My father was the village Hindu priest and I was his eldest son, so whenever he went away, I had to enact the ceremonies myself, especially the funeral rites. Because of that, I was always fearful of the gods. I knew what would happen if I did bad things. The gods would punish me … I tried to be good so that I wouldn’t be punished.

When I was 14, I noticed Sara at high school. We were from different castes, so we weren’t allowed to speak, but I wrote her a letter and she replied. Then, when I was 15, I left the village. I walked 56 kilometres to Pokhara. I was so happy! I didn’t ever want to come back, even to visit. I finished my schooling and went to Kathmandu where I met Sara and married her. After some years, we came to Australia. It was what I’d always wanted!

When we got here, Sara’s cousin invited us to church. I wasn’t interested. We had two little boys, two jobs and a place to live. We didn’t need to go to church! But Sara went to church and she heard about Jesus for the first time. She started to pray. Then she started taking down all our religious lights and ornaments. She threw our Hindu idols into the bin.

I decided to go to church with Sara, to avoid an argument. I used to sit there and work out how I could leave. Our boys would need to go to the bathroom, so I would take them out. Then, while I was out, I would go next door to the Chinese shop or to the bank. I stayed outside as long as I could!

In 2009, we heard about INF – the Christian medical mission that had been working with the neediest people of Nepal since 1952. We went to their annual event. I remember there were speakers – Australians who had been working in Nepal for many years. One couple had been living in Nepalgunj – a really hot, dry area. That year, there’d been terrible flooding. The couple showed photos. Then a man showed a video of the surgery they were doing with the most disabled people with leprosy. Then an older Australian nurse Skyped in from Jumla, in the far west. It’s so remote. She talked about the new community health work there, and she laughed about the fleas in her bed. She was covered in bites. But she was part of a work that helped the people who would otherwise die.

I just wanted to know why. Why would these Australian specialists give up their way of life and income? They weren’t even being paid anything. After the event finished, I asked one of them. He said, “It’s because of the love of Christ.” We had a long conversation. He said that the Bible tells us, as believers, that we respond to the love of Christ by sharing the good news and serving the neediest people of the world.

For the first time, I was interested. I read the Bible. I realised there really is a God and he cares for us. He’s promised us eternal life through Jesus. 1 John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” I realised I needed to repent of my sins and God would forgive me. It changed me.

Now, we help to run a Nepali church in Sydney. I love to go back to Nepal and I support the work of INF. We have fundraising events all the time, and I lead vision trips to Nepal for INF. Also, we have good relationships with our family in Karkineta, and some of them have become believers. God is so powerful! It’s true what that man said … the love of Christ makes us want to respond, with everything we have.”

Rudra’s story is part of Eternity’s Faith Stories series, compiled by Naomi Reed. Click here for more Faith Stories.