But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint. Isaiah 40:31
'Tis the night before VBS! However, we've spent our last week well, preparing for the VBS as well as spending 3 days in Iwaizumi. We teamed up with 3 other girls from Japan and America to help out a local missionary who has been working alone building churches in the Iwate prefecture for 15 years. Iwaizumi is an area near the coast that was damaged by the 2011 tsunami. It is absolutely beautiful there but unfortunately houses people who have lost their homes and families so they have to live in kasetsu (temporary homes).
While we were able to stay at a traditional Japanese home, called akerakan, we witnessed kasetsu communities that families could call a house, but not a home. On our first day in Iwaizumi, we set up a cafe and kids activities so people of all ages could gather to talk or play games or enjoy snacks. The kids loved all the activities we had for them and the old obaachans enjoyed having our artistic team member draw a caricature of them. What stood out to me the most was a girl, probably 8 or 9 years old, looking out for the kids and babies younger than her. She seemed to know if they were sad or needed help and was very willing to take time to make them happy. This really made me wonder if she had to look out for herself or younger sisters in her family as well and I realized that it was quite possible in kasetsu families that parents are too busy or were lost in the tsunami.
The next day, I was blessed with the opportunity to visit two kasetsus, the first having an entirely different atmosphere. Only one ojiisan (grandpa) showed up to the cafe. The kasetsu community was eerily quiet and no one was outside. The kasetsu from the previous day was full of life, where men were chatting and smoking outside, people passed by and greeted one another, and a man was out for a walk with his dog. However, at this kasetsu, it felt like hope was lacking. The ojiisan was very happy to talk to us and shared a bit of his life with us. He said that his home was very small and narrow and that the walls between each house was very thin. This caused people in kasetsus to keep to themselves, because they were afraid of bothering others by talking too much or having the TV on. The missionary shared with us that this group-centered culture of pleasing others may have been why the turnout to cafes was so low. She mentioned that because the room was small, people who may have wanted to attend were afraid they would cause discomfort so they would let others go instead. It saddened my heart that people like the ojiisan had to live so cautiously like this without knowing for how long. The ojiisan said he had been living there for 2 years and expected 2 more years in the kasetsu before the government was supposed to kick them out, but he didn't know what would happen then. People have already been slowly moving out of the kasetsu into permanent homes, but unfortunately that was changing the community feel in the kasetsus and making some families feel left behind.
In contrast, the kasetsu community room we visited in the afternoon was covered in walls of encouragement for Japan's recovery. It was much more joyful there and we had a lot of fun with 3 very cute kids! One boy named Fumia-kun was such a good kid, listening well and being kind, and he was so happy to be with us. At the end, our teammate was pondering which drink he wanted from the vending machine after depositing his money. Fumia-kun quickly yanked the cancel button, saying that our teammate should save his money and watch out because the machine would keep the money and cancel the transaction if it took to long before a drink was chosen. This kind of selflessness is so rarely seen with kids Fumia-kun's age and he was one of our favourites.
The last day was one of the best days for me. We went to a home where mostly old obaachan (grandmas) came out to the cafe. One obaachan asked to sing karaoke and was happy to see us try. She was too shy to sing on her own at first, but after a while, she abandoned all pride and sang loudly into the microphone even though she couldn't get the words or the rhythm right! We also helped provide a craft for the obaachan's, giving them beads to make a bracelet. I helped out the singing obaachan and she was so funny! She didn't hold back and try hard to be extra polite, like most Japanese people. She pointed out a weirdly shaped bead on the bracelet I had finished for her and said it didn't look right. I asked a teammate to cut it off for me and he did. However, she then pushed the beads around and pointed at the bracelet. She said something like, "There's a hole here! It's alright, you don't have to make the bracelet again... but there's a hole here! ... I'm really sorry, really. Don't need another bracelet... But there's a hole! It looks weird!" I was laughing so hard that I didn't have the heart to tell her that she could just even out the beads so there was no hole. I just made her another one and she was really happy. It made me happy too because she said there was no need to be polite because we were friends. That was the first that someone called me a friend because most people hold back knowing my Japanese is terrible and that I'm mostly smiling and nodding. I loved this obaachan and really hoped that in the future, her openness and transparency would allow her to be open to Christianity one day.
Another woman at the kasetsu came by and showed us all these cultural items that were featured in the upcoming Bon festival in the Tohoku/Iwaizumi area. She taught us about the flutes and cymbals and dances and explained that were used to commemorate ancestors and family members who have died. Originally the dances and music were performed for the gods but they were now more used simply as celebration. However, a teammate commented later that he felt a lot of spiritual warfare when she had come. The missionary explained that the specific kasetsu area was very closed from Christianity and that the women who came to the cafes knew it was a Christian group. She felt as though the woman sharing her culture was not only because she had pride in the things in her community, but because she wanted to bring her Buddhist background into our Christian-run cafe.
Therefore, as this blogpost title is called, Iwaizumi needs your prayers! It takes almost 20 years on average to build a church in this rural area (15 years for urban Japanese cities) and the area is not very open to Christianity. The mission field will also be changing, because kasetsus will be emptying out and new communities will be built. All these changes may dampen the hope of Japanese people who don't want more change and who dislike constantly adapting to new atmospheres. The local missionary may have to change her cafe structure and may lose connections with people who must move away. So please please pray for this area!
Lastly, VBS tomorrow will need your prayers!
- Thank God for a decent turnout of 25-35 kids each day along with 10-15 parents who will stay with them
- Pray that the camp won't only be about fun games, but lessons about God and what God asks us to do
- Pray for the team to be in unity as we may be tired and worn out during the long day
- Pray that the language barrier won't be an obstacle for us non-Japanese speaking
- Pray that connections with the parents and families will be built so the church can grow through this camp
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
Yesterday was a looooong day of training and preparing in LA, SoCal. We spent our time bonding with our teams, learning about Japan, making a conflict resolution covenant, studying the Bible, and packing away gifts, food, and craft supplies.
In particular, we studied Colossians 3:1-17 to find how God wants us to work together as Christians in a team. The passage contains many commands and asks us to take off our "old self" of sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires, and greed, and to put on a "new self" like clothes of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. These attributes and behaviours are how God wants our teams to interact. Most importantly,
And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. (Colossians 3:14)
Teams that are driven by love are teams that work together best and are able to resolve any conflict. Our teams created our own covenants based on this passage in Colossians and found practical methods to confront conflict. I wish I knew this before my third year in university. The business school this year emphasized heavily on teamwork through 48-hour reports and 24-hour reports. Although I experienced both "successful" and "unsuccessful" team processes, I feel that if I had approached the group work with God's love as a priority, each project would have been successful.
I wanted to share this old hymn with you because of how I felt before leaving home. I didn't feel at peace with God a few days before leaving, mostly because of personal desires that were battling God's desires. Letting go of things I wanted selfishly was one of the hardest decisions I had to make but I knew it would not be good for me! I didn't want to use the Japan trip to help me ignore the issue, because then I would be going to Japan for the wrong reason. So after much prayer, I decided to give up this burden of temptation to God. WOW, did that give me so much joy! I finally felt at peace with God so I could focus on how to serve Him best in Japan. My mom was practicing this hymn on the piano that night and I couldn't help but join in and sing with her because all was truly well with my soul! There was so much peace in my heart when I fell asleep and I had the best sleep ever.
What I learned from this was how important it is to listen to God when He talks to us. It is rare to find that God will talk physically or audibly nowadays, but He uses methods that speak loudest to us. In this case, my troubled conscience and sleeplessness was the Holy Spirit tugging on my heart. He was saying, "Justina! You know there is something wrong and you know what's right! I'm letting you make your own decision and I will love you no matter what choice you make. However, I want you to make the right choice so you can better understand my love and receive my blessings so much more." God is really the perfect parent!
In addition to this victory, I have another reason to be grateful! Some of you may have heard, but the morning before I was to fly to LA, I twisted my foot badly. For some reason, (much to the inconvenience to my parents), I always wonderfully injure myself before leaving for something important, such as a competition or first year of university. I had to hobble on my foot all day to run errands and even attend a dance class. By the end of the day, it was all swollen, purple, and quite painful. The next day, I rushed around to see a doctor, get an x-ray, and pick up anti-inflammatory pills. God helped me get on the plane on time but when I arrived in my first stop in Toronto, my foot was still causing me to limp. However, after the 5 hour flight to LA, the swelling had gone down by a lot and I didn't have to limp anymore. It is much better now and could only have been a miracle from God!
fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. (Isaiah 41:10)
I realized that praying a lot and trusting God would be in control was all that was needed, and God would take care of the rest. :)
Along with these praise items, please continue to pray for:
- my foot to heal fully and no more injuries
- something unknown that caused my right eye to be puffy last night and unable to wear contacts
- a safe 12 hour flight to Japan today and smooth time zone transition
- our team to continue bonding and growing in God together
So I have an exciting announcement today. I've raised over $3,200 from friends and family, getting a surplus over the $3,000 I was responsible for raising! I am soooooooo thankful and blessed for the contributions and I never could have raised so much money without God's help. He is faithful! ありがとうございます！(Arigatougozaimasu!) Those extra funds will be going to the missions trip to help out other participants if they need the money and to continue the work of the Japanese Evangelical Missionary Society.
What is more exciting is the prayer support I've been receiving. I was given the opportunity to speak at my church during our Sunday service and share about the missions trip. After, the congregation prayed together in groups, and the pastor prayed over me at the end. It was a little awkward standing on the stage while those around me were praying, but I closed my eyes and I could hear the whispers and mumbles of prayers. It was then that I thought, "Wow, God, you love me so much that I don't know what to say. You've blessed me with a loving church and such loving brothers and sisters. How great you are!" I really felt the presence of the Holy Spirit in the sanctuary and it filled me up with so much joy.
After that church service, I left a little early to help set up Coffee Corner, where I would be accepting donations and talking to people. However, as I was leaving, an auntie that I had never talked to before stopped me. She told me in her broken English that she was so grateful to hear me share about my trip and she felt my passion when I was talking about Japan. She gave me a donation, saying that it was a small gift, but it came with her love for God and her joy that I was going to Japan. I was so touched and speechless! I couldn't do anything but give her a smile and a hug and say thank you!
This was only one of the moments where God has showed His love through people as I have been raising support. I could keep writing of many other stories but that would take forever. (Talk to me though, and I'll share!)
Oh! One more awesome moment. Last week, I was invited to share again during my church's prayer meeting. It was similar to the sharing at the church service. What was new, however, was at the end, I sat in the middle and everyone there laid their hands on me as one person prayed. I really felt like they were lifting me to God in prayer. In the Bible, there was a man who was paralyzed, so his loyal friends found a way to get him to Jesus by carrying him on his mat to the roof and lowering it. They loved their friend so much and had so much faith in Jesus that they went through all that trouble. In the end, the man was healed by Jesus and walked away celebrating with his friends. (The story is from Mark 2:1-12) That kind of love is what I felt, and it's a feeling you won't know until you experience it!
With all these experiences, all I can do is praise God! Please continue to pray for me, my prayer warriors (prior worriers for the ACF friends)! I will need it during these days of preparation as our full team hasn't met yet on Skype to discuss children's program planning. As well, please pray that I have discipline to continue spending time daily with God so I can go to Japan as spiritually strong as possible. Thank you!
OH MY GOODNESS. I was listening to Everlasting God by Chris Tomlin while writing this and it was background music until I paid attention to the words. This song is actually about my theme verse, Isaiah 40:31. What is this amazingness!?
One last thing. I have a prayer schedule in a Google Doc set up so there will be prayers every day of the missions trip for me, my team, and the Japanese people. If God places this in your heart, could you please type your name on one or more days so I can praise God for you and thank you for your prayers? Thank you!
Sorry for such a long post, but as you can tell, God is too good for a short post!
