: ) My mom came to see me!!! It was a lovely, but very short time because the conference somewhat conflicted with her visit to Japan. I am so glad God enabled me to do both things though! We ate tons of the best apple pie and cheese souffle, had many giggle-fests and mom-daughter heart-to-hearts. It was such a blessing to have her 'taste' (literally and figuratively) what I am experiencing over here. YAY for us!
LOOK WHO IT IS: Mi Bredren! It was a very joyful, hilarious yet sanctified time. They got to get a taste of Martin's beast work ethic! YEAH! They also got to get down and dirty, Ruth-Mae-Ghent-style by baking JEWISH cookies and Matzah flat bread! They were so overwhelmed by the amount of sweat, detail and most of all LOVE that went into all the various preparations for the Passover meal. We also had some legit, Christ-centered talks about things we are facing lately, which was empowering and enlightening. I got the best bros yo! SMILE.
The beautiful yet profound center pieces designed by Noamster-San for our Passover/Easter event.
MATZAH BREAD! Some turned into Matzah balls for the Matzah ball soup! WAHOO! Amazeballs...
Matt got to meet my little munchy-munchkins and make Easter eggs with them! Right on!
The meaning behind each of the dishes that night created a heart-warming and sacred atmosphere...It was a Good Friday that I will never forget.
Making Jewish cookies for Passover Dinner Round 2 at Harvest Chapel.
Easter Egg huntin' with Koko-Chun.
Sunday service at Harvest Chapel.
A very inspiring fellow by the name of Hiroshi-San serenaded us with his Godly music and testimony of Jesus' Grace. He was awesome and I even got to sing with him a little bit!
SPRING HAS COME! Finally...and with a lot of smiles from all of us who have endured such a harsh, cold, frozen winter! Us Canadians don't know winter the way these Aomori folk know winter... I never thought I'd see the meters of snow actually melt away! God is Good. haha...
What has significantly touched my heart: Passover dinner, the blood red roses, their thorns mirrored in the pointed, rusty nails, the piercing tips of the crown He wore... That should have been us. We're but a mockery of holiness, of goodness, of purity. Yet the crown of thorns truly did crown a King, the only King. And aren't we just so drawn to His image? Head bent, sweat and blood dripping down, arms outstretched upon a tree in pure sacrifice, eyes filled with pain-love for His unfaithful, wretched Bride. You, me...How can you look away?
I sat and swayed to music and tears filled my eyes as I looked across the table at my two favourite boys who came all the way from Toronto to see me. I thought of all that we have been through and the pain and laughter we will experience together. I felt so proud of them, so in awe that God would give me these two to do life with, to experience and process His love together, forever. I looked around and breathed in this moment of such overwhelming grace, warmth, light and love. I scanned over the faces of my beloved Japanese friends who don't know how to accept and experience His love yet. My heartaches for them were wordless prayers, cries of mercy to our God. Oh save them Father. Let them be a part of Your glorious inheritance that will never spoil or fade...
I was glowing that night because, once again, I was knocked right over by His gushing, bleeding Grace that tears apart my old labels and sears onto my heart the word Beloved...Nothing can touch me when I say 'Yes' to Him and let His great love cover me.
Take the time, stop your schedule and just bask in all His promises, His gifts...Take time to experience being loved by the ultimate Lover of our souls...
Enjoy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6CUGTIWCFyo
I have recently been barreling unexpectedly through many Old Testament books. I don't think I have ever in my life read so many , so fervently. I am quite passionate about these testimonies and can't seem to put my bible down. I'm enthralled...
Most recently, I have completed a read-through of 1 and 2 Samuel. I am quite sure Hollywood could make some pretty action-packed, macho-man movies based on these plots that include SO much war, violence, vengeance and masculine-ego issues. I think American (and I guess Canadian) boys would get a kick out of it. Anyways, although the bloodshed and gore kept me on the edge of my seat, I continued to be enlightened by the many mentions of a God trying so hard to preserve the frail hearts of His beloved people.
It is the pure in heart and soul that our God scans the earth to find and use for His glory. It has never been muscle, nobility, beauty, eloquence or talent, just a heart that can look inward and know they need God. I was blown away by the many times King David deeply mourned the death of his enemies who were trying to kill him. He loved people so fiercely. I was sickened by the King's many sins, yet drawn in by his repentant, convicted heart that even asked God for His punishment when he stumbled. The pure in heart may wander and float, but they always and frequently return, only to throw down their faces at the feet of their Father-God. That, my friends, is how transformation begins to unfurl and awaken.
One of my favourite verses is found in 2 Samuel 23:2-4
"The God of Israel spoke, the Rock of Israel said to me: 'When one rules over people in righteousness, when he rules in the fear of God, he is like the light of morning at sunrise on a cloudless morning, like the brightness after rain that brings grass from the earth.' "
David tried to be this. Absalom would slaughter for it. Solomon seemed destined for it. Yet... we know the True Righteous Ruler.
Dear Jesus,
You are the light of morning at sunrise on a cloudless day...
Your blood, the rain.
And your children cannot stop flourishing...
The fields of this earth are shimmering with the greenest, most resilient grass.
Your sing over us and we dance in Your wind-song.
You let us touch the tips of Your brightness, and we are healed.
This past week, I had the honour, privilege and God-given opportunity to attend the 2012 East Japan OMF Conference in the mountains of Nikko. I really had no idea what to expect, but felt in my heart that God would reveal Himself to me in a special way... Of course He did. SMILE.
It was encouraging, eye-opening and fulfilling to hear about the many ministries that are taking place around this country. What was most amazing though, was meeting the people who have chosen to be a living sacrifice in such a 'front-line' kind of way. Worshiping our God with them was an experience I will not forget...
We were able to do some sight-seeing which included a group of us visiting a beautiful but snowy waterfall!
A picture by the pretty lake...
I got to see one of these guys!!! Click HERE for more info on these adorable but fierce Japanese monkeys!
I also got to visit one of the largest temples/shrines in Nikko... Being there definitely reminded me of the state of things in the Old Testament where only select priests were able to enter into the 'holy of holies'... This type of thinking still exists in places like Japan. There was a section that was built with lofty walls around it to show that it was the most sacred place in the vast temple grounds.
Prayers written on pink hearts... Each one is a symbol of the hope and longing of a Japanese person to find a lasting 'home' in a relationship with some one else...
GROUP PHOTO! (haha... can you spot me among the many foreigners who know Japan SO much better than I?)
The conference was truly like a taste of heaven to me. It was strange and humbling to be surrounded by so many non-Japanese who, for so many years, have had a much deeper passion and knowledge of the country my family originally came from. As I was about to leave, a lady I was able to get to know over the past few days looked me deep in the eyes and thanked ME for choosing Japan. What an astounding experience it was for me, to look back into her blue eyes that seeped out sadness for this foreign country she now calls her home. Thank ME for choosing Japan? sigh... How possible it could have been for me to be one of the Japanese people she and other missionaries would pray and fight so hard for, had my ancestors not have moved over to Canada.
The harvest isn't just plenty over here in Japan... Sometimes it feels like it's boundless, immeasurable and overwhelming when you live in a place where hearts are just so hard, so impenetrable. YET, God is alive in the fierce, passionate, energetic, fun-loving, Christ-centered missionaries who have said YES TO THE CROSS. . . YES TO CONCRETE SOIL. . . YES TO MANY YEARS OF SERVICE IN A FARAWAY LAND. . .
'the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains and caves and holes in the ground.'
Hebrews 11:38
'All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance, admitting that they were foreigners and strangers on earth'
Hebrews 11:13
My Jesus, my God... Have mercy on this broken people, this rock-hard nation. So proud...So seemingly wise, yet so lost. Jesus, show us how to love them. Through Your good grace, save Japan. Save this nation, save our people.
There isn't much out there that can beat good ol' snail mail care packages! :)
This accumulation of happy items was sent with love from Kevstar and Mama G (Kevin Teh and Grandma Grace). These gifts (consisting of some of my favourite snacks) will be scrumptious, but what is M O S T heart-warming is the reminder that people have my mission on their mind, that they care, that there is a family so big and so great. To Gramz and Bun and EVERYONE else who has been praying for me and supporting me with their encouraging words, THANK YOU, because you are most definitely part of God's plan for Japan, His plan for me. Your prayers have become my greatest treasure in a foreign nation, my hope in times of fear and reminder of His Beautiful Body, the Church.
I love my Family... (that includes YOU!)
More updates to come!
How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, "Your God reigns!"
-Isaiah 52:7
Today I cried for this nation, and their brokenness that reflects a greater human condition : disaster, disorder, fragments of time lost and wasted... and taken away.
Japan...How this complex nation has changed me, uprooted and rearranged parts of my soul. Tonight I sat and cried with a group of young people thirsty and passionate about their God and their salvation. It hit me hard in the stomach that so many lost souls were washed away this day one year ago. It hit me hard that too many have died even today without hearing the heavenly, true story of Jesus and His Bride. It hit me hard that Christ-followers are stretched thin and weary and overwhelmed in order to somehow plant millions of seeds in rock-solid, bitter soil, the souls of the Japanese people... What hurts the most is knowing our God is right here, in the midst of the haunting, the remembering, just pleading and weeping for us to notice how He is everywhere. His fingerprints and footprints are left and linger for us to embrace, but we are so hardened, so blind. He grieves for the empty spaces, the dusty voids that fill Japan.
But there is hope. There always is when Jesus enters the room.
Please take a moment, even right now, to pray for the hearts of this nation...
If you have time, view this youtube video made by those affected in Japan. I can't watch this video without tearing up, but it is extremely encouraging and eye-opening. I pray it touches you...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SS-sWdAQsYg
: ) My mom came to see me!!! It was a lovely, but very short time because the conference somewhat conflicted with her visit to Japan. I am so glad God enabled me to do both things though! We ate tons of the best apple pie and cheese souffle, had many giggle-fests and mom-daughter heart-to-hearts. It was such a blessing to have her 'taste' (literally and figuratively) what I am experiencing over here. YAY for us!
LOOK WHO IT IS: Mi Bredren! It was a very joyful, hilarious yet sanctified time. They got to get a taste of Martin's beast work ethic! YEAH! They also got to get down and dirty, Ruth-Mae-Ghent-style by baking JEWISH cookies and Matzah flat bread! They were so overwhelmed by the amount of sweat, detail and most of all LOVE that went into all the various preparations for the Passover meal. We also had some legit, Christ-centered talks about things we are facing lately, which was empowering and enlightening. I got the best bros yo! SMILE.
The beautiful yet profound center pieces designed by Noamster-San for our Passover/Easter event.
MATZAH BREAD! Some turned into Matzah balls for the Matzah ball soup! WAHOO! Amazeballs...
Matt got to meet my little munchy-munchkins and make Easter eggs with them! Right on!
Making Jewish cookies for Passover Dinner Round 2 at Harvest Chapel.
Easter Egg huntin' with Koko-Chun.
Sunday service at Harvest Chapel.
A very inspiring fellow by the name of Hiroshi-San serenaded us with his Godly music and testimony of Jesus' Grace. He was awesome and I even got to sing with him a little bit!
SPRING HAS COME! Finally...and with a lot of smiles from all of us who have endured such a harsh, cold, frozen winter! Us Canadians don't know winter the way these Aomori folk know winter... I never thought I'd see the meters of snow actually melt away! God is Good. haha...
