Naringal Church

Hi all,

Well, I'm back home in Australia and what an adventure I've had! Now settling back into 'normality' I decided to take time to write and thank you for your support and tell how it has helped me and our mission this past summer. So in a nutshell this was my Teen Missions experience.

Arriving at The Lords Boot camp in Tewantin, Queensland on the 12^th of December was stepping into the unknown. The 10 day program turned out to be an intense time of team building exercises, learning brick laying, concreting, carpentry, music, puppets and many different speakers with messages relevant to our upcoming obstacles. During this time though, our team was able to grow and develop into a family which was to be a very valuable thing once we got on field.

We left for Nepal on the 24^th of December and had a very drawn out Christmas which consisted of 3 different countries and being 30hours long, arriving in Kathmandu Christmas noon. We then stayed at our missionary, Ruben's house for two nights, going to his church and visiting a large monkey temple. The morning we left Kathmandu we rose early and were informed it would take around 6 hours to get to our project site of Kalidaha....14 hours later and there was still “half hour to go” When we finally arrived it was late at night but by the morning we were able to see where we actually were and get our bearings of what our project would consist of.

Our project was to build a church or begin to do so. The locals had already put in the foundation walls, seen here in the picture but it was our job to cement the floor and start bricking walls. So for the next 2 weeks we worked 8 hour days, rise and shine at 5.30 moving dirt, rocks, sand and bricks in order to get what we could done. We initially believed that at best we may get the floor completed, but with the help of a cement mixer the floor was laid in two days. We were then able to move onto cementing the pillars by hand and bricking 8 high around the whole church. We were amazed and blown away by the progress we had made.

During our time in Nepal we also had many opportunities to evangelise , presenting puppets and songs to large groups. It was always different and always very rewarding and great fun.

After two weeks we left Kalidaha which was bitter sweet. We had not been there for long but it felt like home and we were settled there. The trip back to Kathmandu was much like the trip there, WAY longer than we expected. We were scheduled to stop at Gaighat for one night but due to bus strikes we were forced to stay an extra night.

Leaving early the next morning we had a big day ahead of us visiting an orphanage and going on an elephant safari in Chitwan National Park.

We later arrived back in Kathmandu that night. The last full day in Nepal was spent doing souvenir shopping and we were also able to go to a restaurant with Ruben and his family.

My highlights for the time in Nepal werethe people we met and travelling through the countryside. It was such a world away from home and it helped me gain a greater understanding and appreciation for my own life. The opportunities also to do what little tourist-y things we did were wonderful. 3 Hours on an elephant, lookouts over Kathmandu and just driving through all the villages was an eye-opener in itself. The opportunity to have a church service in the church we had begun to build was also a big highlight.

We arrived home in Australia on the 16^th of January and made our way back to The Lords Boot camp for the Debrief program. Well I can safely say that coming back home was a greater culture shock than going into Nepal. After spending 22days away from western culture and seeing not much skin, we stopped off at MacDonald's and were confronted by the amount of clothing-or lack thereof-that people were wearing! It was quite a shock to the system. It all seemed very ridiculous.

Debrief was thankfully nowhere near as hectic as boot camp. We actually had free time and chances to talk to people on other teams. The main focus was on the classes which talked of the next step in going home and how to utilise the experience of the summer. It was such a valuable time, important in making us all realise the challenges that were ahead. We also had a sightseeing day were we all went to Dreamworld which was a fantastic time to spend with our team mates before we left for home. Leaving to go home and saying goodbye to such close friends, as they had become, was harder than I ever thought.

Over the summer God has taught me many things and has shown me over and over again his awesome power. I have learnt to trust in Him fully as there were many times were we needed Him and He came through for us. Also praying for everything was a big thing. Stopping, praying and carrying on in faith, then praising God for what what he had done, We did that constantly. We knew that none of us could have done this mission, not by our own strength, but through God we were able to do our best and have an amazing experience.

I want to thank you again as my supporter. Without you my trip would not have been possible and a church in the far North East of Nepal would not be now growing. It is people like you that enable missionaries to go out and do the Lords work. You are just as important. Thank you.

Your sincerely

Ella Bouman