Hello all! I'm back for another update! Sorry, I meant to send this update a little earlier during the month, but I have been really busy this first half of August accommodating missions teams, preparing for summer camps and organizing other events. I now have some free time so I'm able to get on and update what has happened in the last month and a half.
Campus Ministry
Last month marked the end of the semester for campus ministry. Most of the students had exams during that time, so it was hard to get a hold of the students that we knew, and even hard to speak to new ones because of the study time that they devoted themselves to. Also the ones that did not have exams, were already on their summer vacations, going places and doing other things then, of course, going to school (which is what I would do to). But though we weren't able to talk to the students that we knew, the connections that we have made have been very fruitful the past semester. we have seen at least 3 or 4 students accept the Gospel, now we continue to pray that God will move their hearts so that they may grow and "work out" their salvation, as it says in Philippians. God also blessed us the past 2 months with excellent missions teams to help us out, and I'm very thankful to have met all of them and worked with all of them.
We've recently had one girl accept the Gospel, and her faith is genuinely seen! We have actually been in contact with her for a long time (since last year i think). and everytime we shared the gospel with her, she seemed to think "i have a good family, good friends, why do I need God?" kind of mindset. Only recently has the spirit started to move in her, which was really surprising to me because she disappeared for a good 3 months (doing job hunting), but it was really evident that something in her heart started moving because she started coming to j-house almost literally everyday. She just recently accepted as a I mentioned about 4 weeks ago? and she is already thinking about being baptized (praise God!). But it kind of humbled me in a way where, sometimes we think God is not moving because of the our impatience. I know I have been discouraged at times because one thing I have learned about this job is that rejection everyday is part of it. And its not the kind of outright, obvious "get out of my face" rejection that we can experience in North America. Japanese people like to avoid conflict. and if they see that what they say or do will cause conflict, they will just not do anything! So the amount of indirect rejection that me and colleagues face is numerous, and it can take a toll on you, making us ask ourselves "what did I do wrong?" or making us think that its personally against us that the people we call "friends" that we meet, don't want to talk or hang out or even answer our emails (I just recently had a dose of that with a friend that I think genuinely accepted, but then just suddenly stopped contacting me for a good month now). But time and time and again I am humbled by the fact that it is God that moves hearts and it is God that saves. We just have to continue to remain faithful to the things that he has given to us to do. We give glory to God by remaining obedient. So no matter what happens now, rejection or acceptance, I just want to remain faithful to the work. After that kind of realization, I love this job and the people even more and will continue to work harder to see souls saved and a revival in Japan!
Church and J-Soldier ministry
Been very busy at j-house the last month. Preparing events for students and having the missions team over. I think we have had people over almost everyday since that time. Just now is everything starting to die down. But we also just had our summer camp, and it was a great blessing just getting to worship and fellowship and get to know the j-house members even more. It was a good refresher from the busyness that is Japan. Unfortunately though, Pastor Katsuya could not come to the camp because he picked up a virus and was hospitalized for a week. He really wanted to come and tried to get out early, but proved to be impossible so he was not present. So continue to pray for his that he will recover and be back at 100%. This month also, 2 of the J-soldiers have finished their tour of service (we are soldiers lol) and are going back to their respective country...I say country because they are both from Korea. One has already left in the beginning of the month and the other is leaving in 2 days. It is sad to see them both leave (well the other one is coming back in 5 months....he loves this country THAT much! lol) but I can say that the bonds that we have all built together will not be broken that easily *sniff*, and God willing, we will see each other again. Other then that, everything has been as it is, church services are still great and street evangelism as also been great! we have been getting some more people from the streets of Osaka to come to J-house. We were actually thinking if it was worth doing every saturday because we didn't see anything coming out of it after 1 year. But again, we wanted to stay faithful in doing the jobs we are given, so that's what we are doing, and we trust God will do what he promised to do and be glorified.
Other Activities
Recently during my free time, I have been studying the bible a lot more then usual. I have been also reading a lot more which was my goal in the first place because I didn't want to spend my time doing idle and pointless things. I actually got 3 free e-books by Francis Chan (Thank God for free books!) so I have a lot of reading to catch up on! I also still hold my english conversational classes on tuesdays and its proving to be a great tool for either evangelism OR bible study growth! Study bible AND learn english at the same time! 2 birds, 1 stone! lol I'm also still studying Japanese....I think though its time to start learning a lot more seriously because the 2 that are leaving this month were the 2 or 3 soldiers that could speak Japanese! And we need people that can speak Japanese, so pray that God will move me also to learn the language....and that I can learn it quickly lol.
Upcoming Events
next week will mark the starting of the J-soldier vacation! God knows we do need a vacation and rest sometimes lol. So we, of course, welcome it! Also, though we are losing 2 J-soldiers, we are gaining 2 more in the end of september, both from America, so God is still providing other workers for the mission :D other then that, there are no other events coming up here for the time being
Prayer Requests
- for the students that I have met and befriended this semester, that God will continue to reveal Jesus to them. Pray that God will use his Spirit to lead them to Christ and Pray that God will Continue to use J-house and each member to do so.
- For My colleagues and I to continue to be faithful to our jobs as missionaries. and to grow with each other through the Spirit and grace and love of Christ
- For those members in J-house to grow spiritually, there are still a lot of baby Christians in J-house, pray for spiritual growth and maturity in the Gospel and for those to put the Gospel first over everything.
- For a revolution in Japan! for spiritual eyes to be opened in Japan and that the 0.5% of christians will increase!
Soooooooo Wow! its been almost 1 year! Its actually gone sooooo fast! I'm glad for this year, God has continued to show me a lot more and revealed to me a lot more. Again I thank you all for joining me in this mission. My love for the country and the japanese people has grown even more, so to me, the urgency to see more Japanese souls saved has grown. I think you all for your prayers and your donations, and I hope that you will continue to join me in Support of this mission. Again, here are some pictures of the events that have just passed, enjoy!
