to refrain from carrying out the Great Commission.  I realize that this is easy for me to say, but I did not say it.  Jesus did—Matthew 10:28; Luke 12:4-5; Hebrews 13:5-6, etc.  Please continue to pray for Nepal.  May the door remain open.

Pray also for the Nepali churches.  The lukewarm Laodicean “churchianity” (see Revelation 3:14-22) that plagues America in these last days rears its ugly head here in Nepal as well.  Churches are full of false converts (I have encountered many of these on the streets.  They claim to be Christians but have no clue about what it means to be born again), and many local-bodies are inward focused.  Amongst pastors and Christian leaders, one regularly encounters chakari  (Nepali word that connotes political back-scratching, compromise, and corruption) and a thulo manchhe (Nepali for “big man”) attitude.  If one looks at a map of Nepal, most of the churches are located in the southern Terai belt and the big cities.  There are large blocks of territory where there are few Christians and many people who have not heard the biblical Gospel.  Like America, Nepal is not being reached by the nationals who claim to be followers of Jesus Christ.  A spiritual awakening of national proportions is desperately needed here in and in America.  Thankfully, God always reserves unto himself a faithful remnant (see I Kings 19:18; Romans 11:4).  There are some solid national churches and believers here, and we have been privileged to interact with some of these.  May we all be found faithful.

Thanks be unto God that he has a faithful remnant reserved unto himself in America as well.  Many of you are a valuable part of that remnant, and your prayers and support toward our work have been edifying and sustaining.  Rejoice with us in the spiritual fruit being born.

Pray for us as we travel this upcoming week.  Internet access will be limited, but I will try to keep you updated.

Grace, mercy, and peace in the Lord Jesus Christ,

Jesse, Jamie, and Bethany Boyd

Full Proof Gospel Ministries