Testimony of Pastor Rabindra Das
Pastor Rabindra Das was born into a Hindu Dalit Family. His parents have faced both poverty and caste discrimination due to the Hindu caste system. He is the eldest son of his parents. Pastor Rabindra lives in Kathmandu with his wife and two sons and leads Livingstone Ministry in Nepal.
Pastor Rabindra shares his life testimony:
I was born into poverty in a Hindu Dalit family and went through discrimination and marginalization in my childhood. This is the tragedy for most Dalits in Nepal. In 1996, I encountered Jesus. I was a teenager studying in grade 8 when I first found a booklet which told the story of a narrow and wide road from the Gospel of Matthew. I later got a Hindi New Testament Bible from my friend with the interesting title: ‘Message of Love’. It was a message of the love of Jesus Christ for me. I was later invited to Lalbandi Church by a Christian lady who lent me her Nepali Bible for a day. My first church visit led me to Christ and I have followed the Lord Jesus Christ ever since.
Jesus is my transformation. I am the first school graduate from my entire extended family. All were illiterate before me. Due to the Lord Jesus, church and my parents’ support, God gave me the opportunity to study in Nepal and in India. I have completed my master’s degrees in Educational Planning and Management, Rural Development, and Mission and Development from the universities. My brother and sister, cousins and also community people have followed me, and they are well educated now. The Lord Jesus has transformed me, my families and impacted so many in my community.
I followed my pastor and church leaders in this new faith and life. The Holy Bible became my guide for living. I felt strongly the presence of the Holy Spirit and the love of Jesus through the scriptures and through the encouragement of my pastor and church leaders. While I was growing in Christ, the Lord performed healing and deliverance miracles through me in my village. A man with leprosy who lay dying, was healed by the power of our Lord Jesus Christ. This miracle led his family to Christ and his son is now pastoring in the church. Because I was the first Christian in our village, I shared the Gospel with all my friends, teachers, relatives and community people. It led brothers, cousins and people to Christ. God has planted a church in my village and there are now more than 150 members – it is a growing church.
I always wanted to be a full time pastor, but God trained me through work in different areas of community and rural development to gain skills and knowledge that have been invaluable for the growth and mission outreach of His kingdom. I see Jesus as my total transformation because He has transformed all aspects of my life. In 2012, He returned me to the mission field. I am now serving as Mission Pastor in Cornerstone Church in Kathmandu and leading Livingstone Ministry in Nepal. We have more than 94 growing churches and many new places are waiting for us to come and start fellowship. We face the challenges and opportunities of increasing needs in this expanding mission field.
I am thankful to all for your prayers and support.