In My Experience

I just finished watching a video posted on another social media sight about volunteering while on vacation.  I think they called it voluntourism.  I have heard much about how trips like this hurt those who are visited and pump up those who go.  I suspect this may often be the case.

I have been on two trips to visit sponsor children.  They were expensive and we may have caused some hardship for those involved in the countries we visited.  However, the moment of meeting my children and getting to spend the day with them will live on in my heart forever.  If I go on another trip I will probably do a few things differently, however, I would still consider going on another trip.

Sightseeing in Kyoto

At the end of July through the first week of August we had a short term team visit us here in Japan.  Although it took a lot of planning and hard work, we felt the two weeks were well worth the effort.  Each team is different, each location is different, but I wouldn't rule out the effectiveness of short term missions teams and trips.

One of the biggest reasons we feel this team was successful was because of all the preparation that happened on both sides of the ocean.  First, this was not a random group who just wanted to go to Japan.  A Japanese pastor, his wife, and I bonded with this group through our time at a youth gathering in California.  We formed relationships that caused the team to want to not only visit us in Japan but also to learn about ministry and to do ministry in Japan.

Fellowship with Japanese pastors

Second, as an NAB family we have a wonderful ministry called Gateway that trains and leads short term teams, especially to NAB mission fields.  Randy Schmor not only took time to train the team, he came to Japan to train us on what to expect and what they would be doing to prepare for their trip.

The team not only learned about Japan and our ministry, but also part of their preparation included intensive Bible study and learning more about what they believe.  In their youth group for the past year they have been going through a study on the foundations of faith which has helped give them a more solid foundation.  They, also, each prepared a testimony to share at some point.  I think they all had a chance to share at least twice.

American Culture Day @ Komyo Church

Another reason the team was so effective was their attitude.  They arrived with a willingness to help us out in any way possible and a humility to listen and to learn, to observe and to try to understand.  This willingness and humility are so important.  After 20 years on the field I am still learning new things every day.  If we arrive in a foreign country thinking that we can do ministry without any help because we have read all the books and watched all the videos, then we are not ready to get our passport.  But, if we do our best to educate ourselves and then arrive ready to learn more, we are ready to get on the airplane.

I have wonderful coworkers who were willing to do everything to help make this experience a success for all involved.  We all feel that it was a success.  The team got to stay in Japanese homes both in Osaka and Chita.  They helped with ministry in three churches as well as at a denominational gathering.  They got to experience Japanese history and religion through our sightseeing days.  And, they even got to spend some time at the beach!

The whole group (picture of a picture!)

We feel the biggest reason this team was successful was prayer support.  The missionaries had all asked their supporting churches and prayer warriors to be praying for the team.  But, the team themselves had a strong prayer base at their home churches praying for them as well.  We are so thankful for all God did over the two weeks they were here!  Praise and glory all go to Jesus!

If you are considering a short term mission experience, take some time to consider these things:
*Why do I want to go?
*Do the people on the other end want me to go?
*How have I/can I prepare?
*Am I ready to listen and learn?
*Is God guiding me into this?
*And, be sure to pray, pray, pray!
There are probably hundreds of lists of things to think about when deciding to join a short term team. These are just the thoughts that popped into my mind as I wrote.


Here are a couple of resources:

Gateway Teams - NAB ministry for those interested in serving on short term teams locally and globally
Gateway Ministry

Japan Harvest - a magazine ministry of JEMA (Japan Evangelical Missionary Association)  written, edited, and published by missionaries in Japan
Japan Harvest

Elevators

I really want to talk about something else tonight, but it will have to wait because I am too tired and it is long! I am excited to share that thankful point soon.

I only have a picture looking down.  I don't have any pictures
of my building from down below looking up!

Tonight as I was coming up to my apartment in the elevator, I thought, "I am thankful for this elevator."

First of all, I am thankful for the elevator because it means I do not have to climb 9 flights of stairs to get to my apartment.  (I only have to climb one.  The elevator doesn't stop on every floor so I get out on the 8th floor and climb up to the ninth.  I don't know; I didn't design it, I just live here!)

Second, I am thankful for the elevator because it fulfills a childhood dream to live in an apartment building where I have to go up to my apartment in an elevator.  I am not kidding!  When I was a kid and we watched the Jeffersons, I always secretly wished I lived in a building with an elevator.  (We didn't watch it often because we had a limited TV viewing allowance/week and had to rotate between favorite shows.)

In fact, when I was in about second grade, I used my birthday money to buy a Barbie house, the one with the elevator, and I was jealous of Barbie getting to have an elevator.

I was raised in a small town in South Dakota.  There are not many buildings with elevators there.  I don't know where I thought I was going to live, but maybe I always knew I was not going to live there when I grew up.

Every place I have lived has had great points, but one of top points of this place for me is the elevator.

There I said it.  Now you have proof that I am just a little bit wacky!

A Sad Day

Enjoying the terrace one last time

August 31 was a sad day for me.  The place I have studied, relaxed, met friends, and made new friends for the past eight years closed.

"My" Starbucks closed.  

It was sort of out of necessity.  The building in which it was housed closed, so they obviously had to do something.

Pretty much every day I was in Izumi in August I went to Starbucks.  I was a little surprised at how sad I was.  I mean, it is just a place.  But, it holds so many memories.  It was comfortable and familiar.  The people were comfortable and familiar, even the people I hadn't met yet.

Chocolate Chunk Scone, one of my favorites

Thankfully, I did not have to say good bye to the staff.  They are all going to be moving to the new shop opening at the new mall.  It doesn't open until October 30, so until then they are all spread around the area.  But, they all get to work together in the new shop.

Until then, I just wait.

Several times over the past three weeks I have almost packed my bag to go to "my" Starbucks.  I am looking forward to seeing my friends again in the new place.

The only challenge will be that there will be thousands upon thousands of people there the first few months the mall is open.  It will be difficult to relax and actually get to chat with the staff.  Even though it will be crazy to try to get into the parking lot and the mall, I probably will go pretty soon after they open.  I need to see my people!

It is a bit farther from where I live, but it is right next to Costco!

I am looking forward to my new place!

Flowers, sunsets, and other random things

I want to try to stay in the habit of writing once a week or so.  However, the past two weeks have just disappeared.  By the time I sit down in front of my computer in the evening all I really want to do is turn it off and go to bed.  (Which is another discipline I need to work on!!)

So, I am just going to share a few photos of nature I have taken recently.  Spring is so lovely in Japan as the flowers start blooming and we are reminded that winter does not last forever.

The clouds lifting after the rain.
This is the view from my front veranda.

The sunset over the bay.
This is the view from my back veranda- although I can't quite
see the sun, so I had to go down the hall so I could see it!

Sunset from the train.
I am sure the people around me were wondering what I was doing.
I was waiting for this specific place, iPhone in hand.
The sun is just behind a pole in the center of the picture.

My friend Yuri, her name means lily.
We went to a lily garden last week.

So many wonderful colors!

Field of yellow

Working on the selfie thing.

Enjoying mango ice cream

These roses came from a church member's garden.
She has a much greener thumb than I do!

Accomplished

The view from my veranda on a clear day

Mondays are my day off.  I often get together with friends or go downtown or go ride roller coasters or sometimes have meetings.

Today I had the day to myself.  I talked to three people and probably said a total of 50 words.  It was lovely!

I spent the morning cleaning my veranda, the one that runs the width of my apartment and is where I hang my laundry, watch the trains go by, and sit for quiet time sometimes.  I scrubbed and scrubbed and may have even gotten a little sun.

As I finished up the last corner and turned to look at the results of my work, I had a thought.  I enjoyed cleaning today.  One of the reasons, besides the fact that I don't have to worry about dropping my clean clothes in the dirt, is I could SEE what I had accomplished.  The results were obvious and fairly quick.

Ministry is very different.  I often don't see what is being accomplished.  What I think should be happening is often not happening, or at least in the time frame I think it should happen.  The results are often very different from what I expected or thought I was working toward.

So, every once in a while it is nice to have a day where I can see what was accomplished.  I feel successful.

Then God sits down with me for dinner and reminds me what true success is.  I will keep having my days of obsessive cleaning, however, I think I will stick with God's idea of success.

Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your strength, with all your mind.  Love your neighbor as yourself.

Nope, still here

Saying hello to the ocean
before the wedding

I have not fallen off the face of the earth.  I am still here.  I can come up with a thousand excuses for not having written for over a month.  I will stick with the main one: I let other things distract me.

It's not that I have to blog, like there is some rule I have to follow.  But, when I do blog, it helps me focus, see God's blessings, and share ways for people to pray for me and the ministry in Japan.

So, I will share a few lines tonight.

This evening I went to an event called Praise Night.  Apparently, it has been going on monthly for the past 3 years.  I don't know what made me decide to attend tonight-well, yes, I do.  God wanted to fellowship and speak to me.  I was in a room full of people in downtown Osaka, praising God and being encouraged and challenged.  It was a blessed evening!

Last weekend, I was able to attend a coworker's wedding.  How wonderful to watch two people vow to serve God together!  It was amazing to hear stories, see pictures, and watch them interact and be able to see God's fingerprints all over the place!  God's best is truly worth waiting for! (In every situation, not just marriage!!!)

Next month is going to be full to the gills with all kinds of fun and challenging ministry stuff.  Please pray for our church, for our physical and spiritual health, for open hearts and ears, and for love overflowing.

Thank you!

折り紙は祈り紙...

When I was in the US last year I folded a large number of origami cranes.  I gave most of them away to people to remind them to pray for me.  On some I had people sign their names and I brought them back to Japan with me.  I finally got around to hanging them up around my apartment.

As I folded the cranes I was praying for Japan, for the ministry in which I am involved here, for friends, and for the people who would receive them.  As I gave them to friends and family, I asked them to pray for me.  I even left some 'flying' around my home church.  I hope when people see them around the church or wherever they were placed around homes that people will remember to pray for me.



When I am sitting in my living/dining room, bedroom, tatami room, or office and I see the cranes hanging there, I pray for the people who signed their names and gave the cranes back to me.

What a blessing to be able to pray for each other.  Even when we are not in the same city, state, or country, we can still join in ministry together by praying for each other.  And, having a visual reminder is helpful for me!  In that way, these origami cranes become prayer reminders.  (The Japanese title of this post is a play on words which basically means that.)

Thank you to those of you who are praying for me and all of us here in Japan.  Please continue.  I cannot put into words how much your prayers mean to us!

In the background is the prayer quilt the ladies from West Center made for me!

Amazing Friends

I cannot begin to express how grateful I am for all of my friends.  I have had such a great time over the past few weeks getting together for dinners, tea times, singing, just one more time before go on Home Assignment.
私の友達は素晴らしいです。説明できないほどに神様に感謝しています。最近、アメリカに行く前に、たくさんの友達と食事やお茶の時間や歌うために集まってくれました。
皆さん、ありがとう！これは足りない言葉ですが、心から感謝しています。

Learning about Sakai City with former students

Bagel Breakfast Bunch

Potluck Party!

Kyoto Friends

Missionary Fellowship Prayer Warriors

Sakamoto Family and Yuri

Coco Doco Cocoro

Coco Doco Cocoro

USJ with USJ friends

Missionary Family

Takoyaki Party-my neighbors are professionals!

Thursdays at Seattle's Best

AGC Sisters and Brother

AGC

Memories

The Christmas season is filled with memories.  As I thought about putting up my tree and decorating my apartment, I wondered why I do it.  Not in a frustrated way.  Not because it is annoying or time consuming.  Just pondering as I decorated.

Then I realized, as each ornament was removed from the box, each one brought back memories.  Memories of the people who gave me the ornaments.  Memories of the time of life I was in when I received or bought the ornament.  The place where the ornament was bought.

Here are a few memories from my tree, in no particular order:
(The pictures are a little blurry.  I was in a hurry to take them!)

This is probably my oldest ornament.  I can't remember a Christmas without it on the tree!  My great grandma made it, if I remember correctly.

This ornament is from Sandy, from the year we did the children's musical, "Santa Bowed at Christmas"

I actually don't remember where this came from, but it reminds me of Delora because she collects Santas.

This is from my teaching days.  Wendy gave it to me when she was teaching 3rd grade.

This is from Grandma Reed, I think.  If it isn't, I always think of her when I put it up!

Thanks to Della I have this beautiful nativity ornament from Israel.

The bell from Shonda's and Paul's wedding!

And, a snowman ornament from Shonda and Paul!

A snowflake from Mom to remind me of the year of Shonda's wedding.

And, an angel from Mom.

Even an ornament from Aunt Karen.

HAWAII!

South Dakota!

I bought this at the Christmas Shop in Karuizawa.

Another ornament from teaching days, "O Little Town of Bethlehem."

This one is a little hard to see, but it is a snowflake.  I don't exactly remember where it came from, but for some reason it reminds me of my high school buddy, Signe.

Bought in Japan, but it reminds me of Texas!

Made by Phyllis from my home church.

Card from one of my roommates in seminary, Melodee, who is now a missionary in Europe.

And, my cute mouse from Mrs. Westall!

If you made it this far, thanks for sticking around for my walk down memory lane.  Of course, for me the best memories don't have to do with Christmas trees and ornaments, but with celebrating Jesus' birth with my family and friends.  What lovely memories to ponder every year.