On February 12, 2011, Val flew from China to Kathmandu, Nepal. I went to visit friends whom I met while they were living in Davao. They are now working with national believers through the ministry of Vision Nationals. Joel and Sue Garrison have an amazing ministry to orphans, widows, refugees, pastors, and Bible students in Kathmandu.
Joel, Elliot, Isaac, and
Sue Garrison
The Garrison are involved with two children's homes. One for boys and one for girls. There are young men, women, and widows that are living in the homes with the children helping them and being role models for them. All of the children go to a Christian school and are learning about Jesus daily. They are also learning the love of a family and the gift of work.
On February 17, Val did a Sunday school workshop for ten churches. There were 35 delegates and we had a wonderful time. They learned how to use Valerie's Bible curriculum, how to use the Wordless Book, how to prepare and plan for SS, and how to make SS a fun learning time. Valerie was able to impart her vision of teaching the Bible to students of all ages.
During the testimonies at the end of the workshop the delegates shared how much they enjoyed the day: I now have confidence to teach God's Word to others, I learned that I need to be prepared and have a plan, SS needs to be fun, I don't need to yell at my students, and more.
The pastor in charge of the workshop even asked Val if she could come back with her husband and do a pastor's seminar. Who knows what God will do in the future? With God, anything is possible.
Huma is a widow that works in the bakery that the Garrison have started. She was scheduled to have a gall bladder operation in April. Since I had worked with gall bladder patients in the Philippines, I made some suggestions on how to help her holistically that might prevent the operation. Well, the suggestions were followed and the results were a great success. Huma did NOT have to have the operation. God is good.
One day Val was able to visit the Monkey Temple. It is a holy site for both Buddhists and Hindus alike. It is nicknamed the Monkey Temple as there are holy monkeys that live and wander not only the temple site, but the city as well. There are said to be 365 steps to get to the top of the hill.
Look at this photo closely and you will see a monkey and her child. Monkeys just like this are all over the hill. They roam it with no restrictions. They are even seen throughout the city on occasions.
Candid photos as Val was walking the streets of Kathmandu.
The Awesome Himalayas.
A word of advice to anyone who will ever fly into Nepal: Do NOT fly in during the middle of the night. Make sure you get flights that are during the daylight hours. This is so that you can get a good view of the Himalayas from your airplane window. I was NOT thinking of this when I booked my flights. Boo, Hoo. But, God in His graciousness still allowed me to get a glimpse of the awesome peaks.
Traveling God's world and visiting missionaries is a wonderful way to not only experience God's work in other parts of the world, it is a wonderful way to get to know your missionary and the life he lives each day. I can now pray for my friends in a new way and now when I get their newsletters, I can picture their ministry alive in my mind. I am so grateful that God allowed me, Val, to take this trip.
I suggest that you and your family take a trip to visit the missionary you support.
