Mission: Nepal 2024
Surrender
By GARY FALLESEN
The rain and cold greeted us at first light in the distant village of Ghunsa. I opened my Bible and a book I was re-reading, Spirit Walk by the late Steve Smith.
“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations…” – Matthew 28:19 (ESV)
Jesus promised in the next verse of this Gospel to be with us always. That “presence” Jesus described in the Great GO-mission “is His special presence for the mission,” Steve Smith wrote. “Jesus is sending His disciples upon the core mission on His heart – to take the message of the Good News to every people group and place on earth. He knows it will be difficult, and He promises to accompany His disciples in power.”
The easy places are gone. All that’s left in the business of reaching unreached people are hard places. Places like Ghunsa, a village in eastern Nepal arrived at after three days of flying, two days of driving, and four days of hiking. Ghunsa, like other areas around Kangchenjunga, is a Buddhist stronghold.
“Wonderful” was the word our indigenous Kingdom worker used about this area when planning Mission: Nepal 2024. “Because no one has been in those places as a Christian missionary.
“I’ve also never been to those places (targeted for our outreach), and we will be the first Gospel-carrying people in those areas. We are going to sow the seeds in these Himalayan areas. Through C4C, (God will be) breaking down stoney hearts.”
God prepares hearts. The Spirit guides us to those people. Fruit is produced by Jesus.
We pray for breakthrough people who will lead many to salvation. People like our guide and porter in the Kangchenjunga area in 2022 and 2023, and again on Mission: Nepal 2024.
God doesn’t need us, but He loves to use us – if we are abiding in Him. “For apart from me you can do nothing,” Jesus said in John 15:5.
“We fail to experience the powerful presence of the Spirit of Jesus because we fail to live according to His will,” Steve Smith wrote in Spirit Walk. “His will is that His name and His kingdom would become great in every unreached place on earth.”
So, we GO to the Sherpa people in eastern Nepal. “His special presence leads His disciples to the edge of darkness to proclaim the Light of the World,” Smith wrote.
We must surrender to self to reach these – and other – unreached people. We must sacrifice prayers, funds, and energy to finish the task left to us by Jesus.
“Making God’s name great among the nations is costly,” Steve Smith wrote.
But it is our responsibility. It is our honor.
The key is walking in the Spirit, no matter how far. The 2023 Kangchenjunga trek covered more than 37 miles (60 kilometers) with 34,000 feet (10,400 meters) of vertical change in six days. In 2022, we hiked more than 67 miles (108 kilometers) with 46,500 feet (14,200 meters) of elevation change in seven days to begin a new work.
Delivering Good News isn’t always easy. But there is nothing more important.
There are challenges and frustrations – from illness and injury to closed doors and hardened hearts. But one day in 2022 in a village perched high above the river gorge, our Kingdom worker and mission team members went to visit a family.
A woman who was a believer from another part of Nepal, brought to Kangchenjunga by marriage, said: “I have prayed that Christians would come to our village.” The team shared with her, with her husband, and with her elderly mother-in-law. They left an audio Bible.
On our return from Ghunsa, as we entered that village, we could hear the audio Bible playing. The voice of the late Charles Stanley was heard reading Scripture. It was surreal, but clearly a God moment and the result of one woman’s prayer. Imagine what God will do if more prayer warriors lift this mission. 
MISSION: NEPAL 2024: This will be Climbing For Christ’s 21st expedition in Nepal. Past trips have taken us (sometimes repeatedly) to places such as Humla, Tsum Valley, and the Manaslu, Makalu, and Kangchenjunga areas. This trek of Kangchenjunga will be long and strenuous. Another part of the team will serve in our ministry partner’s children’s home, which is sponsored by C4C. It is scheduled for May. Email info@ClimbingForChrist.org for a mission application. For C4C members only (CLICK HERE to join).
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