Final details came together last week while I was doing relief work in Ishinomaki for language school in Hokkaido. I will leave for Hokkaido on Monday right after the retreat we have this weekend (starting later this afternoon). Things have been pretty hectic and unsettling this past week, as details have come together and plans finalized, but at least we've got progress!!! Orientation is next Thursday and classes start the following Monday.
I'm definitely excited to start language school and to start establishing a greater level of competence i this country. It's definitely funny at times, but I'd definitely prefer to not go about living in this country as a Kindergartener (if even that) ;).
It's another real short blurb, but I'll be off to the retreat soon, then to Hokkaido soon after to hit the books hard...and the ski hills harder!!!
September 21, 2011
September 10, 2011
Shedding Light on a (more) Solid Direction
So..it's been a bit more of a struggle, as of late, dealing with the uncertainty of my future here in Japan and what the rest (the bulk) of the ministry is going to look like. When I first arrived in Japan, I came with none of my own expectations, just that God was going to lead and that I'd simply follow. Having only a very basic understanding of Japan, it was much easier to step back and just allow things to happen. But as I experienced fruits of the relief work in Ishinomaki, I thought about different opportunities and possibilities for ministry, making it harder to wait and be open to going wherever He wants me.
During this past week, God shed some light on the future, and there is a pretty solid direction for us to grab onto. Things are definitely not set in stone, and there are still a lot of details that need to be ironed out, but the direction would be to enroll in a language school through the end of the year, starting in October, while my placement gets ironed out. The direction for placement would be a church in Tohoku. The new network kicked off this past week and some churches are "ready" to take on a missionary, but other A2 missionaries aren't ready to move there quite yet, and it really wouldn't be best for me to be there without the support of a regional team. With this, we are hopeful to form a team by the beginning of next year, which opens up the opportunity for me to attend language school in the meantime.
Before starting language school in October, I have one more opportunity to return to Ishinomaki for 10 days. I'm excited for this time and am excited to see the continued improvements and the people we've built relationships with. Please pray that the time in Ishinomaki would be fruitful, that we'd have opportunities to share God's love with those hurting and in desperate need of it.
Please pray that with this direction, God would iron out the details and specifics for when and where it takes place. Pray for knowledge and guidance for everyone involved in the decision making. That we'd seek and see His guidance, and that we'd be faithful in following whatever He has in store for us (me, A2's mission in Japan, and Japan in general).
During this past week, God shed some light on the future, and there is a pretty solid direction for us to grab onto. Things are definitely not set in stone, and there are still a lot of details that need to be ironed out, but the direction would be to enroll in a language school through the end of the year, starting in October, while my placement gets ironed out. The direction for placement would be a church in Tohoku. The new network kicked off this past week and some churches are "ready" to take on a missionary, but other A2 missionaries aren't ready to move there quite yet, and it really wouldn't be best for me to be there without the support of a regional team. With this, we are hopeful to form a team by the beginning of next year, which opens up the opportunity for me to attend language school in the meantime.
Before starting language school in October, I have one more opportunity to return to Ishinomaki for 10 days. I'm excited for this time and am excited to see the continued improvements and the people we've built relationships with. Please pray that the time in Ishinomaki would be fruitful, that we'd have opportunities to share God's love with those hurting and in desperate need of it.
Please pray that with this direction, God would iron out the details and specifics for when and where it takes place. Pray for knowledge and guidance for everyone involved in the decision making. That we'd seek and see His guidance, and that we'd be faithful in following whatever He has in store for us (me, A2's mission in Japan, and Japan in general).
August 2, 2011
July 20, 2011
My New Haircut
So, I decided to go get a haircut today. I'd been just shaving my head myself, but I wanted something different, so I went to a place to get it done...
1) The place is called "QB House," and on the sign it read "10 minutes Just Cut." Awesome!!!
1) The place is called "QB House," and on the sign it read "10 minutes Just Cut." Awesome!!!
2) As I walked in, I was greeted by someone who was already cutting someone's hair, and so he pointed to a vending machine near the entrance. On the vending machine, it said "10 minutes, 1,000¥." Double awesome!!!
3) I took my printed receipt to another guy who was gonna cut my hair, and then he asked how I wanted it cut....after a bit of fumbling with language, some hand gestures, and some blank stares of confusion, we were ready to go and he grabbed the clippers. A real good start!!! Still awesome....
4) He finished with the sides and back and moved towards the top, which I think we agreed he'd keep it similar to what it was, but to just make it shorter. I could keep describing it, but I think pics are just better at this point in time...
5) After he finished, he whipped out a vacuum cleaner and started going to town on my head. I hadn't had the feeling of a vacuum cleaner to the head in such a long time, so this was definitely a pleasant surprise!!! So awesome!!!!
So...one of the reasons I wanted to get my haircut somewhere and not shave my head was to look less like a punk kid, and a bit more "mature" (not sure if that's the right word, but "professional"is def not the right word). Anyways, I'm not sure this really accomplished that, but at least it'll be cooler with less hair...
July 18, 2011
Safely Back in Sanda
...so, apparently, "soon" can be a very relative thing...
It's been a busy (or crazy) and awesome 6 weeks, but I am now back safe and sound in Sanda. The last 4 weeks of the time in Tohoku were awesome, as we got to continue doing work and building relationships in the same communities we started in. There was a bit of a sad and empty feeling as we left last week, but we know that good work is continuing to be done up there, and it's "only" a 12 hour drive away ;).
There's too many stories and pics for a post here, so as I unwind and process, I'll work on a special relief edition of my newsletter. I look forward to sharing the awesome stories and experiences of the past 6 weeks with you all!!!
It's been a busy (or crazy) and awesome 6 weeks, but I am now back safe and sound in Sanda. The last 4 weeks of the time in Tohoku were awesome, as we got to continue doing work and building relationships in the same communities we started in. There was a bit of a sad and empty feeling as we left last week, but we know that good work is continuing to be done up there, and it's "only" a 12 hour drive away ;).
There's too many stories and pics for a post here, so as I unwind and process, I'll work on a special relief edition of my newsletter. I look forward to sharing the awesome stories and experiences of the past 6 weeks with you all!!!
June 19, 2011
Weeks 1-2 in Ishinomaki
So, we've just wrapped up the first 2 week chunk of the 6 week summer in Tohoku. The team members arrived safely and ready to go on June 1st. We stayed in Narita for a few days to go over some training materials and got to explore Tokyo on Friday.
We took the bullet train up from Narita to Sendai on Saturday, and after some bus and car rides, we got to the karate dojo where we are staying. The dojo has been a "base-camp" for volunteers coming through the Be One (a house church network based in Osaka) and A2 networks. It's been really cool interacting and working with the different volunteers coming up. Communal living has brought some challenges, but overall, it's been a really cool community to be a part of.
On Sunday (the 5th), our main focus was a BBQ in the "Be One neighborhood." Be One is renting and renovating a house in a neighborhood that was hit pretty hard by the tsunami in Ishinomaki. We have been holding BBQs in different neighborhoods in Ishinomaki, but it was really nice to have an event in this neighborhood where we are trying to plant ourselves. It was great to spend time with the neighbors as they came out to enjoy the hot dogs, BBQ chicken, and vegetables we grilled up.
We did another BBQ and drop (food and dry good distribution) on Monday in the neighborhood we had been to the previous weekend. Once again, it was great to see the families come out and see some kids running around with a soccer ball during the BBQ.
Over the next few days, we did some manual labor, trying to clean out a park and some yards, but our main goal was to prepare for a bigger kids event we were planning for on Saturday (the 11th). We wanted to focus less on the food, and more on just getting out and being able to provide the kids with stuff to do and play with.
The event that Saturday was awesome!!!! We held it in the park near the Be One house (and next to an apartment complex). We handed out new clothes, made onigiri (rice ball) lunches for the kids, had a crafts "table," and bought a bunch of toys (balls, rackets, paddles, frisbees, bubbles, etc...) for them to play with. It was so much fun and so great to see everyone having fun together!!!
Sunday got off to a special start as we had the first worship "service" at the Be One house in Ishinomaki. It was an awesome time of worship, sharing, and fellowship with the volunteer teams working hard up here.
More to come soon.............
We took the bullet train up from Narita to Sendai on Saturday, and after some bus and car rides, we got to the karate dojo where we are staying. The dojo has been a "base-camp" for volunteers coming through the Be One (a house church network based in Osaka) and A2 networks. It's been really cool interacting and working with the different volunteers coming up. Communal living has brought some challenges, but overall, it's been a really cool community to be a part of.
On Sunday (the 5th), our main focus was a BBQ in the "Be One neighborhood." Be One is renting and renovating a house in a neighborhood that was hit pretty hard by the tsunami in Ishinomaki. We have been holding BBQs in different neighborhoods in Ishinomaki, but it was really nice to have an event in this neighborhood where we are trying to plant ourselves. It was great to spend time with the neighbors as they came out to enjoy the hot dogs, BBQ chicken, and vegetables we grilled up.
We did another BBQ and drop (food and dry good distribution) on Monday in the neighborhood we had been to the previous weekend. Once again, it was great to see the families come out and see some kids running around with a soccer ball during the BBQ.
Over the next few days, we did some manual labor, trying to clean out a park and some yards, but our main goal was to prepare for a bigger kids event we were planning for on Saturday (the 11th). We wanted to focus less on the food, and more on just getting out and being able to provide the kids with stuff to do and play with.
The event that Saturday was awesome!!!! We held it in the park near the Be One house (and next to an apartment complex). We handed out new clothes, made onigiri (rice ball) lunches for the kids, had a crafts "table," and bought a bunch of toys (balls, rackets, paddles, frisbees, bubbles, etc...) for them to play with. It was so much fun and so great to see everyone having fun together!!!
Sunday got off to a special start as we had the first worship "service" at the Be One house in Ishinomaki. It was an awesome time of worship, sharing, and fellowship with the volunteer teams working hard up here.
More to come soon.............
June 6, 2011
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