Oklahoma dwelling!

Hello!! Hope you all are enjoying your summer! We have enjoyed it so far. Last we posted, we were in Nepal still, but we actually left about a week and a half ago and hit the ground running as soon as we got back to Oklahoma. The rest of our time was really amazing. It was awesome meeting so many people who felt the same call we did to go to Nepal. It seemed like this time around we were able to see many more ministries and connect with many more people than before.

As we mentioned in our last blog, a week in the village went by, and when we returned we started serving in various places. We got to serve a couple times at Banquet House (feeding the homeless and bandaging their wounds), and once Kaycee went to Beauty for Ashes (employs women to make jewelry and beautiful infinity scarves and more..) to help with inventory. We also hung out several times with our Fresh Fire church friends, and Uriah got to preach one Saturday. We were also so blessed to spend quite a bit of time with some new friends, Heather and Matt, who live in Kathmandu. While the boys went and tore down houses for two days, Heather and I stayed home with their adorable new baby, Jeremiah.

We had been praying about joining another organization for our last few weeks, when we received a call saying that Uriah's Great Grandma Pauline, who had taken a bad fall before we left, was getting out of the hospital and needed someone to stay with her at home. It seemed God spoke pretty clearly through scripture (Isaiah 58) that it was the right thing to do, and he gave us grace and excitement to go back early. We were able to bring her home last Wednesday, and she's doing great at home!

For now, Oklahoma is where God has us! There are many hopes and dreams in our hearts!! Watch and pray with us!! Thank you so much for keeping up with us!! Much Love!!

Pani puri..yum!

Cool shot from on top of a building Uriah was working on.

This is the house that Matt and Uriah were working to tear down! Yikes!

Nepal Will Always Hold A Dear Spot In Our Hearts!

Outskirts of Kathmandu.

Cows doing what they want in traffic.

A wooden chariot built for rain god festival.

Fresh Fire Church Family!! So Much Love For These Strong People!

More Family!! So Precious To Us!

Uriah & Ezekiel!

Uriah serving at Banquet House.

Patan Durbar Square--several buildings down, several held up by wooden sticks..

"We are here to be the hands and feet of Jesus.."

Some of you probably already know that we made it to Nepal 11 days ago!! People here are still a little traumatized from the earthquakes (understandable). A lot of people are still camping out in tents because their houses are cracked, or they are just afraid to sleep in them.

Two days ago we returned from 7 days working and camping with about 20 others up in the village of Dandagaun with Iris Nepal. The houses in the village are made of rock and mud with heavy tile shingles, and nearly every house that we saw was destroyed. Our task was to help the villagers tear down remaining walls and to collect wood and rocks from the rubble. It was hot and sticky and hard work, but it wasn't for nothing. Our purpose is to be the hands and feet of Jesus, and to love fully, starting with their physical needs.  A lot of the people would come to our camp because they had injuries or even itchy bug bites:).  We had a camp "nurse" to administer care, and we got to pray with many.

Here are a few memorable things/thoughts from our time in the village that I have collected:

-God healed a man with back pain!! Yeah, God!
-The flys are really annoying but they make great alarm clocks!

-The camp dog's name was "Cat".
-Nepali food 2x/dayx7days.... Oh, yeah!

-We met some really, really incredible people who challenged us and inspired us in many different ways...Body of Christ.

-This quote: "Service unto men is service unto God." -quoted many times by some amazing teenagers, who came from difficult backgrounds but have encountered Jesus and were changed by Him and now minister so passionately.

-The same teenagers taught me how to cut potatoes properly. 

-Spiders in Kansas are wimpy compared to the giant speed jumping spiders we met in while camping!

Since returning, we got caught up on rest, laundry, and grocery shopping on Saturday, and yesterday we visited a lot of friends! (Yay!) Today we are networking and finding out what is going on around the city and where we can plug in and serve. It's so amazing just to be in the middle of everything and to see God working. The Nepali people are incredibly strong and joyful in spite of their circumstances, and we are just praying that they will respond to Him.  Thank you for praying with us!

Here are a few photos: 

Many tents were set up at a popular roundabout in Kathmandu.

Uriah got interviewed by BBC News in Thamel!

After a week in the village, we treated ourselves to some chicken & rosemary sandwiches at Soma!

View from the village

Worshipping at camp in the village!

Bhoudda Stupa, where we spent so much time at last time, was cracked at the top.

Love this...

Tent in the rubble

The Scoop

So, I just realized it has been over 2 months since our last post! I guess that makes us terrible bloggers! Lots has happened since our last update.. We said goodbye to Nepal, spent a week and a half in South Africa with our school friends and officially finished our DTS, came back to the states, visited family in Oklahoma City and hung out withMike n Marley from Minnesooota, and now we're living and working with my parents in Sterling. It has been really fun! We really wanted to know what cool opportunity we could plan for next, but God reminded us that we just needed to just stay put until it was clear.

 

When we heard about the terrible earthquake that hit Nepal on Saturday and saw the pictures, it began to become more clear where we should go next. At first, we were just kind of in shock, and then it sank in I hurt for the people and all I could think was "I want to be there". Uriah and I started talking about it and he expressed that he felt the same way and we began praying. (If this next part sounds smooth, don't be fooled. I have been so silly and weird and afraid to commit..it's like a roller coaster ride.) "Why not?" was the question that popped into my head yesterday morning. Why shouldn't we go?  I came to the humbling realization that longing to be with a people that I love when they're hurting isn't a "Kaycee" longing, it's a Jesus longing. His heart is for people. So yesterday, Uriah put his notice in and we are having a garage sale this weekend to raise money to go. We hope to leave as soon as we can purchase tickets. We would love to stay in Kathmandu, but we can also work with friends in Pokhara. We're trusting that God will show us more specifics later. The tentative plan is to stay in Nepal for a month.

So there you have it. Two months of...whatever...in two paragraphs. I think I say it every blog, but we're thankful for our friends and family who keep rooting us on and praying for us. It's awesome following Jesus and sometimes it does feel crazy, but you guys just keep pushing us forward. We don't take it for granted. To prove it, I'll try to up my blogging game and keep you on the inside. ;)

Later guyz

Trek Update!!

Wow--time is flying by for us! We are down to two weeks left here in Nepal! Some of you may know from our Facebook that we went on a trek last week.. It was one of our favorite things about outreach! Uriah and our friend Ezekiel planned and led an 8 day adventure from Kathmandu to probably the most breathtakingly beautiful place I have ever visited.. Kot Timal is a Village about 3 hours by bus east of Kathmandu. It was a really refreshing trip for us all. We hiked hard for 4 days, and rested hard for 2 days. Even just getting away from the noise and dust of Kathmandu was restful, and we got to have a lot of fun as a team just experiencing new things and seeing new places together. We felt so blessed to get this opportunity!

Some highlights from our trek:

-Hiking straight up a whole freaking mountain!!! (Phil. 4:13-my mantra! Proud that it wasn't cuss words like last time!)

-And hiking part way down.. That day was my favorite hiking day because we could enjoy the views and the hike since it was much easier and cooler. 

-Team bonding--no leaders, only students this time! And we got to know Atma and Ezekiel better! They were really great guides.

-Getting to spend time with a lot of Ezekiel's family, learning more of the Nepali and Tamang languages, laughing a lot, eating and praying together. 

-Experiencing village life with no running water and cooking over a fire.

-Sleeping above all the animals one night. And being woken up at all hours of the night by a rooster.

-Fresh chicken for dinner...

-Visiting an organic farm and eating fresh papaya.

-The day we washed our hair and bathed..the men built us a shower so we could have a little privacy. :)

-Uriah and Ezekiel almost got ran off a narrow path by raging bulls! They jumped up the mountain quickly and Uriah just grabbed what he could--which happened to be a thorn bush! They were both a little shook up, and Uriah had a few scratches, but they were ok otherwise. (Thank the Lord!)
-Camp fires every night!

-Attending a Nepali wedding..We even danced Nepali style to Nepali music. (I don't dance..ever.) 

-Holding baby goats. :)

-Riding on the TOP of the big bus with goats half of the way back to Kathmandu!

-The views.. God is an amazing creator!

We are all getting really excited to go see our family and friends, and had a hard time being motivated to do anything last week after our trek. This week is full of ministry, and next week we have our short team debrief in Pokhara before heading back to do school debrief in South Africa. But we know we have just a little more time here to love people and pray and we want to make it count and finish strong. If you pray for us please pray for that!

Also, please keep our Nepali friend in your prayers. She found out last month that she has a tumor in her neck and she has surgery scheduled for this Friday to have it removed..it is a pretty risky surgery with a long recovery time and she is trusting God, but still a little nervous. We are praying for healing!!

Thanks for keeping up with us thus far.. Enjoy some photos from the trek:

Atma (on the left) and Ezekiel (on the right) have become near and dear to Uriah's Heart!
They were our trekking guides for our Trek!

Right before our first Ascent!!

Beautiful Sunrise!! Taken from Ezekiel's Big Brother's house!

Love the way the yellow mustard seed plants mash with the green wheat!!

Breath Taking View!

Papaya Farm!!

We Couldn't Resist!!

Bridge Shot!

Some of Ezekiel's Family!!

Love This Place!!

Much love<3

Beautiful Nepal

Happy FEBRUARY! Does anybody know where January went?? So much has happened since our last update!

First off, Max and Cambria (two of our four school leaders) paid us a pastoral visit here in Nepal! They stayed a week and we all really enjoyed taking them with us to do ministry and showing them all of our favorite places.. They encouraged us to keep pursuing each other and Jesus and to finish strong! So that's our plan.

Uriah has started spending each morning leading a Bible study with a few men from our church, Fresh Fire. He also had another great opportunity to preach on Saturday. He spoke about faith and seriously killed it! :) He has also been hanging out a lot with his friend, Ezekiel. They do "treasure hunts" (ask God highlight someone to pray for) and spend time at the local snooker/pool rooms. He also has been playing badminton with some of the local kids in the area!

I have spent my time in various ways. One of my favorites: this week I was blessed to work with "Beauty for Ashes", a business that provides jobs for women rescued from human trafficking. The women make scarves and jewelry and bags to sell, and they get paid for their work so they can support themselves and their families. The two days that Anna and I went we joined them for morning devotions, then were put to work washing scarves, packaging orders, and coming up with new ideas for products. They even fed us Nepali food for lunch! We really enjoyed being a part of what God is doing there and hope to get to go back soon.

We have some exciting news from the home front: Two days ago, we got to celebrate the adoption of Uriah's and my 6 new siblings! (I think that grammar is correct.) They're such amazing kids and we have loved them since we met them. If you missed the story, you can click here. P.S. my parents are champs!

Finally, in our last update we mentioned Uriah and Josh were heading to Tibet, but they had to cancel due to closed borders. However, our team has a different exciting trip on the horizon, which I will share all about in the next blog. This is a teaser to keep you on the edge of your seat waiting for the next post.... ;)

“When we are powerless to do a thing, it is a great joy that we can come and step inside the ability of Jesus” -Corrie ten Boom

It's hard to believe we have been in Nepal for more than three weeks! What a crazy, adventurous three weeks it has been.. It feels like we have had to relearn everything: using the restroom, showering, cooking, disposing of garbage, transportation, communication.. On a deeper level, we're learning to love each other deeper, we're learning just how GOOD and faithful God is, and personally, I'm learning the importance of seeing in the Spirit and praying with the Spirit and not trusting what I see. It hasn't really been easy, but I'm so grateful for this time. Also, we found a great place to sooth our homesickness: The Lazy Gringo..REAL texmex!

Get in my belly!

A couple pictures from Boudha Stupa..

God has led us to such amazing opportunities, including spending time at a children's home and a school, praying bold prayers at the nearby stupa, still helping with the feeding program at Banquet House, and the one we are most excited about: He led us to a beautiful church family right near our house! We were all walking last week and a boy walked up beside Uriah and said "Jaimasi" (which is the Nepali greeting between Christians). After a moment, Uriah realized what he said and replied, "You're a Christian!" And the boy said he was and he invited us to his house to meet his family. That is where we learned about this church, called Fresh Fire.

Guys, we attended the church for the first time last week and it was possibly my favorite things since we've been here. It is a small church of maybe 30, and they meet in a single room in one of the buildings about ten minutes from our home. They have welcomed us and loved on us with gifts and much shared food and tea. We were able to pray for the sick among us and God healed several because He's just awesome like that! Today, we joined them for a prayer meeting, where we worshiped and prayed for the country and for the church and for the sick and the lost for two hours!! Then we stayed for tea and donuts and we got to laugh and joke and get to know our new friends. We already deeply love this body. I've never felt so blessed to be a part of something, even just for two months. This is the CHURCH!! 

God is also doing cool things through Uriah and his friend Ezekiel from the church! They both love Jesus and are bold. Here's Uriah's testimony: "Today we asked the Holy Spirit to lead us through Mandikhatar and highlight who he wanted us to talk to, encourage, and pray with. We came to a lady who was 87 years old and had some back issues. We walked with her to her destination and prayed with her once she had a place to sit down. As we were speaking with her, her caregiver came up and began to ask who we were and what we were doing. Ezekiel explained we were led to her by the Holy Spirit and we wanted to pray with her. He then invited them to come to church with us tomorrow. They will be there she said!! As we continued walking Ezekiel took me to where his pastor works. He teaches English at a Christian organization near where we live. Once we arrived his pastor walked over to me and said, "Welcome! Do you mind sharing with my English class a bit about who you are and why you are here?" (SAY WHAT!!!) I said yes, of course, but was a little caught off guard! Turned into me preaching to this class learning English for about an hour and a half. Crazy times!! After that the pastor, Ezekiel, and I spoke about the church's vision and what is to come. It was so fun just being able to listen and encourage and pray with them!!" In the words of our DTS friend Johan: "COME ON, JESUS!"

Uriah and Josh

One last bit of news is that the crazies to the left are currently planning to take a motorcycle trip to Tibet in February! You read that right--motorcycles. (Yikes!) It will probably be a short trip, but they're really REALLY excited about it. They will be going with a group of guys and a guide, and they look forward to seeing more of Nepal and experiencing a little bit of Tibet, as well as the opportunity to release more of God's presence in that place. I'll be sitting out and enjoying an introvert weekend and probably eating some more Lazy Gringo. Bueno. :)

Please pray with us:

-For the Church in Nepal..that they would be encouraged, strengthened, and bold in sharing their faith as God guides. And for continued peace for Christians in Nepal (no government pushback)

-For those who don't yet know Jesus.

-For health in our team..we've been fighting colds and stomach issues since we got here.

-And finally, for Josh and Uriah in their planning and preparation for this trip to Tibet. They need to raise some funds,  get visas and receive God's favor for crossing the border hassle-free.

THANKS for reading and supporting us! Don't forget, we'd love to hear back from you.. Let us know how you're doing and how we can be praying for you! Much love<3