Wayne Pederson, President of HCJB Global.
Nepal (MNN) ― Nepal still doesn't have a constitution. Now, a conflict between the president and prime minister may take even longer. This rift, however, isn't having much impact on Christian radio in Nepal.
President of HCJB Global Wayne Pederson says up until five years ago, Nepal was a closed country. "The Maoist had a revolution, overthrew the Hindu government, and established a form of democracy. Isn't it ironic God used the Maoists to overthrow the government so Christian broadcasting could come in!"
According to Pederson, a small church in the country said they could put a radio station on the air if HCJB Global could get it on the air in 60 days. Pederson says, "So, we rushed a transmitter, studio equipment, and an antenna, and the station was on in 45 days. Since then, we've planted seven community FM radio stations in Nepal."
But are people listening? Pederson says YES. "You can imagine in a country that's largely Hindu [that there's] a lot of curiosity about the radio stations. Many people are tuning in, and many Hindus are deciding to follow Jesus."
Pederson indicates Christian radio is having an impact on church planting. "We're seeing a huge growth in the church in Katmandu and even in some of the outlying areas. We have one of our community radio stations that's planted on the India border."
While there are questions about Nepal's future, politically, Pederson says, "We say we're going to go in aggressively while the door is open. We don't know how long the door will be open, and we'll keep planting these radio stations and equipping local believers until the door closes."
More stations are needed in places like Nepal. Pederson says, "It costs us about $30,000 to put in a radio station and to train the nationals. All of the staff are indigenous people."
If you'd like to help HCJB Global fund additional stations, click here.
