The Good, the Bad, the Sleep-Deprived, and the Blessed

How can life contain so many experiences in such a short time? I've been reminded again over the last few days of the bigness of God's grace, in the way that He gives us both high and low moments and reminds us that He meets us at each place...and the end result is simply, truthfully, that we are blessed.

The good:
The prayer relay was a huge blessing, and if I wrote down all of the amazing comments/stories/experiences, this would be a post of epic proportions. :) Over 60 people between the two churches came to pray in the church building and the small classroom-turned-prayer-room. Three specific times of group worship allowed people from both churches to meet, pray for each other, cry and laugh together, and recognize the blessedness that comes from gathering together and saying, "Wow! Look at our awesome God! Did you see that?!"

Personally, I was reminded in many moments throughout the prayer relay of how short of a time I've been here. This was the first big thing that we've coordinated with Pastor, Cindy, and I--and two churches!--and it required a lot of language and simply effort. I spent most of Sunday playing hostess, welcoming people into Fukushima church building, and by the 9pm worship time I was drained of all my Japanese ability and any confidence I had in doing things correctly. Around 8:30pm, I snuck out for a walk around the neighborhood and told God very firmly that anything He wanted during the worship time He would have to provide, cuz I was empty, tired, and unable to speak. I'm reminded again and again that that isn't a bad place to lead worship from...because God does provide with His Spirit, often in ways that I wasn't planning. The evening worship was such a blessing--reflective Taize songs in Japanese, songs of thanksgiving, songs of love...God using the music and Pastor's message to communicate...I can't explain it. :) But it was good.

The bad:
New things are scary. And somehow, in Japan, often Christianity is looked at as a "new thing," a "foreign religion." Something for Westerners. It was so sad after church Sunday morning to hear some of those frightened comments by the church members--comments saying that reflecting on God's character or His name isn't Japanese style, not good for Japanese culture. I was just left with my mouth open, not knowing what to say, not knowing how to affirm the differences of culture, but also affirm the Christian's relationship with God--a relationship that involves knowing the character of God, as He has revealed it in Scripture, Christian community, and life!

The sleep-deprived:
For some reason, staying awake through the prayer relay and the everyday heat here has combined to provide a feeling of...tiredness. Some of that is entertaining, and I wish I could remember some of the comments that make Cindy and I just laugh until we cry. Regular topics in our apartment include: a great desire for Christmas and cold weather, the need for coffee, and the great joy of experiencing making and eating mint jelly. Good times. :)

The blessed:
Moments of prayer. Honest tears. Excitement, as the church members experience praying with God's name and receiving confidence in His character. Searching the Bible and pointing out chapter and verse of God's promises. Having a young boy from the community wander in and out of the church building--taking Christian DVDs, pamphlets with names of God, etc., with him. :) Music. Worship. Young Christian guys singing worship songs loudly, in a slightly off-key but joyous manner. Confession of the sins and burdens that chain us up, and freedom at forgiveness...

And so much more. :)

Thanks so much for praying!