Konbanwa

Konbanwa (Good evening) from Tokyo! It has been a full three days to say the least. All is well, and the team is doing great. The missionaries have been faithfully pouring wisdom into each team member. We arrived in Tokyo on Friday with no problem or delays. Our missionary contact, Gary-san, met us at the hostel for an early dinner. The team was in a post-flight stupor, but Gary was still able to get to know every one and even begin telling us about ministry in Japan.

Woke up at 3:30 am with a start, thinking it was 8:30 am. Ha, oh jet lag.

Government Towers
On Saturday, Gary met us at the hotel after the team had a brief devotional out of Psalm 96. We went to his area of Tokyo, Shibuya, and had an orientation to meet and greet some more, brief the team on Japanese culture, go over our schedule, pray together, etc. We then ate lunch and headed to the Tokyo Government Towers in Shinjuku to get a 46th floor view of the city. This is a view that shows how expansive Tokyo really is. There is no horizon where the buildings end- a never-ending sea of people. On a clear day people can even see Mt. Fuji sixty miles away through the windows of the tower. It was pretty cloudy when we went, but the view was still overwhelming to see as a Christian trying to minister in this city. Out of the 34 million or so people in this city, only about 0.3% proclaim to be Christians. Less than half of one percent. Looking out on the thousands of buildings, one team mate mentioned how many people each of the tiny windows must represent, and how many of those are living apart from Jesus. It's a sobering view. Seeing my team (literally my family) have their eyes open and hearts broken for the need in Tokyo was very special to me.

Thanks, Sister Act!
After the Government towers, we got the unique priviledge to attend a (get ready for this one) Japanese Black Gospel Concert. You read it right. Apparently, Japan goes through periods of interest in a certain fad called "booms." About twenty years ago, the boom became black Gospel music after "Sister Act" reached Japan. Japanese Buddhists were loading their mp3 players with southern gospel songs and singing lyrics like, "This is the day that the Lord has made!" without knowing what the song was talking about. Of course, with this came a very interesting ministry opportunity. A missionary/jazz musician in Tokyo decided to use his musical talent to share the gospel. So he organized and invited Japanese people to be a part of gospel choirs! He started with a couple choirs and conducted practices and performances. It was a hit, and today this man manages over fifty Japanese gospel choirs! The choirs performed alongside well known African-American gospel singers who fly in and coach them in workshops. The performance was phenomenal! My favorite part was when traditional Japanese drummers walked down the aisles and joined the choir onstage to join the song! There were at least fifteen to twenty large drums used. Seeing such a traditional Japanese instrument used in a song praising the Lord was an amazing sight and sound. A Japanese man even shared his testimony of becoming paralyzed, trying to commit suicide (very common in Japan), but then hearing about the hope of Jesus through the choir. It was amazing to hear his message as Gary translated to us from where we were sitting.

Japanese-style Church
Today we met with K-san, the owner of an English Cafe, and was able to meet and greet, hear his testimony of becoming a Christian, and have "house church" in his cafe. We sang, read Scripture, and prayed together. It was very simple, and we loved it.

Mejii Shrine Gary took us to one of the most famous Shinto Shrines in Tokyo, the Mejii Shrine. It is said to enshrine the spirit of Emporer Mejii and his Empress. Historically, this man was very important to Japan because he was instrumental in opening Japan to the West. This time period in history can be seen as what has made Japan the superpower it is today due to its modern western ties and technology. While this was interesting, the temple itself had an eerie hollowness to it. More on this later. It's late.

Oyasuminasai! (Goodnight!)

Some updates on what I asked you to pray for:
-Becca is doing very well physically. She's not a whiner. Please keep praying though, as walking in the humidity and climbing staircases in the train stations has its toll on her.
-The missionaries, Gary and his wife Lynn, are pouring wisdom into us about what it's like to be a leader in ministry overseas. Pray that we can remember, journal, and retain it!
-Team family dynamics have been great. Pray that our focus remains strong.