Bringing Light and Life to Nepal
Pastor Mina KC is a short, quiet, and polite woman from Nepal. Her slight stature and quiet demeanor hide from immediate view the great ways that the Lord has used her. Her story is both inspiring and encouraging to women who desire to be in ministry, especially those who desire to be in pastoral ministry.
Pastor Mina did not come from a Christian home; she was raised in a Hindu family. She was a devout Hindu and every day she worshipped the gods of Nepal in search of peace. During this time she was also plagued with many sicknesses. The turning point in her life came about as a result of reading a gospel tract. Though she had been married for years, she did not have any children. The tract that she read spoke about Abram and Sarah. At the end of the tract there was a prayer to receive Jesus Christ as Savior and she prayed that prayer and gave her life to Christ. Subsequently the Lord blessed her with a child.
At the time that she came to the Lord Nepal did not have religious freedom. The country was largely Hindu and Christianity was not viewed in a positive light, it was seen as a Western religion. It was dangerous to carry a Bible in public and if the police saw a person with a Bible, that person would be in trouble with the authorities. Pastor Mina and a few other Christians used to worship the Lord in a dark underground room. The Lord gave her great strength at this time.
After coming to faith in Jesus she felt deep in her heart that that Lord was calling her to ministry. It was very difficult for her to do ministry in Nepal because she was a woman and also because the community that she lived in was for the most part Hindu. The members of her household were the only Christians in the community. She began her ministry by sharing her testimony and the gospel message. Her sharing resulted in the planting of a church, actually in the planting of several churches.
In Chitwan district, which is located in central Nepal, she started four churches. One of these churches now has more than 100 people who attend. After staring churches in the Chitwan district she felt that the Lord called her to start a church in a remote area of Nepal called the Makawanpur district. Working in this area at that time was challenging because Nepal was going through a civil war and the area was a central place for terrorist activities. Male pastors were not able to go to this area at that time, but the Lord spoke to Pastor Mina and told her to go there. The men pastors were surprised at all she was doing and were very supportive of her ministry.
While the Lord blessed Pastor Mina’s ministry it was not without its difficulties; she suffered persecution in a number of ways. False reports were spread about her and she had to go before the local authorities. Many times people threw stones and broke the windows of the church because they did not want her or the church in the community. People also chased her from the village because they were Hindus and did not appreciate what she was doing in preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ. One time a man came to her at night, a large crowd with him. He took a knife and put it to her throat and said that he was going to kill her. She told him that she was not afraid to die; the man then pushed her away. Pastor Mina gives the Lord the glory that she was saved from such attacks. In the midst of everything the Lord gave victory and the church was established in the community.
Pastor Mina’s ministry has been challenged by persecution but it has also been marked by power. In her ministry she has witnessed some of the same things that the early church in the book of Acts did, namely supernatural healing and deliverance. In fact, these supernatural works have contributed to the growth of her ministry. The following are examples of these supernatural works.
First there is the case of a twenty year old woman by the name of Janita who was paralyzed from birth. Her parents had taken her to most of the doctors in Nepal and had also offered sacrifices to the Hindu gods for her healing, all to no avail. Pastor Mina visited this young woman in her home, shared the gospel with her and prayed for her. The next week this young woman walked to church. This surprised all who knew her because she had been in bed for the past twenty years.
The second example concerns three girls named, Pramila, Rita and Sunita, who were in bondage to evil spirits and were unable to talk for three years. Pastor Mina heard about them and went to visit them in their village. She prayed for them and they were delivered. This resulted in the whole village coming to know Christ. This miracle has been a great testimony among all of the Hindus. These girls are now sharing their testimony and leading others to Christ.
Category: Living the Faith, Spring 2015