Friday, December 3, 2010

An Amazing Story from Our Life in Japan

I am going to tell you a story about money. Last year I had to have a building torn down and hired a local company to do it. The building was owned by us and another party so we hired the company together.

While tearing down the building they found an old well. Japanese tradition and superstition demanded that they bring in a Shinto Priest to do a ceremony before they closed it. They did all this without telling me. Then the company came to me and explained what they had done and told me that while they could not make me pay it would be the practice in Japan for the property owner to cover these costs. The cost was $300. I at first was angry and thought there is no way I will pay this, I at first thought of shaming the company and owner I had dealt with. Giving this money for this purpose is against our beliefs.

But to be honest I had worked construction and knew the real costs of what he had down for us and he did a good job and had done it under what I considered reasonable costs. The day came to meet with the company owner. He was very apologetic. He felt I would shame him for this situation. I said to him. If I give you the $300 you have asked me I am really giving it to this Shinto Priest and I can not do that. If I do not give you the money you will have to pay it yourself and it will come from your own money and families and workers. If that happens you will curse my God and I love Jesus Christ and do not want that to happen. I have prayed to my God and asked what I should do. I then took out an envelope and gave him $600 and said I am giving you twice what you have asked me for because you have done a good job. This has nothing to do with the Shinto ceremony but is in the name of Jesus Christ. Take the money and take you family out for dinner or treat your workers. He spent the next hour talking freely with me as a friend and if I needed anything done I know I could call him right now.

The story does not end there. We then went to the property to look over the work, we pointed out that from the property line; the well was not on my property but the other owner. In fact he never had a right to ask me for $300 for the well. He offered to give me the money back. I told him my God had led me to give it to him in the name of Jesus Christ and he was to use to treat his workers and his family. In the end the whole company came to praise Jesus Christ and God that day.

I saw this as a minor miracle. They went to the other owner and asked for $300 for the Shinto Priest.