Monsoon in Kathmandu Valley.
(Photo courtesy Sharada Prasad via Flickr)
Nepal (MNN) — There’s a new sense of urgency in Nepal.
The annual monsoon season has been a big concern for many aid groups responding to the spring earthquakes, and now it’s at their doorstep.
Earlier this week, NASA astronaut Terry Virts tweeted video of a large cyclone churning toward the Himalayas.
Haggai Institute alumnus Vikrant Bhandari discussed the issue with MNN immediately after descending from Himalayan mountain villages, where he and another Haggai leader have been meeting needs for weeks.
“The monsoon is just [around] the corner now, and once the rain starts to come, people will suffer more,” he says. “Thousands and thousands have lost their shelter, livelihoods, and I see that the biggest challenge is to help the people physically.”
While a portion of earthquake survivors have returned home, many are STILL sleeping in the open. This nontraditional lodging arrangement is a choice for some, but most have nowhere else to turn.
Indigenous believers respond
Bhandari and another Haggai leader are distributing tents and other shelter supplies to earthquake survivors in the Himalayas. As they do, friendships form that will eventually lead to conversations about eternity.
Haggai leaders Vikrant Bhandari and Shiv Nath Mishra from India awaiting a flight to Kathmandu.
(Photo, caption courtesy Haggai Institute)
“If we are able to help them at this point of time, I’m sure we’re going to build a good relationship; and at [some] point in time, they will be able to receive the Gospel in a more positive way,” says Bhandari.
It’s all part of a bigger plan.
“The Lord spoke to me clearly [and said] that I must use my life to reach out to the people of the Himalayas. I must see that the people in the Himalayas come to know Christ,” Bhandari shares.
That clear-cut vision is a result of Haggai training Bhandari received six months before a 7.8-magnitude earthquake shook up Nepal.
“Having a vision and then setting goals to accomplish the vision: [that is what] I learned from Haggai Institute,” shares Bhandari.
“When this earthquake came, I immediately saw an open door [to accomplish] that vision.”
The Haggai Institute trains Christian leaders around the world to impact their communities, organizations, and nations for Jesus Christ. Since the late ’60’s, nearly 100,000 Christian leaders in 188 nations have received training from Haggai.
What YOU can do to help
Right now, Bhandari and his team are focused on meeting the immediate physical needs of quake survivors and helping them prepare to withstand the rainy season. The most important thing they need from you is also the easiest.
The Haggai Institute trains Christian leaders around the world to impact their communities, organizations, and nations for Jesus Christ.
(Photo courtesy Haggai Institute)
“We need prayer; we need prayer partners who can stand with us, because things are very challenging,” Bhandari says. “Hinduism is a stronghold of Nepal.
“We need prayers that the strongholds are broken down.”
Pray also for Bhandari and his teams’ safety, as they risk it all to help people in-need.
With your help, Haggai can train more leaders to do the same.
