TRANSCRIPT

NATHAN JONES

This month, we head to Nepal and have the opportunity to meet Sabita Thapa, who has been pouring into her community and working with children both inside and outside the church, and those most vulnerable who have been impacted through human trafficking.

I'm your host, Nathan Jones, and I know you'll be encouraged by our conversation today on this episode of the Inspiring Stewards podcast.

Well, Sabita, thank you for your time today. Give us a little bit of your background, where you're from, your life growing up, that sort of thing.

SABITA THAPA

Thank you so much for having me here. I'm from Nepal, especially from Kathmandu. So, I'm growing up here in Kathmandu. My childhood is here actually in Kathmandu only.

So, I'm from an army background family, so kind of a strict. I'm not actually born in a Christian family. I'm from another religion. But as my family also received Jesus when I was 14, so whole family, we turned to Jesus. And then from then onwards, we are going to a church and from now onwards we are following Jesus. Till now, we are there as a family.

NATHAN

Tell me, what was it in your life that led you to make that decision?

SABITA

Actually, my father was really sick when I was age three. I saw him being really sick. From then to age 14, I continuously saw him being sick. And then, he was into a treatment, and we did everything actually. And my close-by aunties and neighbors, they were actually not Christian. But they were kind of saying, “If you go to the church, you are going to be healed.”

So, they were actually a gospel preacher for us. And there were some other people who were also coming and praying for us. As he went, it actually turned our lives totally into a different level. And from then on, our lives actually changed totally, and then we received Jesus. 

I got to know him as a Healer. But later on, it's not only He healed, but He transformed our lives fully, 360 degrees change we got to know. So, He's a Father now, not only a Healer.

NATHAN

That's beautiful. After making that decision, what impact did that have on your life?

SABITA

For the first year or second year, I was kind of testifying to everyone, “My father got healed.” So we came to the church. But second, third, fourth year, the testimony had changed because I saw my family had been changed more into believing who God is. And then, slowly, I'm trying to find, “Ok, who God is that is healing my father? Who is the source?” and then finding His love more.

Seeing my family from sickness to the life, from more like a scarcity to prosperity, even my neighbors seeing, everybody was kind of, “Oh, this family is really poor, they cannot do anything.” We are able to do things on our own, from not being able to study to resuming our studies back.

So, it's more like, I would say that we got back to life in a way that everybody was being able to see that we could. We are kind of reviving ourselves, and it was being a life for other people also.

And I would say, something that is more peaceful that we can see, and that fear kind of went away. Because I told you that I was three and I was totally in fear. Every day, I think half of my life, I did not see my father so much around because my mom used to take him to the hospital to find a solution, one place to the next, and used to be alone with my younger brother, my older brother, and sister. So, I see them really less. 

So, I did not have that fear after that; they're always together with me. And now, also I'm actually enjoying my family time with my father and mother. I'm having a happy family. So, I would say that receiving Him has turned my family into a more joyful place. And that joyful place is allowing me to go close to other people, asking them to be into a more peaceful places, being a safe place for others also.

NATHAN

Thank you for sharing. Well, catch us up to today. What work does the Lord have you involved in?

SABITA

When I actually test His peace in my life personally, I also had got sick. As I told you, that we could not figure out what happened to him. So, we were taking him to the one place to the next. So, we figured out that was a generational curse.

So, as he got better, that generational curse came to, that it transferred to me also. So, I also got sick for so many months also. So, many people came and prayed for me, and those things were going on. I also needed to be treated. That time I realized what kind of pain was that. That made me think of those people who are going through it.

I was also able to, when I got healed on my own, on Him, with the prayer, with the people who coming and guiding me on those things, that made me realize there are so many people in the world who really need Jesus, who need the Savior, who need to know that – yes, there are the things in the world we don't see, we don't know. But they are the different spirit also.

So, we cannot fight with that, but Lord is there who is there to free those things from us. And it is not the physical sickness. There are emotional wounds also. When I see that, I don't know what happens to me. When I was alone in my young age, that actually drew me towards the children's ministry. I have seen so many women being alone. They needed the guidance. They needed the support.

So, from my early 14, I received Jesus. 15 and 16, I was more into that physical difficulties. And 16 onwards, I was in a children's ministry. So, from 16 to now – I'm 36 – I have been working with the Sunday school kids’ ministry. Even now also, I'm working with the women ministry, guiding them having skills. I'm working with the teachers, the Christian group also, non-Christian group also. I'm working in a counseling sector. I'm working with the street children.

So, I not only see that – not only for the Christian children, but for the non-Christian children also – it's more like they need to know the love, the grace. They need to understand that they have someone who is ready to love them. So, that kind of things drew in me so much that I started to work with them more.

Mostly in our church, we work with the street children. So, I work with them. Another one is that we work with the rescue children, the children who are in girls trafficking, others, so we work with them also. So, that sort of area has been opened up for me.

So, I work with them and because of my profession also, I'm in mentorship. So, the girls who are in their teens, they don't know how to talk to the people, how to prepare themselves for the work. They come to the training center, and they don't know how to stand and talk.

I see myself in them many times – talking to them, giving them encouragement. On that way, giving them that unconditional love, making sure that they could stand. That way, I find my ministry. That's how I could show them the love the Lord has given to us freely and just pouring out to them. So, that is how I see He's giving something to us, and then we are just offering to the world.

NATHAN

What your position is in the organization, how that plays in?

SABITA

I actually started as a trainer, but in being a trainer also, I used to do the mentorship with my junior trainers. And then I was promoted as a team leader, then I continued the mentorship.

Now I'm working as operation manager. So, I do the same thing with my managers, the branch managers also. At the same time, I do the TuT for my trainer group also. Just so, I do for new trainers. I do with that.  And at the same time, I'm working with the teacher training organization at Kathmandu University, one of the courses. So, I do the mentorship for them.

The teachers come here. We don't do any other part. We do a mentorship part with the teachers. So, there we listen to them, we talk to them. We have a counselling session for them where we listen to their challenges. So, I'm more like a mentor-teacher for them and a training person. So, it's more like looking after them, listening to them, counselling. So that part I do.

But if we see that as a position-wise, I'm more like called as operation manager and PMA officer, and a mentor. 

NATHAN

Well, this is Inspiring Stewards podcast, So, tell us, how does the biblical principle of stewardship play into your life?

SABITA

This is something I relate more as part of David's story. He was anointed before he became king. So, he was anointed, but he was not in the kingdom, he was in the field. So, he was looking for the sheep. So, I see that part in my life and in my organization also.

I feel blessed also. The organization I worked, there was the most of the missionary. So, the missionary who worked with us, they were in the age of 40 plus to 50 around. They were the sisters. They left their family in the Netherlands, and they worked with us.

So, as volunteers, they did not take a salary, anything, and they were guiding us. They were teaching us. They were always saying, “We got everything, and then we could see you haven't got those things. So what we wanted is that we wanted to set things up for you so that you can do the same thing for others.”

So, we have seen they have been serving all the time, till the time it was allowed for them from the government, till the time they were not retired. So, seeing their life in Nepal for working till they can do it, so that became more like an inspiration for me. They were the living example for us.

So, if I have to take a name, there was a Raini de Witt. If you Google also, you'll find she's one of the pioneers for the organization also. There was Eugenia Ross. She's one of the board members also. She also worked so much here in Nepal. She actually is my mentor, also. Cynthia, there was a girl. So, they used to be school teachers in their place, but they came to Nepal, and they work.

So, when we work with them, they were never into a kind of this holding situation. They are more like opening their hands and giving everything to us. And when you work with them for more than six, seven, eight years, you have a habit of helping others, guiding others, giving things to others.

So that, I think, encouraged me more to be that for other people. That is actually for now, also every time I work with a new person, I said that, “I got that I'm doing to you because somebody did to me, and I expect you to do the same for the others.” So, I think stewardship goes further that way.

So, I feel that burden in me. Also, if I don't do it, then somebody has done to me, invested in me, that will not remain. And it has come that way. In the biblical, it is also the same because Jesus shows that way. He did. He set the example.

He just mentioned in John 14 also, “If you do what I do, then only you follow me, you love me.” And if we do that, then only we follow the stewardship. I believe that way. And I'm here now. I was just 20. I saw those things, and then only I'm here. So, I believe that’s part of stewardship.

NATHAN

Sabita, how are you seeing God at work in the world today? That could be specific to your location, or it could be something you're seeing in a broader context, either the region or the world.

SABITA

I would say He is at work, because many people say that the world is being more cruel, more people are not empathetic, they're doing things. But when I see from godly perspective, He is actually at work.

Every day, we could see He's working. Angd not only – I won't say that because Christian people are around, so He's working. No, God's people are around, so He's working. Everyone is doing things because we all are His children.

It's just that some are aware. Some are not aware. Consciously or unconsciously, we all are working and doing. Some does with the fear, some does with the love. So, things are going on. Some does with the fear we need to do, otherwise, we'll not go to heaven. Some will say, “Yes thank you, Lord, because You are with us, You have done so, we also want to do it.” I would say that way.

You might have heard about the last September incidents in Nepal. You might have heard and seen. You could see there also. The people, nobody want to harm one another. You might have heard the things, the situation, but what people wanted to have was a better environment, better government, and no corruption. They wanted to have a better place for one another. So, how does it come?

Because they wanted to have a better place for one another. It's just that they don't know how to bring it. So, I say that He is at work. It's just they don't know how to bring it, but our part is that we can stand. We can show the way. We can show the positive examples, so that they can trust the process.

And if you and I do that part, we could say, we can trust the way. Because as I have been working, with the same Christian group. It's my 14th year, and we are working with the same group of people with the same faith, with the same principle.

We have been working with another circle, also. They are not in the same faith, but what they agree is that the way you people are working, the product you are making, whoever come out of your particular course, whoever are coming out of your program, they have integrity. They know how to work. They know how to speak up. They know how to respect one another. They do not cheat. So, they have that testimony, means they have that empathy. Means if we have that guidance, if we keep that integrity, that brings the setting of things.

So, I would say that if we set an example, if we stand, we set an example for others, people will grow together with us. So, in our small space, in our community, in our neighborhood, in our globally, if we start working together without having a rivalry and set an example, I think we can influence more.

That's what I see, but sometimes, you and me have to go through the process of pruning, because sometimes we grow in a way that sometimes we have — yes, this is what I do, this is something I'm doing. The “me” comes first, then “we.”

Sometimes, we feel like this is what I'm doing, that time we stop glorifying Him, and that mess up things. In our organization also, in our family also, in our church also, and that's a different negative influence on the people. Otherwise, there are no bad people in the world.

NATHAN

Any final thoughts for those listening today of encouragement?

SABITA

We need to remember He's the Vine and we are the branches. Till the time we be in Him, we keep on working. We should be reminding one another of that. And sometimes correction is needed, and encouragement is needed for one another. And when we do that and allow the Holy Spirit to work through us. Because sometimes we feel that we can do it… no, we cannot.

If we do that, He is at work. And many times, we don't know, but He is alerting us. If we are conscious, there is a hint. There is a thing that He's saying, “Yes, this is here.” And if we just take that one step, there is a peace in between the conflict. There is a process in between, and He takes over everything.

NATHAN

He's at work. We can either join Him or not.

Sabina, this has been rich, and I'm very grateful for your time today.

SABITA

Thank you so much. It's a good time together to be with you.