Saturday, August 27, 2005
Random
What would great men like Paul or John the Baptist...better yet, Jesus himself...answer to the question 'what's your idea of an ideal church-planting strategy?'.
Lessons from a mountain
As I made my way up Mt. Fuji a few weeks ago God gave me a picture of my journey through life. I've been thinking about it today as I wonder about life.
At the beginning of the climb I was so excited and ready to conquer the mountain. Energy, desire, motivation, and will power were all very present. I actually felt the guide was moving way too slow! I sometimes wanted to say: 'see ya dude, I'm outta here, I can move much faster than this'. But in a Japanese tour group that would've been absolutely unheard of, and after some consideration I knew that he held his job for a reason. So I stayed in line and followed.
I found that I impressed myself with my endurance and energy level. I was doing great, until I realized I wasn't all that far from where I started. "No big deal," I thought, "I'm at cloud level now! How cool is that?!". A tiny bit discouraged, but I kept following.
Somewhere along the way I realized that the energy and motivation had run away. At this point it was becoming more work than fun, and I'd rather have fun. I started telling myself to keep putting one foot in front of the other and not pay attention to those who were whizzing by me. It was frustrating because I couldn't see anything below cloud level. I wanted to see how far I had climbed! But I couldn't, so I just kept following.
Then the darkness came and I had nothing left but will power to keep going. Not only was it hard work, it sometimes became downright scary not being able to see but a few feet in front or behind. I knew my guide was up there somewhere because I could see the fluorescent light on his back-pack. I kept following.
Then all of a sudden the clouds cleared and behind me I could see all the way down to the bright city lights! I stopped in amazement to look around and see where I had come from. Now I was thankful for being blinded by the earlier clouds. Had I been able to see that entire journey I would've been so frightened at the height. Now I felt a little exhiliration, now I was actually getting somewhere. So I gladly kept following.
For a while I thought I was nearing the top so I marched on with renewed enthusiasm. Grateful for my guide's light, and grateful for those clouds rolling in again to blind me from the height. I was sorely disappointed however, when the place I thought to be the top turned out not to be. I couldn`t even see the summit! Yet, at just the right time, the clouds dissipated again to reveal the long road I had already travelled. So I figured, just as I couldn`t always see the details of where I had come from, it might also be best not to see all the details of where I was going, lest it be too scary. I resolved to keep following and enjoy the cool air (a wonderful relief from the Tokyo heat).
Little by little; one step at a time; and following the light from my guide, I finally stood on the summit! And in my mind I thought, `Wow, this is amazing! I made it! This is by far the most exciting thing I have ever done!` As I made that last step my guide was actually there saying (in Japanese), `Congratulations, good work. You did it.` Crossing that finish line was worth all the effort. I had a unique and special view of a breath-taking sunrise.
`I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.` ~Philippians 3:14~
At the beginning of the climb I was so excited and ready to conquer the mountain. Energy, desire, motivation, and will power were all very present. I actually felt the guide was moving way too slow! I sometimes wanted to say: 'see ya dude, I'm outta here, I can move much faster than this'. But in a Japanese tour group that would've been absolutely unheard of, and after some consideration I knew that he held his job for a reason. So I stayed in line and followed.
I found that I impressed myself with my endurance and energy level. I was doing great, until I realized I wasn't all that far from where I started. "No big deal," I thought, "I'm at cloud level now! How cool is that?!". A tiny bit discouraged, but I kept following.
Somewhere along the way I realized that the energy and motivation had run away. At this point it was becoming more work than fun, and I'd rather have fun. I started telling myself to keep putting one foot in front of the other and not pay attention to those who were whizzing by me. It was frustrating because I couldn't see anything below cloud level. I wanted to see how far I had climbed! But I couldn't, so I just kept following.
Then the darkness came and I had nothing left but will power to keep going. Not only was it hard work, it sometimes became downright scary not being able to see but a few feet in front or behind. I knew my guide was up there somewhere because I could see the fluorescent light on his back-pack. I kept following.
Then all of a sudden the clouds cleared and behind me I could see all the way down to the bright city lights! I stopped in amazement to look around and see where I had come from. Now I was thankful for being blinded by the earlier clouds. Had I been able to see that entire journey I would've been so frightened at the height. Now I felt a little exhiliration, now I was actually getting somewhere. So I gladly kept following.
For a while I thought I was nearing the top so I marched on with renewed enthusiasm. Grateful for my guide's light, and grateful for those clouds rolling in again to blind me from the height. I was sorely disappointed however, when the place I thought to be the top turned out not to be. I couldn`t even see the summit! Yet, at just the right time, the clouds dissipated again to reveal the long road I had already travelled. So I figured, just as I couldn`t always see the details of where I had come from, it might also be best not to see all the details of where I was going, lest it be too scary. I resolved to keep following and enjoy the cool air (a wonderful relief from the Tokyo heat).
Little by little; one step at a time; and following the light from my guide, I finally stood on the summit! And in my mind I thought, `Wow, this is amazing! I made it! This is by far the most exciting thing I have ever done!` As I made that last step my guide was actually there saying (in Japanese), `Congratulations, good work. You did it.` Crossing that finish line was worth all the effort. I had a unique and special view of a breath-taking sunrise.
`I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.` ~Philippians 3:14~
Sunday, August 21, 2005
Back to School
Why is it always hard to get back into the routine of classes once you`ve been on vacation? It`s just one of those `yuck` feelings if you ask me, even if I am a missionary :-)
What else have I been up to since Natalie and Hollie left? I had lunch with one of my Starbucks friends again, Tomiko. This time her daughter and two grandsons, and another lady and her son were all there as well. We had a really good time, and in true Japanese fashion they sent me home with enough food to last me a week. I hung out with Noriko on Friday night, lots of fun. Spent some time with the MacDonald family over the weekend, more fun. Was pretty sick Saturday night and some on Sunday, not so much fun. MIGHT get to make a trip to Costco on Friday, always fun!
That`s it for now though. Life is fairly calm I suppose.
Oh, I`ve received a couple of emails from Haruna. She loves Ohio and has made several new friends. She`s even visited Niagara Falls and she`s looking forward to arriving in Canada. No mention of church or anything related though. Please continue praying for her.
What else have I been up to since Natalie and Hollie left? I had lunch with one of my Starbucks friends again, Tomiko. This time her daughter and two grandsons, and another lady and her son were all there as well. We had a really good time, and in true Japanese fashion they sent me home with enough food to last me a week. I hung out with Noriko on Friday night, lots of fun. Spent some time with the MacDonald family over the weekend, more fun. Was pretty sick Saturday night and some on Sunday, not so much fun. MIGHT get to make a trip to Costco on Friday, always fun!
That`s it for now though. Life is fairly calm I suppose.
Oh, I`ve received a couple of emails from Haruna. She loves Ohio and has made several new friends. She`s even visited Niagara Falls and she`s looking forward to arriving in Canada. No mention of church or anything related though. Please continue praying for her.
Sunday, August 14, 2005
MT. FUJI!
Ok, so we left my house at 6am on Monday morning, met up with our tour group, left Tokyo on a bus and arrived at station 5 of Mt. Fuji around lunch time. There are either 8 or 9 stations on the way to the top, the vast majority of people start climbing from station 5 though. From station 5 to the summit is 6.3 kilometers, which is somewhere around 4.5 miles I think (I'm not good at math). Station 5 is at 2,305 meters above sea level; the summit is at 3,776 meters (or 12,836 feet).
It took us 9 hours to reach the summit, which unfortunately is longer than normal. But we were in a group of 42 people, including children and some elderly people, so I guess it couldn't be helped. Hollie and I are positive we could've done it quicker than that on our own, but we're glad we went in a group since we were novices. It was such a challenge! I never imagined how rocky and steep it would actually get, or how unattractive the mountain is. We did surprisingly well with the air pressure change as we climbed. The higher we got I noticed that it made me a little dizzy sometimes (definitely not a good thing on those rocks!).
It was humorous to us being the only three foreigners in a group of 42 :-) Life is never mundane here. We stayed a few hours at a lodge on the 8th station to sleep and eat a little. I wish I had more pictures of our accomodations for you! 42 people slept in a space about as big as my parents living room. The set-up was kind of like bunk-beds, except very hard ones since we are in Japan. You were sleeping next to strangers in a very tight space, so making yourself comfortable was a little difficult.
It was extremely crowded so when we neared the summit you could look behind and see a trail of flashlights reaching behind you. We had a great view of the surrounding city lights at night. When we finally reached the top I'd say there were several hundred people waiting for the sunrise. It finally came through and it was absolutely beautiful. I would've loved to stay up there all alone for a few hours.
The descent, believe it or not, was the most difficult part. The trails were nothing but steep, slippery rock and gravel and it took a lot of effort to stay on your feet. You definitely didn't want to venture too near the edge either. As we went lower the view got even more amazing. It took us 4 hours to get back to station 5. We had a good time climbing, but we were thrilled to be finished and get cleaned up.
Now for some pictures:
Natalie, me, Hollie near the beginning of our journey. We look a little more tired in the pictures once we reach the summit :-)
The picture can't really capture it, but maybe you can see some of what we climbed.
Natalie and Hollie forging ahead.
Natalie and me in the clouds.
Our 'we made it' picture.
Obviously, the sunrise.
Natalie, Hollie, our guide, and me. (Can you imagine having his job? No thanks.)
Don't be deceived by the picture...the descent was hard!
That's Mt. Fuji in a nutshell. We're definitely glad we had the experience. It was totally worth the effort!
It took us 9 hours to reach the summit, which unfortunately is longer than normal. But we were in a group of 42 people, including children and some elderly people, so I guess it couldn't be helped. Hollie and I are positive we could've done it quicker than that on our own, but we're glad we went in a group since we were novices. It was such a challenge! I never imagined how rocky and steep it would actually get, or how unattractive the mountain is. We did surprisingly well with the air pressure change as we climbed. The higher we got I noticed that it made me a little dizzy sometimes (definitely not a good thing on those rocks!).
It was humorous to us being the only three foreigners in a group of 42 :-) Life is never mundane here. We stayed a few hours at a lodge on the 8th station to sleep and eat a little. I wish I had more pictures of our accomodations for you! 42 people slept in a space about as big as my parents living room. The set-up was kind of like bunk-beds, except very hard ones since we are in Japan. You were sleeping next to strangers in a very tight space, so making yourself comfortable was a little difficult.
It was extremely crowded so when we neared the summit you could look behind and see a trail of flashlights reaching behind you. We had a great view of the surrounding city lights at night. When we finally reached the top I'd say there were several hundred people waiting for the sunrise. It finally came through and it was absolutely beautiful. I would've loved to stay up there all alone for a few hours.
The descent, believe it or not, was the most difficult part. The trails were nothing but steep, slippery rock and gravel and it took a lot of effort to stay on your feet. You definitely didn't want to venture too near the edge either. As we went lower the view got even more amazing. It took us 4 hours to get back to station 5. We had a good time climbing, but we were thrilled to be finished and get cleaned up.
Now for some pictures:
Natalie, me, Hollie near the beginning of our journey. We look a little more tired in the pictures once we reach the summit :-)
The picture can't really capture it, but maybe you can see some of what we climbed.
Natalie and Hollie forging ahead.
Natalie and me in the clouds.
Our 'we made it' picture.
Obviously, the sunrise.
Natalie, Hollie, our guide, and me. (Can you imagine having his job? No thanks.)
Don't be deceived by the picture...the descent was hard!
That's Mt. Fuji in a nutshell. We're definitely glad we had the experience. It was totally worth the effort!
Friends
Before I share my Mt. Fuji pictures I want to show you some of my friends here. I've mentioned Noriko on here several times already but have never had a picture of her. I finally got one while my sister and Hollie (Hubbard) were here visiting. Noriko and her mom, Naomi, showed us a great souvenir shop and had coffee with us. They're wonderfully sweet ladies!
Me, Noriko, and Naomi
98% of you have heard a whole lot about Mika. She is up in Hokkaido of course but I still keep in regular contact with her. I miss her quite a lot. She was in the Tokyo area for a few days visiting her boyfriend, Kenta, so we all had dinner together. This was the first time Hollie and I had ever met Kenta (who is not a believer). We had a great time and were very proud to see Mika initiate prayer before our meal. Continue praying for her of course.
Me, Hollie, Natalie, Mika, and Kenta
Me, Noriko, and Naomi
98% of you have heard a whole lot about Mika. She is up in Hokkaido of course but I still keep in regular contact with her. I miss her quite a lot. She was in the Tokyo area for a few days visiting her boyfriend, Kenta, so we all had dinner together. This was the first time Hollie and I had ever met Kenta (who is not a believer). We had a great time and were very proud to see Mika initiate prayer before our meal. Continue praying for her of course.
Me, Hollie, Natalie, Mika, and Kenta
Wednesday, August 10, 2005
It's coming
I've had some emails asking about Mt. Fuji pictures. They're coming soon :-) I'll have it all updated on here before long I hope. I'll have some other pictures as well of Natalie and Hollie's visit. We've had a great time and it will be really sad for me to see them go.
In the meantime, here's one picture for you:
Natalie, me, and Hollie before we started climbing. We still felt energetic!
In the meantime, here's one picture for you:
Natalie, me, and Hollie before we started climbing. We still felt energetic!
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