Post-Thesis Life

Readings

"The parable of the talents [in Matthew 25] says that we are accountable-- not to mention much happier-- when we are exercising our gifts and being productive. It takes work, practice, learning, prayer, resources, and grace to overcome the fear of failure that the 'wicked and lazy' servant gave in to. He was not chastised for being afraid; we are all afraid when trying something new and difficult. He was chastised for not confronting his fear and trying the best he could. Not confronting our fear denies the grace of God and insults both his giving of the gift and his grace to sustain us as we are learning."



Cloud, H. and J. Townsend. 1992. Boundaries: when to say yes, how to say no to take control of your life. Zondervan, Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Retrospect

While looking at old files from my time at Tarleton, I found a testimony I wrote to share at a Bible study during my first semester. I needed this backwards glance into the Lord's work in my life. The struggle of anxiety mentioned in this speech has been excruciatingly real this past week. As I work to complete a thesis, deadlines and the pressure of what I don't yet know has been ominously intruding on almost every thought that tries to cross my mind. Isn't it amazing how persistently a certain struggle or hang-up can follow us? If you can relate, spend some time reflecting on where you've been and what God's brought you to and through. Here's my edition:

What has God done in my life this semester?

October 23, 2012- Tarleton BSM- I Am Second Bible Study

            I’m Elizabeth Casey, and I am a first semester graduate student here at Tarleton. I am going for a Masters in Agriculture. To lay out some background on who I am, part of the I Am Second Bible study material asked me to write out the story of how I changed by becoming a Christian. Well, I trusted Jesus as my Savior when I was six years old, and I know that that was when God led me to become a Christ-follower.  So instead of a before Jesus and after Jesus story, I decided to write out the story of something that has been a struggle for me throughout my life with Jesus. I have regularly struggled with anxiety about my future. Since I was little, I wanted to have a plan of action for my life. I was deciding on where to go to college when I was in the fifth grade. I’ve always been driven in school, and I put a lot of pride into where my good grades would get me one day.

            Then in highschool, I had a youth pastor and a group of Christian friends who told me to look to the Bible for guidance in my future. They said to pray and wait for God’s direction. So I started doing that. Since then, God has refocused my perspective on the future. He brought me from chasing what I can gain out of life through my planning and my performance—to how I can give up everything and serve peoples of other nations. It doesn’t make sense. God sent me overseas on mission trips, lead me to attend Bible college, and then here to study agriculture so I can help people with their crops and livestock while telling them about Jesus.  That was the story I wrote out for I Am Second.

During this semester:

            God has been constant throughout all of the change that goes into moving to a new city and starting a new program at a new school. I got my undergraduate degree in a mixture of Biblical Studies and Anthropology. I was neither a member of FFA, nor did I grow up on a farm. So needless to say, this has been a semester of many academic firsts for me to say the least.

But He is so good. I was expecting to be looked down upon in my classes since I don’t have an Ag background, but that didn’t happen. God actually connected me with a couple of Christian professors who believe in what I want to do with my degree overseas. They are now guiding me in my classes and even enjoy introducing me to things like driving a tractor and setting up crop research. Being tested over ruminants, insects, soil chemistry, and agricultural statistics for the first time in my life has been overwhelming at times. But God has refreshed and affirmed my decision to study here.

 People look at my life and think that I’m good. A girl I worked with this past year would call me Mother Theresa. And some days, I’d believe her. I start thinking about what I want to do with my life, and think that I really am a pretty good person.

But this semester, God has humbled me! He has shown me that I have very little to do with my life. I love, because He loved me first. He saved me. He matures me in His word. He has sent me overseas. He broke my heart for people of other nations. He planted a passion for science in me and has provided the means for me to study here at Tarleton. He connects me with people who love Jesus and encourage me in the faith. I can’t take credit for anything. All I really do is try to cling to Christ and daily prove that I need a Savior to guide me. So this semester, God continues to show me that the goals I have for my own future are not meant to be a reflection of me, but of Him and His work.

Jestem podekscytowany, aby odwiedzić Polskę!

The title means, "I'm excited to visit Poland!" I get to attend and present research on herbaceous legumes at an agricultural science symposium in Bydgoszcz, Poland! You can see a window into Bydgoszcz through this youtube video! I leave tomorrow with a group of professors and fellow graduate students from Tarleton. I am very excited to have been given this opportunity!

I can't wait to meet professors and agricultural students from Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Italy, and a couple more countries. We will be the only group from an American university in attendance. I hope we're not too loud and obnoxious compared to the other groups! The city of Bydgoszcz is in northern Poland with the Brda and Vistula Rivers going through it. The main events I know about other than the symposium include a castle tour and a 24 hr. layover in London, England on the way back to America.

Those are the facts. Other than that, I'm along for the ride! I'll try to blog while I'm there. You know I'll be posting pictures!

23 wks ago

Kim,

23 weeks ago (according to the ever-reliable Instagram), I came to the library while you were studying to give you a giraffe mug. I saw it in World Market and thought of you immediately. I'm studying at a table right in front of the study room you were in that day. 239- the one with the window! It was nice and sunny when I came in the room, and I remember you had some cheesy worship music playing on Pandora. Haha, I decided it was best just to go with it and jam. You were working on a project about the second Titanic being built. We laughed because we weren't sure if we'd want to actually ride on it...

I would so be texting you right now to laugh about the Titanic (take 2). But since I can't, I'll write it here instead. Love and miss you so much. I'm so thankful that I know- past religious sentiment and warm-fuzzies- that you are with Jesus himself. Goodness girl, I'm jealous. Have fun adoring him for eternity. I heard there's a huge tree with 8 different types of fruit on it in Heaven (it's in Revelation). As an Ag major... I don't see that happening this side of eternity. Go eat some of it for me.

Catch you on the flip side, hermanita. <3

Genocide and Grace

I'm blogging from my apartment's living room, and I just finished watching Hotel Rwanda the movie (and every special feature offered)for the first time. I was shocked by the film and deeply moved by Paul Rusesabagina's story. He saved 1,268 Rwandans during horrible genocide in 1994 using his status of assistant manager of the Hotel des Mille Collines in Rwanda. The film was released in 2004, so I'm sure many of y'all have seen it. If you haven't, like I hadn't before tonight, please watch it.

While watching the real Paul Rusesabagina tell parts of his story on a special feature, my mind flashed back to the day I stood in the Choeng Ek Killing Fields Museum in Cambodia, listening to my friend Kyle tell his personal account of surviving the Khmer Rouge. Then, I thought of the trip I will soon take to Poland for a study abroad. The group I am with may get the opportunity to visit the Auschwitz-Berkinau State Museum in modern south Poland. This is the site of one of the most well-known Nazi concentration and extermination camps from WWII. I also remembered some of the ghastly sites I saw during my visit to the Holocaust Museum in Washington D.C.

It is so difficult to believe that:

1) These three genocides happened.
2) Many more genocides have occurrd around the world.
3) If people, for whatever reason, were unaware of and/or uninterested in these three genocides in the past, there may be some happening today.


Those are three very sobering thoughts.

I'm going to transition from the hatred of genocide to the topic of my own heart. How many times do I get angry with someone and don't forgive them? Track with me. A pastor said this morning that sometimes, even after the God of the Bible says to forgive- that he is the Judge- it is easy to say, "No, thanks. I am not going to do that. I want to let this offense steep for a while." I agree that this is easy to say. I am often tempted by the wound-licking act of refusing to extend mercy. But when I give into unforgiveness, I forget the rich mercy shown to me by Jesus and many other people in my life.

When I see evil in this world, I will react in one way or another. My reaction to Hotel Rwanda was a blend of anger, shocked fear towards the depth of man's sinful condition, and the hope of what a righteous man can be used to do. When I was at the Choeng Ek Museum in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, I had a bit of a momentary crisis of faith that I think relates to the anger I felt during Hotel Rwanda. Suprisingly, this moment didn't happen while I walked on a path surrounded by divots in the ground that had once served as mass graves for thousands of innocent people. It didn't come when I saw victims' old clothes, shoes, and strips of cloth that had been used as blindfolds. The crisis came when I read a display describing the top men in the hierarchy of the deadly Khmer Rouge.

One man, Kang Kek Iew, was photographed with his communist title, Comrade Duch, typed below his picture. This man oversaw the systematic torture and murder of some 17,000 Cambodians in the S-21 prison in the mid 1970's. Near the end of his short biography, I read that after dropping off the authorities' radar when his work with the Khmer Rouge was complete, he became a born-again Christian. Wait. If this is true, and only God knows this man's heart, then according to what I believe, this man will be in Heaven with me one day. This man. This man who helped fill the mass graves I just stared into. Forgiven? Aquitted by God?

I remember becoming confused and angry with God. I stepped outside the museum for a moment and wrestled with the questions, "How could he let this man just be washed of all the penalty of his sins? How is his soul's 'crimson stain' of murdering masses of innocent people 'washed white as snow'?"

Then it hit me like a painful migrane. Grace.

My brain was racked trying to wrap my mind around the weight of this new realization of Jesus. His grace and mercy is given to absolutely ANY person who repents and trusts in him for salvation from the wrath of God. His death on the cross paid the debt of ANY and all sin. In that moment, I realized my dwarfed theology. Before that moment, I would never have said consciously that I think some people are forgivable while others are unforgivable. However, that is exactly where my anger at God sprang from after reading about Kang Kek Iew's conversion. Grace is much weightier than I thought.

Not that Iew's conversion brought his 17,000 victims back to life. Not that it righted the traumatizing effect of the man's crimes in the least. But, as I reflect on the movie I just watched and the evil I have seen in the world, I am also reminded of the only source of grace that can cover the penalty of sin in a person's life.

"If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." -1 John 1:8-9

Japan meets Texas meets Cusco

It has shaped up to be a very international summer! After returning to Texas from Guatemala, a good Japanese friend of mine visited for about a week. He was studying abroad at the University of Oregon, and my friend and I met him on a college ministry trip we took back in January with our school's BSM. Before returnig to Japan, he wanted to see the rustic west, and we were thrilled to show him! Some close Tarleton friends and I had a fantastic time showing him around Dallas, Ft. Worth, and Stephenville. It was unforgettable to reconnect with our friend! As sad as it was to see him go, I am glad he is back home safely in Japan.

I am now blogging from Cusco, Peru! After a cancelled flight in Lima and lots of sleeping in terminals, my team and I were welcomed with a giant banner, balloons, and new smiling Peruvian friends! They work with a ministry called Zona Segura (check them out on facebook). The ministry reaches out to 18-25(ish) yr olds in Cusco. They provide a "safe zone," as the name describes, by building relationships with people, telling them of salvation in Christ, and teaching them everything Jesus taught! My team will be working alongside them this week in different schools and universities. There will also be an opportuntiy to go into the mountain villages in Cusco. We will also get to visit Macchu Pichu on our last day! I am very excited to see what God doe this week. The team consists of teo amazing families, 2 beautiful girls from my church, my parents, and four of my closest friends!

I love y'all! Thank you for your thoughts and prayer!

Guatemala Synopsis

"Then Moses made Israel set out from the Red Sea, and they went into the wilderness of Shur. They went three days in the wilderness and found no water. When they came to Marah, they could not drink the water of Marah because it was bitter; therefore it was named Marah. And the people grumbled against Moses, saying, “What shall we drink?” And he cried to the Lord, and the Lord showed him a log, and he threw it into the water, and the water became sweet.
There the Lord made for them a statute and a rule, and there he tested them, saying, “If you will diligently listen to the voice of the Lord your God, and do that which is right in his eyes, and give ear to his commandments and keep all his statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you that I put on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, your healer.” - Exodus 15:22-26

This was a passage of Scripture that the Guatemalan pastor of the Church of God in Candelaria read in Spanish upon my team's arrival in his village. From day one, my American team and the Guatemalan Living Water Intl. staff were welcomed with open arms, delicious food, and expectant smiles by the people of Nueva Candelaria. Until this day, there was no governmental or organizational aid going into their village. What an incredible honor to be a conduit of God's love in this remote area on the eastern coast of Guatemala! The Lord does not use super-humans to do his will. I am living proof that he uses ordinary, broken, scatter-brained people to meet others' needs.

If I were to summarize this trip in three words, they would be FULL (We were awake for work before the sun rose and asleep after it had set), DIRTY (I was covered with the 'elements' of a drilling rig on a pretty constant basis), and REFRESHING (I cannot think of a better way for the Lord to have quenched my parched tongue after such a difficult semester).
I got to see the hues of meeting the physical, emotional, intellectual, and spiritual needs of Nueva Candeliaria converge through Living Water Intl. Here's a bit about how this happened:
PHYSICAL
Drilling a 150 ft. deep water well through 4 natural aquifers met a physical need. The village had a shallow open well of about 20 ft. that was easily contaminated by the latrine that was dug at about the same depth. This water and the water from the nearby river are both problematic sources of drinking water. I washed my hands in the village's caramel-colored water and spotted a small, black, worm-like creature floating in my palm. A school teacher later said that their water had many problems with leeches. A child said that after playing at school, he would not want to drink the water that the teachers had to offer him because it tasted bad. But since he was thirsty and the water was the only refreshment available, he would drink it.

EMOTIONAL
Working alongside the Guatemalan villagers of Nueva Candelaria enabled them to take ownership of the water well as a new part of their community and lives. From set up to tear down, men from the village helped our team make the well a reality. We had no intention of walking in, drilling, and leaving without the people understanding and being a vital part of the process. The women of the village sustained the drilling process by cooking lunches for the team, mayor, and pastors who came to drill as well. My leader also mentioned that having women on the drilling team provides the men of Nueva Candelaria an opportunity to see men work alongside women in a biblical, mutually-respectful way. This can speak volumes in a male-dominated society.

INTELLECTUAL
Teaching hygiene and well maintanence supplied the women and children with practical information to imporve their quality of life. The village was equipped with knowledge on how to keep their new gift in running condition, so they will not be dependant on external help (although Living Water Intl. will be in continued correspondance with the village in case help is needed). Other topics that were taught and readily learned included oral hygiene, germ transmission, and diarreah treatment. Sadly, many infants die in these areas from dehydration after bouts with diarreah. Rehydrating the baby with a simple water, salt, and sugar mixture is a very attainable solution that we taught on this trip. I feel like the villagers were the ones who taught me volumes about working together, being hospitable, and simply living life in a productive way.

SPIRITUAL
The hygiene team was also able to share Bible stories during their lessons in the school and the church. So, hundreds of children and their mothers heard of the God who created them and loves them personally. The men also heard the gospel multiple times throughout the well dedication ceremony, as well as through personal conversations on the drilling rig. The drilling and hygiene teams both began each day and each meal with prayer to the only One who can bring success. I was so encouraged when I heard the pastor, mayor, and many members of the church and community say that while the new water well is a beautiful gift, Jesus is the only Living Water. He is the ultimate gift to recieve.

On a personal note, the Lord showed me that I continue to love agriculture, and that I enjoy drilling water wells! You know how you sometimes need reassurance that you actually like what you want to do someday? As a grad student who struggles to trust his guidance sometimes, it was sweet of the Lord to steady me in this fact: I love what he is leading me into. I have also been reminded that I have been blessed in many ways so that I can bless others. Am I Mother Theresa? As awesome as that would be- No. My name's Elizabeth. But I can still make a difference in Jesus' name.

To wrap this synopsis up, I'll share a quick, but very dear story. I thought of my late friend Kim Peacock every day of this trip. On the second day of drilling, I could not get her out of my head... not that I tried very hard. However, for the sake of keeping emotions at bay, I was trying to focus on the drill rig. Emotions finally won. I couldn't hold back tears when I thought about how cool Kim would have thought this whole water drilling experience was. So, I walked over to the van to take a moment to get a drink and collect myself. I prayed.
Lord, I don't understand you, but I do know your character. You are good. You are trustworthy. So, I will trust you. Help me to be fully here in Guatemala. Please heal my heart in this moment without my friend. I trust you with her.

God really did comfort me. I was able to say amen and walk back over to the drilling rig with healing and hope. I found out that night that it was the month anniversary of Kim's death, May 28. I told my team a bit of her story after dinner, and they got to love her and praise God for her life with me. So, the beauty in all this heaviness is that God was glorified in Guatemala in that moment because of Kim. The impact of her sweet faith has officially gone international.

Thank you SO much for your thoughts and prayers for this trip. The well was a success! Connections were made across two different languages and cultures! The gospel was shared! God was glorified! And I even got to make tortillas! All of this is cause for celebration.

Hola from Champerico!

Hola, Estoy aquí en Guatemala! It has only been two days, but it feels like much longer! I am enjoying this country very much. It is, hands down, the most colorful place I've ever been. I've decided my future house will be painted electric blue (maybe with orange accents)!

The team met up with the Living Water Intl. Guatemala staff and traveled to a team house to stay last night. A couple teammates and I got the chance to hear our leader, Jaime's heart for drilling water wells and sharing the gospel while we drove from the airport. Hearing how God brought him from a poor village with no access to safe water, to now working with LWI reaffirmed my enthusiasm to be here. It's obvious that God has been at work through Jaime and LWI for the past eleven years. They have drilled around 250 wells in the country!  How exciting that I get to step into a piece of what God is (and has been) doing in Guatemala through LWI this week! Upon arriving at the team house,  Jaime's family fed us a feast of wonderful, authentic Guatemalan food. They won my heart when I spotted the homemade guacamole. Then  there was the meat, rice, tortillas, chile, coffee, hand squeezed lemonade... I mean c'mon. 

Sleep was deep last night, and the day started early. We were packed and out of the team house by 6:45am and on our way to breakfast in the city of Antigua. After entering another drowsy Guatemalan food coma, we attended a bilingual church service in the area. The songs and sermon were in both English and Spanish. It was refreshing to worship with believers who spoke a different language. Two languages being spoken to passionately proclaim and adore one God. I even met a man who graduated from my alma mater, the Baptist College of Florida, was a Journeyman missionary on a continent dear to my heart, AND attended seminary with his wife in my home town! We had many close, mutual friends. What a small world! God is faithful to keep me in a state of awe when I consider His immense networking capabilities.

After church, the team headed out on a four hour van ride to a hotel in Champerico. This town is closer to the costal village where we will be drilling this week. The road we travelled took us through many different settings. Being an agriculture student, I have been amazed at how lush and productive this country's land is! In a single van ride, I saw expansive sugar cane fields and rubber tree forests that run up onto the sides of mountains and cloud-tipped volcanos. We also drove past a large rose greenhouse operation, a pineapple farm, and multiple fields of coffee plants that are planted alongside a certain native tree to provide shade for the coffee until the beans are ready to mature. I've been taking some serious notes! Praise God for the passions He gives each one of us for His own glory. He is being good to cultivate my love for international agriculture on this trip.

After many great conversations with my teammates and the LWI staff, I'm even more excited for the week to come. I will get to start work as a member of the drilling team tomorrow! I'm very excited to see all that goes into soil testing, aquifer location, and the actual drilling process. We have prayed for the village we are going to and will go into tomorrow expecting great things from God. 

¡Hola! I am sitting in the Houston airport heading to Guatemala for a week with Living Water International. I'll be part of a drilling team that will drill a water well in an area that doesn't have access to clean drinking water. We'll also be teaching hygiene and sharing Bible stories along the way. I'm excited about the team that I was assigned to, and I can't wait to learn all that I can about water drilling! It'll be a good time. I'm brushing up on what little Spanish I know!

Grad School Musings

"Today is mine. Tomorrow is none of my business. If I peer anxiously into the fog of the future, I will strain my spiritual eyes so that I will not see clearly what is required of me now." -Elisabeth Elliot

I am in an introspective mood today as I sit in my living room, sipping my second mug of hot apple cider and nibbling a few cookies. I'm studying Agriculture at Tarleton State University so I can be able to help people of different countries raise crops and livestock.

Agricultural concepts, while still a bit strange, are exciting and interest me deeply. The benefits of my classes are not simply intellectual, either. The knowledge I gain of working land and animals seems to weave its way into my reading of the Bible as well. Jesus' parable of the sower in Matthew 13 comes alive as I remember what it was like to sow legume seeds into a plowed field a month ago. I can more fully relate to the hard working farmer in 2 Timothy 2:6. In Animal Science class last week, hearing how to prevent predator attacks on a flock called to mind how Jesus is the Good Shepherd. As I also catch and pin various six-legged nasties for Entomology, I have to remind myself that God not only created them... but He also called them good. (Your ways are not my ways, Lord.)

However, amongst the bustle of studying for tests that are coming up, there's an interesting tug-of-war that is going on in my spirit. While graduate school has been full of new experiences, all of this learning launches my imagination to wonder about future possibilities. Then, like a swelling wave, comes anxiety. What job will I get? What country will I go to? Will I get married or remian single? What does the future look like? But then. Then I'm reminded that God chose me before the creation of the earth, and that my work is not in vain. Silly me. Breath returns, and I keep studying. This is the daily rinse and repeat cycle of my spirit.

Where will I be in five years? 6 months? tomorrow? I don't really know. But I can praise God that he alone holds my future. All I can do is live in the present here in Stephenville, TX while making sure eternity is constantly on my mind.

I do not know what tomorrow will bring. For what is my life? I'm a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead, I ought to say, "If the Lord wills, I will live and do this or that." -Outlook taken from James 4:14-15

A New Land

Grad school is, in many ways, like learning to operate in a foreign country. I am still relying on maps, signs, and GPS to find my way around. If I get really turned around, I can always ask a more seasoned Tarleton national to point me in the right direction. Thankfully, however, I don't have to overcome a language barrier here. In this new land, most all of the signs are in English.

While everyone is speaking the same language, I still find myself on a completely new playing field academically. The familiarly rigid schedules and class requirements of undergraduate studies have been replaced with a new graduate-level fluidity. A degree program is no longer telling me what I must do to complete and pass its agenda. As a graduate student, I am now telling my advisors what I want to do, and they are then cherry picking my classes to specifically equip me for my future career goals. It has been amazing to see how many holds and red tape can be lifted by one email from my advisor. Within half an hour, my entire student trajectory can change to be more refined towards what I want to do.

Socially speaking, being surrounded by people while not yet knowing anyone can easily fill someone with a sense of isolation. However, after having to settle into Bible college in 2008 and then settle into a new job and church three years later, I've had some practice in adapting to new surroundings. I haven't been letting isolation seep too deep this time around. I simply replace it with a sort of "foreigner boldness" and start conversations with whomever I happen to be standing next to. It's paid off so far with some great contacts! While aquaintenceships are still shallow and inevitably punctuated with awkward silences, they are seeds that can defintitely grow into some solid relationships.

Praise God, He's taken such good care of me. I have a lease on an apartment signed, and I move in on September fifth. Until then, I am staying with a couple who are former neighbors of my parents. The four of them lived on the same street and went through the adventurous years of "first house, first kids" together. My hosts couldn't be more gracious and accomadating, not to mention they live only ten to fifteen minutes from campus! I have eaten for free at the hands of the Baptist Student Ministry, local churches, and the local restaraunts. The sun is shining, and the free food is flowing here in Stephenville.

Also, like adapting to any foreign culture, learning the ropes here at Tarleton is exhausting. More after a nap.

Galatians 6:1-10

"Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted. Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. For if anyone thinks he is something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself. But let each one test his own work, and then his reason to boast will be in himself alone and not in his neighbor. For each will have to bear his own load. Let the one who is taught the word share all good things with the one who teaches. Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith."

"People who really want to make a difference in the world usually do it, in one way or another. And I’ve noticed something about people who make a difference in the world: They hold the unshakable conviction that individuals are extremely important, that every life matters. They get excited over one smile. They are willing to feed one stomach, educate one mind, and treat one wound. They aren’t determined to revolutionize the world all at once; they’re satisfied with small changes. Over time, though, the small changes add up. Sometimes they even transform cities and nations, and yes, the world." -Beth Clark, Kisses from Katie

Tokyo 2012 Debreif

This year's trip to Japan was different than anything I have done overseas in the past. The team consisted of my family. Also, the trip was geared not only towards making disciples within the Japanese people, but also making leaders of my team. God was so faithful to guide each of us to meet Japanese people to build relationships with. He even opened doors within those new friendships to talk about Jesus and His salvation.

God was also faithful to have us work with missionaries who were gracious and intentional about sharing their lives with us for the short amount of time we had with them! In ten days, my family and I heard the hearts of:

Gary and Lynn Fujino- IMB missionary couple ministering to Japanese in Tokyo and all over the world while raising their kids to love the Lord
Kuni Sano- A Japanese Christian who owns and runs an international cafe in a very famous part of Tokyo in order to share the gospel and start house churches
David and Yuka Mills- A couple working with a cafe in the Yokohama area and teaching English in order to share the gospel with their students, coworkers, and neighbors
Yumi and Kano- two Japanese believers who run the cafe that David Mills works with. We were able to spend wonderful time with Yumi before she went to Korea for a family visit.
Luis and Nicola Ramirez- A Peruvian man and his British wife working on staff of a church in Fussa, Tokyo in order to share the gospel through music and Bible study while raising three little boys
Adam and Hannah Sharick- A young American family going through language study with the IMB to be career missionaries, planting their lives in Tokyo for the next three years and raising two small children
Will Thompson- A former team mate of mine who has recently moved to Tokyo as the first intl. staff in Japan with the Fellowship of Christian Atheletes to work with Christian pro players and share the gospel through sports
Josh and Nikki Hipps- An American couple who have lived in Tokyo for two years with the IMB and got to return to study international law
Li Ang- A Chinese believer living in Japan whom I met in 2007, and now has a beautiful wife and daughter!
Michiko- A beautiful Japanese woman who has recently trusted Christ as her Savior and has faced opposition from her family, but clings to the joy of Jesus as her strength

More debriefing to come after work!


The team in Shinjuku Station, one of the largest train stations in the world.

Ministry Day

Today:
*We went to Shibuya and prayer walked the area after a short orientation on the area with Gary. Amy and I paired up and prayer walked through the major intersection of Shibuya, around the outside of Shibuya 109 (a famous nine-story shopping mall), and into the red light district. This area is full of "love hotels." It was very oppressive to walk through this area. We found a small Shinto shrine at the end of the main stretch, and decided to pray to Jesus inside of it. While praying in the Shrine, we noticed a man crouched down on the steps of the main alter-of-sorts. So we talked to him and were able to share the gospel with him. Amy and I had been praying that God would lead us to a Japanese person who knew some English, and He was faithful- because this Japanese man was very good at English!

*Met back at Hachiko and went back to the Government Towers since it was clear and sunny today. We had a much better view of Tokyo than the other day, and were able to get a better idea of how vast Tokyo really is. I even met some Congolese people!

*We decided to split up into groups- one to go back to the hotel area, and another to go around Yoyogi park (think the 'central park' of our area of Tokyo)and Harajuku. So Andrew, Gary and I were the latter group. We had a great time walking around, and in Yoyogi park we met a man playing volleyball with his dog. Yep. We had a wonderful conversation, played volleyball and ran around with the dog, and were able to give him a DVD of a Christian baseball player, Matt Murton! The man said that he would play the DVD on a projector at his work. How awesome! Andrew gave him his email address, and we hope to talk to the man again. His name was Kenji, so please pray that the Lord will work in him! We also met a young guy named Yuuske and had a good conversation with him about his neat tattoos, baseball (gave him a Murton DVD as well), and exchanged contact info. It was a great evening! Got lost on the way home, but had fun in the process of finding our way.

God is working and guiding us! Today was an encouraging day. There are many details left out because it's going to be an early start tomorrow, and I should get a shower and some sleep. Matane!(See you soon!)

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.

Returning to Tokyo

Good morning! Today I get to lead a team of my own family members to Tokyo, Japan. This trip is the answer to many prayers from within my own heart that God would use my family to make Himself famous in other nations. He has been so faithful. The team consists of my parents (Rick and Ruth), one of my brothers (Andrew), his wife (Becca), and a dear family friend (Amy).

This will be a mission trip with two layers. The first layer will be a mission trip in the more common sense of the term: crossing cultural barriers in order to share the news of Jesus' salvation to Japanese people. We will do extensive prayer walking, encourage Japanese believers, and be a brief but significant part in helping missionaries make disciples within Tokyo. Our leaders are consist of families who have planted their lives and raised their children in Japan in order to serve in Christian ministry positions.

This will also be a leadership-training trip. Each member of the team wants to be involved in international missions for the rest of their lives, whether long-term or in short-term seasons. So, I am going to work at providing each team member various opportunities to learn about being an overseas "mission leader."

If you are committed to pray for this trip, here are some specific points to pray for:

*Pray that the words of each of our mouths and the meditations of our hearts will be pleasing to God.
*Pray for God to bring us to meet Japanese people who are searching for truth.
*Pray for family dynamics within the team to be focused and unified on glorifying God.
*Pray that we will have boldness and love in telling others about Jesus.
*Pray for my sister-in-law, Becca's, health and stamina. She is four months pregnant.
*Pray for the team to deeply benefit from the missionaries' wisdom.
*Pray for the protection and pursual our individual time in the Word throughout the trip.
*Pray for the missionaries and Japanese believers to be encouraged in their ministry.

Thank you, friends. Love y'all.

I wrote this a while back and wanted to blog it in order to describe the season of life I find myself in at the moment.
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     This is a new season in life for me. A wise woman recently told me that no matter how old I get, I will always be facing circumstances I've never faced before. So, she said, it's good to not know what I'm doing, because I never will.

     God gives you and I passions so we can use them to glorify Him in all the nations. I just read a blog entry from a friend of mine that stated the same message. God's given me passion for writing, telling people who Jesus is, science, and the people of Africa. It has been a recent pleasure to get a job at a well respected nursery/growing project in my city. I've been able to learn things like how to grow new crops, amend soil, and treat insect problems in plants.

     While I enjoy every new day working, living in my first apartment, and serving in the local church, the question of the horizon is constantly in front of me. What will I be doing in six months? Next year? There are so many possibilities, and with them comes the pressure of making decisions. This is where, in my weak fleshly nature, I begin to stress.

What if I make the wrong decision?
What if I miss the deadlines for attending grad school at A&M in the fall?
Should I just go to Africa now?

     The feeling of being a lazy, aimless wanderer creeps in. Sure I graduated college, but what next? Where am I going? What am I supposed to be doing? What a driven culture you and I live in today. Three months of being separated from deadlines, assignments, and receiving grades makes me wonder if I'm being productive at all.

     All the while, the God of the universe who hung the stars and indwells my very soul sees every drop of worried sweat I shed and says, "Seek first My kingdom and righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. So stop worrying about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own, child."

     My God is in control. He will guide me. He will be made known to all nations, and by His grace alone through Christ alone, I will get to be a part of it. So whatever season I'm in, whether I feel as though I'm driven or drifting, He is my contentment. God is peace. He is showing me how to please Him and love others every day, wherever His sovereign will places me.

     "You have searched me, Lord, and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue, you, Lord, know it completely. You hem me in behind and before, and you lay your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain... Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be." -Psalm 139:1-6,16

     What hope! God's assurance and hope isn't just for me to have, hold, write about, and use to pursue my dreams. He hasn't given you and I passions simply for the sake of giving us a way to have interesting lives. If these passions don't move me to proclaim to a hopeless world that Jesus is the only hope of salvation, I'm missing the point. I get to pursue and utilize my passions so that God can pursue and utilize me for His glory. How beautiful!

Announcement

Hello again! I'm off work this week since the garden shop is closed for Christmas and New Year's. So, the shopping list for my eleven-day siesta had a single item on it: an apartment.

Some form of bacterial "bug" kept me around the house for the first three days trying to recover. However, yesterday I was able to go apartment hunting with the much needed wisdom of my mom. Although my voice was still a bit gruff whilst asking the lease specialist about amenities, the search was successful! Today, a lease was born.

Another birth worth mentioning is that of my Pinterest account. I'm finding that it goes hand-in-hand with the lease, since I just spent more time than I care to disclose" pinning" every sort of shabby chic and vintage decor idea to my new "pinboard." Who knew there were so many adorable ways to re-use mason jars? I still have a month until move-in, so there will be plenty of time for day dreaming of mason jars and decoupage.

I'm really excited!