I have been back in Japan for nearly 11 months. 1 year and 16 days ago I was offered this position. This was a definite call from God as He threw the door wide open providing more than I realized. What has become especially important to me are the people in my life. As always, God surrounds me with people to encourage me and also people who need encouragement from me. I have a church that provides the home and family affection I need, I have coworkers who are more than willing to help me as I deal with the ever frustrating fact that I am illiterate in this country, and I have students who unashamedly say, "I love you!" in the halls. In addition, God has connected me with people who are more distant in relation to my work and church. In this way, I have felt like I have been able to immerse myself into this community.
It is still my hope, for God to open the hearts of those around me and call them to him. For Him to use me, giving me the words to speak or right course of action to take. It's not easy, and those who seem open to Christianity, have a part of themselves closed to anything more than simple acceptance of us. I don't want my God to be the God of a foreign people group in the eyes of the Japanese. I want Him to be real to them.
As I sit here in the office on this day of torrential downpour typing this, I look upon the sleeping face of my coworker, my junior here in terms of arrival. He serves on the religion committee with me as the only non-Christian. My heart goes out to him and my other coworkers. What will my Lord have me do?
 |
| Delicious Indian food made by my friends on Sunday. |
 |
| A new acquaintance braving Friday's torrential downpour in order to hail a taxi. |
 |
| Kanazawa Bay when I drove up there last Tuesday. |
No comments:
Post a Comment