A Glimpse of Kathmandu

We've been here for two full days now. We've experienced so much already. First, let me describe to you my initial feelings about the city of Kathmandu. It's dirty. It's dusty. It's cramped. There is literally no reason why anyone should want to live here (in my opinion). There really isn't anything desirable here. The roads are horrendous and the traffic is life threatening. It's hot, humid, and sticky. The air is horrible. Life here seems really really tough.

But our brothers and sisters here are amazing. We've only met them a few days ago. There's a Jordanian. A Texan. Koreans. Taiwanesians. Nepalis of course. The community already begins to feel like home. Many of them have been persecuted and have been rejected by their families for faith in Jesus. Their faith provokes me to walk worthy of the beautiful Gospel. All of these people are legit!

Today, we went to Thamel, where the house of prayer is located. We will be going there often over these next few weeks. The house of prayer is called Edut Yeshua, which translates to the testimony of Jesus. Thamel is a region in Kathmandu that is sortof the backpacking center of the city. There are lots of companies that run trekking and adventure trips, stores with knock off trekking gear, hostel type places to stay, etc. There are actually a lot of Westerners that stay in Thamel. We must have seen at least 20 Westerners today. But Thamel is also very dark; it is filled with prostitution,  idolatry, drunkenness, etc. The house of prayer is located on the third or fourth floor of a building in Thamel. As we were worshipping together today, I felt an extreme sense of joy. There are so many gods here, yet I am worshipping the one true God.

1 Corinthians 1 says that the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing but to us who are being saved, it is the power of God. 

Much more to come!
~Chris

And Off We Go

Our luggage is all packed. I’ve taken a shower. We’ve packed our carry-on backpacks with all the essentials. If we were to lose our luggage, we have everything we need in our backpacks. It is somewhat liberating to know that there isn’t much that I need in life. All I need fits in this backpack. We will be heading to the airport in a few hours. We have done our best to prepare, to pack, and to pray these past several months. The time is finally here. I don’t necessarily feel ready but I think I’m as ready as I will ever be.

In my readings about the Israeli backpacking phenomenon in Nepal, I have observed that many view this phenomenon as a “rite of passage” or a means by which Israelis re-adjust to civilian life after serving in the military. It’s a chance for them to explore the world and to find themselves. In some ways, I feel that we can relate to that; maybe we need to find ourselves too. Maybe there’s something special about Nepal that allows people to find themselves. I really only have one objective: to discover. I want to discover more of who I am in Christ, more of who He wants me to be. I want to discover more about the man, Jesus, we follow, and what it takes to live my life in a way that honors God, the one who entrusts us with the Gospel.

“I now rejoice in my sufferings for you and fill up in my flesh what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ, for the sake of His body, which is the church” (Colossians 1:24).

~Chris

More Than a Name

Over the past year, I’ve learned that Hu is a very fun last name to have.  The joke possibilities are endless.  Of course, this could be annoying if I let it bother me, but instead I’ve chosen to embrace it.  My personal favorite is the knock knock joke discovered by some of my third grade students:

“Knock, knock.”

“Who’s there?”

“Mrs.” 

“Mrs. Who?” 

“Get it?  That’s my teacher!  Mrs. Hu!!”

This joke is just the tip of the iceberg, though, as my dad and brother discovered not long into our dating relationship.  Hu jokes can go in many different directions.  “Hu are you talking to?” “Hu’s here?”  “Hu?”  And so on and so forth.

So when naming our blog, Chris and I decided to use some kind of play on Hu.  We toyed with a few ideas, but Hu So Ever was clearly the best fit.  Since college, Mark 8:34 and many similar verses have really taken root in both my heart and Chris’.

“Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take

    up his cross, and follow me.” Mark 8:34

Jesus never promised that following Him was going to be the fun, glorious, exciting adventure that I used to think it was supposed to be.  He has many exciting promises about our future inheritance, but so many of His words about this life are full of pain and suffering.  He tells us that we’ll be hated, persecuted, and even forsaken by friends and family if we follow Him.  I often wonder what it says about my relationship with God if I’m NOT experiencing these types of suffering.

All this is not to say that I walk around trying to be miserable and suffer as much as possible.  On the contrary, I embrace and enjoy all the sweet blessings that Jesus allows me to experience.  But at the same time, I treasure these seasons of circumstantial bliss knowing that choosing to follow Jesus may have more painful consequences in the future.   

This summer, Chris and I are taking an important first step as a couple.  As we finish up packing, it feels more like preparing for a fun adventure than taking up our crosses.  But despite our excitement, we go into the trip with sobriety knowing that this could be the first step on a much longer journey.  This trip could shift our lives onto a path away from the comfortable American careers that we currently enjoy.  We don’t exactly know how God will use this month in Nepal to shape our testimonies, grow our hearts, and reveal more of our callings, but we believe that He will do all of these things. 

So as we prepare to fly out, we pray for willing hearts.  We want to be among the whosoevers that choose to follow Jesus no matter the cost.  The whosoevers that confess the name of Jesus before men.  The whosoevers that give a cup of water to the little children.  And the whosoevers who are not offended in Jesus.  We want to be those whosoevers…  But you can call us the Hus for short.