Christmas and Crashing

Well, same as the last time... not much time to post this evening... but I thought I would because I don't know the next time that I'll get the chance to post... because...

My computer crashed.  Yup.  On Christmas morning as I was turning my computer on to talk to my family.

But, bless my roommate-- she let me use her computer to talk to my family as I was panickly trying to find out a way to fix my computer.  As I was chatting with my fam, I sent a rather pathetic post to Ty, our short-termer-maybe-longer-termer who knows a lot about computers...

"Ty... my computer is crashing! ... :X"

And I got back... "Bring it over this afternoon..."

It's still there.

Anyway... so, it's been busy with Christmas festivities, last days of school... 125 vocabulary words in one lesson at school...  and preparing for the message tomorrow at FUSE...

...which is why I don't have much time tonight to post.  So, off I go to finish preparing and get to bed.  Merry Christmas to everyone and safe surfing!!

And Still... Many Have Yet to Hear....

Ha!  Not much time to post tonight... lately, it's been late nights and lots of FUSE stuff and studying, as we are getting farther and farther ahead in Japanese class... and as one of my classmates said and I completely agree: the more I study Japanese, the more confusing I think it is.

Um, so this Sunday we had 4 new people, which is always awesome!  Two were younger Christians, visiting from a church in Yokohama.  Two weren't.  One of them, Katsuya, was met by the group on Friday at street outreach.  I didn't go that night because I have had a lingering cold and ridiculous throat for the last week and didn't think standing out in cold air was going to be helpful to that cause. (Katsuya is the guy on the right)

Anyway, he came on Sunday.  He's a University Student, which really surprised me, because I thought he was way older than that (for once- I always think they are younger).  We all enjoyed meeting him, and he went on to lifegroup in the evening-- which is awesome!  The guys said he was really open and clearly communicated when he didn't understand something.

But he told Mark about FUSE-- You know, I'm not a Christian or anything, but seeing people like you make me want to believe.

Isn't that awesome!  We're praying for him and so many others that God is speaking to during FUSE and when we meet them in other places or lifegroups.  Please pray for them too!

One last word: tomorrow, Mike leaves to go back to the States.  SAD times!  He's been here for 6 months, and has been a great guy, super dependable and our consistent and excellent bass player.  Solid guy.  Anyway, he's going back to get himself married... this coming weekend!  I know, crazy, right!  But, though we will really miss him, we're excited for his future. (Mike is the guy in red, leading us in a game he's famous for...)

Please pray for more workers for the Japanese harvest field!!!!

And a Cool Story...

Last week.  Wow. 

So much happened.  I took off 2 days of school to do a lot of work that mostly involved thank you cards for all those supporting me financially.  Of course, I'm incredibly grateful for all the prayers and encouragement that people send me too.  Anyway, that took quite a bit of time.  So, even though technically those were days off school, they weren't days off. (Kaori and I, last Sunday!  I love Kaori-chan!!)

But last week, I did manage to get in a few "girl time" hours with Yuiko.  It was so good to hang out, joke, tell stories and shop together.  I really, really enjoyed myself. 

Saturday, I did get a day off!!!! Imagine that!!! (there is a reason for all those exclamation points!)  I did do a little bass practice, since I'll be joining the worship team once or twice a month after Mike leaves next week.  But apart from that, I went to Shimokitazawa, just to walk around and check it out. It's a super cool little area, lots and all kinds of shops, narrow streets, etc.  I loved it, and it reminded me of my visit last year when I did so much exploring by myself. (Manami and I~ still praying for her to meet Jesus!! I believe it's going to be soon...)

For a cool story though, Sunday, after we had finished setting up for FUSE, I felt like I needed to reply to a couple of messages from some girls, one in particular, a girl named Airi.  She came for the first time about a month ago and joined my lifegroup that night and we hadn't seen her since.  She had been part of another church, the Noborito Church, but has been gone for a long time.  Mark and Yuiko know her.  Anyway, she came on Sunday, and I was excited to see her!  She also joined Lifegroup with Lizzie and Saki and I... which was again a bilingual lifegroup, and I got plenty of Japanese practice! 

After Lifegroup, she told me that she got up that morning and was thinking, hmm, should I go to FUSE today?  She was going back and forth on it, and was kinda unsure about going.  But then she received my message and decided, "ok, I'm going to FUSE today."  How cool is that?  God prompted me to send a message, and it brought her to FUSE!!!!  Anyway, we talked about Zaccheus and about the way to not be lost or feel lost is to meet Jesus everyday, and that if we search for Him, He promises that we will find Him.  It was a superb evening!~~  Praying that she'll be finding Him everyday and that she becomes a very strong Christian, discipling others!

Well, 'tis all for the moment.  Are you excited for Christmas?  I am!  I don't even know what I'm doing on Christmas Day, but I'm excited!

Weird, New and Goodgood Things

Well, it's been quite an interesting week.  Last week was really stressful and I had a big test-- a Japanese proficiency test-- the N3, which is in the middle.  There are 5, 1 the highest, 5 the lowest.  It was a 2 hour test involving new words/kanji, grammar, reading comprehension and listening comprehension.

I was really nervous about it, beside the fact that I was really busy with everything else, and had everything from a fever to the sole of my foot swelling up and getting really sore, a trip to the doctor... so, I'll leave last week at that.  It wasn't my funnest.

But this week, there were lots of weird/new/good! happenings:

Creeeeeeepy: On Tuesday night, I had gone to meet a friend at Shimo-kitazawa, which probably means nothing to you.  I returned, messaging the team and waiting for them at the meeting place.  So, as I'm waiting, I'm standing there and this guy who is like 50ish, with bleach blonde hair and early 90s style sunglasses and a white leather jacket comes up to me.  He was from Turkey. Anyway, he was trying to pick me up, and I was definitely like... no.  Anyway, he kept talking, and tried to pinch my cheeks and touch my face and say you're beautiful, and I was like, Don't. Touch.  We don't touch people a whole lot in Japan (they just don't do it), and so a 50yr creepy guy trying to touch my face was like, even worse.  Anyhow, the team finally arrived and I was NEVER so happy to see them in my life.

By the way, I decided I was entirely too nice in this situation.

New: We had a group of breakdancers here!  They're from California, and did a break-dance workshop and did our street band outreaches, attracting a lot of people!  It was super cool, and one of them speaks Spanish which really, really confused my brain.  But in a good way. ;)

Good: And these are the things I'm thankful for (since it's Thanksgiving and all)

-My brother, niece and 2 others were in a terrible, terrible accident.  (wait for the good part)  It's one of those that people don't walk away from [i.e. rolling the car 4 times and then landing upside down, off the side of the highway]... but the worst that happened was that with the 2, the older had a concussion and 2 black eyes, and the youngest had a bump on her head.  That's it.  PRAISE GOD Who had His hand on them, because He is the only One who could have let them live through it. 

-I got to talk with all my family via Skype on your Thanksgiving Day, my Friday.  It was lovely to talk to all them.

-And to finish, I got the results of my Japanese test.  I was had been wondering about the results all week, because on 2 parts, I felt confident, on 1, I wasn't sure.  You need a 60% to pass, right.  On my last test, I got like a 82%, maybe?  It was like 2 levels down.  Anyway, my heart was beating beating beating as the teacher came by, passing out the strips of paper with the results from each section and the overall result.  I got a... dundundun: 89.5% .... !!!!!!!!!!! Score!  Praise God! I was so excited!

AHHHHHHHHH~ Good Things!

Dundundun!!  Good news everyone!

Last week, Mark met up with a guy who has been going to FUSE since September.  We really felt that he was open to Jesus, and were excited to see what was going to happen.  He seems to be a really popular guy, have lots of friends, and is amazing at talking to strangers, whether he's going us on street band or in FUSE.  Anyway, Mark caught up with him, and explained the Gospel simply, and Tomo decided he wanted to follow Jesus!

Praise God!  It's excited to see somebody take that step of belief!  He apparently, a while ago, wrote a blog on one of the social networking profiles here in Japan.  Yuiko read it and told us about it.  He had written about how excited he was about FUSE and getting to know this Jesus.  He knew that it wasn't just a religion, but really a relationship.  He also was grateful for feeling a part of the community of FUSE Jesus Community.  I don't remember how many, but Yuiko mentioned that he had an impressive amount of friends on there, and he wasn't afraid to post this blog even though he hadn't yet decided to follow Jesus at that point.

Also, we have a new girl (well, lots, but one in particular) coming to FUSE who joined my lifegroup last night.  She does understand a lot of English, but at the same time, she can have a hard time speaking it, so mostly I spoke in Japanese.  Anyway, we talked about Jesus and did a Bible study worksheet on who Jesus is.  It's really simple and good.  She was really into the Bible study, it seemed.  Afterward, I let her keep the New Testament that I gave her to use during the study.  It's bilingual.  She had this look on her face of, really?? :D  Lizzie and I had talked about what we learned in our journalling time this week, and I said, if you'd like to do that, please do, because I always feel great after doing it! 

I told her some books to start in~ either Mark or John~ and she looked them up in the index, and looked up the page number and looked up with this huge look of joy on her face and was like, I'll do it!

I was really excited, because she seemed to understand what was going on... though there were a few things that she didn't understand (like temptation and sin).  She also talked about how the words of the "Jesus Song" really touched her heart, and made this gesture of how it seemed to cut through into her heart.  So, I think she will be meeting Jesus soon too! 

Things are on the move here!

A Night Off

Tonight is a special night off for me.  Well, not special, I suppose.  I usually do lifegroup on Wednesday nights with Yuiko and Naomi.  But Yuiko wasn't feeling good, and I was feeling pretty terrible as I had a cough, a cold, and I think a stress rash coming up. (FUSE last Sunday)

School was a little bit like torture today, as I sat with my coat all buttoned up, super tired and wanting just to lay down, but sitting through class.  I barely made it through and came home to sleep pretty solidly for 2 hours.  I had been trying to decide, should I take off school tomorrow or go?  And I kept going back and forth because we have a big test next week that I need to study for- particularly at school-, but this weekend is also full with a promise to take the group visiting to Kamakura or some place like that, and then a FUSE party for getting to know the team (and really, for us to form more relationships with people from FUSE and people new to FUSE), and FUSE on Sunday.  I eventually stuck with going to school tomorrow...

Anyway, after some messages talking about lifegroups, Yuiko and I decided we had better spend tonight recovering.  And so, I am trying to take it easy, do a little studying and then head back to bed.

If you think about it, please be praying for the dollar to go up.  When I first got to Japan, it was about 91 yen to the dollar.  Today, it's 81.  That's a pretty significant drop, when you notice that it's about a 10% drop.  So, I think if you do the math, it's like a $100 difference for every $1000.  So, even though the same amounts are being given, effectively it's a drop for me when I withdraw it in yen- I have to live off less money. 

Well, I don't want to talk about money, and that's not a beg for money.  But, if you would pray for the dollar to increase, I would really appreciate it.

Last Sunday, we had 32 people, and 13 new people (including the team of 4 who are here from America).  We were missing a few regulars, but, amazing!  9 non-American new people!  A lot of them joined lifegroups afterward.  My lifegroup was 7 people, 5 of whom had never been to lifegroup before.  And what's more-- they spoke mostly (only) Japanese.  So, we talked about the message, and it was a good introduction to what lifegroup is like, sharing life and talking about Jesus and the Bible.  Saki was a great help in that, translating for me when I did need it.  But as of yet, we need more Japanese leaders who are ready to lead lifegroups!  So, please be praying for us!  This week went well, and we want to see more growth, but we need more "ready leaders"!

I was pleased with it, and for Sunday night and Monday, the girls attending my lifegroup were all about leaving comments about how awesome FUSE was, and they had a great time and want to come back and get more involved!  So, praise God!  People are taking steps (among the guys too, great stories) to know God more, and we are excited!

Well, I should probably study now, but I thought I'd share this good news with you!

A Note on Fashion

So... Last Saturday, I was told, "You look like a poor girl."

What?!?! Of course, this was coming from someone who was wearing at that moment a $600 coat. I was also told at the moment with a slightly contemptuous look, "Take that scarf off, you look old."

Have you seen The Devil Wears Prada? There's a moment after Andy gets her job that Meryl Streep looks her from head to toe and then says, "That's all..." If you have seen it, you will know how Andy felt in that moment, and how I also felt in that moment as I was standing on the train platform.

Granted, this wasn't a stranger that said that to me, but a person who dearly loves me as a sister and I dearly love as a brother (and there is nothing more to be read into that sentence).

But, oh my gosh. The comment about my scarf was indeed reiterated the next day by another girl, as we were joking about me looking poor.

Fashion is super important to Japanese people. I know I've said it before, but it was in that moment that I really experienced it. It's superficial, but the Japanese are used to quality. That and I've heard Japanese people say about certain styles of dress-- that person dresses like people in the cults. Thankfully, my fashion is not at that level.

Now, I haven't gone out and bought a new wardrobe, but I am thinking more and more about what I put on each day.

And it certainly won't be that scarf.

A Note on Giving

Dear friends, the following communication I received from the WIM office about credit card donations, which I know some of you do. I thought you might be interested to hear about this. So, without further ado~
____________________

As many of you know there are new rules and guidelines set by congress for credit card companies to follow. This has caused an increase in the fees the credit card companies charge their customers. Therefore, effective October 1, 2010 the following changes will be made in the WIM office.

1. For donations from MasterCard or Visa the donation will be assessed a 3.1% fee plus $0.18 transaction fee. The current rate is 2.24% plus $0.18 transaction fee. For example, a $100 donation will come to you as $87.05

$100.00
- 3.10 (3.1% Credit Card fee)
96.90
- 0.18 (Transaction fee)
96.72
- 9.67 (10%)
$87.05

2. For donations from Discover Card the donation will be assessed a 2.34% fee plus $0.18 transaction fee. The current rate is 2.24% plus $0.18 transaction fee. For example, a $100 donation will come to you as $87.73

$100.00
- 2.34 (2.34% Credit Card fee)
97.66
- 0.18 (Transaction fee)
97.48
- 9.75 (10%)
$87.73

The most cost effective way to have your donors give electronically is through their bank. The donor needs to set up monthly bill pay from their bank to WIM. There is no cost to the donor and no additional cost to you. Sometimes simple communication with your donors will help them understand why this is a more effective way to give.
_____

If you have any questions about your donations or would like to learn about another way to donate, please contact me and we can figure it out! Thank you!

Birthday Blessedness!

So, for my birthday, I figured I'd just list what happened, because it would be a very long blog if I wrote it all out! So here are your bites of cake!

-Saturday (23rd)- I hung out with Kengo, Mike and Ty, and Kengo bought all kinds of great snacks and we hung out together, the guys sang me Happy Birthday and we played dutch blitz! Kengo informed me, "I bought good ice cream."

The Big Day!

-Phone call on my cell from Mexico!

-Breakfast right out of bed made by my roommate, including special bread, fresh pineapple, Starbucks coffee, brownies and ice cream. The right way to start off the day.

-Happy Birthday played on my roommate's instrument that I have no idea how it's called and I'd never seen one before. It looked like it stepped out of Mongolia.

-A knock on the door and a serenade from two of my lifegroup girls-- putting my name to the Mexican hat dance tune. And my own bling bling birthday princess crown, a rose, a necklace, McDonald's coffee and pancakes.

-Talked to my family for a bit, and they sang Happy Birthday to me too!

-Happy Birthday sung to me and presents given by Yuiko, Naomi, Kaori and Maki... of which included an invitation to dinner this week!

-Happy Birthday played and sung to me by the FUSE band and all of FUSE! Can you say blush?!?

-A song written for me by Lizzie, Cynthea and Mika... to the tune of Sk8er Boi.

-Kengo didn't tease me once!! In fact, whenever he talked to me, he brightened up and said hey Birthday Girl!

-TGI Fridays for Lifegroup (the 2nd time ever in my life that I've eaten there)... I had an appetizer, and then a free giant sundae shared between 3 of us that were there! (Oh, another round of happy birthdays by complete strangers)... We talked about what God has been speaking to us in our journalling times! It was awesome!

-Encouraging notes and meaningful messages from around the world from many, many people! Wow~ by the way.

-A Haiku written for me.

Seriously, it's been one of the most happiest birthdays I've ever had... The only way to have made it any better would be able to see all my friends and family that don't live in Japan... but considering, I consider myself pretty blessed.

Ah, since we're doing a series on relationships, the topic for my birthday was: Finding Mr./Ms. Right... A sign of the year to come?!? ;) haha!

We'll see...

And Still... the Best is Yet to Come

SOOO much has been happening lately in Japan. So busy and so crazy and so good. Recently, two people from FUSE got baptized!! It was so exciting!! One was a guy and the other a girl. And actually, the girl, Saki, is in my lifegroup, and she was the first girl in FUSE to be baptized. And I got to baptize her!

I've not often said this, but it was one of the most perfect days. I started by accompanying the team that was visiting to Enoshima, by the beach, where the baptisms were going to take place. We walked around, climbed up... well, it was a hill, but the amount of steps-- it felt like a mountain... and then everyone showed up in the afternoon to celebrate the baptisms.

It was a sunny, BEAUTIFUL day at the beach. There was a large number of us in attendance, and we sang in Japanese and English together, listened to the testimonies of these two, and talked about the meaning of baptism as well. Then, off into the water we went, and it seemed like joy just fell over everyone! There were shouts of joy, clapping and high fives as the two came out of the water, and lots and lots of hugs on the beach. Then, after splashing and falling around in the ocean, we came back up and everyone gathered around to pray for them.

We spent quite a bit of time fellowship around the water's edge (and some of us back in the water), and then packed up to head back just as the sun was setting over the ocean. On the way home, I had a great conversation with a new girl, and she is joining my lifegroup (discipleship group) now! Afterward, we celebrated lots of birthdays for October, though mainly focusing on 3 different guys' birthdays. We ate, talked more and more, and finally, around 12:30am, I made it back home, thinking as I walked home-- I don't know how I could have made this day any better.

Why

Did you know that in Japan every year, 30,000 people commit suicide? That's approximately 82 people every day. Did you know that in Japan, you are 50 times more likely to kill yourself than to kill another person?

In fact, on the trains, there are notices everywhere to be careful to hold on in case of an emergency stop to prevent an "accident".

Depression is a major issue in Japan. With so much pressure to work as hard as possible and to do as much as you can, to the sacrifice of other values and priorities in your life, it's no wonder that people suffer from depression. With broken relationships and loneliness reigning in this crowded country, it's no wonder that hopelessness is prevalent.

Recently, there was a young man here in Japan, about 25 or 26, who was really living the life. He was popular-- had loads of friends. He was talented- an incredible musician. He always had a smile on his face. But, he took his life. And in his final words that he left for this world, he wrote about not being the kind of person he wanted to be and starting to regret who he was becoming. He felt like a burden to other people. He wanted to change, but he didn't know how. He wrote about hopelessness, about not liking himself.

And this is not an uncommon story. It was unexpected, because on the outside, you really couldn't tell how he was feeling. But, this story could easily be told be any number of people. And on this guy's page, people wrote about respecting the way he took his life, because he couldn't find any other way to live it.

These stories, along with the various other stories I hear from other people I meet, reminds me of why I'm here. There doesn't need to be this hopelessness in Japan, when we have the Hope of the world! There doesn't need to be this disliking of self, when they are dearly loved by God, and made in His image. There doesn't need to be this brokenness.

This is why I'm here. For an amazing, yet hurt and lost nation that needs to know about the love of God. Jesus is the hope of Japan! They need to hear, and for so long, they haven't heard.

The State of Things

It's amazing that in the year 2010, with Japan as an open country to the Gospel, it remains as the second largest unreached people group in the world. In fact, looking at world missions, Japan, though in the 10/40 window, isn't even on most people's radar for sending the Good News of Jesus.

The Japanese say the nail that sticks up gets hammered down. Others say, the Japanese are not open to the Gospel. One Christian pastor in Japan recently found a book in a Christian book store about how a move of God is not possible in Japan and the reasons why.

It makes me angry that someone would take the time to write that about the Japanese people when they could be using that time to do something about it! Beside, that person obviously is not doing their research-- right now, the church in Japan is growing faster than it has in the history of Japan. NOW is the time for Japan!

True, we're still small. But, Japan is a great country and the Japanese are open to the Gospel! And while it may take a very long time to see someone make a decision for Christ, the Japanese make excellent and faithful disciples, many times despite persecution and pressure from their family.

It's time to start reaching the new generation of Japan! Right now, of that 0.4% of people who have heard and believed the message of Christ, 80% of those attending a church are over the age of 60. That means that in the next 10-20 years, the church is going to die away if something isn't done about it.

That's why it's so important to be reaching out to this younger generation that is looking for something real! The Japanese are open to the Gospel, it just takes time and patience to see the fruit of it. But, God is starting to do something in Japan. You can see it in FUSE-- God stirring hearts of young people... You can see it in Jesus Lifehouse, the fastest growing church in Japan with over 1000 members in its 8 year history... you can see it in conversations with new friends being made-- who is this Jesus? What is it that you believe? Why are you so nice?

They just need the opportunity to hear. How will they believe unless someone tells them? Now is the time for Japan. Now is the time to share with a searching generation. Now is the time for the church to become established and outward-looking in and all over Japan!

Now is Japan's time.

I would say I'm back on track now [with blogging], but-- well, every time I say that, something comes us and goes crazy, and I get even more off schedule. So, I'm not saying that.

Anyhow, this last weekend was the FUSE retreat, and it was a great time with all FUSE members (well, most of the core ones anyway). It was only Friday and Saturday, but beside wishing it were longer, no one had any complaints. We had a good mixture of team time (journalling together from the same passage and then coming back to share it, prayer time, sharing, etc.) and free time. Friday, after we got there, we explored the beach, and it was so beautiful! (pictured: Maki and I on the beach!)

Over the weekend, I got to know Maki better. She doesn't speak much English, and for Friday, she was the only Japanese-only speaking person in the car on the way there. So, I made use of my Japanese, and also hung out with her most of all Friday and then chatted together in our bunk beds at night. It was a lot of fun getting to know her-- she's really quiet, but she'll talk. Afterward, someone said to her, oh, you were the only Japanese person in the car... And she answered, Oh, that's ok, Janine kept me company and we got to talk alot. (Pictured: team game time)

Anyway, I was very happy to get to know her more!

Sunday night, after FUSE, I met up with a girl that I met at street band a few weeks ago. We got connected via Facebook, and we have a lot of common interests. So, we got together, and talked a lot-- I had the opportunity to share a little about FUSE, and about studying the Bible, etc. I think we will get connected more, and I hope that she can get connected into the FUSE, though her work schedule says otherwise... God can do anything!

So: my good news: Saki, in my life group, is getting baptized!! She's been saved for almost a year now, and is now wanting to take the step to get baptized! We are excited for her. So, in a couple of weeks, I should be climbing into a chilly ocean! It will be a great day for her. Good thing I heard jelly fish season is over...

Balance

So, my mom's visit went well! It was really nice to have her around, and meeting all the people I know, seeing places I go, how things are done, etc. It went really, really fast though. The trip that I had been so looking forward to was over and I was seeing her off at the bus stop before I knew it.

My thoughts the last few days have been on balance. Balance in everything from diet, since I've been lacking in protein and I'm starting to see some consequences of that. I'm not the hugest fan of tofu, but I've decided that that's just too bad. I'm getting over it.

Also, I've been looking for balance in the two priorities I have-- language learning and ministry. Of course, I'm here for ministry, but language learning is part of that, and really crucial to long term successfulness here. The longer I'm here, the more I see the truth of that. But, when you have two full time priorities, it's challenging to find balance between the two.

And another thing I've been looking at is the ugly word- finances. So far, since I've been in Japan, I don't know it's worked, but God has provided. When I arrived, I wasn't able to go to Japanese school, but God worked it out. This morning, looking at numbers, I said- God, You put me here for a reason. I trust You to keep me here (I'm getting better at this each month), but I don't understand how this is going to work...

I heard back, Janine, you don't have to understand it logically...

I remembered all the times and ways God has provided when I had no means of providing for myself. I've never been left hanging. But, boy, I'd like to look at it and say, ok, God, it makes sense.

Though I suppose it's a bit arrogant to demand explanations from God, huh?

Well, I need to leave in an hour for the FUSE Retreat we're having this weekend. I'm expecting God to do big things in the lives of many people. PS> I have exciting news coming up soon!

Behind Schedule

Sorry about being a week late everyone! It's been a tad busy around here, and my schedule has been a bit off since I have a momma visitin' me. (me, thinking of blog ideas... Just kidding. Today's adventure in Kamakura, home to the largest Buddha statue in the world, I believe)


I feel like I've had a whole bunch of things to blog about, but at the moment my mind is blank. Let's do highlights tonight:






-Saki (right), a girl in my lifegroup, is getting baptized!!! (I wish there were more signs to interject into those exclamation points so you could hear my enthusiasm... but imagine wide eyes, a big smile and waving of the arms, and you might get close). I'm excited, she's excited, everyone's excited.

-My mom came (again, let loose your imagination). I love showing off my Japanese friends who are super awesome! So, we've done a lot from meeting people in street band, to having a party at my home for birthday girls, to walking our church area that's a major shopping area with my Japanese little brother to today-- walking a million hours seeing "traditional Japan" til we were both exhausted beyond expression. And there's more to come! (at the above-mentioned location)


-I finished 3rd level kanji!! Yay! That's a total of 284 now, and I took 5 tests in one day to finish before my mom came (no worries while she's here is my only reasoning for starting all those tests at 8am). Now, only 1716 left to go! (and that's not all of them!)

Well, for now that's all. I have school early in the a.m., and I've already got coffee in preparation for it. Here we go! (this week after FUSE, we all paused for a picture!)

Janinja

Well, as some of you might have heard, last week, one of my teachers chose kanji for my name. Kanji have meaning and readings/pronunciations (yes, plural. Some kanji have multiple readings depending on how they're used/combined, etc.). I tried to talk Kengo into picking out kanji for my name a while ago, but he had a hard time finding some... as "Ja" kanji tend to have not so many good meanings. Anyway, Mori-sensei comes in last Thursday morning and goes,

Does anyone know what this means? 忍者

Ninja, some answered.

And flipped around? 者忍 Ja-nin. There ya go, Janine, kanji for your name. (Ok, not an exact translation from Japanese...)

者 is a kanji for someone/person and is usually pronounced sha, but can be ja. And 忍 means endure, bear, put up with and can also mean spy, sneak, etc. So, there ya go. I'm a person who puts up with a lot. :)

Sunday I had another opportunity to speak at FUSE. Mark asked me to speak once a month, and this time, since we're doing a series on leadership, he asked me to speak on humility/servant leadership. I was really surprised how the message came together as I gathered all my random notes I had been taking...

But, once again, while speaking, it was SO hard to read people. I wasn't sure if they were upset, angry, bored to death or what. I felt a bit like "ehh.." afterward, but I ended up getting a lot of good feedback that had provoked people to thought. Mark later said it went well too, and I was like really? I wasn't very sure. But he said he heard a lot of good feedback too from the people he talked to. All I know is that I was praying while I was giving the message, "Oh Lord, help me..."

Maybe that's my cry everyday...

Oh the Things...

Do you think if I sing a song, autumn will come? I have never wanted winter this badly before; in fact, I've never ever wanted winter. But, right now, it's after 9pm, according to the web feels like it's 90 (inside my home too, windows are open!) and there's a humidity of... 79%. (Kaori-chan and I)

Yesterday's FUSE was pretty good. We had more preparation this week, because we hung sheets on the mirrors to cover them so we couldn't watch each other the whole time. I know it sounds like fun, but... Anyway, we are doing a series on leadership this month, and Mark kicked it off with- Everyone's a Leader. Everyone seemed to have a lot to think about and talk about afterward. Next week, I will be speaking on Servant Leadership. I've been putting together notes for the last week and tomorrow will finish everything up. Please pray for me!

At dinner after FUSE, I was able to talk a lot in Japanese with Kaori-chan especially, who I haven't seen since we went to Ochanomizu. She was super excited, which I thought was cute, and I was actually really impressed at the amount that I could talk to her in Japanese! I know it wasn't all correct, but I felt like I jumped over that dumb speedbump.

Yesterday, there was a discussion about my name. It's apparently a pretty difficult name, though once they figure it out, there's no problem. So, they were working on coming up with new nicknames (mostly these were guys having this talk), in the typical guy fashion. So, here is my name in Katakana: ジャニーン (Janine) They came up with:　ジャニコ (Janiko, since a lot of girls names here end in -ko, but I think there's another reason why they say this, and I'm not sure why...), ジャニンジャ (Janinja- or Ja-ninja), ジャニーさん (Jani-san, apparently a famous producer)... and drum roll please... ジャケルマイクソン (Jakeru-Maikuson)... say it fast, you'll get it... Michael Jackson, just a bit mixed up. That got a big laugh.

They nixed my US-reigning J9 nickname, and eventually some decided to endow me with a producing legacy. I'm not quite sure why the last "n" sound in Jani- makes a difference, but, hey, as the only country where my name is always pronounced correctly is in France, I'm not too picky.

Shortened

So, this is my new attempt to shorten things up. I've been realising lately that my blogs always look longer than I think they are when writing them... And I assume that like me, you probably don't read long things either!

This week has been interesting in school especially... everything from a classmate calling the teacher a vegetable instead of kind (see what happens when you leave out a syllable!) to classmates doing push-ups (out of fun!) when messing up on verbs, and finishing the next level of kanji (this level has 181 kanji). Next week I study them and then the week after, test over them.

One of the highlights this week was spending an evening with Mark and Yuiko (and their 2yr old daughter) and Tatsu. Tatsu came up with an idea to make a video about FUSE, and so he's interviewed on camera a few different missionaries who came, those who are here, and a few of the Japanese Christians as well. It talks about what's done in FUSE, why it's important, why it's needed in Japan, and of course, please come to Japan!! That's the purpose.

So, Yuiko made us dinner, we ate and did our interviews. It was fun, though a bit intimidating. Afterward, we made Tatsu do one too, and hearing and seeing in his expressions why he came to FUSE, and what Jesus means to him, and why he wants to make this video so that more missionaries will come work in Japan was really cool!

Well, my friends, that's my story for today! Will be keeping things shorter in the future for your convenience, and hey, for mine too! :)

A Popping Weekend!

I met Mark on Friday in Machida to see about getting my camera fixed. When we had all gone to the beach, I managed to get sand in my shutter, which is not condusive to making functionable a camera.

At the service desk, Mark explained to the customer service guy that the shutter was not working properly. He asked if I had dropped it, and I answered no. The camera itself answered for that: it was still in perfect condition. I prepared to surrender it for a week or less to have it fixed, and then return to receive it. I've heard how amazing customer service is here in Japan. (Mark preaches here and Yuiko, his wife, translates on Sunday, August 22!)

Well, I was very, very wrong. The guy walked out with a camera box, opened it, took out a brand new camera, stuck my battery in it, turned it on and handed it over to me.

That's right, folks. I got a brand new camera. It appears they will fix my camera and then resell it, because like I said, it still looked brand new with not a scratch on it.

Sunday, we had the FUSE service in the new location and with the new time (Sunday instead of Saturday)!! (Here, Kengo and our friend Akio joins us. Akio hasn't been able to come because of work for about six months, but with the change to Sundays, it looks like he be coming again! Praise God!)

Praise God we had very few problems. Things went incredibly smooth, and there was no rushing and trying to figure it out at this new place. Our biggest concern was the sound levels, and whether we would be disturbing the department store beneath us. But, praise God, there were no problems. And it seems like management liked us too!! We prayed for favor, and God showed it to us!!!

Anyway, I'm really excited, because with 3 of the 4 new people Sunday, I made a good connection with. One, I had talked to beforehand when we met at street band, and she teaches Japanese to some people and can also speak some English. The other two were friends she brought. Those two girls, Philipina/Japanese are sisters and speak English very well. With all three of them, I will be meeting this week/next week to follow up. So, I'm super stoked about that!!! (Here the girls at our table pose for a picture, Keiko, Yuiko, Maki, Naomi and I at cafe time!)

Five Months Today!

It's been sweaty ones lately. Sheesh. Anyway, last weekend ended on an interesting note. Kengo and I had made plans to make some food for whoever from FUSE could come and hang out for an evening. Later, another girl, Kaori, got involved in helping make food, which was a lot of fun. (Here is Kaori, me and Kengo as we start the long process of making lasagna from scratch!)

But as it were, Kengo sent me a message last week for Thursday night-- are you free at 7? Yeah, I was. I knew it had something to do with dinner, I figured that we were going to go buy all the things. When he mentioned, let's meet at the church and "we think about what we buy", I realized, oh boy. He doesn't have a recipe.

He had told me we were going to make lasagna, and I was going to make a Mexican dessert. He had lasagna noodles, and I was really impressed that he was going to make lasagna.

Silly me, what was I thinking?

As it turned out, I looked for a recipe online, wrote it out, shopped and figured out how to make it work budget-ly (i.e. replacing half the meat with tofu still it came out expensive). (here Kaori and I work on the 3rd pan of lasagna layers)

But it was thoroughly enjoyable. Anyway, yeah, Kaori, Kengo and I got together to make food early Friday afternoon and then Yoshi, Joe and Tim joined us for dinner. Oh, and Tatsu too-- but he came late. Afterward, we played games and then went to an area by the river where we did fireworks. (my fireworks look lame next to Kaori-chan's)

It was fun, though by the end of the day, I was tired. That night, Kaori-chan stayed at my house, (Here Kengo snaps a shot of some of us at the table, Joe, me, Yoshi and Tim (L-R))

Yesterday, school began again, and yesterday evening, I met a girl from the Noborito church who speaks Japanese and English and guess what... Spanish. So, we talked for a while in Spanish, and Japanese words kept coming out of my mouth... and then when we switched to Japanese, turning the mental dial in my brain from one language to another just was like... it left my mind blank for a few minutes.

So a few things I haven't mentioned, or at least, I don't think I have.

First, my friends from school taught me a way to my train line from school via the "underground streets". For real, I walk a block up from school, cross the street and then walk below, and I can walk the whole 3 or 4 blocks it is to the station, maybe more, underground. There are exits to other train lines, stores, restaurants, and an entrance to a big department. It still astounds me that I can walk under streets, cars, sidewalks, etc. (Pictured here: Yoshi and I had a conversation about view and differences of what other countries look like-- and I really wanted to go to a park I could spot below...)

Now of course, I find that scary, but not scary enough to walk outside. But I do think about the possibility of earthquakes as I'm walking underground. Because they are common, I assume they know more about how to structure and building to avoid disaster. Please, no one debate with me on this issue.

OH- PS- Today's my 5 month anniversary in Japan!!

Summer Break!!! Fo' Real!

Sunday we all took a trip to the beach! The beach was crowded, but it was a lot of fun! We played volleyball in the Pacific, threw and smeared wet sand all over one another, and dunked each other in the salty water. Of course, being FUSE, we made new friends and invited them to play in the ocean with us and to play our watermelon smashing game. At the end of the day, most people came home a little [lot] pinker, and exhausted, but we had a lot of fun. (here, that mountain trying to hide in the backgroud is Mt. Fuji... it was my first time to see Fuji-san!)

Tuesday evening... well... interesting. I went to Sagamiono at 5 to meet my roommate and another girl from FUSE for what I thought was going to be coffee. I saw my roommate, sat down to talk with her, and then the other girl picked us up in her car. There, we found out we were going to the beach to a restaurant, which neither of us were aware of. The place where we were going, was of course, an hour away. (props go out to Mike, who looks like a sure cheerleader in this picture)

Surprise was a good word for it. But anyhow, we made it to the spot, right on the coast, at sundown. There, at a Mexican restaurant (loosely categorized), we sat at a table next to wooden and rustic looking open windows overlooking the ocean, and where you could see the lights on the other side of the island that stuck out. It was very dimly lit, and overall a very cool experience. We had the opportunity to talk about relationships, things God was doing, our families, etc. (at the end of the day, our group was 7 [plus one not pictured] bigger than when we started!)

Well, if you think of it, please pray for the exchange rate. The dollar is now the lowest it's been in 15 years, which means that I'm not getting a good exchange at all. So, for me, it's as if the prices are going up, up, up. So, with everything, it makes it a little difficult, but just pray for me, if you think of it. As it were, I've been working pretty hard at pinching pennies (is it too cheesy to say "yen-nies"?... maybe.)

Will catch ya'll later!! (this is Yuiko and I, and how we felt after a long day at the beach!!)

What God has done in this last year!!!

A Good Day

This whole week, I've been preparing for speaking today at Fuse. I've felt this message coming on for a while, and I felt like I was supposed to speak on joy. One girl later told me that she did her devotion this morning, and it was on joy, and another girl's project in school right now is writing about happiness (which I made a lot of comparisons between joy and happiness), actually, I just got a text message from her a couple of minutes ago. (here giving the message with Yuiko translating for me... I used McDonald's "Happy Set" as an example)

Anyway, like I said, I think it went really well, and I did well on time too! We had plenty of time left over to talk in our supersmall groups, and two of the three new people this week seemed really to connect with some of the guys there. One of them, I think, speaks English.

This week, Kengo, my adopted little Japanese brother, did a type of language exchange thing with me this week also. At the end, he goes, so, do you have any problems?

It was so blunt, it made me laugh. I was like, living in Japan problems? (I knew what he meant). I was like, YES. So, Kengo took me to a cheap store to buy cockroach motels and mosquito plug in things to rescue me from the attack of mosquitoes. He was really nice to explain everything to me. It was fun, and so very helpful. But, what I most enjoyed was, So, do you have any problems?

OH and one other piece of information!! This week, FUSE received a large donation AND we found a new VENUE!! After dealing with a lot of inconviences of the current location, including a moldy atmosphere, we are going to be meeting in a great new location for a much cheaper price!!! How exciting!! More details to come later!

I will survive... the bugs.

This morning, on the way to school, I Will Survive came on my ipod as I walked down semi-crowded sidewalks next to towering buildings. There isn't a more appropriate song for a Monday morning commute, I thought.

So, I'm not entirely sure the last day that I wrote. But first, a rabbit trail to get out of the way before I continue: In the world of random creatures, did you know they have ravens the size of chihuahuas here? For real, they are gigantic, and pick through trash and sit on posts, etc., and look at you, screech at you, daring you to do anything about it. I've never seen any so big... I thought you'd like to know.

As I always talk about the weather, just know that right now, everyone is sweaty at all times of the day. EXCEPT: at school. 4 hours of air-conditioning. Anyway, last week, it was supposedly in Shinjuku up to 38C, which is like 100... before humidity was added. It's been in the 90s though, with heat index at 100+. I heard from another student that four people in Tokyo died from the heat last week. Here it's really expensive to run the air conditioning, so not so many use it.

Friday night we were at street band in Shinyuri and up and running, talking to people... having a great time doing outreach as usual. About an hour into it, we see the police in the background talking to some people selling some stuff, and we decide to take a momentary "break"... alas, they came also to talk to us to let us know that they are cracking down on rules about selling things outside of the station and doing musical stuff. And there is no permission for doing it. They said if we do it again, we will be arrested... and that means problems with or loss of visas, etc. So, we were kicked out, and it being too late to go to another stop on the line and set up and do it again before others had to leave, we called it a night.

It was disappointing... we've met so many people at that spot, and out of the different locations we've used, it's the best.

Some girls from FUSE came over for a craft day, a few of them who were available anyhow, and we made scrunchies. Granted, I don't ever wear them really, but the Japanese girls like them. Kaori, who is super quiet and shy, is a craft-genius and she took did an excellent job teaching and really seemed to gain confidence. She seemed to be in her element!

There were only Japanese girls there on Sunday, so it was an opportunity for me to really practice Japanese. For the most part, I was quiet, because obviously, it wasn't all about me. But I tried to be paying attention to what all was going on around me "language-ly" and the girls tried to include me and talk to me as well. I didn't do the best job, but I tried. I generally prefer one-on-one conversation while learning and make far more attempts at conversation in that setting than in a group.

It was a good time together, and I did life group afterward with some girls, and am now deciding: it's bed time!

Sagamiono Street Band!

Tuesday, July 20, 2010 Street Band that we had! One of the songs we sang-- sorry there's quite a bit of background noise!!

夏 has arrived!

That's right, everyone. Summer has arrived, and it's HOT! :) Perputual stickiness is here. But, I am happy to see the sun, and to have blue blue skies. (left: Lizzie leads the band when suddenly called to at the spur of the moment... good job!)

Unfortunately coinciding with the arrival of natsu (summer), has been the arrival of bugs. I don't know what that's about, but I've been vacuuming up ants for a few days now, and I've seen the giant cockroach, twice. The first time I just stood there for a full minute afterward with a horrified look on my face as it ran into the corner of the window and then out of the house.

The second time I gave out a little yelp and then was like.... why do you exist?!?

And, I've heard that the flying rumors are true.

Last Friday I had a bit of a rough start to my day, which kinda was the story of the day and I don't want to waste your time here by complaining. But let's say that since I felt compelled to talk about joy when comes my time to speak in two weeks, my joy has been a bit challenged.

Finances have also been a bit challenged, which is one of the reasons why my early Friday morning got such a rude awakening. Anyway, I keep telling myself that God is aware of this, and that afterall, He sent me here, and He will provide.

Saturday was a good day. I had Stephanie spend the night at my house after Street Band on Friday night. Oh- and by the way, I ran into a girl as we were leaving street band on Friday that I had met about a month or so ago and made a good connection with. She had been on my mind recently, and she ran up to me and was like, oh my gosh! Do you remember me?!? I was so surprised!! So, I really feel God is connecting us again and that He wants to do something, so I'm planning on staying more in contact that we've already been.

Back to Saturday. Stephanie, who grew up in Japan, is helping us until August. We had a good prayer time on Saturday morning, preparing for the FUSE, and then we headed out. Once again, Yuiko suffered from sickness, so, please keep her in your prayers. She actually had to leave the stage after the first song. I saw her starting to gag during the song, so I ran back to get some water from the bar, but then she was trying to communicate with another girl who does singing or with one of the band members, but they weren't getting it... so she just left the stage at the start of the next song.

But, we have a great team. Stephanie, though she's never sung for FUSE before, jumped up on stage and took over. Since she speaks Japanese, she could do it, and after our ice breaker, Lizzie, who takes turns leading with Yuiko, got up and did the last 3 songs. So, it was once again a good example of team work from everyone.

Mark's message was god-- on Anpanman, a famous character here in Japan, and how Anpanman is helpful and goes around to people who aren't well, and gives them a piece of his head (he is a bread head), and his saying is that he is a hundred times full of life. Anyway, his way of getting refilled again is by going back to Uncle Jam who mkes him a new head. So, you can see the parallels. It was a good message about being filled with the life of Jesus, and what being filled is also not about (not based on study or on doing good works, etc.). (here is Mark giving the message)

Afterward, we went to the cafe where we fellowship afterward. We all started to head out around, and Mark, Joe and I had to go to a party at the Y, where we work teaching English. It was an international party, and so I met people from the Philippines, Ghana, Germany, fellow Americans, and of course, Japanese. It was a fun night, and I made it home around 10, a bit tired and with sore feet after a poor choice of flat sandals I decided to wear. (Here is Baki, really enjoying his noodles.)

Sunday morning I met for lifegroup with Yuiko and then from there I met a group of us who were planning on going to Jesus Lifehouse. It was a good visit there, and the message was good. It was based off of the story of the feeding of the 5000, but from the perspective of the little boy... who was called Bento-boy (bento being a lunch, usually bought from a convenient mart)... so it was amusing with Anpanman for Saturday and Bento-boy on Sunday.

Afterward, we took Mike out to see a little more of downtown and famous areas of Tokyo, since he hasn't had much of an opportunity to see Japan. We took him to a big shrine place, and down through Harajuku and Shibuya. I came back to do lifegroup with Saki, and came home super tired. (Here the guys pose before a statue of the dog in Shibuya)

Betta get them electrolytes!

So I have a lot to talk about! It's not a lack of subjects to talk about about that I've been suffering from (are you kidding? I like in a foreign country, there are always things to talk about...), but rather, a lack of time and energy. (Pictured here are Yuiko leading the band in worship on last Saturday)

I think it was Jessi (whose comment I just saw today) who asked if I got my camera. Yes! I did. A week ago last Saturday. I went with a group of friends from FUSE who wanted to go on the adventure with me after the Fuse service and hang out time at the cafe. That sounds like a complicated sentence.

Anyway, I ended up getting a Canon, that, when all was said and done and the memory card also was bought was a bit over $200. Not too bad, it was about what I was expecting.

Last week the thing of note was that I took a day off in the middle of the week, after my long Tuesday, and I dedicated that day to......... sleeping! Yes, that's right. I'd been sooo tired, and going for so long (like... 2 months or so) on short amounts of sleep that I knew, especially after the group left, my brain and body needed a chance to recover. I'd even heard from a few different people that I was looking tired. So, I took a day off of school and a day that FUSE wasn't going to be doing anything, and the only responsibility that I had was homework. And in the end, I was only awake for 9 hours of it, and that in parts... I got up for an hour, and went back to sleep. Got up for 2 hours, went back to sleep. And got back up and then went to bed for the night.

Apparently, my body really did need sleep.

Let's jump to Saturday. It was quite an adventure. From what I understand, it was the day of the worst technical problems we've ever had. The microphones kept popping really loud, and the sound would go off... Joe's bass drum peddle's spring kept coming undone, so in the middle of the worship, all of a sudden Joe would disappear below the drum set... Yuiko, who has been regularly been getting sick on Saturdays (please pray for her), especially during the time when she's leading worship, was having a hard time breathing on Saturday with the moldy smell that was going on. All of a sudden during the middle of a song, she looked like she was going to throw up (like, you saw the gag)... At the end of the worship time, she asked Joe if he could do the Japanese translation of the message and she went to the back and sat down. We were all a bit worried for her. And at the end of the service, Lizzie, who will be leading worship like every 2 or 3 weeks, jumped in and took over worship for her... I don't know if the band did the song they were originally intending to do, but-- everyone went with the flow and it went okay. (Here, Yuiko translating for Mike, giving his life story, before that whole incident)

There were other adventures too, but those were the big ones. Along those lines though, I saw two cool things happen. First, it was a great example of team work... everyone just kinda helped each other and when we saw a need was going to happen, we worked on it. That was really cool. Also, Mark's message was on Joy despite the circumstances, which was really ironic.

But one cool thing about that is that I was telling Yuiko last Friday that I had been praying for a while about what God wanted to speak about when it was my turn to give the message. I told her that I had been feeling like I should talk about joy. So when Mark announced at the pre-meeting (?) right before FUSE that his message that day was on the power of joy, Yuiko started to translate and then was like, WHAT? And I did that too from what I was sitting. So, it looks like it's a theme.

Also, speaking of team dynamics, I think in my blog last time it sounded like there were very few of us, and yes, to a degree there are. But, I should probably just let you know who all's here... Tim and Christine (who oversee all the PAZ things going on... the Brazilian churches, FUSE, the Noborito church, etc.)... but they are gone to America right now and will be back in a few weeks. Mark and Yuiko, who oversee the Fuse church, Joe (who does a few other things, but helps out a lot with Fuse, particularly in street performances and in playing the drums on Saturdays at the FUSE), Mike (20, who came to work with FUSE) specifically, Lizzie and Cynthea (who are the daughters of some of the other missionaries who are working in the Noborito church), and they are very musical so they help with the same things Joe helps with, and the Stephanie, who we just met last month and who grew up in Japan but is helping us at the FUSE with various things... she'll be here til the middle of August. (Pictured bere: Cynthea, Lizzie and Joe, playing during street outreach. I think at that location, that was the most people we've ever gotten was the first day that Cynthea and Lizzie joined us! They have amazing talent for being so young!).

So, those are our American people, but we also have other important Japanese people on our team like Kengo (Kengo's everywhere and a very dedicated worker!, and my little brother), Tatsu (he is a great help in translation), Saki (she's great with translation and on the street, she's a natural communicator), Yoshi (ridiculously talented guitar player, for real, he's awesome and chill about it), Baki (our technical guru, and he's awesome at street outreach too), [smiley] Yasu (who does a lot of follow-up with new people, it would seem, and always has a smile on his face), and a few other who help out with things like greeting people and running power point, etc. (here pictured is Mark, me, Baki and Yoshi at the cafe we all go to after FUSE... the guys were all comparing their phones and the picture taking abilities... this one was on Baki's new Iphone 4...)

So, that's our team, and I love 'em.

Sunday, I did some homework and then in the afternoon I had a date with Yuiko! She had gotten free tickets to this all-you-can-eat buffet (where we were told we could be there for 90 minutes), and now, that may not sound fun for you, but these tickets are normally $40 apiece. So, it was cool that she took me! We're only 3 years apart, and becoming better and better friends, which is what I wanted and expected in the beginning.

So, we went to Ikebukuro, a downtown area in Tokyo and went shopping around, mostly window shopping, talking and having fun along the way. It was very refreshing. At dinner, they did not have fried chicken and mashed potatoes like you'd find at a buffet in the states, but different noodles and fish things and sushi and Japanese curry rice and.... some type of beef. I don't know what it was, I've had it before in the states, but, my oh my, was it good. I haven't had red meat I don't think since I got here. It's expensive, and I was very pleased to get some at an all-you-can-eat place.

Tuesday we had another test... this time 2 hours long, and included things like kanji, spelling (in hiragana), grammar (the hardest part), and another listening part. I don't think I did toooo bad... maybe a B or a C by American standards. I don't know when we find out how we did.

So, we finished the test and then I went back and headed toward my English class for my final class before break. Only, this was the class that the parents got to sit in on, so my nerves were a little racked (wracked? I don't know)...

Hey there! I'm back (already!). I've been waiting for an install to go through, so I figured I'd put up a video that I'd been promising to. There was another one I wanted to put, but I couldn't figure out how to embed it because it wasn't on youtube. So. I send you the link.

http://www.vimeo.com/12893959

It's Mark's message from the One Year Anniversary. Also, below, be sure to check out a vid that we put up of Lead Me to the Cross from a couple of weeks ago. The song is mostly in English, but at the end there's some Japanese for ya. :)

Today was FUSE and a long day as usual. We had street band last night and quite a number of people, and then today we went out into the streets and handed out flyers for about an hour, I took the group of four from the Arizona group that's here to lunch and then we headed back to do FUSE service. It was pretty good and Mark brought a good message, based on Philippians 4:13. Afterward, we had cafe time, where we go after FUSE and hang out, eat together, and get to know one another more and talk. Tonight, afterward, a group went to karaoke with the "Americans", and then a group accompanied me (haha) to go buy a camera. One went because she was going to help me set up the point card, and well, just to help me ask any questions that I might have about different cameras. Two followed by default, because the girl who went with me was going to take them home afterward, and two more followed just because.

As it were, karaoke finished just as we were finishing (the went before the group of us even left the cafe), so we headed home.

Anyway, I kinda need to go-- I have a bit of a headache, and tomorrow, my day to sleep in, only lasts until 8am. And it's about 1 now. So I should probably go. :)

Check out the vid below!!
Peace and Happy Fourth!!

Lead Me to the Cross, FJC worship!!

Eavesdropping (and) Conversations

Ha-ha-ha-ha-hot! Actually, today's not too bad, but, yes, it's hot. I finally used my air conditioning for a couple hours at night and in the afternoon, after being drenched in sweat. It's the story of all us Westerners though.

So, this week has consisted of some very late nights. Tuesday night alone I didn't get home til after midnight. It was Sally's good bye party and a lot of people showed up, including these four people that we met at Shinyuri doing doing street outreach. We were excited to see them come, and they are ready for this weekend, to go back to Fuse. I'm excited to see what God's going to do with these ones!

Tuesday was sad to say goodbye to Sally. When I first came, there were 3 other missionaries. Four more have come to date, and 6 of them have left already. Which leaves 2 of us-- Mike, who is 20, and me. But there are some others who are helping out, and our Japanese people(!).

A group of 6 from Arizona have also been here this week, so that keeps us pretty busy as well.

Anyway, this week, I was told that my class was going to end, and that some of us students would be put with another class that was a couple of lessons ahead (and next week, we finish the beginner's Japanese book, which at this point, I don't think is beginner anymore), and as far as kanji, a good step ahead in the book that they are using (although I've already studied a lot of them). So, yesterday (Thursday), I changed classes. Yesterday, in my class, we numbered around 20 people, in the class, representing 13 countries. It was a bit difficult particularly today, I don't know if it's because it's been a long week and not too much sleep, or what, but I have some serious studying to do this weekend, and a lot of homework!

My Japanese is definitely improving, and I'm able to communicate a lot more with people. I talked to a girl at street performance for maybe 20 minutes, using only Japanese, because she couldn't speak English. We didn't talk about anything spiritual, you know, but still, she's a person that otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to talk to. Also, my eavesdropping is getting better, and twice yesterday, I told Mark what he was talking about to someone else. Of course, they weren't subjects of anything personal (I wouldn't eavesdrop on that), but just conversation.

Lately, I've also been able to have some good conversations about Jesus with a few people... and that's always exciting. Some of them were doubts and struggles, but I was praying for wisdom while talking to them, so I continue to pray for them that they will have experiences with Him and put the doubts away.

Well, we have prayer together in about an hour, and then we're going out to the street tonight to do street band, pass out flyers and meet new people to invite to the FUSE and to meet Jesus! So, I'll catch ya'll later! Need to run!

Fuse One YEAR!!

Oh my gosh. There's been a lot going on this week, and as I lay here on my bed on this Sunday afternoon when I should be doing homework, I'm more prone to sleep for hours and hours and hours.

Let me start off by saying... maybe I have already, but... Japanese summer: HOT. HUMID. Oh. My. For real, two showers a day is becoming the norm, and even then, there are 12 hours between full of sweatiness and overall nastiness. The Japanese do not sweat like Americans or other people in general do. In fact, you can't buy anti-perspirant deodorant here. I don't even think they wear deodorant. But we gringos do! Sorry, the term here is "gaijin" (pronounced: guy-jean) and thank the Lord we do. Trying to stay fresh-feeling over this summer is going to be fun.

And so I hear, the best is yet to come. So I've heard, this ain't nuttin' compared to what's to come-- where I've heard from two people, it feels like you're on fire. Well, I had grace in Altotonga for the cold, which I despise... heat is easier for me to deal with than cold.

On that uplifting note, this week we had a birthday party for Yuiko, who turned 29. I like that she's pretty much my age, and I really appreciate and admire her. She's funny, and sometimes she's sarcastic, and I like that.

So, yeah, we had that-- and last Saturday we celebrated her birthday a little after Fuse and gave her flowers and a power point show, etc., Oh, and a cake-- and Tuesday we had brownies and ice cream after the Fuse planning meeting.

Thursday we had a group come in from Arizona. They are 6 people, and so it's not too incredibly tough. The nice thing is that we are also a group that we can take shifts in getting them here and there and doing stuff. I always enjoy sharing Japan with new people too.

Friday we had street band and were able to give away a lot of flyers... and the evening consisted of changing my email because of a possible virus sent to the other one and I want to protect my finances/identity, you know? So, you'll find my email on most of my newsletters-- it's the one I use. PLEASE, PLEASE do not send me forwards. Repeat offenders I start sending to my spam folder. While I'd be delighted to hear from you, I appreciate your consideration in not forwarding me stuff.

Also for Friday night, my camera broke. I don't know how, I don't know why, but it broke. I think one of the girls' dad is going to try to fix it, but it is a pretty old camera that I've had for a few years... so... stinky! I was pretty upset because I didn't have time to go out and get a new one (that and I didn't know the best place to go, but now someone told me where they can take me) and Saturday was going to be the Fuse One Year Anniversary... something I definitely want pictures of!

But, So-chan, my roommate, let me borrow her camera. Saturday was awesome! I left my house around noon after a lot of communication between team members via text messages for all we needed to do and get down in our various places in the morning to be ready for the afternoon. I went and had lunch/life group with Saki-chan, and that went really well. Afterward, we went to Machida, and everyone met up and we went to have street outreach. Normally we would do street band, but since it was raining, we couldn't.

Sally and I, who were kinda in charge, decided to take the group to one of the train stations and we passed out about... oh, I don't know... maybe about 500 or so flyers in just an hour. It was pretty amazing! We never get that many out!

Afterward, we went to the Livezone Z to set up and get everything ready. Everyone worked really hard and we were a bit concerned because the guest band that we had playing-- the drummer didn't show up until like right when it was starting! Anyway, people started showing up like crazy, and we had a lot of people who hadn't come in a long time-- but also around 10 or more new people! 4 we had met the night before at street band, and Mike said that he saw a guy that he gave a flyer to at the station. It was pretty amazing! We were around 50 people, and while the couches sat outlining the room, most people were sitting together all on the ground, including myself. And some of our very-regulars were not even able to make it! So, they had been able to, we would have been even more!

Our special group ImariTones was GREAT and the leader is quite a little preacher, and I think he was specifically an encouragement to one of our core guys. Mark gave a great message of encouragement and moving forward, and it was just an excellent evening. Some of our regular people invited their friends, and it was just a great, great evening and all went well, from the video we did to announcements and organization, etc.

After it ended (around 8:30pm), we went to the local cafe place and had dinner, and just enjoyed talking together, with the band, and some of our guests, and all that. I helped Sally, Joe and Mike carry stuff back to the Noborito church and we got there around 11pm. Afterward, I left with Kengo and along the way, we met up with some of the guys coming back, and so, in the end, I made it home around 12, took another shower and went to bed!

Today was lifegroup, and the last one for Sally who is leaving on Wednesday. I'm sad, she'll be our last girl... so it's me and Yuiko representin' the females now.

Well, that's all I got for now. I think I might try a power nap and then I need to restore some order to my house for the week and STUDY for Japanese class this week... SO much to do!

Catch ya'll later!