Where to start? The last week has been super full of awesome stuff, today included. Consequently I’ve been wondering if it is possible to die from lack of sleep… Sleep was definitely one of my new years resolutions this year, so I need to get on it, but the question is always what to cut out of my day when I have a to do list a mile long, and a ‘I want to do’ list five miles long.
So here is what my life looks like recently:
School:
I’m back to school, and it's the beginning of a new academic year. I have a ton of new students, and they freak out when I walk into their classroom for the first time (because I am a foreigner). Its really cute! They give the traditional “eeeehhh?????????” and then start screaming “HELLO! HELLO!” with their far from perfect pronunciation. It’s really endearing! I’ve got a few Spanish speaking students too, so its been really fun to brush up on my Spanish.
I was asked to do a lesson for my 9th graders about my time in the Tsunami zone. Japanese students aren’t really encouraged to think for themselves of discuss very often (some TV shows even show a recoding of someone watching the show in the corner of the screen to show those watching how they should respond to the show), so it was really cool to take some time to help them process what is going on in their country. We watched the YouTube video my friend Ian made when we went to Ishinomaki, and talked about what is going on, and talked about what our response should be to this situation. As junior high students, they probably can’t go volunteer or donate a ton of money. We talked about what real HOPE and LOVE mean. And that maybe the proper response to this tragedy for junior high students is to live well and LOVE and HOPE where they are. We want to love those in Fukushima, and maybe we can’t go there, but we can love those around us. We also talked a little bit about bullying, because some of the students from Fukushima who have had to leave their cities and transfer into other school districts are getting bullied. “汚れ,” being labeled as dirty, is a classic form of Japanese psychological bulling, and “radiation” has provided the perfect fuel for students’ cruelty. I had all the students write me a reflection in Japanese, and it was really cool to see what they had to say.
Tohoku: It’s been a month and nine days. My friends from Kamizoku (the house church I went to Tohoku with), CRASH, and TCU (the school I went to study abroad at) are working hard still. I wish I was there everyday, but just as I encouraged my students to, I can pray and love and live as well as I can here. Let’s us not forget, and let us not cease to love and serve and give and volunteer.
Church:
I had a Bible study with three Japanese ladies this past Monday, and it was AWESOME!! I’m going to be taking them through the covenants in the Bible (Noahic, Abrahamic, Mosaic etc.) culminating with the New Covenant. I’ve wanted to try teaching chronologically through the Bible before, and I’ve been reading a really really AWESEOME book by one of by Biola profs, Dr. Lunde, called “Following Jesus, The Servant King: A Biblical Theology of Convental Discipleship,” and its been helping me understand following Jesus, and the Old Testament, in a whole new light. Anyways, we studied Genesis 1-3 this past week, and it was the first time for all of them to study this section of scripture. It was sooooooo much fun to watch them begin to understand the depth that is in those three chapters and their implication. From a western viewpoint, Genesis one critiques materialism, but for the common person in Japan it more critiques animism and astrology, two huge belief systems here. It was super cool to see how asking a few questions led them to out the implications from the text. I know I was super super blessed by the study, and they said they were too, and they were looking forward to next time. It’s amazing how easily I have taken all the churching and theological education I have gotten for granted. Two of the ladies at the study have been Christians for a long time, but this was the first time they got to study this section of the Bible, which is so fundamental. It was super cool to get to put some of my study to use, and I’m thinking of asking my pastor if I can preach once a month…? I just really want to bring the Word and see people grow.
We’re having an Easter even for kids at my church this Sunday. And we only have one kid that comes to church, so we aren’t sure how many kids are going to come, but we’re inviting a lot of people. It’s going to be super fun! Games! Easter eggs! Music! I’m sharing a short gospel message, etc.
I’ve also been involved in the young adults group at the big church in the city. It’s every Thursday evening, and its great to hang out with some Christians my own age. They are having a camp the week after next that I am going to go to, which will be a cool way to get to know everyone better.
A high school ministry (Hi. B.A. its an interdenominational gathering for high school students, because most Japanese churches are really small, so they don’t have much fellowship for young people) just started in my city, and I’m thinking of getting involved. That’s the age group I really want to work with, but I’m a little nervous about spreading myself too thin, which I feel like I am already doing…
Japanese…
Oh Japanese!!! I used to tell people this wasn’t such a hard language. The beginning levels are not. But unlike most languages that get easier the further you get, this one gets exponentially harder the further you get. I have the proficiency test coming up in a little over two months….YIKES! So if I’m not teaching, doing ministry, (mostly failing at) trying to keep in touch with all my friends scattered around the country, or hanging out with all the random friends I have accumulated over my 8 months here, you can find me at starbucks studying kanji, or on the bus studying vocab, or doing reading comprehension into the late hours of the night in my apartment. Hence my lack of sleep induced headache at the moment. But guess where I am! Starbucks! Studying! I was competing with a friend on the proficiency test in July (any of you who were in Greek with me know how well I lean language once there is a little competition involved! cough cough, Jared Winn!), but he just decided not to take it. BUMMER! But I’m pretty determined to round-house kick this test in the face, competition or no competition.
I have more to say, but I just realized this is getting ridiculously long, and none of you are probably going to make it this far! If you are reading this, tell me you know the secret word: ninja(!!!), next time you see me and I’ll buy you a coffee or something for bearing with me to the end! <3
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
One Month Later
Yesterday was April 11th. Exactly one month since March 11th. One month since the 9.0 earthquake, the tsunami, the beginning of the nuclear problems.
I was working in the Board of Education yesterday, which is on the 9th floor of city hall. In the afternoon, at the time the earthquake had hit, city hall held a minute of silence to mourn the nearly 15,000 deaths, and the 9,000 still missing.
It’s been a month. Aftershocks are shaking Japan daily. And a lot of them are big, like last night’s 6.6 that hit off the coast of Fukushima; causing landslides that buried houses and causes power loss to nuclear reactors 1-3. According to geologists, we’re going to be having these big aftershocks for the next year… People are still living in evacuation centers. They’ve been there a month now.
The loss is so devastating. But God’s church is on its feet, bringing supplies, and love, and hope and Jesus. CRASH is getting into full swing, and we have teams of volunteers pouring in from around Japan and overseas. Korean Campus Crusade wants to send 1,500 volunteers! My friends from Tokyo Christian University (where I studied abroad) are in Sendai as we speak. Kamizoku, the friends I went to Ishinomaki with are still making their daily runs to bring supplies to love on and serve those who have suffered such great loss.
This is not over yet!
I would do anything to be able to be up there right now, but God has decided that I am here, so here I am. I felt like God was telling me to stay in Japan over the summer before all this went down, and know I know why.
I had a welcome/farewell party for the staff at one of my junior highs, because April is the beginning of the Japanese academic year. I hadn’t seen everyone in a few weeks, because I was up north, and working in the Board of Education. When my teachers found out that I went to the effected area, they asked me to talk about my experience my first class back.
I’m super excited to be able talk about this stuff with my kids! I’m going to show them the video my friend made of our trip to Ishinomaki, and then hopefully have a discussion (which could very end up me monologuing… because Japanese students aren’t good at expressing their opinions), about HOPE and LOVE! What Japan needs right now…
So pray for me! That I would be able to encourage my students and pour love into their hearts in some way.
I was working in the Board of Education yesterday, which is on the 9th floor of city hall. In the afternoon, at the time the earthquake had hit, city hall held a minute of silence to mourn the nearly 15,000 deaths, and the 9,000 still missing.
It’s been a month. Aftershocks are shaking Japan daily. And a lot of them are big, like last night’s 6.6 that hit off the coast of Fukushima; causing landslides that buried houses and causes power loss to nuclear reactors 1-3. According to geologists, we’re going to be having these big aftershocks for the next year… People are still living in evacuation centers. They’ve been there a month now.
The loss is so devastating. But God’s church is on its feet, bringing supplies, and love, and hope and Jesus. CRASH is getting into full swing, and we have teams of volunteers pouring in from around Japan and overseas. Korean Campus Crusade wants to send 1,500 volunteers! My friends from Tokyo Christian University (where I studied abroad) are in Sendai as we speak. Kamizoku, the friends I went to Ishinomaki with are still making their daily runs to bring supplies to love on and serve those who have suffered such great loss.
This is not over yet!
I would do anything to be able to be up there right now, but God has decided that I am here, so here I am. I felt like God was telling me to stay in Japan over the summer before all this went down, and know I know why.
I had a welcome/farewell party for the staff at one of my junior highs, because April is the beginning of the Japanese academic year. I hadn’t seen everyone in a few weeks, because I was up north, and working in the Board of Education. When my teachers found out that I went to the effected area, they asked me to talk about my experience my first class back.
I’m super excited to be able talk about this stuff with my kids! I’m going to show them the video my friend made of our trip to Ishinomaki, and then hopefully have a discussion (which could very end up me monologuing… because Japanese students aren’t good at expressing their opinions), about HOPE and LOVE! What Japan needs right now…
So pray for me! That I would be able to encourage my students and pour love into their hearts in some way.
Mistakes, mistakes, mistakes
I wrote this right when I got back Yokkaichi about 2 weeks ago, and forgot to post it.
I’m back in Yokkaichi. Back to work. Back to “normal life.”
My students are still on spring break, so I’m “working” in the Board of Education. I finished the work I was supposed to do all week in about 3 hours, and none of my coworkers have much to do either, so we are strategically wasting time while having to put on a façade that we are “working.”
What I wouldn’t give to be hanging out with people in Tohoku!!! The need is still so great. And here I sit… literally doing nothing. It really sucks. I have woken up each morning since I have been back with a heavy burden to pray for Tohoku. Some of my non-Christians friends think that prayer is an excuse not to act… I don’t think so. Before we act, as we act, after the opportunity to act gone, we come before the throne of God most high. “He is sovereign, so why should we ask him to do something?” I have been asked.
But life comes with seasons, and here I am… and the cherry blossoms are finally starting to bloom. There is something really magical about spring coming after winter…something I feel I am experiencing for the first time, having lived in SoCal my whole life. The stars were abnormally bright last night, and the parks have lanterns lighting up the cherry blossoms, so I took myself for a walk, and sat in the park staring up at the flowers. The lantern light hitting all of the different layers of branches and blossoms, swirling in the wind, highlighted against the deep black sky, looked almost like a galaxy, and came with a strange sense of vertigo.
Despite the beauty of spring, the season of cultural adjustment I am in is…well…exactly like a game I played in college.
In one of my Intercultural Studies Classes classes at Biola, Interpersonal and Intercultural Adjustment, the professor broke us into groups, gave us a deck of cards, and a paper with instructions on how to play the game. After we read the directions, the professor took them away. We were not allowed to talk at all, and at the end of each round, the winner from each group was to move groups. The games started to get messy, and I quickly noticed that the rules given to each group were different. Some people thought they were winning, according to the rules they read, but in the new group they were playing with, they were actually loosing.
Story of my life the last few weeks… I thought I was winning. I thought that I was doing well, making friends, and being a positive influence. WRONG!
The Japanese calligraphy teacher I am learning from was super, super, super angry with me a few weeks ago… I had no idea what I had done. She blatantly ignored me the whole class, and was giving me dirty looks… I finally got an explanation from the lady that hosts the class… Another elderly lady in the class had invited me over to her house, because I live across the street from her, and I had accepted the invitation and went. From my American perspective, I didn’t do anything wrong. However, in Japanese cultural hierarchy, it’s the job of everyone lower ranking to make sure that the higher ranking person feels happy, comfortable, and like they are everyone’s favorite. “You can’t be friends with everyone. Japan is a small country, and so are our hearts. If you want to be friends with everyone, you have to be sneaky about it. You can’t talk openly about the fact that you went to Mrs. S’s house. It’s not really your fault, cause Ms. S is the one who keeps bringing it up, but you have to learn to dodge her comments, and bring the conversation back to focus on the teacher,” I was told. I never would have guessed that going to my neighbor’s house would be such a big deal! I thought I was winning… but NOPE! WRONG! Definitely loosing…
I was supposed to visit my host family in Tokyo during my spring break. Then my fam decided that it wasn't a good idea to go to Tokyo just to play, with the current nuclear situation as it is. I was also advised against going just to visit by my teachers, because I would be putting a drain on the already diminished resources in Tokyo. Then I had the change to go volunteer, which changes all of the reasoning keeping me from going to Tokyo. I texted my host mom once I was in Tokyo to tell her I was volunteering ask if I could visit before I came back to Yokkaichi. She said yes, and my schedule changed a bit, so I asked if I could change the day to visit. She said no, so I went on the prearranged day… I was expecting a warm reception, especially after having been volunteering. But, when I got there, I got the coldest reception I have ever experienced… my host mom opened the door, and then took off up the stairs, saying “you know you should really think about other people’s feelings!!!” No matter how many times I apologized, I felt the wrath of the angry Japanese host mom the whole time I was there… I went to volunteer, and thought I was winning… but NOPE! WRONG! Definitely loosing…
BUT I’m pretty sure every cross-cultural worker goes through a season like this… And I am learning. Thinking. Analyzing. Asking advice from those who have been here longer than me. Consulting my Japanese friends. There is grace enough to cover all my failures, all my mistakes, and all my oversights. Hopefully I will be able to mend the relationships I have strained… to show love in a way that makes sense in Japan.
But everything is not fail. My God loves me. I have friends in this city, so:
So hello spring! Hello cherry blossoms. Hello tsunamis. Hello cultural mistakes. Hello long, pointless days in the board of education. Hello growing up. Hello hope!
I’m back in Yokkaichi. Back to work. Back to “normal life.”
My students are still on spring break, so I’m “working” in the Board of Education. I finished the work I was supposed to do all week in about 3 hours, and none of my coworkers have much to do either, so we are strategically wasting time while having to put on a façade that we are “working.”
What I wouldn’t give to be hanging out with people in Tohoku!!! The need is still so great. And here I sit… literally doing nothing. It really sucks. I have woken up each morning since I have been back with a heavy burden to pray for Tohoku. Some of my non-Christians friends think that prayer is an excuse not to act… I don’t think so. Before we act, as we act, after the opportunity to act gone, we come before the throne of God most high. “He is sovereign, so why should we ask him to do something?” I have been asked.
But life comes with seasons, and here I am… and the cherry blossoms are finally starting to bloom. There is something really magical about spring coming after winter…something I feel I am experiencing for the first time, having lived in SoCal my whole life. The stars were abnormally bright last night, and the parks have lanterns lighting up the cherry blossoms, so I took myself for a walk, and sat in the park staring up at the flowers. The lantern light hitting all of the different layers of branches and blossoms, swirling in the wind, highlighted against the deep black sky, looked almost like a galaxy, and came with a strange sense of vertigo.
Despite the beauty of spring, the season of cultural adjustment I am in is…well…exactly like a game I played in college.
In one of my Intercultural Studies Classes classes at Biola, Interpersonal and Intercultural Adjustment, the professor broke us into groups, gave us a deck of cards, and a paper with instructions on how to play the game. After we read the directions, the professor took them away. We were not allowed to talk at all, and at the end of each round, the winner from each group was to move groups. The games started to get messy, and I quickly noticed that the rules given to each group were different. Some people thought they were winning, according to the rules they read, but in the new group they were playing with, they were actually loosing.
Story of my life the last few weeks… I thought I was winning. I thought that I was doing well, making friends, and being a positive influence. WRONG!
The Japanese calligraphy teacher I am learning from was super, super, super angry with me a few weeks ago… I had no idea what I had done. She blatantly ignored me the whole class, and was giving me dirty looks… I finally got an explanation from the lady that hosts the class… Another elderly lady in the class had invited me over to her house, because I live across the street from her, and I had accepted the invitation and went. From my American perspective, I didn’t do anything wrong. However, in Japanese cultural hierarchy, it’s the job of everyone lower ranking to make sure that the higher ranking person feels happy, comfortable, and like they are everyone’s favorite. “You can’t be friends with everyone. Japan is a small country, and so are our hearts. If you want to be friends with everyone, you have to be sneaky about it. You can’t talk openly about the fact that you went to Mrs. S’s house. It’s not really your fault, cause Ms. S is the one who keeps bringing it up, but you have to learn to dodge her comments, and bring the conversation back to focus on the teacher,” I was told. I never would have guessed that going to my neighbor’s house would be such a big deal! I thought I was winning… but NOPE! WRONG! Definitely loosing…
I was supposed to visit my host family in Tokyo during my spring break. Then my fam decided that it wasn't a good idea to go to Tokyo just to play, with the current nuclear situation as it is. I was also advised against going just to visit by my teachers, because I would be putting a drain on the already diminished resources in Tokyo. Then I had the change to go volunteer, which changes all of the reasoning keeping me from going to Tokyo. I texted my host mom once I was in Tokyo to tell her I was volunteering ask if I could visit before I came back to Yokkaichi. She said yes, and my schedule changed a bit, so I asked if I could change the day to visit. She said no, so I went on the prearranged day… I was expecting a warm reception, especially after having been volunteering. But, when I got there, I got the coldest reception I have ever experienced… my host mom opened the door, and then took off up the stairs, saying “you know you should really think about other people’s feelings!!!” No matter how many times I apologized, I felt the wrath of the angry Japanese host mom the whole time I was there… I went to volunteer, and thought I was winning… but NOPE! WRONG! Definitely loosing…
BUT I’m pretty sure every cross-cultural worker goes through a season like this… And I am learning. Thinking. Analyzing. Asking advice from those who have been here longer than me. Consulting my Japanese friends. There is grace enough to cover all my failures, all my mistakes, and all my oversights. Hopefully I will be able to mend the relationships I have strained… to show love in a way that makes sense in Japan.
But everything is not fail. My God loves me. I have friends in this city, so:
So hello spring! Hello cherry blossoms. Hello tsunamis. Hello cultural mistakes. Hello long, pointless days in the board of education. Hello growing up. Hello hope!
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Ishinomaki Video
Here is the other piece of the video from Ishinomaki
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1S5kez9arYE&feature=channel_video_title
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1S5kez9arYE&feature=channel_video_title
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Documentary from Ishinomaki
My friend Ian made a documentary when we went up to Ishinomaki. Here is part one.
http://news.discovery.com/human/after-the-tsunami-to-be-alive-is-enough-110328.html
The video speaks for itself, so I wont comment on it...
If you want to donate directly to this group, here is their link.
http://sunriseministries.tripod.com/id5.html
I've finished working at CRASH, and am going to spend a day and a half with my host family before heading back to work on Friday (I was supposed to spend this whole two weeks with them)... I'm currently at my friend Ian's apartment, hanging out while he is editing the other parts of the video.
I can't believe I have to go back to regular life... it seems so strange when there is so much left to be done here... and I have become part of the relief community here...
Lets keep praying!!!! Our God is good.
http://news.discovery.com/human/after-the-tsunami-to-be-alive-is-enough-110328.html
The video speaks for itself, so I wont comment on it...
If you want to donate directly to this group, here is their link.
http://sunriseministries.tripod.com/id5.html
I've finished working at CRASH, and am going to spend a day and a half with my host family before heading back to work on Friday (I was supposed to spend this whole two weeks with them)... I'm currently at my friend Ian's apartment, hanging out while he is editing the other parts of the video.
I can't believe I have to go back to regular life... it seems so strange when there is so much left to be done here... and I have become part of the relief community here...
Lets keep praying!!!! Our God is good.
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Breathe in...Breathe out...
I think I need blog just to process my feelings a bit...
March has kinda been a month from hell... with all sorts of losses (like my favorite teacher getting transferred to another school and some of my students graduating and other friends moving out of the city).
And then my beloved Japan gets hit my a earthquake, tsunami, and is now getting radiated...
And I'm in the middle of trying to help the situation, and am so thankful for getting to help! But have had a ton of responsibility thrown at me, which I am not quite sure I can handle... for example, I am only working with CRASH two more days, and I have been asked to assess and analyze what holes we have in our current way of operating and try to figure out solutions before I go... I guess the guy in charge of our department thinks I'm capable and need to do it before I leave... I think I'm 23 and clueless... but I'll take a stab at it! Please pray that God would give me wisdom and endurance. The office situation has been quite stressful the last few days as we are moving forward; feels kind of like building this organization from the ground up -- given the magnitude of the situation, and there are so many unknowns and so much information to try to process... BUT two of the teams I've gotten to have a part in sending out are leaving tomorrow morning, so that is exciting! The whole thing is feeling a bit overwhelming though. The need is so great...so its scary for me because I feel like if I mess something up it has real consequences on peoples' lives... PRESSURE! AGGHH!!! I'm so willing to keep working tho, its just scary.
I took the day off today, went to church, met up with some friends, took a walk in the park... It was really strange experiencing normal life a bit after so much focus has been on the disaster. There were kids playing soccer in the park. Shibuya (downtown Tokyo) was as bustling as ever. The sun was shining, the plum trees are blossoming. It was really nice to remember that in some places, life is still pretty normal... but in Tohoku, everything is anything but normal... So as my heart craves a bit of normalcy and stability for myself, my heart craves it for Tohoku as well...
Its easy to ask why this happened. Some people are saying its God's judgement on Japan... I think they're morons. Luke 9, a village rejects Jesus, and Jesus' disciples want to call down fire to destroy the city, and Jesus rebukes them... Jesus declares that if we have seen him, we have seen the father. Our Lord Jesus, full of compassion, mercy, grace and love... How much his heart must break for the suffering in Tohoku!!! I'm not saying there will never be judgement, Jesus makes it very clear that there will be on the last day, but I'm pretty sure that is not what is happening now.
I've been spending a lot of time in Romans 8 this past month... read through it if you have time. It makes it so clear that famine, and disaster, and persecution and the like are clearly part of our lives, but we should not despair, because nothing can separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus. How do we know that God loves us? Because of Jesus. Because of the cross. How do we know that God loves Tohoku? Because of Jesus. Because of the cross. Also, Romans 8 tell of how creation itself is waiting for redemption, because it has been taken down with the fall of man as well.... Redemption--freedom from the bondage to decay... freedom from earthquakes, tsunamis, and even nuclear radiation!
So that's where I am at right now... watching my heart quake a bit as Japan is quaking. But my God is faithful!!!!!
BUT it is almost spring. Spring is a time of new beginnings in Japan. Time for the cherry blossoms to bloom. Time for the new school year to start. Time for chapter two of my life in Japan. Time for a new season for Japan.
Keep praying for those in Tohoku!!!!! I feel pretty selfish even writing this blog, cause it sounds like I am asking for pity, as I am sitting in a warm room in a friends house on a full stomach, and am about to go take a warm bath... And even if I was sitting in mud with my house washed away by a tsunami, I really have everything because I have Jesus. Pray for Tohoku.
For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation (tsunamis and earthquakes included!!), will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Rom. 8:38-39
PS. Here is the link to a video the friends I went to Ishinomaki with made.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mZSD9y4grZ0&sns=fb
March has kinda been a month from hell... with all sorts of losses (like my favorite teacher getting transferred to another school and some of my students graduating and other friends moving out of the city).
And then my beloved Japan gets hit my a earthquake, tsunami, and is now getting radiated...
And I'm in the middle of trying to help the situation, and am so thankful for getting to help! But have had a ton of responsibility thrown at me, which I am not quite sure I can handle... for example, I am only working with CRASH two more days, and I have been asked to assess and analyze what holes we have in our current way of operating and try to figure out solutions before I go... I guess the guy in charge of our department thinks I'm capable and need to do it before I leave... I think I'm 23 and clueless... but I'll take a stab at it! Please pray that God would give me wisdom and endurance. The office situation has been quite stressful the last few days as we are moving forward; feels kind of like building this organization from the ground up -- given the magnitude of the situation, and there are so many unknowns and so much information to try to process... BUT two of the teams I've gotten to have a part in sending out are leaving tomorrow morning, so that is exciting! The whole thing is feeling a bit overwhelming though. The need is so great...so its scary for me because I feel like if I mess something up it has real consequences on peoples' lives... PRESSURE! AGGHH!!! I'm so willing to keep working tho, its just scary.
I took the day off today, went to church, met up with some friends, took a walk in the park... It was really strange experiencing normal life a bit after so much focus has been on the disaster. There were kids playing soccer in the park. Shibuya (downtown Tokyo) was as bustling as ever. The sun was shining, the plum trees are blossoming. It was really nice to remember that in some places, life is still pretty normal... but in Tohoku, everything is anything but normal... So as my heart craves a bit of normalcy and stability for myself, my heart craves it for Tohoku as well...
Its easy to ask why this happened. Some people are saying its God's judgement on Japan... I think they're morons. Luke 9, a village rejects Jesus, and Jesus' disciples want to call down fire to destroy the city, and Jesus rebukes them... Jesus declares that if we have seen him, we have seen the father. Our Lord Jesus, full of compassion, mercy, grace and love... How much his heart must break for the suffering in Tohoku!!! I'm not saying there will never be judgement, Jesus makes it very clear that there will be on the last day, but I'm pretty sure that is not what is happening now.
I've been spending a lot of time in Romans 8 this past month... read through it if you have time. It makes it so clear that famine, and disaster, and persecution and the like are clearly part of our lives, but we should not despair, because nothing can separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus. How do we know that God loves us? Because of Jesus. Because of the cross. How do we know that God loves Tohoku? Because of Jesus. Because of the cross. Also, Romans 8 tell of how creation itself is waiting for redemption, because it has been taken down with the fall of man as well.... Redemption--freedom from the bondage to decay... freedom from earthquakes, tsunamis, and even nuclear radiation!
So that's where I am at right now... watching my heart quake a bit as Japan is quaking. But my God is faithful!!!!!
BUT it is almost spring. Spring is a time of new beginnings in Japan. Time for the cherry blossoms to bloom. Time for the new school year to start. Time for chapter two of my life in Japan. Time for a new season for Japan.
Keep praying for those in Tohoku!!!!! I feel pretty selfish even writing this blog, cause it sounds like I am asking for pity, as I am sitting in a warm room in a friends house on a full stomach, and am about to go take a warm bath... And even if I was sitting in mud with my house washed away by a tsunami, I really have everything because I have Jesus. Pray for Tohoku.
For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation (tsunamis and earthquakes included!!), will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Rom. 8:38-39
PS. Here is the link to a video the friends I went to Ishinomaki with made.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mZSD9y4grZ0&sns=fb
Thursday, March 24, 2011
There and Back Again：Ishinomaki...
Well friends,
I've gone to the Tsunami area, and come back again. When I was in Mie, I was scared of coming to Tokyo. When I was in Tokyo, I was scared of going to Tohoku. Now that I have gone and come, I feel a bit silly for all of the hype I felt around my trip up north. Don't get me wrong, the situation is just as heart wrenching and dire as I thought it would be, but my part in it is just so small... Now that I've been there I feel so stupid for worrying about myself at all.
Ishinomaki:
Cars tossed around like toys. Cars stacked on top of each other. Cars folded completely around street light poles. Cars in houses. Boats on the tops of roofs. Boats on roads miles inland. Roofs that are no where near whatever house they came from. Mountains of rubble that used to be homes. Feet of mud and sludge covering everything... It's really surreal.
We spent the day yesterday in Ishinomaki, about an hour and a half north of Sendai. Ishinomaki has some of the worst conditions right now. If you go father north, there was less time between the earthquake and tsunami, so there was less time for people to evacuate... meaning that there are a lot less evacuees, because everyone and everything in the coastal towns were washed out to sea. Ishinomaki has thousands of refugees, all living in evacuation centers in schools. Some people are living in the second stories of their homes (while the first stories are filled with mud and debris and cars) because the living conditions in the evacuation centers are not the best... its not home... its dirty and crowded.
We left from Tokyo around midnight with two two ton trucks full of supplies, and a van pack with supplies in the back and people in the front. It was snowing when we left Tokyo, but the weather cleared up as we drove, and we actually had really nice weather yesterday.
We spent the morning driving around different evacuation sights dropping off supplies. I walked into the first evacuation center, and right by the door was a big piece of butcher paper that said "希望" "hope". It was surrounded by notes that people wrote saying things like ”一人ではありません” "we are not in this alone." I unloaded a car load of caned soup with a 6 year old boy Japanese boy who was determined to help with everything. I was carrying out a huge pile of garbage with him later, and he looked at me and smiled and said, "Isn't take out garbage fun!!!" This is a 6 year old boy who is living in an evacuation center who has lost his house, all of his toys, normal life. He definitely taught me a thing or two about attitude!
We spent a lot of the day working at a school clearing the parking lot of all the debris and mud the tsunami left, so that they will be able to get vehicles in to the parking lot, and clean out the school, to use it for the relief effort for the mean time, and so that they can hopefully get the school opened again eventually. You can see the water lines on all the buildings, and in the school you can see how high the water came, because there are pine needles and branches and mud all the way up the the second story.
The people we were cleaning the school with were the TEACHERS! And they were there to clean because they were at WORK! The principal told us to take an hour lunch break, and he told the teachers that they could have Saturday and Sunday off to rest! Its a total disaster zone, and the teachers are still at work! Two of the girls that were cleaning there had just graduated on March 1st. One of the girls house got flooded in the tsunami, but her grandmothers house was ok, so they are staying there. The other girl had the water come right up to the bottom of her house, and then go back out, so their house was undamaged. They girls were both in good spirits. It was interesting talking about their plans for the future... one of them was planning on going to nursing school, but she did know if the school existed anymore. One of the guys I was with is making a documentary, I'll give you the link when its done. We asked the people if they had any message they wanted the wold to know, they said that Japanese people are strong and resourceful, and if we band together with each other, and with the rest of the world, and work hard, we will get out of this.
Despair, however, is seen a lot more among the thousands of elderly who have been affected by the tsunami. They feel like they won't see things restored to normal in their lifetime... and it is going to take years, so they are probably right. :(
Japans defense force 自衛隊 is doing a kick ass job up there! I really respect them！！ Clearing out roads. Cooking meals for refugees. Trucking in supplies. Love those guys!
For those of your who are involved in the relief effort through other organizations, the main thing the evacuees are requesting right now is socks and underwear. The food situation seems to be ok for the moment in Ishinomaki.
Only being there a day, I really felt like I hardly made a dent in anything...there is so much to be done... its going to take years to get this all cleaned up...
I'm sure I will be processing everything that I saw for the next few weeks, if not for the next few months... its pretty intense.
I was back in the CRASH office today. I've finally been able to move from processing and responding to mass amounts of emails and volunteer applications, to actually working with the teams that are getting sent out in the next few days, making sure that we have all their info, and they have all the info that they need to be able to go, so it feels good to be a bit more connected to everything, even while I am in the office.
One of my friends from home is here with a team (they were scheduled to come to Japan before everything went down), and they prayed for me tonight, and I feel like a new person... My God is so good to be and so sweet to me despite all of my shortcomings and failures. His grace is enough for me today. His love is enough for Tohoku.
Please keep praying for everyone in Tohoku! And for the work of Kamizoku, my friends I went to Ishinokai with. And for Crash, as we try to do your best to with this mess of a situation.
PS. Here is the link for some pics from yesterday from my friends camera. http://www.flickr.com/photos/sunriseinternationalministries/
I'm not downloading any till I get back to Yokkaichi, I didn't bring my card reader up here.
LOVE YOU GUYS!!!
I've gone to the Tsunami area, and come back again. When I was in Mie, I was scared of coming to Tokyo. When I was in Tokyo, I was scared of going to Tohoku. Now that I have gone and come, I feel a bit silly for all of the hype I felt around my trip up north. Don't get me wrong, the situation is just as heart wrenching and dire as I thought it would be, but my part in it is just so small... Now that I've been there I feel so stupid for worrying about myself at all.
Ishinomaki:
Cars tossed around like toys. Cars stacked on top of each other. Cars folded completely around street light poles. Cars in houses. Boats on the tops of roofs. Boats on roads miles inland. Roofs that are no where near whatever house they came from. Mountains of rubble that used to be homes. Feet of mud and sludge covering everything... It's really surreal.
We spent the day yesterday in Ishinomaki, about an hour and a half north of Sendai. Ishinomaki has some of the worst conditions right now. If you go father north, there was less time between the earthquake and tsunami, so there was less time for people to evacuate... meaning that there are a lot less evacuees, because everyone and everything in the coastal towns were washed out to sea. Ishinomaki has thousands of refugees, all living in evacuation centers in schools. Some people are living in the second stories of their homes (while the first stories are filled with mud and debris and cars) because the living conditions in the evacuation centers are not the best... its not home... its dirty and crowded.
We left from Tokyo around midnight with two two ton trucks full of supplies, and a van pack with supplies in the back and people in the front. It was snowing when we left Tokyo, but the weather cleared up as we drove, and we actually had really nice weather yesterday.
We spent the morning driving around different evacuation sights dropping off supplies. I walked into the first evacuation center, and right by the door was a big piece of butcher paper that said "希望" "hope". It was surrounded by notes that people wrote saying things like ”一人ではありません” "we are not in this alone." I unloaded a car load of caned soup with a 6 year old boy Japanese boy who was determined to help with everything. I was carrying out a huge pile of garbage with him later, and he looked at me and smiled and said, "Isn't take out garbage fun!!!" This is a 6 year old boy who is living in an evacuation center who has lost his house, all of his toys, normal life. He definitely taught me a thing or two about attitude!
We spent a lot of the day working at a school clearing the parking lot of all the debris and mud the tsunami left, so that they will be able to get vehicles in to the parking lot, and clean out the school, to use it for the relief effort for the mean time, and so that they can hopefully get the school opened again eventually. You can see the water lines on all the buildings, and in the school you can see how high the water came, because there are pine needles and branches and mud all the way up the the second story.
The people we were cleaning the school with were the TEACHERS! And they were there to clean because they were at WORK! The principal told us to take an hour lunch break, and he told the teachers that they could have Saturday and Sunday off to rest! Its a total disaster zone, and the teachers are still at work! Two of the girls that were cleaning there had just graduated on March 1st. One of the girls house got flooded in the tsunami, but her grandmothers house was ok, so they are staying there. The other girl had the water come right up to the bottom of her house, and then go back out, so their house was undamaged. They girls were both in good spirits. It was interesting talking about their plans for the future... one of them was planning on going to nursing school, but she did know if the school existed anymore. One of the guys I was with is making a documentary, I'll give you the link when its done. We asked the people if they had any message they wanted the wold to know, they said that Japanese people are strong and resourceful, and if we band together with each other, and with the rest of the world, and work hard, we will get out of this.
Despair, however, is seen a lot more among the thousands of elderly who have been affected by the tsunami. They feel like they won't see things restored to normal in their lifetime... and it is going to take years, so they are probably right. :(
Japans defense force 自衛隊 is doing a kick ass job up there! I really respect them！！ Clearing out roads. Cooking meals for refugees. Trucking in supplies. Love those guys!
For those of your who are involved in the relief effort through other organizations, the main thing the evacuees are requesting right now is socks and underwear. The food situation seems to be ok for the moment in Ishinomaki.
Only being there a day, I really felt like I hardly made a dent in anything...there is so much to be done... its going to take years to get this all cleaned up...
I'm sure I will be processing everything that I saw for the next few weeks, if not for the next few months... its pretty intense.
I was back in the CRASH office today. I've finally been able to move from processing and responding to mass amounts of emails and volunteer applications, to actually working with the teams that are getting sent out in the next few days, making sure that we have all their info, and they have all the info that they need to be able to go, so it feels good to be a bit more connected to everything, even while I am in the office.
One of my friends from home is here with a team (they were scheduled to come to Japan before everything went down), and they prayed for me tonight, and I feel like a new person... My God is so good to be and so sweet to me despite all of my shortcomings and failures. His grace is enough for me today. His love is enough for Tohoku.
Please keep praying for everyone in Tohoku! And for the work of Kamizoku, my friends I went to Ishinokai with. And for Crash, as we try to do your best to with this mess of a situation.
PS. Here is the link for some pics from yesterday from my friends camera. http://www.flickr.com/photos/sunriseinternationalministries/
I'm not downloading any till I get back to Yokkaichi, I didn't bring my card reader up here.
LOVE YOU GUYS!!!
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