First of all, I am going to be a typical Californian for a second...
SNOW~ too bad it lasted only....30 minutes or so, and it also melted as soon it landed on the ground. :T
These days, it seems as if things back at home were only a dream and what I am doing here in Japan is the real life that I have been living. The J-House members treat me as if I have been going here all my life and I guess to a certain extent, that is what I kind of hoped for, but I can already tell that I am doing too much. Whether it is doing the sound system, doing worship, filling in spots when people do not come on time or don’t show up. I was hoping to transition into these positions slowly and smoothly, but (maybe out of habit) I put myself in that position. This has caught the attention of the staff here, and I guess they want to make the most of my stay here. I actually don’t mind this, and in my heart I am actually excited to be such help to people of this church, but my body and mind has been in agony telling me to stop doing so much. Yesterday and even now, I feel the aftereffects of it all already (hence I had a pretty big migraine). I was planning on updating my week last night before I went to sleep, but I couldn’t write anything…so I went to sleep early. I woke up this morning, with my body and head feeling better, so I sit in front of the computer ready to update my week. However, 2-3 hours pass and I am still staring at this blank page. Not a single word. My brain was dead, it didn’t want to cooperate with me, and it just wanted to rest.
Now that it’s a bit better and I left the comfort of my room, I will tell you all about my quiet, yet long week…
It feels like months since the second Korean Mission Team left, but it was actually this past Tuesday that they left… It was very nice to see them interacting with the students and inviting people to come to J-House and such. They were a blessing, but for me to not be able to actually rest and settle in was a bit hard (I had to go straight to work since the day I got here, because the first Korean mission team came on the same day, then the second one came right after the first left). Now that I had some time to settle down and take care of some things that needed to be finished, I thought it would be a bit more calm, but I realized I had to prepare a morning devotion (every Wednesday, actually), a testimony for the first service on Sunday, a Bible study on Friday, meet with a student on Saturday, etc. I don’t want my heart to feel like this is work, but an act of worship instead.
Though it looks like I am exhausted, I am actually quite blessed with things that are happening here. I am getting to know more and more members/students here and I hope to get to know them more personally. It is quite hard for me, being the introvert that I am, to be so active and extroverted. It drains a lot out of me, but I have to realize that a lot of people here are actually even more shy/introverted than I am. I have to really come out of my comfort zone and initiate conversations or be inclusive. However, every time I do, it usually turns out to be a pleasant time. J
This past Sunday (yesterday for me), I did a testimony about why/how I came to decide to come back to Japan as a Jesus Soldier. It indeed was a long journey for me to finally decide to come back; God has shut many doors and opened many other doors that I did not know of. I guess the main point of my testimony was this: that even if I don’t understand everything right now, as I obey and trust God to lead me, He will reveal things to me, even if it didn’t make sense at first.
God is good. He won’t leave me or anyone astray, but being the great Shepherd that He is, I just need to hear His voice and come running back to His amazing grace.
This was a very long post or maybe it's my brain telling me to stop again, so I think I will. I hope all of you are doing well! I really do miss you all.~
Thank you all you intercessors!! You have truly given me strength to go do God's work every day!! <3
“And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:7
very proud to be your sister at this moment. i can't imagine going to a different country, not being fully aware of what God wants, but to blindly trust Him to lead the way.
ReplyDeleteHello Kevin. I have nothing new or interesting to say, but I thought you'd appreciate a comment.
ReplyDeleteoh and skype is quite awesome.
@Liz: wow, thanks for the encouragement :) please continue to pray for me!! I miss you!
ReplyDelete@Fred: Thanks Fred, I literally check my blog every couple of hours to see if someone left a comment. :P I appreciate it a lot!! Hope you are doing well :)