Trip to Bidan

Friday through Sunday Bill and I (Tom) had the opportunity to travel with Mohan to the village of Bidan. I rode on the back of Mohan's motorcycle, Bill rode on the back of Ovind's motorcycle (from what I can tell, he is the only non-Nepalese Frontier Mission Staff; he's from Norway), and we were accompanied by Isaac and his wife, Binu, (on their motorcycle) who served as interpreters. In Pokhara we saw more evidence of the Dasain holiday including the two goats tied to the roof of a car. They will be sacrificed and butchered among tens of thousands of animals.
The breathtaking beauty of this country is hard to capture in photographs and even more difficult to describe in words. Truly riding by motorcycle through Nepal is a feast for the senses: forest-covered mountains, raging rivers, farmland terraced into every square foot that is more level than about 45 degrees, and a bustling people who are dressed in bright, beautiful clothing. Before turning off the paved road in Chorundi we visited three of the Frontier Mission staff who are doing church-planting work in the area we were visiting. Mann is a young single man who recently moved to this apartment (no running water, no bathroom, no kitchen, not even any windows!) from a much worse apartment. No wonder these staff can scrape by on so few dollars each month.
The dirt road up to Bidan was quite the challenge, but riding the motorcycles up was preferable to the five-hour hike up it would have been.
Our hosts, Bijay (the pastor) and his wife, Sunita, showed us such warm hospitality. They are one of the wealthier families in the village, with livestock, a tin roof, and an upstairs in their home. Being a Christian in this village makes an economic difference: non-Christian men waste their time drinking and playing cards and earn hardly any income. Christians apply themselves and become successful in their jobs. Sunita seemed to work non-stop. Here she cooks on an open wood fire in her kitchen. Though Bijay and Sunita have hardly any education, they have instilled a passion for education in their three children, ages 16-21. All three are in college or college bound.
Saturday is Christian worship day in Nepal and Mohan asked me to present my parenting material from the marriage seminar. The joy and passion of the singing seemed to lift me into heaven. The congregation of about 120 was squeezed (sitting, not a chair in the building) inside with the males on one side and the females on the other. It was very helpful to have gotten feedback on my parenting material from the participants of the marriage seminar, so I plunged right in and shared my vision of parenting children through love, choices, and communication.
Mohan had asked Bill and I to speak at the annual Youth Conference the next morning. About sixty teenagers had come from all nine churches in the area. These nine churches have grown out of this original church in Bidan which was started seven years ago. There are now over 700 baptized believers in these churches and, let me tell you, these folks are passionate about Jesus. We heard many stories of people being healed and lives being radically transformed in the power of the Spirit.
Here was Bill, in his element with youth, half-way around the Earth. He started out with "Who came the furthest?" One group of teens had walked five hours to the conference. His other "icebreakers" set the stage for having a wonderful morning of interacting with these young believers. Bill taught about having ones own personal relationship with Christ and how we can see the Spirit at work in our lives. Mohan had asked me to speak on "how to find a good marriage partner" and "sexual purity." I asked the teens to break into groups and discuss what they hope to find in a marriage partner. When they then shared their ideas in the large group, they described finding a partner with good character. It became clear to me that these young believers had already received very wise teaching from their leaders. Later when I asked them to write down what they want and don't want in a marriage partner, they worked so diligently I could hardly believe it! It was such an incredible blessing to spend a half-day with these godly young people.
Because I had rained so much the previous two days, Bill, Binu, and I walked down to Chorundi instead of riding on the back of the motorcycles. Bill estimates over 4000 feet elevation drop and my legs are still sore two days later!
What an incredible experience to visit this church that is having such an impact on its community. Sangeeta told us that there are about 60 new believers in these 8 or 9 churches who have done the preparation and will be baptized in a couple of weeks. Where there was darkness, there is great light. Where there was despair, there is great hope. Bidan is living testimony to the power of Jesus' love.
Thank you dear friends for traveling through Nepal with us. We look forward to seeing you again soon.
Tom Olschner