Reaching Nepal

Saturday was a good day here. I had a phone call a 6:30am telling me someone had found my dog! Yeah! I took about a 15 minute walk and picked her up. The family that found her had taken good care of her. I was thankful. Later that morning I preach the message in church and gave the Lord’s Supper. It was the first time I had ever given the Lord’s Supper and I was nervous, but there again God was good to me and it all went well. Having to lead the Lord’s Supper gave me a new perspective about the practice. I ? believe most Christian don’t really understand the deep importance it carries. Here in Nepal we take the Lord’s Supper a little more seriously than we did back in the states. First of all we ask anyone who is not a baptized believer to not take part in the Lord’s Supper. We also warn others the dangers of taking the? Supper in an un worthy manner. Some may think those things harsh, but taking the Lord’s Supper is no joke. Read Paul’s words in 1 Corinthians 11:27-30

??27? Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. ?28? But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup. ?29? For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord?s body. ?30? For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep.?

The scripture is clear. The Lord’s Supper is a serious practice. It’s a time of us to remember the sacrifice our Savior made for us. So the next time you take the bread and wine (or juice) focus on the cross and the one crucified.

Well I woke up today a little sick. I decided I would get up and start the day because today,Saturday, is church day in Nepal. This? sabbath? was the first day of our new English Bible study and I thought since I was the teacher I should go. We had four in our class (including me) and focused on the infinite power of God from Psalm 139 and Psalm 115. After the class I decided? I should head home and rest. As I laid in bed I listened to a sermon by John Piper on the life of John Bunyan. His story is amazing and I encourage you to get the sermon or read about Bunyan’s life. One? of the many things that struck me was that even though Bunyan endured tremendous? pain and persecution he knew that it was God’s hand doing it. It was God alone that was putting him through the refiners fire and the outcome was a man completely committed to Him. Through all this John Bunyan wrote over fifty books, one being the best selling book of all time apart from the Bible- Pilgrams Progress.

As I walk on this path that great men of God have already blazed, I long to be faithfull? as they have: Luther, Calvin, Bunyan, Carey, Judson, Taylor, Elliot, etc. I long to be used. I long for my life to matter.

This afternoon I came to our local coffee house, “The Beanery”, to load up my Ipod and met two men who God has His hand on. Both Mike and Nathan are in there mid-30’s and both are seeking what God would have them to do at this point in their lives. A local pastor was with us and reminded us of a great truth. God grows people and then uses them. So many times we feel like we have to rush through life, but God desires to mold us into His image first. God may use some at a very young age to do a great work and others He may choose to use at a later age in life. Time is not the issue. As we grow in our faith daily, it’s then that we are used. The greatest pleasure we can? ever? experiance in our lives is to be with HIM. He alone can give us the joy we so long for. Once we understand that, being used by God will come naturally.