Earthly Kingdoms and Heavenly Kingdoms

Originally posted at: https://agmp-na.org/2017/05/25/earthly-kingdoms-and-heavenly-kingdoms/

May
25

Guest Blog by Jennifer Collins

Nepal

A view of the mountains from a village affected by the 2015 earthquake in Nepal

On April 25, 2015, Nepal experienced a 7.8 magnitude earthquake that killed close to 9,000 people. The earthquake was so forceful that Mt. Everest, the world’s tallest mountain lost 3 inches in height. It was even strong enough to affect the axis of the earth. Nepal is a tiny country sandwiched between the two superpower countries of India and China. It is one of the poorest countries in the world. It is hard to imagine how the poorest of the poor lost everything they had.

But not unlike the earthquake in Acts 16, God is using this earthly disaster to bring people to Himself. The 2017 ARDF pilgrimage trip was a door to see what God is doing in this part of the world. It was an opportunity to see the extent of the earthquake damage and, more importantly, to see the progress of the rebuilding. There are eighty Anglican churches in Nepal. Thirty churches were destroyed in the earthquake and eight have been rebuilt so far. ARDF has raised over $200,000 for the rebuilding of these Anglican churches in Nepal.

The trip opened doors for us to meet our Anglican Nepalese brothers and sisters. Of the 80 Anglican churches, we were able to visit 10—representing over ten percent of the churches—in a weeks’ time. We visited people in remote mountaintop villages to churches in the center of Kathmandu. We visited Durbar square, one the most historic areas in the city of Kathmandu, where temples, shrines and government buildings were damaged to the point of no repair. And we visited and consecrated newly built churches with congregations bursting at the seams.

The more we got to know our Nepalese brothers and sisters in Christ, the more Hebrews 12:28 came to my mind, that our God is “unshakeable”.

Therefore since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us give thanks by which we offer to God an acceptable worship with reverence and awe for indeed our God is a consuming fire. – Hebrews 12:28

While the earth may shake and much destruction ensues, still God is at work, building a heavenly kingdom that will last forever. We visited a remote mountaintop village where fifty people have been gathering for worship in a tent for two years. These same people have also raised money and purchased land to build a church and a community center. Their faith and perseverance are great. It will be a joy to go back and visit in the years to come.

We visited another church that was literally rebuilt with pennies. The existing church was destroyed in the earthquake. But the congregation was determined to rebuild. Single rupees are like pennies. No one really likes to use them. But what is useless to man is useful to God. The church started a rebuilding campaign by collecting single rupee coins. Within a year to eighteen months, the church used this money to purchase land right next to the existing church and completed the building of a brand new church.

What was useless to man was of great value to God!

Surely God is working in Nepal. The government buildings and the temples in historic Durbar Square are beyond repair, waiting for the next earthquake to take them down completely. But God is building His kingdom and calling people to himself in Nepal.

To contribute to the rebuilding of these churches, donate here.

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The post Earthly Kingdoms and Heavenly Kingdoms appeared first on Anglican Relief and Development Fund.

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