As HCJB Global radio engineer Ty Stakes readied for his trip to set up a station in Nepal, he felt prompted to “throw in” a second coaxial cable extension with the normal radio installation equipment he was packing...

He knows now it was the Lord providing for the need that would come in the next week.

From Nov. 27 to Dec. 5, two HCJB Global staff members worked alongside Nepalese partners to launch Radio Rasuwa, the first local radio station in a rural district of Nepal. Broadcasts can be heard throughout the district headquarters and in villages in nearby valleys and mountainous areas.

“When we arrived, we realized we would need to do some improvising to get this station launched on time,” related Stakes, director of the Asia Pacific Region. First, he and new HCJB Global missionary Toffer King discovered that the studio had been placed in the bottom of the building instead of in the top floor where they had expected it to be. That meant they would need an additional 16-foot coaxial cable extension or they would not be able to finish the installation. “God knew,” smiled Stakes and found the “extra” he had packed before leaving on his trip.

“Then the tower on which the antenna would be installed arrived late, and when it did, it was a different design than the ones we had used before,” Stakes continued. “Using translators and lots of picture-drawing with the ‘tower guys,’ we came up with an elegant, simple solution and design. And it worked!”

Then there wasn’t enough pipe material. But they found a man in town who was a welder and was able to fashion efficient brackets [to mount the antenna] out of what was available. “And the installation came out great!” Stakes exclaimed.

Despite the initial obstacles, Radio Rasuwa began broadcasting on Thursday, Dec. 1, using an FM transmitter from the HCJB Global Technology Centre in Elkhart, USA.  Programming in the local language is continuing 17 hours daily from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m.

The day after the initial transmission began, a “turning on” ceremony, complete with speeches and tea drinking, took place with local officials, including the head of the police department.

Area residents are primarily agricultural workers, often living on picturesque terraced farms along the mountainsides. Part of the programming on Radio Rasuwa will be focused on educational topics to help local communities with agricultural development.

Since the new station is in an area close to Nepal’s northern border with Tibet, the 14,000 potential listeners are mostly Tibetan Buddhists, unlike much of the rest of Nepal which is predominately Hindu. The area is dotted with Buddhist stupas (mound-like structures containing Buddhist relics) and prayer flags.

There are only about 300 Christians in the area, and just six fellowship groups spread through the villages of the district.

The video, “Humble Beginnings,” talks about the survey trip HCJB Global engineers took in March 2011 as they prepared for the installation of Radio Rasuwa. In it, HCJB Global’s local partner shares his vision, “We want to serve our community with this gospel radio and reach out to these people through radio. I believe God will help us.” Stakes prays that from these humble beginnings, Radio Rasuwa will become a “beacon of transforming light that will shine in a dark place for the glory of Jesus Christ.”

Radio Rasuwa is the fifth station that HCJB Global has helped national believers launch in Nepal since June 2009. The five are scattered throughout the country in both rural and urban areas. Three additional stations with other partners are expected to be on-air are by the end of 2012.