Advancing the Kingdom in Nepal

Harvey presenting Kalli with a CFIA graduation certificate.

All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing (Col. 1:6a).  Today I am reflecting on my time in Nepal ministering to a select group of 31 pastors and leaders.  This was my first time back to Nepal since 2005. My perspective of ministry, especially success in ministry, has changed in these past 10 years. I now see how the Father uses a small number of people to cause demonstrably large shifts in cities, states and nations. I call this the ‘remnant principle’. While we ministers may cast the seed of the Word broadly, it is only a few recipients, a remnant, that bear fruit that remains; fruit that bears more fruit, 30, 60 and 100 times what was sown (Mk. 4:20; Luke 8:15). Such people produce cultural shifts and kingdom results! Among those to whom I ministered is such a man named Kalli, now 72 years young and continuing to sow the word of grace that produces fruit.  

Thirty-six years ago, Kalli a passionate young pastor, visited a high mountain village in the Himalayan Mountains. A handful of people accepted Christ and became believers. Shortly after, a young Buddhist mother gravely ill and filled with demonic influence from her culture, asked for prayer. Those new believers gathered at her house and prayed for her in the name of Jesus. She was healed, delivered from demons, and accepted Christ. Seeing the hand of God in action, some more families in that village believed on Jesus Christ, and a church, the only church in that district was birthed. That young mother had a 13-year old son, a goat herder, who accepted Christ. Even though he had no education and could not read he began to teach himself the Nepali alphabet letter by letter and accrued a minimal reading ability. As he grew in spiritual understanding he became a passionate evangelist and Kalli mentored him and sent him to Bible School. At the age of 30, Kalli installed him as pastor in his local village and he soon planted 4 more churches. He mentored the leaders of those churches. Over a period of 19 years those 4 churches spawned 35 more churches. Today there are over 235 churches in that district! 

It all started with one man, Kalli, who sowed the Word in a remote village. Kalli then mentored and discipled the young goat herder who then mentored other young men. From goat herder to Word sower, from gathering goats to mentoring ministers...it started with a remnant that produced fruit, much fruit, fruit that remains.

Today, Kalli alone has seen over 400 churches come from his labor. He is now focused on the highest mountains near Tibet, traveling as much as 9 days on foot to reach one church, a remnant. What Paul the apostle said to the believers in Colossae, are words Kalli could also speak today, ‘All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God’s grace in all its Truth.(Col.1:6)