Two years ago, a 7.8-magnitude earthquake hit Nepal which affected millions of lives. The quake left 9,000 people dead and damaged 600,000 buildings and structures.
Despite the tragedy, Global Disciples, a Christian ministry, revealed that the earthquake started a rise in the number of believers in God. It gave many opportunities for Nepalis to witness Jesus, according to Mission Network News.
“In fact, we had a weekly newspaper which said that after the earthquake, many people had turned to Christ, and the journalist brought to blame the Christian organizations and churches for doing evangelism after the earthquake,” said Deepak (not his real name), a program director in Nepal.
“Different leaders from different parts of Nepal began to call me and ask me how we were doing our ministry. So it was not difficult for me to tell them since it was all done by local resources, through the help of the congregation,” he disclosed.
He added, “But it was comforting to us because everyone has seen what Christians have done. So we just want to praise God.”
Global Disciples helps in building churches and training people in evangelism in Nepal. Deepak goes to far-flung areas in the country to train church leaders. Through word of mouth, other villages heard about his trainings and wanted to learn.
“Different leaders from different parts of Nepal began to call me and ask me how we were doing our ministry. So it was not difficult for me to tell them since it was all done by local resources, through the help of the congregation,” he disclosed.
The earthquake allowed Christian groups to reach many Nepalis. One of which is Catholic Agency for Overseas Development (CAFOD). The charity builds strong homes and offers livelihood trainings to the victims of the quake, according to Premier.
“Women were disproportionately affected by the impacts of the earthquake – many lost their husbands and homes – and these workshops have been a lifeline for the women involved, allowing them to learn new skills and earn a living from them,” said Giovanna Reda, Head of Humanitarian Programmes for Asia, Middle East and Latin America at CAFOD.
Rebuilding is slow a slow process, but it is ongoing for the thousands of families in Nepal.
Sources:
Mnnonlineorg. (2017). Mission Network News. https://www.mnnonline.org/news/two-years-post-earthquake-nepal-seeing-gospel-revival/
Premier. (2017). Premier. https://www.premier.org.uk/News/World/Christian-charity-provides-new-homes-for-victims-of-Nepal-earthquakes
