it still doesn't feel like we're really in japan... though we've been here for more than 2 days.
God is not just the God of America, God is not just the God of Grace Community Church. God understands japanese... wow. and of course He has again shown Himself to be faithful, even in japan, because He is the Lord of all nations.
God is not just the God of America, God is not just the God of Grace Community Church. God understands japanese... wow. and of course He has again shown Himself to be faithful, even in japan, because He is the Lord of all nations.
the trip to the orphanage yesterday was truly a fun-filled but heavy experience. we are so thankful and touched to see that the brothers and sisters at Hamadera Bible Church are willing to reach out and love these kids, ministering to them through Bible stories, songs, or even just playing with them. it breaks our hearts to realize that these kids don't have the love and nurture that most of us have received from our parents, but we know that God is filled with compassion for these children, He loves them more than they will ever know. God loves us all more than we will ever know. our prayer is that these kids will know and understand that God loves them, and that His love is ever so deep, so vast, so beyond all measure, the love that the world can never offer.
today was our first time coming in contact with japanese college students. after our meeting in the morning and an adventurous meal at the rotating sushi restaurant, our whole team (except for irene, please pray for her health) headed to Osaka Prefecture University (OPU), visiting the English Speaking Society. it felt pretty embarrassing walking into a classroom filled with people you don't know giving you standing ovations, but after sitting down and starting some conversations in english, the atmosphere felt much more friendly. the desks in the classroom were combined into 4 groups, and each of team members had the opportunity to talk to people in a couple of different groups. the snacks were great. today was the first of four trips we will be making to OPU, but despite the unfamiliarity most of us had with the students, the conversations were productive and friendly :) our purpose is to establish relationships with the students, and inviting them to our events at church, hoping that they would get a chance to hear the gospel, and come to know Christ. please pray! pray for these students, that the Lord would soften their hearts, and draw them to Himself for His glory. in the japanese culture, the concept of an almighty God is foreign, let alone the concept of man needing a savior in order to be reconciled with that God. becoming a Christian in japan may mean exclusion from the social norm and changes in relationships between family members and friends, often for the worse. but Jesus Himself tells us about this happening, and calls us to follow to Him despite the momentary obstacles of this world. pray for the japanese people to repent and come to Christ, pray also for the Japanese believers, that they would not lose heart and would persevere and stand through these trials rejoicing, knowing that their hope is not of this world, and that there is a glory that will far outweigh all these things. please pray for our mission team members as well, that the Lord would humble us and use us as effective instruments, we may not be directly preaching the gospel to them on campus, but pray that we would be a mirror that reflects God Himself. pray that we may have sincere hearts as well talk and build relationships with these students, pray that we will be genuine, with hearts of compassion, knowing that we are talking to individuals that all have souls, and most of them are still living their lives apart from the Lord.
as we finished up our conversations in the classroom, we all headed down to the university's cafeteria (great food by the way) and enjoyed dinner and some more conversations together. it's very easy to shift the focus of the conversations to ourselves, especially when the guy/girl is obviously very interested in the american culture, but we want to show that we are interested in them as well, and we are here for them, to hang out with them, not to boast about the america or ourselves. humility is too important. we gave the students flyers for our upcoming events on saturday and sunday, which consist of dinner (our own "special" menu), some music, games, a personal testimony that will be given by one of our team members, and a gospel presentation. please pray for these things.
thank you for reading our entries and showing your care and concern for our ministry here in japan. please continue to pray pray and pray. that we might all have worshipful hearts, whether those of us who are at home in the US, or here in japan, because the driving force behind missions is our passion and desire for God's glory to be proclaimed through all the earth, and that the nations will bow down and worship Him. we worship the Lord, our God and King, He is worthy of all glory and honor and praise! this trip is all about Him, not about us. pray that His name be magnified.
p.s. ever been in a typhoon (hurricane)? it's not very fun. but the Lord decided to welcome us to japan with one yesterday. though we may often times see these things as "disasters," the Lord showed Himself to be faithful, sovereign, and totally in control of things. we can make plans and have expectations, but God is the One who is in charge, and as we realize that we should be more than willing to submit to His plan for us. typhoons are "bad" to us, but if it weren't for the typhoon, there wouldn't have been so many kids at the orphanage who had a day off from school, if it weren't for the typhoon, one of the guests for our host family dinner wouldn't have been able to make it last night and join us for dinner and 2 hours or more of praise and worship through music. if it weren't for God, there would be know typhoon. God is at work, even through typhoons. that just blows me away. the Lord our God is not only the God of all creation, God of the universe, Creator and Sustainer of all things, He is also a God of all the nations, of all the people, of all languages and tongues. God is so big so great, and He does great and mighty things, sometimes even through small, worthless and undeserving people like us. God's grace. wow.
"sing to the Lord, bless His name. Proclaim good tidings of His salvation from day to day. Tell of His glory among the nations. His wonderful deeds among all the peoples. For great is the Lord and greatly to be praised; He is to be feared above all gods. For the gods of the peoples are idols, But the Lord made the heavens. Splendor and majesty are before Him. Strength and beauty are in His sanctuary... Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice; Let the sea roar, and all it contains; Let the field exult, and all that is in it. Then all the trees of the forest will sing for joy before the Lord, for He is coming" ( psalm 96)
posted by beland huang
today was our first time coming in contact with japanese college students. after our meeting in the morning and an adventurous meal at the rotating sushi restaurant, our whole team (except for irene, please pray for her health) headed to Osaka Prefecture University (OPU), visiting the English Speaking Society. it felt pretty embarrassing walking into a classroom filled with people you don't know giving you standing ovations, but after sitting down and starting some conversations in english, the atmosphere felt much more friendly. the desks in the classroom were combined into 4 groups, and each of team members had the opportunity to talk to people in a couple of different groups. the snacks were great. today was the first of four trips we will be making to OPU, but despite the unfamiliarity most of us had with the students, the conversations were productive and friendly :) our purpose is to establish relationships with the students, and inviting them to our events at church, hoping that they would get a chance to hear the gospel, and come to know Christ. please pray! pray for these students, that the Lord would soften their hearts, and draw them to Himself for His glory. in the japanese culture, the concept of an almighty God is foreign, let alone the concept of man needing a savior in order to be reconciled with that God. becoming a Christian in japan may mean exclusion from the social norm and changes in relationships between family members and friends, often for the worse. but Jesus Himself tells us about this happening, and calls us to follow to Him despite the momentary obstacles of this world. pray for the japanese people to repent and come to Christ, pray also for the Japanese believers, that they would not lose heart and would persevere and stand through these trials rejoicing, knowing that their hope is not of this world, and that there is a glory that will far outweigh all these things. please pray for our mission team members as well, that the Lord would humble us and use us as effective instruments, we may not be directly preaching the gospel to them on campus, but pray that we would be a mirror that reflects God Himself. pray that we may have sincere hearts as well talk and build relationships with these students, pray that we will be genuine, with hearts of compassion, knowing that we are talking to individuals that all have souls, and most of them are still living their lives apart from the Lord.
as we finished up our conversations in the classroom, we all headed down to the university's cafeteria (great food by the way) and enjoyed dinner and some more conversations together. it's very easy to shift the focus of the conversations to ourselves, especially when the guy/girl is obviously very interested in the american culture, but we want to show that we are interested in them as well, and we are here for them, to hang out with them, not to boast about the america or ourselves. humility is too important. we gave the students flyers for our upcoming events on saturday and sunday, which consist of dinner (our own "special" menu), some music, games, a personal testimony that will be given by one of our team members, and a gospel presentation. please pray for these things.
thank you for reading our entries and showing your care and concern for our ministry here in japan. please continue to pray pray and pray. that we might all have worshipful hearts, whether those of us who are at home in the US, or here in japan, because the driving force behind missions is our passion and desire for God's glory to be proclaimed through all the earth, and that the nations will bow down and worship Him. we worship the Lord, our God and King, He is worthy of all glory and honor and praise! this trip is all about Him, not about us. pray that His name be magnified.
p.s. ever been in a typhoon (hurricane)? it's not very fun. but the Lord decided to welcome us to japan with one yesterday. though we may often times see these things as "disasters," the Lord showed Himself to be faithful, sovereign, and totally in control of things. we can make plans and have expectations, but God is the One who is in charge, and as we realize that we should be more than willing to submit to His plan for us. typhoons are "bad" to us, but if it weren't for the typhoon, there wouldn't have been so many kids at the orphanage who had a day off from school, if it weren't for the typhoon, one of the guests for our host family dinner wouldn't have been able to make it last night and join us for dinner and 2 hours or more of praise and worship through music. if it weren't for God, there would be know typhoon. God is at work, even through typhoons. that just blows me away. the Lord our God is not only the God of all creation, God of the universe, Creator and Sustainer of all things, He is also a God of all the nations, of all the people, of all languages and tongues. God is so big so great, and He does great and mighty things, sometimes even through small, worthless and undeserving people like us. God's grace. wow.
"sing to the Lord, bless His name. Proclaim good tidings of His salvation from day to day. Tell of His glory among the nations. His wonderful deeds among all the peoples. For great is the Lord and greatly to be praised; He is to be feared above all gods. For the gods of the peoples are idols, But the Lord made the heavens. Splendor and majesty are before Him. Strength and beauty are in His sanctuary... Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice; Let the sea roar, and all it contains; Let the field exult, and all that is in it. Then all the trees of the forest will sing for joy before the Lord, for He is coming" ( psalm 96)
posted by beland huang