Melanie's Mission in Japan

New Years in Tottori

2012-01-04T11:15:00.004+09:00

Dear Family and Friends,

This New Years I had the opportunity to go with a Japanese friend to her hometown in Tottori. Tottori is beautiful because it is right by the sea of Japan. It's also famous for its sand dunes, but unfortunately they were covered with snow so we didn't go there. I had heard that there were camels at the sand dunes, so I wanted to ride one, but not during the winter months! It was pretty cold, and the winds were strong, so the waves were amazing!

This is my host family. They were very kind to me :)

So I got to try some traditional Japanese New Years food, called Osechi.
Every type of food has meaning and significance. I liked some of it :D

It was a good chance to see what a Japanese family was like, what they do during New Years, and enjoy lots of new things. I had lots of chances to speak Japanese too! Hopefully I can remember some of the new words I learned!

Birthday Gift

2011-12-01T08:53:00.002+09:00

For my Birthday this year Tsuguto and I got a special treat! One of the Pastor's and his wife gave us two coupons to go on a mini ocean cruise around Kobe, which included tea and cake. We started at 4pm and went for 2 hours, so we were able to see the sunset and it was very beautiful :) It was really special for both of us and I'm very thankful for the people who love and care about me here in Japan!!

This year has come with new challenges. I thought I was starting to understand the Japanese way and culture, but there are always new surprises. They are very private people, so it takes a long time to get to know my students well. My Japanese friends are very helpful and have tried to explain why things are done the way they are.

On a good note, I played piano in two different churches this month and last week for the first time a student came to church to hear me play. This was big news for me because I have been teaching at this church for 2 years now and no one has ever come before!! This year it was the doctor from my advanced English class that came, and he is interested in learning more about Christianity and the Bible so please pray for Him. Also another student told me recently that he started attending church and has gone now about 5 times and he's enjoying it! PTL!!

So after hearing this news I can't complain about my struggles. Hopefully they are valuable lessons for me and ways for me to better understand my students. Thanks for all your prayers and support and Birthday presents! It made my day!

I love you all,

Melanie

Update! Cheesecake and Children!

2011-11-12T22:01:00.003+09:00

Well, we had such a good time making and eating "Canadian cheesecake" that I wanted to share it with you all! :)

During our class on Friday we made cheesecake and because it needed to sit overnight, I invited the ladies to church on Sunday and then to eat cheesecake afterwards, which they all thought was a great idea. Me too!

The ladies hard at work!

During the service I shared my testimony and
explained how to become a Christian.
It was my hope and prayer that they would start to think
more about Jesus, and becoming a Christian

This is the pastors wife, and she translated my
testimony into Japanese

The cheesecake turned out really well, and I made the topping
myself from frozen berries bought at Costco!

smiles all around!

Delicious in Japanese= Oishii!

Afterwords, we had a kids program. Our team was the
Panda's. The little boy in the front is a new student
and he was very excited to join the party for the first time!!!

Thank you for all your prayers and support. It meant a lot to me to know that you were praying for a successful day, and that God heard your prayers. I had a nice talk with the ladies that came to church. It was the first time for some of them. Continue to pray for the students, the pastor and church members, and for me. Becoming part of a different culture has some challenges and I want to be sensitive to the needs of the people. I'm learning that building relationships takes time, but its so worth it. Arigatou!

Thanksgiving!

2011-10-18T15:54:00.003+09:00

This year we had a big feast at Japan Mission for the Canadian Thanksgiving holiday. It's better this way because the American Thanksgiving holiday is way to close to Christmas, so then we barely loose the weight from Thanksgiving and we're putting it on again at Christmas!

We made these cool-looking turkey's out of my feet and hands.
It was a great way to tell them a little about Thanksgiving Day!

The Star Swing

2011-10-11T19:07:00.002+09:00

This weekend Tsuguto and I found a beautiful park near Ikoma. It was a gorgeous day so we decided to check it out. Here is a huge suspension bridge in the middle of the forest! Amazingly, it was only 15 minutes from our house!!

Nara

2011-10-03T19:17:00.004+09:00

This is my new coworker Renata from South Africa
We went to Nara together

sight-seeing in Nara

Deer in Nara- safe???

Relaxing in the sunshine :)

Found a unique cafe and delicious cheesecake!

Where I stayed :)

2011-09-16T10:50:00.003+09:00

So here are a few pictures of where I stayed in Shanghai. Not too bad hey?? :)

View from the 11th floor

I think this is Shanghai's city line

An Angel?

2011-09-15T10:40:00.000+09:00

So I'm starting to think that my Japanese friend that helped me at the airport was indeed an angel, because every attempt I have made to contact him now, to thank him, has failed...Interesting :)

Returned :)

2011-09-12T23:29:00.002+09:00

I got my camera back! Me and Tsuguto drove to the police station today and filled out a little paper work, and then they gave me back my camera, so happy! Pictures coming soon :)

Typhoon and Delays

2011-09-07T06:33:00.002+09:00

Dear Family and Friends,

Well I had a great time being home in Canada with family and friends. It was soo nice to see you all again! I took some pictures, however, the camera has temporarily been misplaced ( I think I left it on the bus coming back to Ikoma!!!) So please pray that someone didn't take it but returned it to the bus company and that they have it right now!!

I was very excited to come back to Japan because Tsuguto is here, and a month is a long time to be a part! And I missed the country, the food, the people, and yes my students and teaching!! It's nice to have a vacation, but I really love my work.

Well, I was suppose to arrive home Friday September 2nd in Osaka. Everything was going as planned. Air Canada had good service this time and I had two seats to myself on the long flight to Shanghai. After arriving in Shanghai I had to pick up my bags and then catch the last 2 hour flight to Osaka. I was smiling inside cause I was almost home!

I found the check in place after some running around, only to be told that my flight had been canceled. CANCELED?!?!?! Why??

A huge typhoon was making its way to Japan as I was traveling. A typhoon and hurricane are the same thing just different names in Asia. Typhoon Talas was slow moving because it was carrying lots of rain with it, flooding rivers and wiping out homes. Air China did not want to fly to Japan in the middle of the typhoon. So here I was stranded in Shanghai. What to do next?

I had no RMB, Chinese money. I had no idea if it was safe to stay in the airport as a single, foreign woman ( China feels very different compared to Japan), I didn't know how much a good hotel would be or where. Usually airport hotels are expensive. So as I was contemplating what to do I met a Japanese man who could speak English very well, who was in the same situation.

He had been in Shanghai on business and did not know that our flight was canceled, until now. He was thinking about returning to his hotel, heard about my story, and very kindly (and I was trusting GOD that this man was good) offered to pay for the taxi ride to the hotel, and reserve 2 hotel rooms, one for me and one for him. I had no better option, and so on faith and a little desperation, I joined my new friend on a journey in Shanghai.

The hotel was 1 hour away from the airport. In Japan taking a taxi for one hour would cost you a fortune, so I was very grateful that my friend was willing to pay. The whole time I was praying that he was a decent man, and that because he was married with a family, worked for a good company, and my woman's intuition wasn't giving me any red flags, I could trust him.

Well, God really did send me an angel. When we arrived at the hotel, it was in a beautiful part of the city, with a huge park across the street. Trees everywhere. And the hotel was nice. He told me it was a 5 star hotel. I started to panic, thinking how can I afford this???

But he said that his company gets a discount when he stays, and he asked them to give me the same discount!! I had a beautiful room, on the 11th floor, with a queen size bed, beautiful view, huge tub, fancy shower, and breakfast was included in the morning! I was so thankful.

After I went to my room I collapsed from exhaustion. I had been up at 3:30am that day, and it was at least 24 hours since then. I had this huge comfortable bed and I could take a shower- I was so grateful.

The next day I tried to figure out something with Air China, but because it was a weekend, they were closed...really weird. So I phoned my boss in Japan, and asked him what to do. He said he would call them in Japan and see when the next flight was.

Well good news, the service in Japan is great and he arranged to put me on the next flight out, confirmed and all. I was so happy!! Then I looked at the day...Monday!?!? It was Saturday afternoon, so I would spend Friday night, Sat night, and Sunday night at the hotel.....not what I was hoping for. I really wanted to go back to Japan, and it was only a 2 hour flight away!

But David said that the typhoon was very strong, and that I could try to go to the airport, but the flight might be canceled again. So I decided to wait. I didn't want to at all, but I did. I thought over and over again, why is this happening?? But I remembered something Neil said, about there always being a reason for the things that happen to us, so instead of grumbling I really tried to be positive. I enjoyed my room, I was grateful to have met a nice man like Mottoo Nishimura, I read books that I didn't have time to read in Canada, and I made sure that on Monday morning everything was in order and I was ready to go. I wasn't going to miss this flight because of me!

Well I am happy to say that that flight was on time, I got through all the immigration and customs ok, and I met some other nice Japanese people while waiting in the huge line for Air China. Now I am happily back in Japan, getting ready for my first day back teaching, and the weather is beautiful :)

I want to thank you all for your prayers. I was a nervous wreck, trying to be smart and protect myself but at the same time having to trust a total stranger. I couldn't trust him right away, but I knew God knew where I was, who I was with, and that He could know what was going to happen next. We really do serve a God who cares!!

Love you all and please continue to pray for a new year of teaching in Japan, for the new and old students, and for Japan Mission!

Pottery Show

2011-06-13T06:35:00.003+09:00

May was a busy month!

One of my students, Sayuri, was part of a pottery show in Sakai, near Izumi Fuchu where I teach on Fridays. So we decided to do a little field trip with her classmates, and see her work. We had a wonderful time outside of the classroom!

My students: Sayuri, Fumi, and Eiko
Sayuri will have another Pottery show, but this time in CANADA!
I'm very happy for her :)

This is one of her works: A handbag

She said getting the right color and gloss are the most difficult aspects of Pottery

One of my favourite pieces in the show.
Sayuri's friend made these

Very Japanese style

These are all made to look like shells, made out of lots of little shells. Cute!

Flower Garden

2011-06-13T06:18:00.002+09:00

In May one of my classes in Kawachinagano visited a former students' house to see her beautiful rose garden! Misao has over 70 roses and many other kinds of flowers. I have no idea what their names are in English, so if you know please help me :)

This is Misao's daughter, grandson, Misao, and I
Her daughter can speak English very well so it was nice to talk with her!

Potato Love

2011-06-13T06:11:00.001+09:00

A message from Neil Verwey :)

MASHED POTATO LOVE

Do we practice the kind of love that wants our own space? Consider the parable of 'Mashed Potato Love':

Potatoes live in their own surroundings; in their own place below the earth. Each potato says: "This is my space; that is your space" -- they are always jostling for space. Once they are harvested and put into a truck, they bump against each other all the way to the market; each one continuing to utter: "I want my sovereignty, I want my space. It’s hurting me. This is too difficult for me!"

Finally they end up in the market and a woman comes and buys a kilo of them. She takes them home, each one still jostling for space. She washes them, puts them into a pressure cooker and now, as she takes them out and peels them, she mashes them together. All the while, these potatoes ar e saying, "It’s us! It hurts us!" For the first time they say, "Ouch, this hurts us!"

The church is meant to be like that. Each member should say, "I am your brother. I am your sister and to wash your feet is my privilege."

We should be people of humility and grace, having the very mind of Christ at the table of servitude; one who says: "Your concerns become higher than mine; I am a servant to you in the name of Christ."

Source: You Tube, Pastor A. Andrews

The teaching of Christ is very clear on being His servants and to those around us!

And whoever wants to be first must be your slave
(Matt. 20:27, NIV).

These are pretty strong words for us to follow. To climb to the top, we need to begin at the bottom!

His master replied,
"Well done, good and faithful servant!
You have been faithful with a few things;
I will put you in charge of many things.
Come and share your master’s happiness!"
(Matt. 25:21, NIV).

The Lord Jesus Christ himself is faithful, and prizes faithfulness in his servants. In due time He will exalt us!

Humble yourselves, therefore,
under God’s mighty hand,
that he may lift you up in due time
(1 Peter 5:6, NIV).

We will be promoted in heaven!

MOUNTAIN MOVING STARTS WITH ONE STONE‏

2011-06-08T23:36:00.002+09:00

Dear Friends and Family,

Neil Verwey had me do a write up about my experiences in Tohoku in May, and he shared it in one of his Newsletters. I found out that not all of you receive these newsletters so I am posting it on my blog so that you have a chance to read it as well. If you would like to receive his emails please let me know!

Dear Prayer Partner

Two members of Japan Mission, Marilyn Zorinpuii and Melanie Peter, volunteered their week of vacation time to help with relief efforts in Tohoku. Melanie wrote as follows:

On Friday morning April 29^th, the first day of ‘Golden Week’ in Japan, I drove with a team from Osaka to minister to those affected by the triple disaster (earthquake, tsunami and Fukushima nuclear breakdown) of March 11, 2010.

After a 16 hour trip, keeping a careful watch for the earthquake damage on the highway, we arrived at 11pm at a Karate Dojo hall, which served as home base to as many as 60 to 70 relief workers at a time.

In Ishinomaki we saw cars piled up everywhere in all kinds of positions, precariously hanging from high perches, houses smashed and houses that had been transported to unusual places.

I joined the Be One group, and it was an orderly and carefully managed affair. There were rules to follow: the dirty work clothes and boots had to be left outside and the clean clothes and shoes had to be sprayed with alcohol before entering the Dojo. A dividing blue tarp separated the men and women as they slept but nothing could keep the horrendous snoring down but thankfully, I had ear-plugs!

Most of the first three days I helped cleaning a children’s park; I learned to put on and off three pair of gloves: surgical, woolen and the hefty gardening variety. We would take them all off to eat and put on a new pair of surgical gloves plus the others before going back to work. I also wore thick black boots, goggles and a serious face mask.

If a delivery of fresh produce came, it took precedence and everything had to be dropped in order to sort the goods, and then decide who needed these goods. Assembly lines would quickly form and we joined in unison to work as a team.

The debris in the children’s park was spread out in total chaos before us: garbage, wood, metals, plastic, trees, huge wooden pallets, furniture, tatami mats and sofas; there were concrete blocks and rain gutters strewn everywhere along with thick mud. We piled the incredible mess as high as the proverbial mountain – in some places it was higher than my head.

Sometimes God diverted us to do some nauseating work! There was a stench of sea water and rotting fish; octopus, crabs and even store-packaged fish found in many of the lower levels of the buildings. The work was cheerless and depressing. A lady was shedding tears while sweeping in front of her door. I wanted to know why she cried. She said:

“If only someone would get rid of the rotting fish from my driveway!” Immediately, we joined together to help her and she was very grateful.

We wanted an occasion for the neighborhood to meet and enjoy a time of fellowship as well as celebrate the reclaimed playground, so we planned an enormous BBQ. There was BBQ chicken, hot-dogs with all the fixings, chips, juice boxes, snacks, a gigantic pasta salad, cucumbers, tomatoes and apples – plenty for all.

I took some time to hang out with the people afterwards and play with the kids. They were so happy and appreciative, even in the middle of all that trash!

There are other great stories, like how we prayed for a woman who needed to find a job, but wasn't yet a Christian, which moved her to tears.

I will never forget how easy it was to make friends with young and old!

I met a dear 'Obachan' (grandmother) who came up to me but didn't say a word. This elderly lady just stood beside and let me hug her. I whispered to her ‘Gomennasai’ (I am so sorry!) several times.

I made a little 8 year old friend Yu-chan and she came to the park every day and helped by holding open the trash bags while I would pour in the dirt. Many other children joined her and helped to clean the park, so that they would have a place to play.

God used Melanie and Marilyn, functioning in different places in the disaster area, during their vacation. They came back tired, but overflowing with joy at what God accomplished through them and their team members in Tohoku.

Please continue to pray for the various projects Japan Mission, Be One, and many other missionaries, who are revealing the love of Christ among those who know Him not.

Small steps of obedience lead to giant steps of blessings!

Neil Verwey

Back from Ishinomaki

2011-05-05T09:38:00.002+09:00

Dear Friends,

I joined a group, Be One, that has been going up to the Tohoku area of Japan since one week after the Earthquake/Tsunami/ Nuclear disaster. Japan Mission allowed me to take a car and drive a group up there to volunteer any way possible for a few days during Golden Week. Here are a few photos and I will share more details with you soon!

Due to the threat of radiation in the air and on the ground we were told to wear masks. I also wore eye protection, and 3 pairs of gloves while removing garbage for safety and protection. There were many rusty nails in the wood that we found.

Just some of the garbage. We also had a pile for wood, plastic, and metal.
It took us 3 days to clean this playground with 30 volunteers

After we cleaned the playground we had a neighborhood BBQ, which was delicious and afterwards we hung out with the local people and got to know them.

Our faithful friend Yuu-chan came to see us everyday and we worked together to clean this park where she and her friends can now play.

Easter :)

2011-04-24T00:21:00.005+09:00

Even though they were having fun, this is how they act for every picture!

Easter is tomorrow, so for my kids classes, all boys, we dyed eggs with crayon drawings on them. The guys thought it was fantastic! Point #1 Melanie :)
Then with the younger guys we did a little Easter egg hunt that they thought was also GREAT! Point #2 Melanie :)
They are starting to open up with me and enjoy their English class a lot more, and I have to thank my wonderful helper Maiko. She can speak English really well and this allows the mothers to understand what is going on as well, which is a big help if the boys are not co-operating!
I also found a kids Bible with pictures in both Japanese and English that had a simple way of explaining the Easter story, so we read that together.

Pray for me tomorrow as I am visiting one of my churches and will be doing a piano solo. First time in a long time!!! I'm looking forward to the church service and short program, kinda like at home!

Happy Easter : HE HAS RISEN!!!

Tohoku Volunteer

2011-04-23T23:39:00.002+09:00

Dear Friends,

Golden Week (a huge Japanese holiday) is fast approaching and people are planning how to spend their holidays. Surprisingly enough I have almost a week off this year, unlike last year. So I was thinking of what would be fun to do and how to relax, when I was reminded of the people in North-East Japan (Tohoku area). I decided to try and get involved somehow.

SO...as of yet I am not sure if going is a possibility. Those that are going have been planning months in advance. I just found out when my holidays start, yesterday! But I really want to go and help in any way, so pray that if it is God's will, I can find some one to go with and help out. And please continue praying for the Japanese people. Maybe some of them will hear about the Easter story for the first time this year, with so many missionaries up there now!

And I would love to thank my church back home, the Vernon Church of God for raising money to send to the relief work here in Japan. THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! I love you guys!!

Spring is here, finally!!!

2011-04-10T23:19:00.003+09:00

Spring is HERE!!! We have been waiting for the warmer weather to come and this week it made an appearance Thursday, and then again today on Sunday. It was a gorgeous day so we went down to the park by our house, along with Esther, Paul, and Menita, and took some photos :)

The classic Sakura photo (Cherry Blossom)

Paul, Esther, and Menita. They went Japanese and wore Kimonos.
So cute :) Nice family shot!

And one of Tsuguto and I

We are very blessed to live in protected area of Japan. An earthquake could happen here too, but God has protected us so far. Thank you for all your prayers. We are doing fine, but the people up in the North-East area of Japan have been constantly hit by aftershocks, and just received another 7.4 aftershock Friday night at 11:30pm.

Things are progressing slowly because the damage is spread across a 500 km area, the roads are damaged, and there are a lack of vehicles and gasoline. Pray that all the money that is being donated finds it way into the right hands and things can move a bit more quickly.

A coworker of mine teaches at a Christian high school and they are collecting stuffed animals and candy for kids that have lost their families, homes, and have nothing.

Japan Mission is collecting money and helping local missionaries and people Neil knows up there first-hand. One missionary went up there soon after the quake to give people the food, tools, and clothing people around Ikoma had donated. It feels so good to give.

Lots of love to all of you back home

PS-Please also keep praying for the Fukushima nuclear power plant. It feels like they have no idea what to do about it, so they are just playing it by ear, which is making many people worried. Pray for the workers and that God would give them wisdom!

Vernon teacher okay after quake - Vernon News - Castanet.net

2011-03-12T10:35:00.002+09:00

Dear Family and Friends,

First of all I want to thank God for protecting me. This earthquake could have happened anywhere. Everyone is fine here at Japan Mission and although some of us felt it, we are far away from the epicenter. I love you all and please pray for all those affected. This is huge and devastating. The death toll may be in the thousands.

Vernon teacher okay after quake - Vernon News - Castanet.net

IFC-Mochi Party!

2011-03-07T22:32:00.003+09:00

Dear Friends,

This past Sunday our church, International Friendly Chapel, had a Mochi party. We had a blast! Mochi is very sticky (glutenous) rice. It is special rice that is cooked, pounded and then formed into balls to be eaten a number of ways. The Japanese people love it, and its quite the event. Tsuguto is holding the mallet that is used for pounding and I had the job of folding and flipping the rice between each blow. We were both learning how to do it properly. Nowadays they usually use a special machine to make Mochi. This is the traditional way :)

Tanoshikatta!!

Kids!

2011-03-05T01:41:00.003+09:00

Here's a picture of my kids class in Kawachinagano.
We have a great time together. The boys can be quite the handful!!
This April the girls will no longer be in my class, so I decided to take picture of us together before then :)

Lots of Changes!

2011-03-04T01:06:00.002+09:00

Dear Friends, Family, and anyone else reading this :)

March, I have the feeling is going to be a busy month. April is the start of a new school year in Japan, so March will be the last month as some of my students graduate onto Jr. High, High school, University, and so on...
Also one of my churches is having a hard time recruiting new students, so we might have to cancel English classes there, which is sad, but maybe necessary. We are praying that God's will is clearly shown, and some interest will come about as we hand out fliers advertising the class.
One of the Pastors will be moving this April to another church, and I will have the pleasure of meeting a new Pastor. I'm a little nervous, wondering how much English he knows.

Please pray for the churches, Pastors, and students, that we can meet their needs to the best of our abilities. And please pray for me. I don't really like change, and there will be lots of changes coming. Please pray that I handle it well!!

Love you all, and thanks for thinking and praying for Japan and the workers here!!!

SNOW!!

2011-02-19T11:16:00.003+09:00

Dear Friends,

Friday, February 11th was a holiday here in Japan. And it was a good thing too because it started to snow Thursday night, snowed all night, and off and on all day Friday! I thought I was in Canada!!! It snowed again all day on Monday too! Couldn't believe my eyes!

Kids made a snowman by our house

Huge cedar trees looked so beautiful covered in snow

Our little snowman family :)

The bamboo forest was getting weighed down by the heavy snow

Monday: the cars were not going anywhere
We don't have winter tires

Dancing in the snow

My co-worker Moi, who was thrilled to go and play in the snow!

Cheese :)

2011-02-19T10:44:00.002+09:00

Dear Friends,

Haha, I know the title is a little strange, but it is totally relevant.

Two weeks ago, I was doubting that God could provide all my needs. Looking at the future can sometimes really stress you out.

As I was looking into my fridge that morning, I notice my cheddar cheese was getting low. This isn't a big deal in Canada, but in Japan orange cheese is a rarity. The best place to buy affordable orange cheddar cheese is at Costco, an hours drive from Ikoma. I don't know how to get there and the roads are very busy. We go about once every 3-4 months, thanks to my co-worker Sunette!

But I quickly forgot about the cheese as I was getting ready for work and a day of teaching. I was going to Izumi Fuchu that day, about an hours train ride from my house.

I taught 3 classes and then we had a break for dinner. I noticed the Pastors wife was cooking this special meat that she buys sometimes. I was excited because it tastes so good, the beef comes from America. She buys it when they go to Costco.

After dinner, the Pastor suddenly turns to me and says, "Oh! We have a present for you!" I was a little surprised, but they do give me little gifts every once in awhile. He came back from the kitchen, with a BIG smile, holding this big block of CHEDDAR CHEESE!!

He said, "Today we went to Costco, and we thought you would like some cheese!"
I was stunned. Totally. I hadn't said anything to them about needing cheese. I had just thought about it THAT morning, in my head. No ONE could know, except GOD.

That night I thanked God for always knowing what I need, and asking for forgiveness for doubting his provision. I love you God, and I love that you know everything about me!

Prayer Requests and Praises

2011-01-28T23:42:00.002+09:00

Dear Friends,

I am having an awesome yet terrible week!

God is amazing and allowing me to really get to know my students, but I am at the same time realizing how hard some of their lives are.

Please pray for Yuka and her daughter Eriko. Eriko is 18 and is pregnant and just married the father of the baby and Yuka is struggling how to handle the situation.

Another student Yoshimi, believed that all Christians were sinless and we explained to her today that all of us are sinners and need Jesus.

Another student Masashi cannot attend my classes anymore because his work is very busy (tax accountant), but for the month of January we talked seriously about Christianity and the Bible.

One of the sweetest students I have, Hina-chan, a 3rd grade girl, also cannot come to my classes anymore because her mother would like her to study at a Juku instead of attending my classes. I will miss her a lot. She was pretty disapointed.

God is answering prayers all the time. My high school class is going well and one student is bringing a friend next month to see if she would like to join the class.

We handed out fliers for Momodani church on Tuesday and I was led by the Spirit to greet people in English instead of Japanese, like I had been doing, and people responded very positively and soon all the fliers were gone. Pray for me next week as I go on my own to hand out fliers in the early evening and then again after our class is finished.

I love my job and my students, so please continue to pray for the work that is being done here in Japan.

Love you all ♥
♥ Melanie

Happy New Year's!!!

2011-01-03T18:55:00.007+09:00

Well, the holidays are almost over and it feels like they just flew by!!

I had a really nice time with my co workers and friends, but to be honest, I really missed my family this year. Christmas is a time where I would have really liked to have been in Canada, surrounded by the people I grew up with and have loved for so long.

But we made the best of it and even did a trip to a ski hill. We had a take a bus for 5 hours, but then we were able to ski all day. It was great because there was tons of snow. Here are some pictures of me, Paul, and Tsuguto...

The mountain where we went skiing

It wasn't very cold, but it was snowing all day!

Paul turned into Frosty the Snowman :)

Having a wonderful time!

It was a great time, and it reminded me of home and Silver Star mountain.

I hope you all have a wonderful year ahead of you and that God would richly bless you in all that you do and wherever you go. Enjoy 2011!

Christmas Parties 2010

2010-12-21T10:35:00.007+09:00

Dear friends,

Can you believe that it is already December and Christmas is in just a few days?? Time sure flies when you're busy teaching and having a great time with your students! This year I decided to spend all of December teaching about Christmas instead of trying to teach it during the Christmas parties. It was a lot of work, but I think they learned a lot. I hope!

I used this interesting story about the Candy Cane to teach about Jesus.

Has anyone heard this story before?

Christmas Parties:

Potluck party in Kawachinagano

Delicious strawberry Christmas cake

Shota did an excellent job on his Christmas tree

My church in Kyobashi, with their Christmas decorations

Went to Annie's Children's Christmas concert

They were so cute!

Bible Study

2010-11-20T00:45:00.002+09:00

Dear friends,

Recently my fellow co-worker Annie has volunteered to lead a Woman's Bible Study Monday nights at Japan Mission. Its a great chance for us to get to know each other, new people, pray and fellowship. We are studying a book by Francis A. Schaeffer, "No Little People." It sounds like a very interesting read, so I am looking forward to the next study.

Please pray for this group, that it can grow and that we can be a support for one another. People are dealing with so many problems and tough life-changing decisions, that we are all aware of how much we need the Lord. I was really blessed to get to know these women. They had such great energy!!! Where two or three people are gathered, God will be there also! :)

The last few months...

2010-11-15T22:30:00.003+09:00

During these last few months I have been busy visiting the churches I teach at. In October I went to Kawachinagano church and shared my testimony and afterwards ate lunch with the church members.

These wonderful ladies cook dinner for me every Thursday night.
Here I am with Jyunko, Kaoru, and Masae.
The lady on the far right is the Pastor's wife, Masae.

I spent the day in Kawachinagano and in the afternoon we had an outside BBQ!

Here are some photos of the Franklin Graham Festival. This was Sunday night. They announced that the Hall was almost full, which means almost 10,000 people were there!

Here is a picture of all the people who went forward at the end of the night when Franklin Graham asked who wanted to pray to become a Christian.

This past Sunday I went to Izumi Fuchu church where we had a special program for the kids. We had a great time and I was excited to see that some of my English students attended :)

Now we are preparing for Christmas and there are many activities, preformances, and parties. Please pray that we can effectively share the gospel message and people will respond!

Statistics from the Franklin Graham Meetings

2010-11-01T11:20:00.005+09:00

Here are some facts about how the Franklin Graham meetings went in Japan! Thank you for your prayers!

And I will try and post some pics in the next week!

-Melanie

Dear brothers and sisters,

Thank you for your support before and during the Franklin Graham Festival. Please pray for a good follow-up during these coming weeks. Here are some numbers that we heard Sunday evening at around 10:20pm :

During the three day festival 30,786 people participated.

About 2,500 came forward for the invitation.

A little over 50% came to receive the Lord Jesus Christ into their lives.*

The remaining people of the group that came forward did so for (1) reassurance of their eternal life or (2) re-dedication of their lives for the Lord.

*During the four week Christian Life & Witness Course 420 seekers made a decision for the Lord Jesus.

The next several weeks will be busy ones as counselors and churches follow up on those who came forward. Please pray that this process goes smoothly and that the cooperating churches are prepared to receive the new Christians in an appropriate manner.

Please pray that the budget of 1.5 million dollars will be met.

Again, thank you for your prayer and support.

To Him - be all the glory!

Franklin Graham Festival Oct 22-24th

2010-10-23T11:06:00.003+09:00

So some exciting events are taking place right here in my backyard!

Many of us know Billy Graham and the crusades he led all over the world. Well now his son is following in his Father's footsteps and his journey has brought him to Osaka, Japan!

He will be speaking tonight and Sunday night, and there will also be many singers, musicians, and well-recognized people in Japan sharing their personal testimony and music.

I will be taking some of my students tonight instead of teaching, which is so exciting because some of them are not Christians, but they wanted to go!

Please pray for a good turnout and that people will come with open hearts to receive the Gospel.

My New Saturday Church

2010-09-29T21:09:00.003+09:00

So this year started off a little differently with me teaching on Saturdays. I am now teaching at five different churches. I took over for Esther who will be having her baby any day now :) She was due September 27th. I met some of the students in July when Esther introduced me and I knew I would enjoy going back there in September.

On the 19th of September I visited Kita Osaka church for the first time and they were very warm and welcoming. I felt right at home.
They had a special service that afternoon, a small concert with singing and music. There was a lady who could play classical organ music, an Opera singer, a harmonica group, a few solos and duets, and the churches choir. It amazed me that such a small church had so many talented people!

Here are a few pictures of the performances:

This cute little girl Manna,
sang 2 Japanese songs all by herself :)

Doing a hula dance to a Christian English song. Very nice!

The Harmonic group

Singing Amazing Grace Opera style

There was a very nice turnout for the concert, maybe 40 people :)

The Wonderful Family I will miss :(

2010-09-09T00:35:00.003+09:00

Ca-Na-Da continued :)

2010-09-09T00:16:00.004+09:00

I was pretty excited to attend my cousin Krista's wedding :) And if you go to a wedding you gotta have cake! This one was a special German cake, so goood!

And our family made a special trip out to the Rocky Mountains.
It was a little cool for August :)

My Home and Native Land...

2010-09-08T23:45:00.012+09:00

This picture was taken on Kalamalka Lake, a gorgeous green and blue lake that is known for changing colors, which makes it so beautiful.
And it is crystal clean so I love swimming here!
We went to Kobers cabin, and did some water sports and chatting!!!
Thanks guys!

Arienne was so kind to take us horse back riding near Echo Lake.

I'm BACK!

2010-09-07T23:23:00.003+09:00

So if you didn't already know I have returned to Japan for another year of teaching! The first year was so great that I had to come back. I went home for the month of August and hung out with my family and extended family, and friends, and it was wonderful. Pictures coming soon :)

So you can start checking this blog again, for new pictures and updates.
Please pray that all of us at Japan Mission would work together in unity in this upcoming year.
God bless,
Melanie

The Start of Farewells :(

2010-07-24T07:39:00.004+09:00

So its hard to believe but I have been in Japan for almost a year, and my first year of teaching is almost over. Just one more week before coming home and just a few more classes.

Here are my classes from the church in Kawachinagano :)

#1: The Beginner Adult class

#2: The Intermediate Adult class

#3: The Childrens class
they are happy kids, but not in this picture...

#4: Another Intermediate Adult class

#5: The Advanced English class

Saturday kids group with TLC

2010-07-22T10:10:00.003+09:00

So in June, Japan Mission, TLC, and NICC worked together to put on a Kids Program. We had no idea how many children would come, so we prayed about it, and God answered our prayers. Almost 30 children showed up and we had a great time! Thank you Sunette for the pictures!

Song: "Our God is So BIG!"
gotta have actions!!!

The kids loved the actions! It really got them involved.

Hillary helped me with translating the game instructions into Japanese

The Bible story was about the Lost Sheep,
and I decided to play Blind Man's Bluff.

It was such a hit that our ears were ringing afterward from all the screaming kids!

Tea Ceremony

2010-07-01T09:14:00.004+09:00

Our Japanese teacher was so kind to take Annie, Marilyn, and I with some of her friends to experience what a tea ceremony would be like. It was only a 20 minute drive from our house!

Here is the rock garden just outside the tea room

We decided to have our tea outside. It was a very humid day.

The essentials: Matcha (green tea), a whisk (made of bamboo),
and a very sweet sweet (to eat before drinking matcha).

Enjoying our tea: Heather (US), Sensei Saito (Japanese teacher),
Marilyn (India), me, and Annie (US).

After we took a walk through a bamboo forest, with many different kinds of bamboo. We also went to a museum where we could see many different kinds of utensils that they can make using bamboo. It was a good experience!

TLC group and farewell party...

2010-06-25T11:16:00.002+09:00

So just after mom and Michelle came to Japan we had the TLC (Touching Lives for Christ) team come from Florida. They came with us to our classes and then we had a special Saturday kids class for any children in our area. We had a good turnout and God answered our prayers.

Also, this picture was taken at our Japanese farewell party for Aaron, Crystal, and Caia. They left Japan on June 21st to live in Vernon, BC, Canada. They will be missed by many, and especially by those at Japan Mission and their church!

Traveling with Family!

2010-06-07T13:58:00.004+09:00

It was really nice to have some family come and visit. Mom and Michelle were able to take some time off and we could spend 2 weeks together. I tried to show them as much as possible, and I think I did pretty good! haha :)

Here we are at Nara Park

We went to Osaka Castle on a day it REALLY decided to rain!

At the Aquarium: Kaiyukan

In Kobe at a huge greenhouse with hundreds of flowers and birds

Out for lunch at a French restaurant

Updates coming soon!

2010-06-07T13:28:00.002+09:00

Sorry to all of you who have been following my blog. If you didn't know, my mother and sister came to Japan for 2 weeks. They had an awesome time and I tried to show them as much as possible in the two weeks that they were here. We were really busy!

So hopefully I will be able to put up some new pictures in the next while. May was quite the busy month!

In Japanese, Gomenasai!!! I'm really sorry!!!

Melanie

Spring= beautiful flowers, gardens, and... allergies

2010-04-27T23:48:00.007+09:00

So Annie, the newest addition to the Japan Mission staff, and myself did some exploring around Nara Park and discovered this botanical garden. I enjoyed it immensely.

This tree was HUGE!

Isn't the color fantastic???

My new friend Annie, who shares my love of being outdoors and appreciating nature!

Sakura from the river!

2010-04-27T23:40:00.002+09:00

A friend and I took a boat ride around Osaka to see all the cherry blossoms!
There is even a city named after the Sakura (cherry blossoms) ... Sakuranomiya!

Fieldtrip :)

2010-04-27T23:28:00.009+09:00

My students thought they should show me a great place to view cherry blossoms. We went to the only village in Osaka, not far from Kawachinagano, and they brought Bento lunches, they were so delicious, Ooiishi!!

View from Osaka Castle!

2010-04-27T23:14:00.004+09:00

So I finally got the chance to go into Osaka Castle, see the many artifacts, and then go to the top for an amazing view of the city!

Here are many people milling around the Castle.

There are some gorgeous cherry trees in this area.

Here is some interesting architecture!
It's a huge park!

A beautiful day to be outside and have a Bento lunch!

2010-04-04T22:14:00.007+09:00

This is the view from my balcony to the little garden that we are free to use. It has many cherry trees and we decided to go there for lunch after church today :)

Our neighbors tree!

My Bento lunch, with a side of chicken wings! from Hotto Motto :)

The lovely Wilson family joined us for some healthy Vitamin D

Kids can play basketball, we played some badminton

Another close-up of the cherry blossoms, this time in our park

Kyoto again!!!

2010-04-04T21:39:00.002+09:00

These cherry blossoms are world-famous in Japan.
I think they are beautiful :)

Here's the same tree a week later! Almost in full bloom :)

A weeping cherry tree

Cherry blossoms at night

Kiyomizu Temple, #1 sight-seeing place in Kyoto.
I was impressed. The gardens are beautiful and the view is fantastic.

Sakura and the first day of Spring Holiday!

2010-03-24T00:22:00.009+09:00

So here are the very famous and very beautiful cherry tree blossoms. Maybe they are the first ones of the season.
'Sakura' is Japanese for cherry blossom.

This picture reminded me of a weeping willow tree.

This may be a peach tree blossom. It was such a gorgeous pink color!

A very famous cherry tree, however it had not yet bloomed.
Maybe in a week or two...

Being a tourist and loving it. These pictures were all taken in Kyoto.
It was a beautiful day :)

My Church: International Chapel

2010-03-18T23:28:00.002+09:00

So my dad mentioned that I had never posted pictures of my home church here in Ikoma. I guess we are always late for church so I don't have time to take any pics! But I remembered to take some last Sunday after the service so here is my lovely church!

International Chapel is just a 5 minute drive from our home which is really nice and convenient. It's nice because usually I have to take the train for about 1-2 hours.

This Sunday was also a rare, beautiful, sunny day. It's been raining a lot lately.

The church inside. There weren't many people here on time, but wait about 20 minutes after starting time, and the church is packed! Anywhere from 50-100 people attend, which is big for Japan.

They begin with some worship songs. I really like their selection of songs. I have to practice my Japanese in order to sing along! Half is in English, the other half in Japanese.

Here's a quick picture of myself standing in front of the church. I really enjoy the music and preaching. They have about 4 part-time pastors who rotate, which I find interesting. It's because most of them also have other jobs like teaching at the Christian school.

Okonomiyaki

2010-03-09T11:22:00.005+09:00

So on Sunday I had a friend Kaoru, teach me how to make Okonomiyaki. It's a very popular Japanese food here in Osaka, and its delicious! It's made up of cabbage, a special flour, eggs, water, and then whatever ingredients you would like.

This is how it turned out: this one has cheese on top :)

We also made a pork Okonomiyaki, but I have had it with beef, shrimp, octopus, and even kimchi and cheese, so good! On the top you can add the special sauce, mayo, dried fish, and dried seaweed. I love the sauce and mayo.

This is me the first time I tried eating Okonomiyaki:

If you eat at a restaurant they will have this special frying section on your table, so your food never gets cold. Perfect!
But if you're at home you can make it in a normal frying pan but it does take some skill and practice! In English they call it the "Japanese pancake".

Turning Japanese!

2010-03-08T15:14:00.005+09:00

So this past week on Wednesday, March 3rd (3/3) was Girls Day in Japan, "HINA MATSURI". It's a day to celebrate girl's growth and in the past it was a big festival in Japan. Nowadays families might eat special food or go out, but it's not such a big deal anymore. Girls are sometimes given dolls and sometimes a family will collect these dolls. There are many to collect. The above picture is an example of these dolls.

Here is some more info I found about Hina Matsuri:

"The festival is originated from ancient practises where people would dispose dolls into rivers, believing that the dolls would absorb and bring away the bad spirit; some people still follow the custom these days by tossing symbolic paper dolls.

Japanese parents would give a set of Hina Ningyo (ornamental dolls, often passed on from generation to generation) to their baby girl on her first Hina Matsuri and would decorate and display the dolls annually to celebrate the child’s growth.

The Hina Ningyo set traditionally consists of 15 dolls which are replicas of ancient emperor, empress and their subordinates; the dolls are arranged on a seven-tiers platform in certain order together with decorative items and ceremonial food."

Japan also had a boys day May 5th (5/5) but the name was changed to Children day. Sorry boys!

For Hina Matsuri my church took me out to an Onsen, (what we would call a hotspring), and it was very nice. The best part was the fresh roses that they threw into the bath, in all colors, shapes, and sizes. I was really impressed. I told the ladies at my church, "we have nothing like this in Canada". The baths were hot, warm, and cold and there was a steam room and sauna. They had many variations of baths. There was one where you could lay down and it was like a hot tub with the jets. Very nice. And I did it Japanese style :)

I would recommend doing this again. My skin was very soft especially after the salt scrub and steam room. It's really nice at night and after a long day of working! I slept sooo good!

Some exciting news!

2010-02-17T00:07:00.005+09:00

Some of you may have heard this news already, but I have to tell everyone!
One of my students and close friend decided to become a Christian!
It is the first person I have seen become a Christian since I came here to Japan!

I met Tsuguto at a church in Kawanishi. He came to study English, but could not attend my classes there on Wednesday, so I suggested another church that would fit into his schedule. He started coming there every week, and then I invited him to church and he started coming to church every week too. It was fascinating for me to see how interested he was in learning more about the Bible and what being a Christian was all about. I introduced him to many Christian people and God was also working in his life and leading Christian people to talk to him at random in a major bookstore in Umeda.

I asked him what he needed to know before he became a Christian, and he said he would like to read at least the whole New Testament, before he made any decisions.
Well, one Sunday we both attended Kawanishi church again. It was the first time he had been there since he had come for English class and the church members were so friendly to him and they welcomed him with open arms.
After the service I saw him talking with the Pastor, and then we had lunch and they were still talking, and then after lunch they were still talking. I had no idea what was going on, but I thought it must be important :)
Then Tsuguto turned towards me and said, "I'm really nervous" and started to read a Bible verse in English, about how we are all called to be sons of God, and I paused for a moment, and then realized that maybe, just maybe, Tsuguto was becoming a Christian right there!
It was an awesome experience, and I could see the transformation in his face, and it was soo great because we had all been praying for him: the people at Japan Mission, the Bible time teacher at this church and I, and many others too!

And so I thank you for your prayers! They work. Please keep praying for Tsuguto. He is a young Christian and needs all the support we can give him :)

God does answer prayers!

2010-02-15T23:14:00.003+09:00

I'd like to tell you about some of the prayer requests that were shared at our Japan Mission Prayer Meetings, then answered . We meet every Tuesday morning and share what's on our hearts and maybe other requests people have asked us to pray for.

One week we prayed that Aaron and Crystal would get an answer about Caia's adoption because they had not heard anything from the adoption agency in about two months. That afternoon Aaron shared with me, that the agency got in contact with them to let them know they are in the last stages of the adoption process. It was wonderful news for them, and it looks like everything is going well. So keep praying that the mother would not change her mind now, and that Caia can officially become part of the Wilson family :)

Another prayer request was about a church I have in Kawanishi. I have had no new students start there since I became the teacher and its a bit dissapointing since every other church has either grown or the members have changed. So we prayed about the situation, and the next day I went to that church and I had two new students that have decided to join the class! I was so excited! God really does hear our prayers and answers them in amazing ways.

Please pray for each of our churches and us as teachers and that we can show them the love of God and the peace and joy He gives us!

Keep praying! It is an amazing tool, and to think we can talk directly to God...how many other religions can say they do that??

Sushi Time!

2010-02-08T10:49:00.003+09:00

So on Saturday, Crystal took me and her family to visit her friend Oki who owns a Sushi restaurant. The food was delicious and Oki is very friendly and kind :)

This is the room where we ate lunch in and Caia explored all over!

Oki is hard at work making fresh sushi with fish that he bought that morning!

This is special sushi, Makisushi. It's very big and has many different kinds of things inside! Sometimes egg, many vegetables, fish, then rice and seaweed.
The Japanese eat this on the night before the first day of Spring.

This was Caia's first time trying sushi. Just rice and seaweed.
What did you think Caia?

Here is our sushi plate. All kinds of seafood:
Eel, Octopus, Salmon, Yellowtail, Shrimp, Squid, Tuna, and then an egg one too
with a side of ginger! So good, and I was so full after this!

Mochi Party!

2010-02-02T16:17:00.008+09:00

Even the women got involved!

After pounding into this paste, we rolled them into little round balls, and ate it with either, soup, soy sauce and sugar, or soybean powder.

Now the hard work begins...

All the men watching, not much cooking :)

Mochi is special rice that they cook, steam, and then pound into a sticky-goo.

So on Sunday I visited my Friday's church in Izumi-Fuchu.

After church we made Mochi.

Japanese buffet and sights!

2010-02-01T23:18:00.005+09:00

So my wonderful church in Kawanishi decided they wanted to take me out for lunch to Nose Onsen. An onsen is actually what we would call a hot spring back in Canada, but the Japanese treat an onsen like a bath...no clothing!

Thankfully we only went there for the great Japanese buffet lunch, which was delicious. Unfortunately we had a time limit of 70 minutes, or I would have eaten more! (haha, not at all. I ate soo much! I guess they have to have the time limit so other people can have a chance to eat too!)

This kanji says "Nose Onsen"

Pastor Tokuda, and his wife Emiko. So cute!

Seiko, the Bible time teacher and good friend, and I,
enjoying the delicious taste!

These are all sushi with Octopus. Anyone??
I tried it! It was a bit chewy...but good!

Demonstrating how to make fresh Tempura!
Tempura is deep fried vegetables or sea food. Yummy!

Afterwards, we did some sightseeing.
I noticed these tiny back roads and the Pastor thought it would be
great to take me on them on the way home! A little scary!

But there were so many beautiful bridges!
Sadly this is a man-made lake and you cannot swim in it!

We had a very nice time together!

2010-01-26T11:49:00.002+09:00

So here is the cute Penguin video I promised!

Holidays...

2010-01-16T11:00:00.001+09:00

Well, I wasn't sure what Christmas and New Year's was going to be like in Japan, but I was not disappointed! I kept busy, toured Kyoto, Nara, and Osaka, and met some new people! It was great! So to all of you that keep talking about being homesick, don't worry! I miss you all, but God has provided me with wonderful people here in Japan, and hopefully many more :)

This is Paul and Esther Troyer and I at our Christmas dinner that David and Sue Verwey put on for us. It was delicious! And I'm sorry to disappoint you all but I didn't eat sushi! We had the whole Turkey dinner, with mashed potatoes and stuffing, yum!
I met a new person in January, her name is Moi and right now she lives in Chiba (near Tokyo) and is finishing her degree at a Christian University there. She came to Japan Mission to check out our place and talk with David because she is interested in coming in September. I hope she can! She was great and she is just one year younger than me :) I have been praying for Christian girl friends and God is answering that prayer daily! Oh, this picture is in Nara Parks, just 20 minutes from Ikoma, and this is the tallest wooden building in this area, but I don't know the name :( In the parks there are deer that roam free and you can feed them and pet them if you're brave :) We took Moi there on the coldest day of the winter so far, and we even saw a few flakes of snow!

I think he wanted money for a temple, but we just wanted a picture. I hope he wasn't mad!

Moi and I.

I also really wanted to go skating this winter, so before it was over we found a really nice rink to go skating and where we could rent skates. I really wanted to smell ice! I know I'm weird, but you miss the smell of snow and ice when there is none. I keep saying it feels like fall, or even spring sometimes, because its not very cold and there is no hint of snow...
Skating in Japan is very expensive! Just to enter the rink and watch, you have to pay $11, to go skating its $15 dollars, and to rent its another $4 dollars! So in total its almost $20 dollars to go skating in Japan! So, to all of you in Canada, be thankful! You are lucky! It was also very crowded, but the ice was good and it was warm there because just above was a recreation center with a swimming pool.
This is at Namihaya Dome. And this is Marilyn and I. Marilyn is from Indian and works for the Christian high school KCS, and is usually very busy. But we have become very good friends recently :)
Ah, this is the Aquarium in Osaka. It was fabulous! I've always loved these archways of water and fish; I was so happy to finally see one in person! There were all kinds of fish, penguins, dolphins, sea otters, and much, much more. The largest tank is about 5 stories tall, so you start at the top and circle your way down around the tank. It was crazy and beautiful and there was so much to see. I am going to try and post the penguin parade video, its soooo cute!
This is Osaka castle. It is not the original castle, but it is beautiful! Normally you can go inside and look around, but the day we decided to go there it was closed! Just before New Years until January 1 it was closed, but it was a gorgeous day, not a cloud in the sky!
So my friends asked someone where else they could take me that was interesting to see and he suggested Tsutenkaku, which used to be the tallest building in Osaka, back in the day. It is also not the original building. They took the original apart, to use the iron and the metal for the war, and so the building today is not as beautiful as it once was.
But check out this sunset!!! I was blown away. Normally I miss the sunset because I am teaching at this time or there are too many buildings in the way to see the sunset perfectly, so I was impressed. It kinda reminded me of the sunsets in Mexico, so orange! We had good timing this day :)
While Moi was here she wanted to visit Kyoto, so we took her to Kinkakuji, the Golden temple, which is one of the most famous temples in Kyoto. The area where this temple was is soo beautiful and it was another gorgeous day, just a few clouds! It kinda reminded me of Canada!
It was a very busy day, as it was during New Years holidays and many people wanted to come and visit these temples :(
On the way back from the Golden Temple I thought it would be cool to see the Imperial Palace! haha! Well apparently its closed most of the year and only open two times a year, in Spring and Fall for about 1 or 2 weeks! The Royal family does not live here, they live in Tokyo, and so all we could see was this, and then a huge wall surrounding the rest of it :(

Me, Marilyn, and Moi (the 3 M's!)

Before we left Kyoto, this is the Kyoto tower at the train station, which looks very beautiful at night when its all lit up. They also had lots of lights still up from maybe Christmas and New Years :)
So that's just a glimpse of my Holidays, which I enjoyed very much. I also got to participate in the annual New Years Shopping sales, which was crazy!!!!!!!!!! But I managed to come away with a nice warm winter jacket, at a terrific price! The wind in Japan is cold, so you need all the warmth you can get!
Now its back to class, and please continue to pray for my students and that God would open their hearts to hear about Him, and that he would give me much wisdom in how I teach!

I love you all, and thank you so much for your prayers this last year in 2009 and please keep praying for this new year of 2010! Enjoy the Olympics!

Christmas Parties :)

2009-12-21T13:55:00.004+09:00

So this week I began the first 2 of my 4 Christmas parties! The week started off with a few of us making 24 dozen sugar cookies to take to our classes to decorate and eat (of course!). Crystal had some nice Christmas cookie cutters that we used to make all kinds of different shapes! I had fun!

This is my Kawachinagano church. Our first class made Christmas cards, sang Christmas carols, did a present exchange, and then finished off with some traditional Christmas cake! Their cards were fantastic! I was so proud of them :)

This is my kids class at Kawachinagano. They got to decorate the cookies, play some games, while their mothers enjoyed Christmas cake!
Our second class decided to have a potluck party and they also did an amazing job! The food was a mixture of Korean, Japanese, smoked salmon and maybe Chinese too! Very delicious!
This is my Friday's class at Izumi-Fuchu. We also made cards here and they had a blast! They were very creative!

These ladies were soo cute! They made Christmas cards and then stayed for the children's class, where only one girl showed up, and so they also decorated cookies! One lady said she felt like a child again!My juniour high school class also wanted to decorate cookies :)But they also loved playing Jenga! I think we got about 33 levels this time!
My high school class plus another woman, at Izumi-Fuchu. They surprised me by wanting to decorate cookies after we played a rousing game of Spoons! They loved it! It almost got violent :)Some examples of some pretty talented cookie decorators! So cute!So two more parties to go, and I am excited for Christmas! Please pray that the students remember there is more to Christmas than presents

Kobe Luminarie-Christmas Lights!

2009-12-14T21:29:00.003+09:00

So I thought we did a pretty good job decorating for Christmas back home in Canada, but Kobe, Japan puts Canada to shame...

Here are all the other people that thought that Kobe puts on a great show!
The original walking time takes about 10 minutes, but it was 90 minutes by the time we wanted to see the lights!

There are about three blocks of lights, covering the street to make it look like a Cathedral! There must be millions of lights to make it look this good! They also were playing Opera music, so it almost felt like we were in a church! Well, we did go on Sunday night!

The Great Entrance!

At the end of the walk there was this beautiful castle! And there were sooo many people! All that black are heads of people trying to walk by us!
Then we discovered that we could go inside and explore and found this beautiful gazebo and took many pictures of the inside too! Soo beautiful! I was very happy I could go. Today was the last day :(

Enjoying life :)

2009-12-12T00:15:00.003+09:00

My churches were really kind to me and for my birthday we had cake, others gave me presents, and another gave me these beautiful pink roses, which amazingly did not get damaged when I took them on the train in Osaka at rush hour. It was the first time I had ever been pushed into a train and didn't even have to worry about falling because there were soo many people surrounding me! It was like a stampede...never again!

This picture is taken from the 8th floor of Nara Parks, which is a very expensive shopping district in Namba. I didn't feel like shopping anymore so I suggested we go to the top floor and found that the top floor was outside, which was peaceful, had fresh air, and trees all around. It was a nice change.

This is also taken in Namba when Sunette, her friend, and I journeyed to a piano concert. Sunette thought the colors were amazing and I had to agree. Traffic mixed with ginkgo trees. It feels like fall still in Japan. Today the temperature was 15.

All in black. Must be turning Japanese! We also found a Subway right by the train station, so now I know where a Starbucks and Subway are! I'm set :)

I took a picture with the Pianist, Hideo Kobori. He played beautifully, wrote and played some of his own music, and shared how God performed a miracle in his life. I really enjoyed this concert. So I had to buy his CD's :)

Christmas is fast approaching and I have had some amazing opportunities to share with my students, some for the first time, about Jesus, his birth, and what Jesus did when he grew up and began to preach. It was so exciting to be the one to tell them this true story for the first time and to share in their excitement when they started to ask questions because their soul was thirsting to hear more. I was so blessed to be able to let God use me!

Please continue to pray for the students, and us teachers. Please also pray for this sore throat and cough that I have picked up. It makes teaching pretty hard.

I hope you all have a blessed Christmas and that you celebrate the true meaning of CHRISTmas and remember that the greatest gift was God's Son, Jesus!

Turning 25 in Japan

2009-11-26T08:22:00.003+09:00

So this past Sunday I celebrated my 25th Birthday in Japan, how exciting! I'd like to thank all of you who sent cards, gifts, emailed, or sent me a Facebook message, it meant a lot to me, especially it being the first birthday away from home :)

Crystal helped me celebrate by throwing the party at her and Aaron's
house and she made a delicious lemon cake, yum!

So even though I was in Japan, I still felt like getting the traditional ice cream cake, but there is no Dairy Queen here. But they have Baskin Robins which makes flavoured ice cream cakes, and there was two kinds in this one: popping shower and cookies and cream. Soo good!

My Japanese friends Eriko and Chieko got me this hat for my birthday.
It's perfect because it has Snoopy on it and so does the cake!

So thank you again to everyone who has kept me in their prayers. God has been very good to me and has blessed me with many people who care about me here in Japan. I love you all!

From Nara Park in October

2009-11-21T15:56:00.002+09:00

So when Crystal and I went to Nara Park we passed these guys who worked in a rice shop. I don't know what they were making, but its obvious they have practiced this routine a few times :)

Kyoto

2009-11-10T11:54:00.003+09:00

Videos :)

2009-11-10T09:41:00.004+09:00

Good-bye Karen and Ferris! :(

2009-11-02T17:32:00.003+09:00

Karen did these lovely arrangements

One big happy family :)

Aaron convinced them to come to Japan to see Caia :)

Karen and Ferris have come every year for the last 20 years, and will hopefully be coming again next year! They both have big hearts and I felt right at home with them. Karen and I did a few shopping and lunch trips which were awesome :) Miss you Karen!

Starting to feel Homesick :(

2009-11-02T09:13:00.002+09:00

Well, this week was a bit hard for me...I thought I was past the stage of getting homesick, but apparently not! I talk to family and friends at least once a week and get the updates, but this time that was not enough.

On Thursday I received my Birthday present from home early! (hehe, I love you guys~!). It came at the perfect time, just when I needed to know that some one was thinking about me. It made me realize just how much I am loved, and well...it made me cry! I love you guys sooooooo much too!

I went to class that day in low spirits, but tried to be upbeat and my normal cheery self. I'm sad to say it didn't last long and I was crying again! Oh boy! My students were very understanding and I think it allowed them to see me as human too, not always perfect and happy :)

I was able to pass along a magazine-like book called "The Book of Hope" to my Intermediate class. There was one girl in particular that mentioned her Japanese Bible is very hard to understand so I found this magazine which is in written in both Japanese and English, and maybe the NIV translation, so I hope she will be able to understand more when she reads this version. She has a very kind heart and we became friends very quickly. Her husband and his family are Christians, but she has not yet made that decision. Please pray for Masami :)

I had also brought some extra magazines, just in case, and I was surprized when other students accepted the book eagerly and said that they were eager to learn more. God is good.

I think God is using my homesickness to humble me in front of my students, but also to show my Japanese friends that I have hope and comfort in something much greater. Please pray for Chieko and her boyfriend; they are experiencing many troubles in this last week. I would like to share with her about my faith, but many times I have stopped myself from doing so. I need courage and gentleness to do so, so please pray that God gives me wisdom.

I am thankful for the people here in Japan that have had willing ears and hearts to listen to my struggles this week. I really appreciated them, and the time they spent with me. I really know now that God's timing is perfect and that I came at the right time and right place in Japan.

Please continue to pray for all the students. God is showing me which hearts are open and willing to listen. Each student is different so I need much wisdom. I wish I had Solomon's wisdom.

It has been a little over 2 months now, which is great! I am still really enjoying it and am now feeling a bit more like exploring and going to new places. We are going to find a Mexican restaurant tonight, and its authentic Mexican food, made by a Mexican, no Japanese!

Some new pics from today

2009-10-19T21:30:00.003+09:00

Deer hanging out in the park where they roam free

Fall is coming quickly...

Can you see the turtle sitting on the log, sunning himself?

We found real-homemade cheesecake, Caia wanted some too...

These two lovely ladies stopped to take a photo with me in their beautiful kimono's

School trip to Nara Park. Many of the students are wearing masks because
the H1N1 virus is shutting down schools here in Japan.

It was Caia-chan's 8th month birthday today :)

Turtle pond, where many imported American turtles swim about looking for you to feed them

Enjoying life in Japan

2009-10-18T21:21:00.003+09:00

This will be much shorter than the last update... :)

So last Monday was Thanksgiving in Canada and while you all enjoyed Turkey, Aaron, Crystal, and I enjoyed Green curry, which tasted great Aaron! The only thing I really missed was the stuffing :) I think that we can get turkey here but they do not celebrate Thanksgiving, so it was some random holiday like Sports Day or their National Day, I got conflicting answers...

We now officially have started our Prayer Meetings on Tuesdays at 10am before everyone rushes off to classes. It's a great time of sharing and praying for each others burdens. Please pray for all the teachers and office workers, and those involved in other ways as well. God is doing some great work in Japan, we just have to have faith.

On Tuesday I handed out fliers again in Momodani and this time the Pastor and I had a great time and we handed out stacks of fliers! So I know it was with your prayer support that there was a change in people's hearts. We were in the same place doing almost the same thing and the reaction was so much more positive!

On Wednesday we started our Japanese class and I am really glad that I have some background knowledge of Japanese or I would be lost! We are going to be having a beginners class and an intermediate class. I am staying in the beginner class so that I can review and relearn everything I have forgotten which is a lot!
I also got my haircut on Wednesday, by a very nice Japanese guy who could speak some English and the staff were so nice. And when I was about to leave they gave me an umbrella for free because I had not brought one along that day and it had started to pour while I was in their shop. What good service! I am definitely going back there again. Especially since the hairdresser had studied in London, England and knew how to cut my hair :)

Friday I went out for some Indian Food which was very tasty and I enjoyed it all! Curry, Naan bread, and Samosas, yum, yum!

Saturday I went out for lunch with Karen, Ferris, Crystal, Aaron, and baby Caia. Aaron's favourite burger was back on the menu and it tasted something like White Spot's Legendary Burger, soooo good! We also went and checked out an outdoors store like Vahalla's and it had some really good clothes but expensive.
That evening Sunette, who is from South Africa, made us a home cooked meal South African style, which I should have taken pictures of but forgot my camera. There was something like a meatloaf, and then something like quiches, yellow rice, and a vegetable salad. So good! This is why I haven't done much cooking in Japan, so many other great cooks!

Sunday I did my second visitation to Kawachinagano church, which is a Mennonite Brethren church. He spoke on Moses and excepting God's calling for our lives. The sermon was all in Japanese, no translation. He told me after :) I was asked to introduce myself but I didn't give a testimony this time. The church members were also very friendly, and I met many people during lunch which was served in the basement of the church.

One of my students was there and we spent the afternoon together with her husband and his friends. They made a bbq in their backyard and it was a beautiful day so we all ate outside. It was delicious!

Tomorrow is suppose to be another nice day so I asked Crsytal if she would like to go to Nara Park, where you can feed the deer, just 10-15 minutes away. Their deer are much smaller than ours in Canada, but apparently sometimes the will bite or kick you. Gotta run fast!

Well thank you for checking out my blog and please keep Japan Mission in your prayers~!

Time for an Update!

2009-10-12T09:36:00.007+09:00

Well lots has happened in the last week or so...where to start?

Well here's a break down of what I have been up to:

September 29th: Linda, one of the former teachers, left the Mission to go back home to the States, and she had been here for 8 years, so she will be missed by many people! I will too Linda! She was very helpful in making me feel comfortable in Japan and showing me around. We became friends right away :)

I have been teaching for about one month and a half and am starting to really enjoy it and have fun and I think the students are really warming up to me and its going really well.

I have been meeting people individually who want to learn English so I have been inviting them to the churches where I teach and the classes are growing. Please pray for one of my churches in Momodani, they are just starting the English program, and would like to see it grow, so we have been distributing flyers, but haven't been that successful...so please pray for open hearts and maybe a different approach that would work out better.

On the 9th I taught at Izumi-Fuchu and had a great day with my students. The last class I have there is a high school class and I have found it difficult to bond with them so afterwards I went out for coffee and cake with Megumi, the pastors daughter and Kana, who is in probably in her 30's, who wanted to talk with me but was very shy. And we had a really great time :)

I had my first real day of shopping experience in Japan with Chieko. Wow, there is so much I wanted to buy, but things are expensive here! I saw a cute shirt and it was $50 and a vest that was $80, together, and I really liked it but, NO WAY was I going to pay that much! I did get a new purse and this super-cute teddy bear key chain that I put on my purse. So cute.

The next day I met Yoko, a Japanese friend from Canada, and she took me to her home town Ikeda, and we did some window shopping and I found some winter boots that fit me (yeah!) and then we went to her house for dinner and it was sooo good! Her family was very kind to me and then we watched Mama Mia, hehe, with Japanese subtitles!

The next week was interesting because a Super-typhoon was suppose to hit Japan on Thursday, but they had no idea how strong it would be. Being from Canada, I had no idea what to expect, so I was a bit worried, but as it got closer, the winds slowed down, the typhoon warning was downgraded and when it finally came on Wednesday night around midnight to 3am, in Ikoma it was like a storm in Vernon. The wind was stronger but I slept right through the night. Thank you for all your prayers! I know God was protecting us for sure! I heard about Samoa and the terrible Tsunami that hit there, and the floods in India and the Phillipines and I was worried, but everyone and everything is fine here, thank God :)

I had a new students join a class that almost got cancelled so praise God and I hope now more will come. One church that I have really enjoyed working with had not been praying after their Bible studies, which I felt was important, so this week I asked the Pastor if he minded if I prayed, or if someone could pray after the Bible time. He liked the idea and so after each class I prayed in English, and one lady asked me if next time I could pray slower so she could understand what I had said, ahhh! So exciting! They are pretty open-minded it seems...

This Friday I while I was getting ready, I did not feel good at all. I was cold and sweaty and had a terrible headache but I had to go to work because it was too late in the day to cancel. I hadn't prepared much, so I was a bit worried, but throughout the day I began to feel a bit better, still with the headache, but I was able to teach and enjoy it. Then it was time for my high school class, the only class that I haven't been able to connect with.... Well, I'm not sure what happened, if I did anything different, but they were soo good that day, and they all did a little bit of talking and we had a great time, the BEST so far :) What a nice way to end the week. But I was tired that night and just went home and slept.

On Saturday I went to Universal Studios with Chieko and Ericko, and we had a blast! We did Spiderman and Back to the Future and a roller coaster and saw a few shows, it was so much fun! and the weather co-operated with us too. It was a beautiful sunny day :)

On Sunday October 11th, I did my first church visitation in Kawanishi which is about 2 hours away from Ikoma. So I was up super early to catch the trains and was early for church :) I gave my testimony there and someone translated for me. They were so nice and kind, and they also gave me a lovely bouquet of flowers with roses and gerber daisies.

After church I was so tired so I came home and slept for a bit and then went downstairs to have some homemade pizza with the Mission workers. Karen made the delicious pizza and Aaron and Crystal made garlic bread, soo good!

Afterwards, I was feeling a little restless so I sat down at the piano and really enjoyed playing some worship music. That was really nice. Doris, they have the green and purple book from the red book series that I have! :)

So today is Monday and its my day to get caught up on everything and get ready for another week. I think I will be baby-sitting Caia for a bit today too! She just started crawling this last week, its soo cute.

Well take care everyone back home and I miss you all. Come and visit any time :)

Wanna see something cool???

2009-10-04T00:37:00.002+09:00

Everyone should go and check out Japan Mission's website and see the staff write ups! Mine's in there! Enjoy! Please read the others as well :)

Here's their sight: http://www.japanmission.org/ and look under staffing.

~Melanie~

Do you know what your Anointing is?

2009-09-28T15:12:00.000+09:00

You Have an Anointing
TGIF Today God Is First Volume 2, by Os Hillman
09-28-2009

"As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit - just as it has taught you, remain in him" (1 John 2:27).

Do you know your anointing? An anointing is a gift that functions easily when it is operating in you to benefit others and the Kingdom of God. If one has to "work it up" one has probably gone outside one's anointing.

One area that I have a God-given anointing is in networking. I have never sought to develop such an anointing. But I know a LOT of people. Despite being an introvert by nature, God has connected me with people all around the world. Many times people call me about something and my natural response is, "Oh, you need to contact so and so. He can help you with that." A mentor once said to me, "Your inheritance is in relationships." What he was saying is that my anointing is in relationships and networking.

My wife has an anointing in the area of disarming people. She can be someone's best friend in five minutes. She disarms people faster than anyone I know. There is no way you can be a shy person around my wife. I have seen people open up to Angie where they would not open up to anyone else. It is her anointing.

Where do you move naturally in your life? What do you do that you don't have to work at it? Chances are that is your anointing. God wants you to walk in the anointing he has given to you.

Atumn Festival-Silver Week

2009-09-27T14:46:00.000+09:00

So this last week the Japanese had holidays called Silver Week, and Aaron took some great pictures of the Temple up by the Mission, only about a 5 minute walk up the hill from us. I was working so I missed it.

Laterns

Going up the steps towards the Temple.

Beautifully decorated :)

Potluck and Another Japanese Friend :)

2009-09-27T09:20:00.000+09:00

So this week we had a farewell BBQ potluck for Linda, and then I met up with some former Japanese students that had come to Vernon 5 years ago. That was fun :)

Me and Eriko, in Muji, a department store very similar to Ikea, but Japanese style. She works at one but a different location.

Hiromi H and I. Enjoying food and dessert at Muji's Cafe.

Caramel and Vanilla swirl. Do you notice anything weird about this picture? There are cornflakes on the bottom of this dessert.
Apparently they do this to save money, not to be healthy :)

Dessert from the potluck. Sue made brownies and I took some leftovers; they were delicious~

David, Linda, and Neil.
Last time they will be all together like this for awhile.
Linda is leaving to go back to the States and Neil is in South Africa right now.

the guys were on clean-up duty :) Daniel and Aaron

Sue, Kaoru, and Mr. Fukunaga enjoying the spread.
Kaoru took me and Ester to Costco the next day. So sweet, and her English is amazing.
Costco was crazy though! Especially on a Holiday :O

Almost everyone at the potluck, going around the circle:
Ester, Paul, Linda, Lisa, Neil (being silly), David, Karen, and Ferris!
Karen and Ferris are from Florida helping out for a month.
He will be putting in my new oven. yay!

My Home :)

2009-09-19T13:22:00.000+09:00

So I have pretty much settled into my new home, and I love it :) Here are some photos for those of you who wanted to make sure that I was not living in a box! Hope you enjoy :)

This is a map of the area where my churches are and where I will be traveling to.

My weekly schedule: Tuesday to Friday, with one day to plan my lessons, one day off, and Sundays when I will be attending church and visiting my other churches. I finally have Saturdays off! God is wonderful :)

Looking back into the living room from my bedroom. Have lots of closet pace.

Dressers and getting ready stuff

My bedroom!

My phone and little special touch: Skittles and some sweet coasters I bought.

Study Center, all neat and organized, ready to start a new week!

Bamboo! and lots of it!

Window to look at bamboo

I have some nice rugs and a great view of the bamboo forest behind me.
I put all the chairs together to make a nice couch :)

Going to my living room and study center

The view from my shower

The tub that is small but deep for those cold winter days :)

My bathroom, that is also super small but functional and easy to clean :)

Here's the view from my kitchen window :) This is today, beautiful and sunny and there's a nice breeze flowing through my rooms :)

Here is my small but super functional and easy to clean kitchen.

So this is the view from the hallway coming into my suite. I have a full fridge and soon I will be getting a new stove and oven :)

Going on Week Three :)

2009-09-15T08:22:00.000+09:00

So I've been bad and haven't update this in awhile. Got busy I guess, or lazy :) Here are some more recent photos...

Just a thought about Swine Flu...

2009-09-11T09:06:00.000+09:00

So I came to Japan about 2 weeks ago, and I love it here.

But as I started taking the trains I noticed there are many people wearing masks to prevent Swine Flu. This is all good if they think this will prevent getting sick, but here's the kicker.

Many bathrooms in the Japanese train stations have no toilet paper and no soap.

I learned yesterday from a doctor who works for JR train line that they think many people steal the toilet paper, so they don't provide it any more.

But come on, don't they know that most germs are spread through touching different surfaces that other people have touched?
He knew about the rule of washing your hands for 20 seconds and singing the Happy Birthday song. I learned this at McDonald's so I was happy that as a Doctor he knew this too.

Japanese think that their feet are the dirties part of their body. If you think about it though, hands can be far dirtier than feet.

So I shared my concerns with the JR doctor about putting soap in all the bathrooms and this would be a much more effective way to prevent Swine Flu than just wearing a mask, right? So we'll see if anything comes of that!

He thought people would steal the soap, and I know from my McDonald's experience that you can put locks on those kinds of things, so that should not be an excuse!

So those are my thoughts on Swine Flu prevention. Comment away if you like :)

This weekend :)

2009-09-07T13:09:00.000+09:00

So on Saturday I went somewhere with Sue and Dave to see some young girls do cheer leading. They were pretty good. There was lots of other stuff to see too. I also took some shots of the fancy toilets at Aeon mall and of the food I made for the potluck :)

Spicy Thai stir fry

Baby chair

ALL the options...

the seat was warm too, almost hot!

Traditional bow and arrows

The cheer squad with their soccer team:)

Girls will be girls:their favourite soccer player :)

The name of the team: Twinkles

Me, Yoshi, Sue and some of the Team. Yoshi was hilarious!

Kids were practicing their shooting for fun

Some game I don't know...

It was a hot day and this is the field where they
performed and where soccer camp was being held

God's Blessings are overflowing :)

2009-09-05T06:47:00.000+09:00

So yesterday was my first day. I was kinda in limbo because I was taking over a class from a teacher that was not from the Mission. So I had no idea of how many students I had, what their level really was (sometimes teachers misdiagnose, haha), and if they had any books at all. It made me nervous every time I thought about it.

Everyone else had already started planning lessons to try, but I really didn't know where to start, based on what I knew. Well I could have tried, but it being my first time teaching I wasn't sure how much to prepare. So in the end I figured that I would probably be doing introductions; them learning about me and me learning about them. Aaron helped me print some pictures of my family and I used them to share about Vernon, Kal Lake, Wintertime, and my wonderful family. Kelly, they thought you were really tall! And Natalie they loved the picture I showed them of your wedding :) Michelle, one girl said she thought we looked very much like sisters, yay!

So the day started with me and Sue taking the trains. She was my guide making sure that I was writing down directions, so I could teach her next time how I would get around. It's so different for me, but not hard. I think I got the hang of that route, now I just have to learn 3 more next week! And keep all the tickets straight!

After we got to the city, the Pastor of the church, picked me up, but instead of driving me, he came on his bike to show me how I would walk to the church. One REALLY good thing is that this city is flat, so no hills! haha. It seems easy enough to get there. So I arrived early this day because they were having me over for lunch to meet the teacher that was leaving. They have a really nice family and Pastor Tabata, is very friendly. We had a good lunch, then I met Heather, the previous teacher, and she gave me notes about the students, books that she was using, and Pastor gave me a class list. She also had nicely prepared something for every class just in case I hadn't. So sweet.

So we started the classes. I had 5 today. First one was just free talking, their English level is high so we can have a conversation in English. The second one was also a free class with a much higher tendency to speak Japanese, but they were fun, so with me, they will have to try to speak English, cause I know 10 words in Japanese! Third class, was elementary students, but there were only two, and they were older, 10 and 11, so I could talk to them, but they were being shy, so they said very little. We had dinner after that at the church, which was very good, then it was time for the last two classes.

The fourth class was jr high, and there were three of them, and they were all very different, kinda quiet but not too bad. One girl does free style dance, the one boy does Karate, and the other boy is the Pastor's son. It was fun. The last class, number 5 were the high school students and they have the biggest class and we had an observer seeing if she would like to join the class. We actually had a few different observers which is great. The students introduced themselves then I introduced myself then we played a game/vocabulary game about who they are and what kinds of personality traits they have. It was a great way to get to know them. We also did a twist on it, and they had to describe someone in the class, and then their classmates had to guess who it might be. They had a good time I think, so hopefully I will see them all back next Friday

All in all I think it went very well and I really liked Heather too. I'm sad to see her go. She let me do most of the talking today, but I knew the students were sad to see her go, so it was nice for them to see us get along and not think of me as "the threatening new teacher". I got to see how she interacted with them, and how it will have to change since I can't talk back to them in Japanese, even if I wanted to :)

There is one bonus. Pastor Tabata has a daughter, Megumi, who is in University, who will be sitting in on classes to help me out with the lower levels, which are the elementary, jr high, and high school students. That will be very nice. Thanks Megumi! She's great!

So a great first day of teaching and I was tired coming home but not stressed. And I didn't smell like grease, hehe! Thanks for all your prayers, I felt them :)

A Devotion To a Fellow Perfectionist

2009-09-05T06:44:00.000+09:00

Read this if you think everything has to be perfect to be effective...

The Perfectionist
TGIF Today God Is First Volume 2, by Os Hillman
09-04-2009

"Moses said to the LORD, 'O Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech and tongue'" (Ex 4:10).

One of the greatest affronts you can commit against God is to refuse His calling that He has placed upon you. Imagine arguing with your Creator and telling him you know better than Him.

That is exactly what Moses did when God called him to be his spokesperson to Pharaoh.

God and Moses got into an "I know best" competition. "The LORD said to him, 'Who gave man his mouth? Who makes him deaf or mute? Who gives him sight or makes him blind? Is it not I, the LORD? Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say.' But Moses said, 'O Lord, please send someone else to do it.'"

God actually relented in the argument. Can you imagine that? But He's not happy about it. "Then the LORD's anger burned against Moses and he said, 'What about your brother, Aaron the Levite?'" God has to use Aaron as Moses' mouthpiece.

Have you ever not pursued something because it had to be perfect? There is a fine line between doing things with excellence and being a perfectionist. Perfectionists become argumentative with God. They refuse to step out in faith and obedience because they care too much about what others think if the results don't turn out perfectly.

I battled these same demons when God led me into a writing and speaking ministry. "Lord, I am weak in grammar and you know I'm an introvert." Then He reminded me "...for my power is made perfect in weakness" (2 Cor 12:9).

When God places His anointing on you He uses whatever level of skill you have to fulfill His purposes in your life. This is why you need not fear moving into an unfamiliar area if He calls you there.

What is God waiting for you to do? It may be time to step out. He specializes in "cliff-catching."

First Day on the Job!

2009-09-04T08:46:00.000+09:00

Hello Everyone,

So today I start teaching. I'm kinda nervous, having never actually taught before. Please pray for me! I'll let you all know how it goes! Today I have 5 classes, so it'll be a long day, but hopefully exciting! I can't wait to start meeting my future students :)

Wow, time flies when you're having fun!

2009-09-03T21:22:00.000+09:00

So it has been a week since I arrived in Japan. I can't believe it, it feels like I've been here forever, almost like home :) I saw another Japanese friend just the other day, her name is Cheiko. Silly me forgot to take any pictures of us, although I did get pictures of a nice McDonald's in Ikoma; its two stories tall and has some interesting menu choices.

And on the way back from Immigration in Nara, we passed the Deer Park, where I had to get out and take some pics, they are so cute! Here's another cute picture of Caia!

Caia is back, and as cute as ever :)

Check out their uniforms Lisa! Skirts for Managers, hey?

The Japanese are very visual, so most restaurants, including McDonald's, have menus that you can just point at the picture and they know what you are talking about! Smart.

A Japanese McDonald's Menu! They have ice coffee too!

one of the many shrines along the roads on our mountain

not wanting to get too close; he had horns!

hungry deer

sleepy deer

Neat things I've seen already...

2009-09-01T08:12:00.001+09:00

So we did some grocery shopping and I met up with a friend, Melmo, who lives in Japan, and here are some of the things that we saw and ate:

We ate the popular Osaka dish called Okonomiyaki, which is a cabbage pancake

Here is Mel about to try our Shrimp and Octopus pancakes :)

Driving in downtown Osaka

was trying to take pictures but I always had my flash on...

Osaka Castle, lights up at night :) Very pretty

The entrance. Some one took this pic so I didn't know it was so blurry!

Mel and Mel

The wall protecting the Castle, there is also a Moat around the whole thing

Pretty lights

Pastry for children, 25 years and under :)

Sue and David showing me some tiny cherry tomatoes for $3

The supermarket in Ikoma, a small one

Yes folks, that is Octopus, and I have now officially tried some. Very chewy! but a lot like chicken:)

The eyes were staring back at me...

The eyes are good for you, so they cook the fish with the eyes still in!

The nice lady had samples, no thank you :)

Times for the train. Which one would you like to take?

Where we are is where the red rectangle is, Ikoma Station

The whole board. This is a small town. Imagine Tokyo's system

Me with Ester and Paul, the other new teachers

Neil, Sue, and David took us out for lunch Sunday after church :) Arigato gozaimasu!

More Photos :)

2009-08-29T04:07:00.000+09:00

leftover's from last nights dinner.
We went to a restaurant where the sushi came on a conveyor belt and you got to chose what you wanted to eat. Not bad, but lots of raw stuff...

view of Ikoma from my balcony

standing outside my place on the second floor. Bamboo forest behind me

The Mission: offices upstairs, David and Sue's place, and David's father Neil's place too :)

view from my balcony

An outdoor swimming pool close by, but only open for a few more days :(

Kids at the baseball diamond/soccer field close to the Mission

Cable car that goes up the mountain. Yes that is a cat face :)

view from the mountain that Japan Mission is on. We went for quite the hike

on the way to a temple, just for a look :)

My Journey to a Foreign Land=Japan :)

2009-08-29T03:50:00.000+09:00

Sharing Your Faith with Others

2009-08-28T06:09:00.000+09:00

Sharing Your Faith with Others
TGIF Today God Is First Volume 2, by Os Hillman
08-27-2009

"I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith, so that you will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ" (Philem 6-7).

There is a strong correlation between those who publicly share their faith with others and an increase in spiritual growth for that individual. In my own journey I've discovered that when I stop sharing my faith with non-believers I begin to see a dryness in my walk with God.

Sometimes we justify our lack of verbal witness by saying we don't have the spiritual gift of evangelism. Or we conclude that because we have an introvert personality we leave witnessing to others who we deem as more qualified. As a well-qualified introvert myself, I've often wanted to use that excuse. Then, the Holy Spirit reminds me of a few instructions

Jesus said to EVERYONE:
"But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven" (Matt 10:33). "He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation" (Mark 16:15-16). There is not much confusion about what Jesus is saying in these verses. And it relates to all of us.

When we share Christ with others God allows us to gain a deeper and greater understanding of every good thing in Christ. Do you see the direct correlation between sharing your faith and your own spiritual growth? Paul says it's actually a prerequisite to spiritual growth.

One of the great ways to turn a conversation to faith is by asking someone if there is anything you can pray for them about. You will be surprised how easily this will transition you into a conversation about their faith lives.
Ask God for boldness today to offer to pray for someone.

This is my devotion for this morning. It's really cool cause I got to share my faith with the lady that did my "random inspection" at the airport. You all know how nervous i was about going through security. Well my worst fear came true. They pulled me aside and said that i was going to be searched, padded down, and that she would go through all my things (carry on wise)

Remember how much stuff was in the carry on? I just realized that she missed a whole section on my back pack! The one with all the electronic stuff in it! phewf!

So at first i was worried, and then I was like, God help me! and wow did he ever! So i had to take off my shoes, sweater, and put everything in the carts. They x-rayed them and then an East-Indian lady went through all of my backpack first with a metal detector and then by hand. What the cool thing was, was that by having this time together I was able to share what I was doing in Japan and she asked me lots of questions.

And here's the cool part. This lady did not look happy, after all it was only 5am. I was pretty intimidated by her. And then she found the plaque with my favorite bible verse Jeremiah 29:11, that mom and dad had given me and she read it, the whole thing, and it was so weird. It was like instantly after that she changed. She looked up at me and said "that's really nice" and she smiled. From then on the inspection was like talking to a friend. I got to share about leaving home and doing missionary work, and after everything was done she asked me if she could show me something.

I had no idea what it could be. But out from her pocket she pulled out a track that someone had put on her car, who knows how long ago. She wanted me to help explain it to her and why someone would put it on her car. The tract was about the judgment day and about Jesus dying on the cross for our sins, and the words came so easy to me. It was awesome! God is so cool! He used a random search in an airport as a tool for me to witness to someone! Something I had dreaded, when i was willing to give me fears to God he used me to reach out to this lady. It was amazing. I knew that prayer worked, i did, but now i realize how important it is to pray cause you'll never know where God can use you!

So that's just one thing that I really wanted to share with you guys right away. I met so many nice people along the way and that helped me get to Japan. So don't worry about me cause God sends people along the way to make sure that I am ok :)

2009-08-15T01:45:00.000+09:00

Well, its less than 2 weeks that I head off for Japan! I've been experiencing different emotions in the last week.

First, excitement. So many things to look forward to and everything will be a new experience: the people I meet, the food, where I live, living on my own...the list goes on.

Then I also have been trying to see as many people as possible before I leave because so much can change in a year. I went and saw my Oma, who is 93 years-old, and realized while talking with her that this time next year she may not be here. We have become very close in the last year, and it really hit me that in these two weeks, these could be my last memories of her. So we had a great time visiting and sharing and I am so happy to have an Oma that believes in God and that if I don't see her next year, I will see her in Heaven some day.

I also got to spend some time with my cousins which is always fun. One of my cousins is expecting in November and its her first boy. So I am experiencing mixed emotions of not being here to see him and not being as involved as I was with her other kids. But thank goodness for the internet and email and hopefully I can see some pics of him and their family.

I talked to my mom the other day, and we cried. So funny! We both don't know how we are going to feel with me away. We butt heads a lot but we also care about each other very much. It's going to be hard to be away from the person that I can vent to about work, friends, family, anything, and she listens to me and gives me advise. I really need that some days. So we'll see. Everyone says she'll miss me tons, and I hope so. But I also think this experience will give me a chance to spread my wings and grow as an adult which sometimes I feel I can't. So that excites me.

So yah, feeling the crunch and trying to get some of the details worked out before I go. I hope people will follow me to Japan through this blog and I can't wait to post some pics here and show you where I am!

tester

2009-08-10T15:18:00.000+09:00

So I am trying to create a blog, without much success. Please help!