Reflections

Well I finally took some time today to get away and just reflect on the trip and all that happened in the past month and a half. At debrief they tried to equip us for the reverse culture shock we would experience coming back to America from our respective countries. I've definitely noticed some weird things about being back in the US, like we're reallllly obnoxiously loud compared to the Japanese. And there is also the discrepancy between the intense experiences we've had on project and the continuation of life as normal at home. They told us that people often struggle to go from constantly being pulled and stretched in faith to living life the way it always was as a completely different person.

It has been hard to go back to normal life with my family and work. I miss my team especially. The close community we had for those 5 weeks was something special. I miss the Japanese nationals we made friends with, the JCCC staff, Japanese food and all the random Japanese cultural norms that had become normal for me. Today I was able to process through all these things and give them all to God. It was freeing to turn them over to him. It was also cool because I was able to thank him for so many things too. The fact that I miss Tokyo and my team so much is really just a testament to how awesome this summer was, how powerfully God showed up on our trip. So while I'm having "withdrawals" now, it's a crazy blessing that it even happened the way it did. And the things I learned in country are absolutely invaluable for ministry and life here. As I process everything better and readjust, the growth I experienced and the wisdom and brokenness I gained will help me better serve God's kingdom here in the US. That's a pretty crazy thought and I am truly excited to see what ministry at school will look like this next year because of project.

Sorry if I'm rambling...I think I'm still processing some as I write this for you. Basically I would say that I still need time to reflect more and pray over things more, but I am doing well and God is ever faithful. It's great to be back with my family and back in non-humid weather. And I'm excited to catch up with friends and tell them how God blew me away this summer. And over everything God is still teaching me things and breaking me in areas that I still struggle with. It's a never-ending process!


In closing, thank you so much for taking this journey with me with all its ups and downs. Thank you for rejoicing in my rejoicing and for covering me with your prayers in my hard times. It meant so much knowing I had a community of believers back home praying over myself, my team and our ministry the whole time we were in Japan. Please keep Tokyo in your prayers. God IS moving and changing lives radically, but it is still a very dark and broken place. Pray for the JCCC staff who serve so faithfully, for the christian students on all the college campuses, for our friends at Waseda who are exploring Christianity, for all those who are utterly broken and hopeless. And pray that God would raise up laborers to go and be lights. The workers really are few in Japan though the need is so great. And please pray that if God wants me or anyone on my team to go back for Him that he would make that calling very clear to us. I told him I would go wherever he wanted me so it will be interesting to see where that promise leads me.

Well, I guess this is "matane" for now. I pray God continues to grow you and show you his faithfulness as he has so powerfully to me this summer. Blessings in Him.

Hebrews 10:23
His servant, Quinn

Final Pictures

Hi all! It's been a week since we landed in California now and I'm still processing and organizing my life back in America. I'll do a final reflections post later this week, but I wanted to leave you all with some Disneyland pictures and photos from our last few adventures together as a team. Enjoy!







Our last morning in Tokyo. We went on the guys' roof to see the sun rise in the land of the rising sun.



At Narita Airport waiting for our flight.



Crashed on the van ride back to Vanguard for debrief.




Welcomed home with a gorgeous California sunset.



And finally, one of the students from UCSB disigned project hoodies for our team. We took a bunch of team hoodie photos together before saying good-bye. These are a few of my favorites from the bunch.

Sayonara

We leave Tokyo tomorrow. Our flight leaves around 7pm and we arrive back in the states around 1pm the same day...time travel is possible folks! I didn't rest well last night for some reason and tonight is not going to be very restful either, so please pray for sleep on the plane and for safe and easy traveling. Thank you all so much! Blessings