Yellow submarine

It's been an interesting day and all that, but really I just had this thought I wanted to share with you.

Jesus Loves YOU. And he loves ME.

So I'm getting sick again (yes again :/ ) and I wouldn't be surprised if it's because of the constant contact with stuff in the subway lines etc. Anyways, the point being, I'm getting sick again and there's a Typhoon (or "Typhou" in japanese) that's hitting and the school is likely closed tomorrow as well as it was today. And again I got sick at just the right time that if everything works out exactly right, (this happens so often...) although I'll lose a few days, I would have lost them anyways because there's a typhoon and the school is probably going to be closed. Last time it was a friday I got sick, and I was better again by Tuesday (which is when we start evangelism for the week)

The thought that is going through my head is that, what if, all the weather on this planet is being orchestrated to match my sickness (or vice versa, but does it really matter?) so Jesus can say to me, "I Love you" ?

I don't know what all he's doing, but it just clicked to me that he already did something greater and died for me. Then rose again. He didn't just reset me at the place of Adam and say "you're clean again, try it again" but instead "Your sin is mine, and my clean is yours. You can't be affected by that sin again."

It's like I'm a submarine coated in RainX. If I just got the courage to pull out of the mire of sin I wallow in, all of it would bead up and roll off, and all anyone would see would be Jesus. I'm only surrounded in sin because I choose to. It can't stick to me anymore.


But then it's more, I'm clean but that's not all. Just realizing he would do everything to tell me AGAIN that he loves me, Isn't that cool? He would stop time, make the entire world standstill just to whisper in my ear again. "I Love you"



So I'm sick, and It's raining, and it's probably about to get really nasty outside, not to mention ruin our schedule for ANOTHER day. But what if it's something else? What if I'm sick because he's trying to teach me something? What if the weather is just right so that he can show me love, and that I won't get to miss out on evangelism even though I got sick? That he's watching my back, and just because he's training me to rise out of the mire, he's not going to make me miss out? What if everyone else gets to be in the same boat and look at the one who loves us and learn to sit tight, listening at His feet, because he's got it all under control?

What if it's all love?

"And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion. And they woke him and said to him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. He said to them, “Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?”"

"But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.” 41 But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.”

The life in Japan

So I'm long overdue for an update again. Here every day seems long, but they pass before I know it. I realized I've forgotten to let you all know what I'm doing here.

Well, here's the typical day:

8:00 wake up
9:00 meet as a group and schedule, bible study, or do logistics
10:00 quiet time
11:00 leave for campus
~12:00 arrive on campus and pray for a few minutes before splitting into pairs
Evangelize
4:00 meet back up and head home
5:00 free time, eat, etc

So That's the typical day

I'll try to update a bit later on some of the other things that are happening! We're going to the Onsen today (public bath house) and maybe later on I'll put some more info online. It's pretty busy here!

A catch up

Well, I've done a terrible job keeping up with my blog, It's been a result of being crazy busy, getting sick, and, well, being busy.

We started evangelizing last Thursday, I'm with 8 others on Hitotsubayashi's campus. Wow. Just wow. It was in incredible day of God humbling me and my team and forcing us to focus on him.

I think the best way that I can summarize this is with my journal entry for that day:

-On the train back
I feel like I've reached my saturation point. God is doing something with m. He's definiitely humbling me severely. Nothing that I have is enough My wits, my language, my heart, my knowledge. All of it is useless. I feel like I have neither the heart for Jesus or the heart for these people that I need to be effective This is the first time I've tried sharing my faith as I should, It's the first tme in 5 years.  I've never cared enuogh for anyone but myself to share salvation.My pride is incredible, I've learned some, but I never realized how much sin is in my life. And this is just pride.Why does the only thing that maters feel so unimportant to me? (jesus/gospel)I have so much head knowledge Jesus. So much. I need you to make it heart knowledge. I'm not seing you, Jesus I need you right now, you know all my faults and still Love me. You want all my burden, all my sin, my shame. You want my fear, my guilt and you want to bear it. I don't want to give it, I don't want to be helpless. Yet you sit there, saying nothing, but your eyes show your heart pouring out for me. That if you could just hold it (my burden) I would be well. But my fighting hurts you more thn the sin ever would.That your own love, your bride to be looks broad for help, that I say you're not enough. (end train ride)
Jesus Help Me (end entry)

God took away every prop holding me up until he was the only thing sustaining me. You feel like you're holding onto nothing, there's nothing left, just a thin pole you're hanging onto keeping you from certain doom, until you realize you're actually tightly strapped onto Jesus. All those things you thought were supporting you were actually keeping you from moving.

It's like being a bird with yourself encased in a cast. You're "safe" but the reality is you're falling like a rock. Jesus has been breaking that cast off, and although it's a frightening thing, I'm becoming free enough to start flying.

Friday however was another story completely. Once it became about Jesus and his glory, all of a sudden people opened up! The spirit lead and we had a lot of good conversations. There was even two guys that I talked to (Rintaro and Kei) that were really open and almost excited to hear what we had to say. I even gave Rintaro my Japanese English bible. The excitement on his face was indescribable, and it's probably that look of excitement that I'll never forget. We treat the bible as nothing, but it might as well have been gold for him.


So much going on here, and Jesus is really working. Please pray! we need every bit of it, and these students need him so much. This may be the only chance they have of hearing the gospel, and pray that it sticks with them hounding them down until they rest in Christ!

Arrival

 It's been pretty crazy so far, but I'll just start decompressing my info as it comes. I'm sorry if this is all a little chaotic, but there's been so much happening that It's hard to do a coherent line of thought.

So, I'll skip briefing, and just say for the moment that it was an awesome experience having my family grow. So, we got on the plane (~12 hours of riding) and all in all, not too bad of a trip really. I thought it might have been harder than it was. We had plenty to do, and the food was actually really good! :) I ate a LOT on that plane.
     

Anyways, we made it, and we went through customs, then got to get on a train to get from Narita airport to our apartments. Let me say their trains are nice. Marta doesn't even compare. They are properly maintained, they don't squeal when they stop, they're smooth... etc.
     Then we got to the apartment, and since it's just me and Tim sharing a room, we got a typical Tokyo apartment. I've heard it's about $500 in rent per month. (from a local) But it's really small. Although it has a burner, a washer (no dryer, everything is airdryed here) air conditioner, bathroom, ofuro (Japanese bath/shower) a bed, a futon. All in all, it's a pretty sweet little place, but I just wish it had a dresser to put clothes in...
     I slept on the floor on a futon. Let me say that this thing is awesome. It's comfortable, compactable, and probably not very expensive. I might have to invest in one, and use it in my dorm, just taking my bed and putting the pieces in the corner. We'll see how it goes though. Anyways, Tim being very sleep deprived and thirsty decided we should go across the street to the convenience store (conbini) So, we went outside, and wow, this city is quiet! Japan is all about being respectful, so people tend to always be quiet and courteous. (what they're thinking is probably another matter though :/ ) It literally will be almost completely silent when the stop light is red.

     It's also quite dark on the streets, and lots of lights are out. Because the fukushima power plant situation, Tokyo lost 25% of it's available power. It's amazing how well everyone works together here. It's definitely more of a society and interdependent country than America. So, when you walk out of the room, you turn off everything including air conditioning and the water heater (they have instant heaters here! So much better than a tank water heater) 2/3 of the Streetlights, signs, and store lights are off. The trains even removed 1/3 of their scheduled trains to cut back on power! Oh,  and recycling is real here. EVERYTHING is recycled and sorted. Glass, plastic, PET bottles, paper, burnable, and nonburnable. The trash trucks pick up different things on different days. It's pretty intense!
    Anyways, today we went to the student center for campus crusade and got to meet up with the staff, and get a briefing on what we're doing here. Really today was all about traveling a bit and familiarizing ourselves with the area. I had some excellent food, and we got to use the trains again. It's really an interesting city to look out over as you pass by. So much variety here, everything is like what we're used to, but with a distinct Japanese twist.
    On the spiritual side, I'm learning a lot about humility. I have to humble myself daily and be willing to ask for help, and be helpless. I really can't read most the signage here. I also am realizing that I don't have the language skills or the knowledge that I "need' to be able to evangelize properly. But, I'm also learning that God is here and his spirit will guide me, and use what I say as he works in the people I talk to.
    These people are so very lost. Today one of our trains was delayed 30 min because of a suicide, and apparently this type thing happens multiple times a day. The shame of losing a job causes men to go homeless because they're too ashamed to return to their house. There is so much here that is really neat, but there is also so much need that Christ has to fill. This country needs lots of prayer and the workers are so few. I'm really starting to see why I'm here, and right now I have a sense that I belong here. Maybe it's just the everything is new and interesting thing, but we'll see.


Thank you everyone for getting me here, and I know the Lord is working, please keep praying!

I've made my goal! California or Bust no more!

I've gotten to watch God work in amazing ways over this summer. I've (actually God) managed to raise over $6000 in support to go to Japan.

In about 2 months that entire amount has been realized mostly by the wonderful people in my church. I've gotten donations from everyone, elders to children, and I understand the widow's mite a bit better now that I see how precious those few dollars can be!

So, It's off to California Wednesday to meet my team of 16, and we're off to Japan by the end of the week.

I've also gotten to watch God sustain as I've reached the point of exhaustion. My body and mind are tired, and I just don't want to work any longer. I'm just ready to be done, but God says "No, not yet, just a little bit more until you're over this hill". And sure enough, here I am, still standing because Christ is holding me.

So, here's the quick breakdown of how God has provided so far:

~3 years ago I became aware of a calling to go to Japan
~constant leading through those three years towards Japan
~Christmas Conference with Campus Crusade I learn about a mission opportunity in Japan
~God finally opens the door and I'm accepted
~The Tsunami, earthquake, Nuclear disaster happens, affirms this is the right road
~School ends and I begin raising support
~Initial letters sent out, and raise about $1000
~I ask God for direction, and he leads me to do odd Jobs
~over the next 4 weeks I raise the rest of the funds $5000+


That's short, and there's been so much more daily things, but those are the milestones. The last one has been a blur to be honest. So many things at so many different places! I've been doing everything from hauling lumber, watching dogs, washing windows, washing cars, to fixing computers and converting tapes.

An extra BIG help has been that my family was in a small wreck in the car I'll be "inheriting" after I graduate. Our car has a small dent in the back that if you're not looking, you wouldn't notice. (The other car didn't fare nearly as well, in fact not well at all) Since it will be mine after graduation, my parents gave me the option of using the $1800 in insurance money towards Japan, or fixing the damage. It was an easy choice for me, and it's gotten me almost a 1/3 of the way there!

We spend so much time looking for these miracles, but when I add up all the small miracles (He works all things for the good of those who follow him) it actually adds up to a big miracle. In really every way, what I've learned and how I've been growing already has made this a bigger miracle than if I had found a winning lotto ticket on the ground!



So, am I excited? Yep! To all who have gotten me this far and been instruments of God, Thank you so much! You've been part of a big miracle that's I haven't even scratched the surface of!



Oh, and another thing, although I've raised $6000, I really need $7000 more to go to college next year to pay for housing. Guess what? I got accepted to be an RA. That just happens to cover all my housing expenses! All of a sudden that $7000 is covered? How cool is that? I also don't know the roommates (yet) and they may be Christians or non-Christians, and I'll have a hall full of a mix of the two. What better way to prepare for that responsibility than to practice my evangelism? Oh that's right, that's what I'm learning this summer! :)

Capping the igloo

Wow, God has been doing amazing things for me, and providing always enough for me to keep moving forward! Last sunday I sold vegetables that my mom grew, and I raised ~$200! So, the progress continues, and I'm at about $4000 or so.

But, I'm entering that fog of how to pull everything together. It's like building an igloo, you start shoveling snow, and building bricks of ice. You go at it with a gusto and about an hour later you realize that maybe the size you made your igloo will take a bit longer than you initially thought. ($1000 in funds) You want to get discouraged, but you keep going, and watch the walls be built up, and it's incredible to see everything start to shape into a recognizable form. ($3000) But then something interesting happens. Once you start getting to the top, the blocks you were using that made everything work at the base, don't quite work anymore. Before you could just place a block and keep moving, now you need a hand to hold it in place as the next block is secured, which also requires two hands. Before long you realize that you have to hold it up and build at the same time, and that takes at least two people.

So here I am, reaching the final stretch, and I find myself needing an extra hand or two, as there's just too many things to do. But, I do know there's at least one other who's helping, and that's Jesus. It's hard to see him, because I'm inside the igloo holding and placing blocks as he hands them to me, but pretty soon, it'll be done, and I'll be able to walk outside and admire what he's done.

Passing the 1/2 mark

It's something else when you get to watch God work. This summer has been a huge exercise in faith, but wow it's been amazing to watch the outcomes!

So, when I started writing this blog post a few days ago, I was at $2000 dollars, Then by the end of the week I realized that I was actually at $3000. Wow!

God has been working in incredible ways that really confound. He's continued to provide enough work for me throughout this entire process. I've been doing yard work, housework, car work, computer work, etc to raise support and it's been amazing how the support has been pouring in from the people I know. As I've wondered how the next two or three days will play out, God provides more support! When I'm not sure what to do that day, more than once someone calls and needs something done. I'm never quite sure how my week will look, how the next two days will look, but it always manages to work out. God always provides exactly what is needed exactly when I need it!


A question I've gotten a lot is, "What if you don't get all the money? What then?" I think about it for a moment, and realize, if God means for me to go this summer, all the money will be provided. There will definitely be enough, I have nothing to worry about!  If he will decides to keep me from going, I'll help support the others on my team and, if nothing else, it will be donated to the relief efforts.

But, I have to maintain faith in God that this is his direction, and keep following his lead. I'm ok if he changed my course right now and told me "Go to Mexico" or some other place instead. This process has taught me so much, and brought me so far in my faith that I wouldn't have traded it for anything! But, I have faith that this is his plan for me this summer, because he everything continues to lead this direction!


But anyways, thank you so much everyone who has provided, and given to my trip. You have blessed me, and helped me spiritually already because God has used you to show his providence in my life. And wow I can't wait! only 23 more days!