Yanaga Family Christmas

It's been so wonderful having my parents and younger brother here over the holidays. I've been able to show them the places of my daily life and some of the people as well. I'll be able to post more once things have slowed down, but for now here are a few snapshots of my holiday time. I hope you all had a truly blessed Christmas.

They're really here!

Christmas Husky

Picnic Family Christmas at TCoC

Family explores Waseda University

Shoes stuffed with gifts from the team

Running the Race

The Christian walk is often likened to a race. In 1 Corinthians Paul bids us to run the race so we might get the prize at the end. In Hebrews 12:1 we are called to run with perseverance the race marked out for us. I enjoy running, but am not committed enough to call myself a runner or competitive enough to call myself a racer. A lot of the time it feels like the Christian life is at a 100 yard dash pace for the distance of a marathon. Basically, it's hard. It takes everything out of you and then there is still more race to run. Lovely.

I'm particularly aware of this sense of sprinting a marathon here in Japan. Everything is heightened here, the good becomes great, the hard becomes impossible, the sad becomes heart-breaking. This part of my race is more difficult. I felt pretty spiritually "in shape" coming into the year, if you will allow me to stretch my metaphors that far, but one can never be perfectly prepared. There are always bumps in the race path, muscles tighten without notice, the weather conditions worsen. Life happens. But one must continue racing.

In Hebrews 6, the early church is implored to keep running the race. In verses 9-12 the author writes,

"Even though we speak like this, dear friends, we are confident of better things in your case- things that accompany salvation. God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them. We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, in order to make your hope sure. We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised."

These Christians were growing weary in their race. Here they were reminded that God had seen and delighted in all they had done for him thus far. They were encouraged to find joy in being diligent in continuing to love and serve God's children. They were called to not only race well, but also to finish well, with faith and patience.

I was challenged by this call to run my race with faith and patience. I challenge you to join me in that. And remember what a joy and privilege it is to run this race for our heavenly Father.

Safe in His Arms

On the 10th we had our December Day with the Lord. I didn't go in expecting much to happen, just hoping for a restful day to spend with Jesus and thankful for the time to get out of the apartment for awhile. I went for a walk along the Kanda River that runs by my neighborhood. The sun was warm and the air was sharp but refreshing. Walking quickly, my brain wandered in and out of thoughts and prayer. There was no goal or intent for the time, I just wanted to get away from everything.

Further along the river walk is a small playground and benches. I found a bench in a patch of sunlight so I sat down and started listening to my i-pod. Everything was fine and dandy until Phil Wickham's Safe started playing. Out of nowhere I began bawling my eyes out. In that instant I felt completely alone, totally wiped out, and utterly helpless. There are no words to describe the moment except it was very dark and very sad. It was shocking, too, because I thought I was entering the day in a pretty good place. Ministry, team stuff, and time with the Lord the previous week had all been good. And yet here I was crying on a bench in the middle of Tokyo, hiding the tears with my sunglasses and blowing my nose on a waxy napkin from the Vie de France Cafe. Apparently all was not well.

That afternoon I tried to figure out why I had felt so sad in that moment. Nothing came to mind. I certainly have daily struggles with living in such a foreign place, of being bold on campus and not worn down by spiritual warfare, and of being content where I am so far from friends and family. While these are all hard things, none seemed to explain the depth of my despair in that instant. As I was thinking through all this, I felt the Lord calling me and reminding me of something else that had happened as I sat on the bench.

Tears running down my face, the words of the song "the hands that hold the world are holding your heart" rang in my head. Though I didn't understand why I related to the song so much, why my heart felt so tired and broken, I clearly felt the Lord holding me. In that instant of pure sorrow and loneliness he showed up and made his presence known.

There are only a handful of moments in my life that I can point to and say I felt God's presence in my life. Because they are few and far between, these moments are extremely beautiful and precious to me. This moment was a gift from my very gracious heavenly Father and I cherish it.

I still don't know why I felt so sad on Monday. I don't know if I will ever have an answer. But I'm now okay with that because I do know something more important- I know, without a doubt, that the Lord met me in my sadness and held me in his arms. And I know I will always have that moment of certainty and assurance when the going gets tough and life seems very dark. The Lord is good to give us these moments of absolute certainty of his existence to cling to when our world is falling apart and our faith is weak. I'm thankful for his love and grace expressed to me in this way.

My prayer for all of us is that we would daily become more aware of how safe we are in the Father's arms.

Truth of the Day

"Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him." 

James 1:12

Snapshots of Thankfulness

It's been a crazy week and a half with cheese-making, appointments with students on campus, Day with the Lord, team Thanksgiving on Thursday, a Let's Talk T-din outreach event Friday, real Thanksgiving dinner on Saturday and catching up on life yesterday. I just wanted to post a quick update with a few photos of my most recent adventures. I'll have a more in-depth update on Thanksgiving in the next few days!

Team "Silver pot" at our cheese-making at Omar and Jennifer's

Pasta press

New calling- Pasta-holder

Shabu shabu hot pot with the ladies- meat and veggies for days

3 hours at Starbucks with the Lord

Glassy reflections

Mr. Waseda on a fine autumn afternoon

Dream Christmas at Skytree

Early Christmas card from the team. Taken at Skytree, edited by Christine

BRUINS

I wouldn't be a True Bruin if I didn't somehow acknowledge my boys' awesome win over USC this weekend! I woke up Sunday morning to the good news: 38-28 win after a 5-year losing streak! Obviously I wish I could have seen it with my own eyes, but it is nevertheless quite satisfying. In honor of the victory I sported my blue and gold to church.

You can hear from far and near the mighty Bruin roar!

Break Every Chain

At our retreat we took our first hour there as time with the Lord. It was a time to quiet our hearts, come before him with our ministry thus far, and ask him to show up in leading us the rest of the semester. I'm never sure how he will show up in those times, but he always does in some way. This time he spoke to me through song. My handy dandy i-Pod shuffle (Thanks Mom!) was playing and Will Reagan's song Break Every Chain came on. The lyrics are as follows:

There is power in the name of Jesus

There is power in the name of Jesus
There is power in the name of Jesus

To break every chain
To break every chain
To break every chain

All sufficient sacrifice
So freely given
Such a price bought
Our redemption
Heaven’s gates swing wide

As I sat there praying through stuff the lyrics started resonating in my heart. God showed me how little I was believing these words. There is power in the name of Jesus to break every chain.

Here in Japan there are a lot of chains holding people in spiritual bondage. It breaks my heart and that's a very big reason why I'm back. The sad thing is I have something in the gospel that can free them from their bondage, but I'm terrified to share it because of my fear of man. Listening to the song I realized how little faith I have in the power of Jesus' name. I care more about how people view me than sharing Jesus with them.

There is power in the name of Jesus to break every chain. The words rang in my head over and over again as I hashed things out with God. I repented of my fear, cowardice, and lack of faith in his sovereignty and omnipotence. And I trusted him to use me as a proclaimer of Christ's name to the Japanese students I am meeting.

I do believe there is real, life-transforming power in Jesus' name. I want to be more faithful in proclaiming his name to those around me. The power isn't in me and how I present the gospel, it's in the fact that Jesus died on the cross in our places and rose again from the dead. That kind of love is truly powerful.

Truth of the day for us all- There is power in the name of Jesus. I challenge you as God challenged me to live in that power.

Team Retreat: November 11-13

 

 Pictures galore from our team retreat at Okutama Bible Chalet in Saiwa.

View of the Chalet from the girls' room

Getting creative with ping pong

The never-ending hot beverage bar

Bonfire

View from high up of the river

Pretty

Christine, my river-walk buddy

Cutouts in a lookout over the river

Autumn foliage

Artist

The bridge

Laundry- "Great Champ"

Unreal fall colours

Nature at its finest

One of the most brilliant trees I've ever seen

Sunshine

Boots

The girls

We spent all of Monday planning our campus ministry for the rest of the semester, but had the remaining time free. It was wonderful to sit in the fireside room and read, play card games, or just sit. All of our meals were ready and waiting for us once the dinner bell rang, and there was endless hot water with tea and coffee and hot chocolate mix at our disposal. We also got to explore the surrounding mountains and riverbed and enjoy the magnificent autumn colours. I fast realized how extremely depressing SoCal autumns are in comparison.

Walking by the river, hearing the water rushing by, breathing in the crisp fall air, and taking in all the amazing colours I was really refreshed. You forget how draining city life can be until you take a step back and realize how still you can actually get if you have the chance. I'm very thankful I had a literal breath of fresh air this weekend!

Retreat Preview

Just returned from a two night team retreat at Okutama Bible Chalet in Saiwa. We used the time away from campus ministry to plan the rest of the semester out as well as just enjoy being together in a beautiful environment. Back to work now, but here is a taste of our time there. I'll have more pictures up in the next couple days!

Prayer for the lost

Prayer for the lost, taken from scripture in Ephesians 4:17-24

Dear Father,
I pray for your children who are living in darkness, living with futile thoughts. Their understanding has been darkened and they are separated from reconciliation with you because their hearts are so hardened to their own sin. They have lost all sensitivity and given themselves over to the continual lust of the body. Lord free them from this imprisonment. Clear their vision so they might see and understand your glory. By the power of your Holy Spirit help them put off their old corrupted self. Transform their hearts and minds so they might grow to be like you more each day, living in true righteousness and holiness.

We insist on all this in the powerful name of Jesus Christ.
Amen.

Halloweeny, Halloweeny, Halloweeny

Halloween festivities continued on Tuesday night with a costume party hangout for students we've met at Nichi-dai. Because I had so much going on with the overnighter, I didn't have to help plan this one so it was refreshing to just show up and hang out with the students. We played Birdie on the Perch and taught them several line dances. One thing I've learned from this past week is you can do the Electric Slide to basically every song.

On actual Halloween we were on campus at ICUHS and held a mini festival. Students stopped by our room and said "Trick-or-Treat" and got candy and Subway sandwiches. We had a few games and prizes and taught the Electric Slide again (this time to the Monster Mash). About 35 students came and most of them stuck around the whole lunch period! I got to meet over a dozen new faces so that was a huge blessing.

With Hiro and Leimi

Doing the Electric Slide

Juggling Tangerine Jack o'lanterns

Mandatory group photo

After school about 10 or so students came back. We played several intense rounds of Jenga and each had the opportunity to connect with students at a deeper level. One of the 3rd years walked with us to the train station and Jacob, Christine and I got to have a cool conversation with him. His life has been incredible- living on every continent except Antarctica, and never staying in one place for more than 5 years. Because of that he is very open to talking about different things so it was neat to get his views on Christianity in Japan and different spiritual concepts.

The game heating up

Figuring out my game plan

Talking about the universality of certain symbols

Picnic Family and Johnny!

After all the candy and costumes, my Halloween quota has been reached for about the next 5 years. But the Lord used all of the festivities to plant a lot of seeds I think, so praises to him for that! Please keep all these students in your prayers this next week or so. Halloween is all about the facade, masks, and hiding. These students hide a lot of pain and brokenness every day, please pray that our loving Father would be able to use us to enter into that hurt with them.

Again, all thanks for the pictures goes to Christine, Pun fu Master :)

Halloween, 1st edition

Let me preface this by saying I've never really been super into Halloween. I like carving pumpkins and eating candy, but am too cheap to get into costumes, too lazy to trick or treat, and too jumpy to enjoy scary stuff. So basically I don't celebrate Halloween. That all changed this year! Following is some photographic evidence of this transformation.

First up, our Let's Talk high school overnight costume party! Costume for the night, gangsta' (aka pretty much all of Jacob's wardrobe)

Omar and Gangsta' Quinn

From the MW, Midwest

Toilet paper relays

ICUHS alum now at Waseda!

Jacob's Life story

Playing Golf

The whole gang

Picnic family and Ryuuki

ICUHS staff and students

Omar^2

Costume exchanging

Future architect

I ended up only getting four hours of sleep, but the sacrifice was definitely worth it. The students seemed to have a lot of fun and were really engaged in the things we had planned. About half a dozen spent the night at the student center so we got to invest a lot of time in those relationships. It's amazing how much bonding can happen at 3 in the morning! God definitely showed up and filled in where we lacked.

Jacob shared his 3 minute life story that we all have been working on, and we had discussion time afterwards. I went with all the high school girls who came and, though the discussion was mostly in Japanese, from what I was able to follow they took the questions very seriously and all opened up at least a little bit. What an honor to be part of that feeling of safety and openness! Please pray that the Holy Spirit would continue to be at work in these students' hearts and minds as well as provide my team and I more opportunities to be a safe place for them to turn.

All photo cred goes to Christine, again you can check out her blog of our time here at http://christineharada.tumblr.com/!