Sunday Worship in Katmandu

We began our day with worship at the only Tibetan Christian church in the Swayambhu region of Katmandu. The pastor is Kel-Sang and he also pastors 2 other fellowships around the valley. Church is held in the pastors home and when we arrived there were about 5 other believers along with pastor Ke-Sang present. When the service started the children from the orphanage came in along with a few other believers. In all total there were 9 adults and 18 children at worship. They welcomed us as guests and then everyone introduced themselves including the children. Pastor Kel-Sang played the Tibetan guitar and we sang several worship songs. One of the songs they sang in three different languages, Tibetan, Nepalese, and English. At one point the offering was taken and then I was given the opportunity to preach with a translator. I shared with them "why God allows problems in the life of believers." After the preaching we took prayer requests and we all prayed together at the same time and then the pastor closed the prayer time. We were then served Nepali tea and some cookies. What a great worship experience!

                                                                                                   

We had lunch with a couple of the believers at a Tibetan owned restaurant. And then we headed on to try and engage some people with the Gospel. We went to a Stupa nearby where mostly Tibetan Buddhists would be going through the rituals of their faith in order to recieve karma, blessings, and cleansing from Buddha. Stupa's are imposing temples that dominate the area. They are difficult to describe but are holy to the Tibetan Buddhists. This particular one is known in the city as the "Monkey Temple" because there are lots of monkeys in the area. We had an opportunity to share tracts with some of the people and did a lot of prayer walking.  I think one of the best ways to describe the people of Tibet is they are in darkness and in need of the Light of the World. Pray for the darkness to be dispelled!

Bo had to do some orientation for some people who had arrived for the summer so we took a taxi back to the hotel to rest for a few hours. The taxi ride is indescribable but I have video for your enjoyment when we return.

One of the highlights for us was dinner at Bo and Summer's house that evening. Summer cooked mashed potatoes, fried okra, fried chicken, and cornbread. We felt right at home and my stomach was having a party!!! What a way to end the day! Tomorrow will be a long day with a full schedule! 

Until tomorrow!