Pocari sweat

みんな、こんばんは！

Why Pocari Sweat? Because I've been sweating a lot these past few days! Japan is the land of vending machines and one of the most popular drinks they sell is Pocari Sweat, similar to Gatorade. Although the days get hot and humid, God has really blessed us with a cooler summer than usual.

The past few days in Morioka has been amazing and exciting and has made me so full of joy! Today I really couldn't stop smiling and was the first day I had so much energy all day long. I'll try to share as much as I can of what has happened, but with blogging, I can only say so much.

After a long ride to Japan where we lost a day (about 11 hours of time zone and 12 hours on the plane), we arrived safely and stayed at a local hotel for the night. Although everyone was exhausted by 8pm, we did our best to stay awake to adjust to the time zone. It was really neat to experience a traditional Japanese hotel because they provided all the toiletries and even pajamas! I loved bonding with people during that plane ride and especially got to know the girls my age when we stayed in a room together.

Us girls in Japanese pajamas!

I really admire one girl (R) who has only finished grade 11 because she is such a mature Christian already and obeying God's calling! I don't think God was important in my life at all when I was her age and it made me realized how much I can learn from people who are younger than me. The other girl (M) is a Japanese American who is a little older than me and I look up to her so much! She is only my team to Morioka while R is going to another city and the past few days with M has developed such a great sisterhood between us. I've been able to share my struggles, weaknesses, and excitements with her and she's also been sharing so much of her wisdom. I'm very very blessed to have her on my team, especially as she translates for me whenever I get dumbfounded by a stranger talking to me in Japanese.

Morioka Minami Church has graciously welcomed our team of five (3 guys, M and I) and we've been staying there since Saturday. We were able to meet and connect with the missionary family there as well as the pastor's family. Both families have two kids that are just bundles of energy! Through playing with them, I realized that having weak Japanese doesn't matter with kids. The universal sign of a big bear chasing them around the room is enough for them to squeal with delight and have a lot of fun. This made me more excited about working with kids during the VBS program because I felt so much joy making them happy and didn't feel nervous about the language barrier anymore.

On Sunday, I got to hear a message in Japanese, and that was truly difficult! We studied a passage from 1 Samuel 25 and I had to ask M to translate for me after what the pastor was preaching about. In summary, the passage was describing David's anger towards Nabal, who turned away David's servants when they came to reap some harvest. David was upset because he had treated Nabal's servants well under his care and expected the same from Nabal. He was all ready to kill for revenge, but God sent Abigail, Nabal's wife to stop him. She knew that Nabal was wrong and selfish, but she asked David for mercy and wanted to give him food and goods as atonement. The pastor explained that this passage could apply in our lives where we face enemies while doing God's work. Many times, we may feel that it is our battle and will fight in response with our own abilities, but instead, we should trust God and consult Him first as it is really His battle. Just like in this story, we may feel the right to feel angry and get revenge, but God may ask us to show mercy instead. I learned that I must be willing to give my battles to God, no matter if it involves conflicts with team members, frustrating children, or unwelcoming Japanese people.

Another great thing that caught my attention was the little sermon for the kids. Because the church is small, there is a message for the kids that is about 5 minutes before all the adults hear the sermon. I was really happy to be able to understand a lot of the Japanese and felt like a kid who was amazed by the story of David and Goliath. I guess learning a new language makes me feel young again!

We had more bonding time with the church members during lunch and after, when we headed to go bowling! It was great to laugh and talk with them, as well as get to know their kids. The kids were super silly and decided to wear bowling pin suits. I couldn't stop laughing when they jumped around, knocked each other over, and needed me to pick them up again. In the evening, our pastor took us to a gym where we played indoor soccer with another missions team that was doing a music tour in Japan. Other people who were not part of either missions group but wanted to play soccer joined us. It was awesome seeing how connections were being made by the pastors and local soccer players through something as simple as an intramural game.

Popsicles are the best after sauna
and soaking in hot tubs at the onsen!

Today was very much a planning day and preparation day. We spent much of the morning going over schedules and delegations for VBS as well as our trip to Iwaizumi tomorrow. There is some music that the missionary in Iwaizumi asked us to prepare, so we started practicing after lunch. This quickly turned into a worship jam session and we spent a few hours playing all the worship songs we had on our hearts. It felt like it had been so long since I was able to worship God in English that it was so comforting and easy to just let my heart out. I also loved that bonding time with my team as we were all chipping in with our voices, even though some were shy. After a little bit of shopping at the mall nearby and another daily shower at the onsen (public bath), we debriefed and prayed over melon/watermelon popsicles, and now we're ready for bed!

Here are a few prayer requests I'd like to ask of you:
- our time in Iwaizumi for the next few days, where we will be connecting with older people at cafes and doing a few kids programs
- discomfort for both of my ankles and M's knee after the soccer game
- registration for the VBS as the church reaches out to neighbourhood families

今、ねむいだから、おやすみなさい！

Love,
J