Trials and trails

Sometimes a trial is a trail that God wants to lead us on for his greater purpose. 2 weeks ago our hot water heater went out, so we went to the public spa. There I ran into a pastor I had been thinking about working with. He had not planned on being there either. At the last minute he had been asked to take some foreign guests there. His guest had not wanted to leave so the night was becoming rather late. Kazumi, Cherry, and I came in and Pastor Niwa was sitting drinking tea. He and I had time to talk. Later he emailed me saying that he thought God had arranged our meeting. He and I will get together this coming Saturday.

Yesterday I got a traffic ticket. The whole ordeal lasted a little over 2 hours. It was not very fun. I taught at a local school and the street to the school is one way from 2 to 5 pm. No one told me and the sign explaining it was not visible from the school. A cop was sitting there and in all effect it was a trap to get the daily ticket quota. They brought me to the station where they were not very nice to me. Here is a side note about the law in Japan, they can hold you for up to 30 days with out a charge and they do. It is how they get confessions. I left the police station wanting to leave Japan for good. But then I realized that unlike my Japanese friends I had the hope of leaving. The only possible hope for my Japanese friends was that regardless of the situation God loves them and wants to have a personal relationship with them.

Then later in the evening we got a call from Kimiko who is moving to the US and had been reading some Christian daily devotionals we gave here. Her husband has already gone to the US and she was calling to give praise to God. He had gotten a good job with good benefits and found an apartment with a grocery store only 200 meters away so Kimiko would not have to drive right away. When Kazumi gave me the phone the first thing Kimiko said was "I want to thank God." Sometimes a trial is a trail God wants to lead us on. I understood the depth of her words because I understand the context of life in Japan and turning from that to trusting in God.

The Cherry Blossoms are in Full Bloom

The cherry blossoms are in full bloom. April is the beginning of the new school year in Japan. Cherry switched kindergartens and had a graduation at one and an entrance ceremony at the other. My niece Riko also entered elementary school, and I started as a teacher at 11 different schools and kindergartens. Yes, eleven!!! I will visit 7 kindies and 4 elementary schools this year.
A week ago we met again with Kimiko, a Japanese woman interested in learning about Christianity. We had a great time. She is also in an international marriage and has a daughter the same age as Cherry. Kimiko and Kazumi have a lot in common so when we go visit it is an all day event and it is a lot of fun. Kazumi gave her a bunch of Daily Bread devotionals in Japanese.

This coming Sunday the church council will meet at Ena and we will continue to work on some ideas together. We will discuss the children's program we hope to start in May. It has been a very busy week or so; pray for all the transitions going on. Pray the the Lord will continue to draw us closer to him and guide us in his will for our lives.

Recent Happenings

On Wednesday I met with the Japanese pastor of the church a few stops down the train line from us in Nakatsugawa. He actually has a Masters in Theology from Calvin Seminary. He also served as a missionary for ten years in Indonesia. I wanted to go and check things out for future ministry opportunities. The churches in Nakatsugawa and in Ena are in the same area so if we advertised in community newspapers there could be cross over and it would be beneficial to work together.

Well the pastor there had heard I had moved into the area through the church grapevine and was hoping I would stop by sooner or later. We talked about how we could work together. He shared with me some struggles in the church as about 1/3 of the 45 members had left over a conflict to form another church. This often happens in Japan.

I honestly do not know what I can do for the church in Nakatsugawa. Its location is poor but there is good population density in the city. The church has mostly older people. I will probably try to encourage it and help keep it stable this next year. Keep the church in Nakatsugawa and myself in your prayers.

Blessings, John

Easter a new Beginning

Easter marks a new beginning for us. There are lot of changes going on. We are hoping to start a Mom and Kids class at church using English and Sunday School material. The goal is to make connections for a future Christian kindergarten.

We hope to launch a multilingual (English, Spanish, Japanese) Bible study using the Experiencing God material.

From Friday, I start work as an Assistant Language Teacher for the local school district. This will really network us into the community. I will visit 11 different elementary and kindergartens. It will also stabilize us financially. For this we thank God.

Currently, we are in contact with a mission agency in the states. We hope for a connection with an agency in the states and in the future to move into full time church planting support roles.

We also hope to strengthen our ties to Faith Church in Guam and start a once a year Christian retreat to Guam for families. 1 million Japanese tourists go to Guam a year and the prices are very reasonable. We will make some contacts with a target date for next spring, for this.

Above regular involvement in our local church these are our current New Beginnings.

God is in control of the details

To believe God is sovereign is to believe he is in control of the details. He has brought us here. He has opened some doors and closed others. He is casting vision and providing resources. He has brought you this very second to read these words, that is the reality of God being sovereign.

Today's Reflection from John Piper

Belief or Faith is a heart passion to find one's delight in Jesus. Seeing Jesus for all that he is. Is your only comfort Jesus? Any one who truly knows Jesus will deeply love him. And Jesus said, "I am the Bread of Life. He who comes to me will never hunger and he who believes in me will never thirst"(John 6:35). Faith is to find one's soul satisfaction in Jesus, is Jesus your satisfaction?

My wife a long time reader of Daily Bread

Just an interesting story. My wife is a long time reader of Daily Bread and today she was reading this month's Daily Bread translated into Japanese. Out of the blue she asked me what I knew about Grand Haven Michigan as the writer of the devotion she was reading today was from there. It is a small world and God has the whole world in his hands.