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| Hi Everyone,
It has now been a little over a week
since I returned to California from Japan. I am slowly adjusting back
to life in LA and being in Irvine for summer school.
I
just want to thank all of you for your continual support and prayers.
This will be my last official update. Thank you for being a part of
God's work in Japan with me this summer.
God is good,
and it is clear that he is indeed drawing the Japanese to Him. As
Isaiah 9:2 says, "The people walking in darkness have seen a great
light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has
dawned." Because a light has dawned, the light can only get bigger and
brighter. Three women in Fukuoka B.E.S.T. Club accepted Christ. No
member in Tokyo B.E.S.T. has openly made a declaration for Christ, but
it is possible that some have already made a decision. Pray that they
will continue to seek God and that their strength will come from Him.
Everything that has happened this summer is part of God's plan. God's
decision to take John Lee from this earth was sudden and shocking, but
it has made a tremendous impact on the students and on all who knew him.
I have learned so much this summer, and I am still processing what
I have learned, seen, and heard. I will continue to occasionally post
to this xanga.
As
a teammate has said, "Let my heart never stop aching for those who have
no hope. Let me not forget the things I've learned and what the Lord
has shown me."
For pictures from my last week and a half in Japan:
http://www.imagestation.com/album/pictures.html?id=2103264439
For links to all my pictures:
http://www.imagestation.com/mypictures/
Thank you for your partnership,
Priscilla | | |
| Hi Everyone,
I don't know how to put this into words. On Monday, John Lee, our team leader and fellow laborer for the Kingdom, went to be with the Lord. I didn't know John that well before coming to Japan, but during this last month, I have really gotten to see what a noble man he was and the life he lived by faith.
John went swimming with Cole (a teammate), Mark (Japan Navigators Staff), and two Japanese students at the beach. Him, Mark, and Cole swam around a peninsula to explore a cave on the other side. Cole reached the cave first and started exploring. Mark came a minute or so later. Some time passed before Cole realized that John hadn't reached the cave yet and wondered where he was. Through a hole in the rocks, Cole saw that John was trying to swim back to the shore but was struggling because the waves were too big. Cole swam to help John, but he was already unconscious. When they got to shore, Mark and Cole administered CPR for 15 minutes but there was no response. They took him to the hospital, but he was pronounced dead a couple hours later. These circumstances are completely bizarre because John was an excellent swimmer, and exploring caves and the ocean were things he loved doing. It was all God's timing that John should be taken from this earth.
I can't believe that this happened, but it is comforting to know that he is with the Lord now. Our topic for our last night at the Oshima Island camp was hope, and what better way to convey hope than to be able to share with the students about the hope that we have in Jesus that we will see John again in heaven. When we were sitting, praying, and waiting for the news, Keigo (one of the students) passed out Bibles to the other guys and they all started reading. This was the first time that I've seen them all read the Bible together. We also got to read the Bible and share with the girls.
We had been studying 1 Thessalonians as a team, and we had just finished studying it on Friday. John was talking about how he was excited for Christ's return and asked us if we were living in this excitement. It's unreal that now he's with God for all eternity.
1 Thessalonians 4:13-18
13Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope. 14We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. 15According to the Lord's own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. 18Therefore encourage each other with these words.
Please pray:
- for John's family
- for Mark, Cole, and the two Japanese students who were with John when he died
- for the students. The news came as a shock, and there is no hope for them when a person dies. Pray that the Lord would work in them as they process through what has happened.
- for the summer team and myself. Pray that we would comfort one another and finish strong the work that God has given us to do during this last week that we're here in Japan. We also all want to be able to make it to his funeral.
- that the the Lord would protect the ministry here in Japan and that the students will be drawn toward the Gospel.
Our trip to Oshima was still great, and a lot of pictures will be coming soon.
His family has set up a memorial website for him at http://www.johnholee.com/.
With hope,
Priscilla | | |
| Hi Everyone,
I'm sorry that I haven't updated for a few weeks. So much has been happening, and now it's already time to prepare for the Oshima Island trip that's coming up this weekend and also to get ready to go back to America.
Prayer Requests:
- Oshima Island trip (July 29-August 1)
Please pray that God would bless the trip and our time with the students. Pray that we would be vessels of God's love and extend the grace to them that God has given us.
- Homestays with students (August 1-4)
We will be staying with students for the last few days before we go back to America. Please pray that the time we have with each student would be good and that we would really be able to love them and share God's love with them. Let us not depend on our own strength but fully rely on God's strength.
On Saturday, August 8, Bryan Gibbs from the B.E.S.T. Club ministry in Utsunomiya came to visit to encourage us and see how we were doing. It's so great to hear what God is doing there. 5 of the students have come to accept Christ, and they are now leading Bible studies and praying for the other students in the B.E.S.T. Club. It's encouraging to know that the Japanese are not beyond God's grace, and that it is all His doing that they come to know Him. Even though this hasn't happened yet in the B.E.S.T. Club in Tokyo, we can still put our hope and trust in God that He will draw the students to Himself.
At Shaberanaito this past Friday night, two guys in my discussion group, Mikkun and Keigo, were offended by how the discussion went. It was due to miscommunication and not recognizing their cultural cues. I didn't really think that I could be responsible for making mistakes, but that night made me realize that I am not above making mistakes, and it is not by my own doing that will bring these students to put their trust in God. Only God can change their hearts, and not what I say or do. I'm glad that it isn't up to me because I have clearly failed.
Something that has been on my mind lately:
"God, who made the world and everything in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands. Nor is He worshiped with men’s hands, as though He needed anything, since He gives to all life, breath, and all things. And He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings, so that they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us;" ~ Acts 17:24-27
God loves each Japanese person, and He has placed them in Japan for a reason.
My pictures are finally up, thanks to Ojen's computer.
Here are the links:
Japan Pictures
Kyoto
Fireworks in Yokohama
Thanks for praying!
~Priscilla
| | |
| Hi Everyone,
The Kyoto Trip was amazing. It was a great time of getting to know the students on the car ride there and back and in Kyoto. We even got to stay at a youth hostel for a night, and I got a bunch of mosquito bites and a sudden first experience in an onsen there. Kyoto's one of the few places that wasn't destroyed by the WW2 bombings. The old buildings, temples, and sites are still intact. We visited several of the historical sites and temples. We went to Arishiyama, Nijo Castle, The Golden Pavilion and Rokuon-ji Temple, Sanjusangen-do Temple, and Kiyomizu Temple. Each place offered a great glimpse of the history, culture, and beauty of Japan.
Here are links to some pictures from Kyoto:
Kyoto Pictures
Christy's Pictures
I won't be able to upload my own pictures until I get back from Japan. I don't have the installation software for my camera. Until then, feel free to look at the pictures from the other team members' sites.
God really had his hand on the trip. We were able to form and strengthen friendships with the students and the students among each other. Ojen and I were able to have a good conversation with two students, Kie and Mayu, about life after death. Please pray that these girls will keep seeking and asking questions.
I am so amazed by what God is doing in Japan through the B.E.S.T Club. On the Monday after Kyoto, we helped a staff family, TJ and Kyong A Hayes, move out of their house to move back to the U.S. for 10 months. I just met them that day, but I was so touched to see the impact that they have had on the students since being in Japan. God has really used them to minister to the students, and even though they aren't believers, they have gotten to learn about and draw nearer to God. TJ and Kyong A and their family are so well-loved by the students, and even I will miss them.
On Friday night, the CA SETers (Summer Exchange Travelers) got to experience our first "Shaberanaito". During Shaberanaito, we have dinner, a game, an English lesson, and a Bible discussion with the Japanese students. We're talking about the story of Joseph, and on Friday it was the story about Joseph and Potiphar's wife. We had a good discussion on temptation, what it is, what to do when it confronts you, why did God allow Joseph to go through temptation, and the role of temptation in our lives. The students ask really good questions, and it's great that they're thinking about these things and learning about God in the process.
"It's not for me it's all for You."
~Priscilla | | |
| Konnichiwa! It's been pretty exciting to be in a completely different place. I'm still trying to get used to not understanding what people are saying and not being able to switch to Chinese to communicate. I'm living in West Tokyo with another teammate and two of the mid-term Navigator staffers. The past few days have been filled with orientation, meeting students at "English Lunch Table" at Chuo and Shuto University, and getting a feel for Japan. I'm so amazed at how friendly the students are and how willing they are to do things with us even though they haven't known us for very long.
It's said that evangelism in Japan takes a long time. Unlike in the Western world, there is no concept of God or a tradition of Christianity here. There are several barriers to a Japanese person accepting Christ. One person mentioned that the hardest things to accept are Jesus' resurrection, miracles, and creation. Our goal is to build relationships based on love and trust, and through that share our lives and faith. It's important to be a friend to them and not force our beliefs onto them. The students in the B.E.S.T. Clubs aren't believers, but they are interested in reading the Bible and learning English from us. Even though their interest in the Bible is more for knowledge rather than for personal reasons, they will encounter God through that.
The team and the B.E.S.T. Clubs from Chuo and Shuto University are going to Kyoto this weekend. Please pray for our safety in traveling and for the students. Kyoto is a historical place with a lot of temples. Please pray that we would be able to use this time to share our beliefs with the students and to love them and not condemn them.
That's all for now! Thank you for your prayers! | | |
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