Monday-Wednesday, March28-30, 2011

Spring Camp 2011
Seven Independent Baptist Japanese churches joined together for the annual Youth Camp for these three days.  This year the camp grounds were located in Tanbata area of Hyogo prefecture.  It was about an hour's drive northeast from our church.  It is a beautiful camp area in the mountains with running water going through it.  The local farmers use it for irrigation so we were admonished not to throw anything in the streams. The giant riverbed, however, was dried up.  Maybe in the summer it runs.

The grounds itself have a small pond and a flock of ducks (or is it a gaggle?) and the lone mascot--a wild boar in a cage.  He looked so sad being cooped up in a cement-floor cage...no dirt around at all. 

A very bored boar.This video was actually the last day of camp.  The brothers sang the theme song Press On! with the teens from Senri New Town Baptist Church in Osaka. 
The Herbster Trio, Matthew, Mark and Mike, were the camp speakers; each spoke twice and challenged hearts every time.  Each speaker emphasized the importance of serving God when you are young and letting God use you to impact or influence the people around you.  Good, solid, Bible preaching.   Several teens made decisions to follow Christ and put Him first.  On the last day, five of boys indicated they were called to be preachers.  They range in age from 17 to 25 and one will be starting Bible college in a couple of weeks.  Let us pray this is the start of a revival here in Japan. 

The group activities were a blast!  We first played volleyball with a huge ball and it was so fun. It did hurt the wrists the only time I got to hit it.  The kids loved it.  We had a Blue Team headed by Mark and the Red Team headed by Mike.  The Blue Team won that contest. 

  Big Ball Volleyball

We next played a game called Tagalot.  One team is sitting back-to-back in chairs spaced about 2-3 feet apart down a long line.  The other team is to run between the chairs trying not to get tagged by a baton the sitting team uses.  The baton holder cannot go through the chairs buy has to hand it to someone seated and then take his/her place.  The new baton holder tries to tag the runner and it goes until that happens.  It was tons of fun and very tiring.  The Red Team won that one. 
  Tagalot
The second day after the morning service we went to the ball field and played Three Ball Baseball.  The object is that three members at a time of the batting throw or kick a ball to the outfield.  Then they run the bases trying to make it to home plate before all three balls are thrown to three people from the opposing team and put into a bucket near home plate.  If the runners stop at second and third they get points and 5 points for making it home; no points for standing on first base.  The Blue Team one that one.
 Three Ball Baseball
After the evening service there was a Bible Quiz game of sorts.  The questions were all about the messages the Herbsters preached.  The first one to stand got to answer the question and if it was correct, they got to play a computer game called Sorry, Pig!  The winner could choose different colored circles and if what was behind it was an animal with a number, they got points, or double or triple points.  They could choose to stop or try again.  The animals kept moving around so it was not certain where the Sorry, Pig was.  If you got that, you lost all your points.  The Red team won that one.  

The last game of camp was dodge ball. The Red Team won Dodge Ball. Actually this photo is from the Red side looking at the Blue Team. 

We appreciate the Herbster Trio taking time out of their schedules to minister to us here in Japan.  They were a blessing to everyone; their singing was superb and harmony was great.  They have such a happy, fun, positive attitude about Christ and life in general that we hope it is contagious to the Japanese who tend to take a more serious and fatalistic approach to life.  We pray God will use their time here in a great way so that the church can see an increase for God's Glory.   Thank you for coming! 

These two videos are of the Herbster brothers singing in Japanese.   They did a good job!

Mike and Mark singing Be Not Afraid in Japanese. 

This next one is the Herbsters with Isaiah on the left and Elijah Ogawa on the right singing It Is Enough. 

Friday, March 25, 2011

 Henry and Mark Herbster

This is the final day of the Bible Conference.  Mark preached this morning from Ezekiel 3:17 about being a watchman whose task it is to see and speak.  He is not to save the city, but to warn of danger.  The gospel tells us everyone is to preach the gospel, simply proclaiming what God has done for you.   Tell people they need to change course to go to heaven.  We are accountable for our own obedience.  It is not just the job of the pastors and missionaries.   Mark was encouraging in this message as he got many excited about sharing the gospel. 

Mike preached second on 2 Cor. 11:15 on being masters of ministry.
1)  The joy of ministry is to see people we have led to the Lord serve God on their own, continuing with strength and power.  2) the duty of ministry is to spend and be spent.  Keep telling the gospel to a lost and dying world.  3) the disappointment of ministry is true, but we need to press on  and keep telling people how to get saved.  It is not our job to save a person; we cannot.  It is out job to warn and tell and God will do the saving.  

At the end of the morning service, Matt told how he came to write Lord Send Laborers.  As he toured many foreign countries his heart was broken for the lost people and the song was written as a prayer for God to work in Matt's heart and send him to the foreign field if that is what God wanted.  He then led the congregation in singing that song in Japanese.  It was a very fitting end to a wonderful week.  

At the graduation service in the evening, several special songs were sung.  Matt Herbster preached the message.  First though, he gave Kato-san a Wilds Camp T-shirt.  He said it was the smallest one they had (it was too big for Kato-san).  Mind you, Matthew is 6'6" and Kato-san is about a foot shorter.  

Anyway the message was from Deut. 8:11 and warning us to beware not to forget God.  We forget God by acting if sin never happened.  when we live contrary to God's commands it means we have forgotten God.  When we are proud, we have forgotten God.  2 Tim. 10:17 says let him that glory, glory in the Lord.  We forget God when we are consumed with other gods.  Lastly, we need to teach our children, the next generation, about God or they will forget and that generation will be lost.  

Kato-san received his diploma and everyone stood and clapped.   Afterwards, there was a reception at the Bible School.

 

Next week we go to spring camp and will hear the Herbster brothers encourage the teens to stand for God.   May it be a blessing to everyone going.

Thursday, March 24, 2011

Isaiah Ogawa leading Saved by the Blood of the Crucified One---one of my favorites in both languages.

This morning Kato-san, the only graduate this year, preached from Isaiah 55:5.  I did not take notes in my Bible, so I do not remember what he spoke about.  His delivery was good and he will be effective as an assistant pastor at his home church. 

The singing was great, the spirit is good and God is moving.

Mark Herbster preached the second message this morning from Genesis 39 about Joseph and fleeing temptation.  He faithfully served his master and had a good testimony. Satan wants to ruin our testimony any way he can.  The time of temptation is when we are strong.   The truth of God is persistent, persuasive.  Joseph repeatedly told Potiphar's wife NO, daily.  Joseph had decided in advance that to sin against God would be worse than doing any sin.  He recognized the consequences of disobedience.  "How can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?"  When the wife finally caught him, he fled and left quickly.  Run as fast as you can in the other direction.    Joseph is an excellent example of putting God first and asking Him to help in time of need.

Ron White preached in the evening service from Isaiah 43:18 which admonishes us not to remember the former things, neither consider the things of old. 

1)   The promise is for now.  God is getting ready to do something.  We are not to be discouraged about what has not happened in the past, as far as the work here in Japan is concerned.  God is ready to do a new thing.  Phil. 3:13 and 2 Cor. 5:17.

At the end of the service, all the graduates of KIBBS who were in the service sang the final medley.  They had NO practice.  Jenny Harris played piano and Ron led.  

March 23, 2011

David Harris interpreted for Mike Herbster

The first to preach this morning was Mike Herbster, the younger of the twins,  who preached from 2 Tim. 6:11-12 about being a man of God. 

First we must flee sin—the danger of sin—stay away from it.

Second, follow the things of God:  righteousness and godliness, faith, patience, endurance.  Thirdly, fight the good fight of faith with the right spirit, follow His steps. 

Matthew Herbster also preached again this morning out of 2 Tim. 3:10-17.  The point was that we should expect persecution as a Christian.  Paul admonished Timothy to remember what he was taught by his mom and grandmom.

Persecution involves these:

1)   Purity is given by God  2 Peter 1:20

2)   It is Profitable, beneficial and valuable  Isaiah 55:5

3)   Purpose of persecution is to make us perfect

This is the theme song of the Conference written by Matthew Herbster.   It is called Lord Send Laborers.  It is a bit shaky as I was trying to keep Pastor Hiraoka in the camera site.  He is a very energetic song leader! 

March 22, 2011

This week is the KIBBS Bible Conference.  The Herbster Trio are the speakers at this annual event at the Bible School at which Henry teaches English.  This year there is one graduate, Kato-san.  The videos I will upload are just of some of the music sung there, all in Japanese, of course.  You will probably recognize the hymns.

The oldest of the three brothers, Matthew, spoke this evening with Ron White translating.  His text is Nehemiah 1:1-4.  A brief outline follows.   The main point was now is not the time to stand still or retreat.  

1)   Compassionate man.  Nehemiah saw the need of rebuilding the wall around Jerusalem. He was a man of prayer and supplication.  When he was told of the condition of Jerusalem, he wept.

         

         

2)   Consistent man.  2:1  As the king’s cupbearer he was never sad in front of him.  The king took notice and asked the reason.  Then Nehemiah told him and God moved on the king’s heart and he provided what was needed for the rebuilding, plus safe passage to Jerusalem.

3)   Courageous man.  Somebody needs to do it.  He had a plan and put it to work. Even in the face of constant opposition from two people in particular, he did not quit and kept working until the work was done.

4)   Contageous man.  He was excited about the work.  He started praising God.  He was persistent.  His excitement got everyone motivated.

   The title of the song is Keep the Race Before Us sung my Mark, Matthew and Mike Herbster

Thursday, February 17, 2011

We all left about 8:45 am for camp, packed up our laundry to do there, took the lunch, finished curtains and shop vac for cleaning.  

We stopped for a few minutes at the beach they use for camp swimming.  It was clean, private and had tons of shells and coral washed on the sand.  Some of the clam shells were really heavy, others were buried in the sand and could not be dug out by hand.  It was a beautiful beach and we got some small things to take home. 

 There was alot to do at camp.  While the guys started the painting, I got the laundry going and did a couple of loads.  Terri and I then went and put the curtains up in the guest room and large dorm room.  They turned out rather nice.  
   
We got Sara to vacuum the floor downstairs.  There was lots of dust.  Dan emptied the container two or three times.  Anyway, while she did that, Terri and I dusted things and picked up stuff and took stuff to the shed and generally straightened up.  Then I got all the laundry folded and put in the van to take back.  Then I located a scraper and started to scrap up the dried mud on the floor of the new area.  That took a couple of hours total. 

After lunch Terri and I tackled a room upstairs and sorted sheets and towels and put them in proper containers for use in the summer.  That room got cleaned up nicely.


We left there about 5:30 and returned to the church about 7:00 pm.  Later we went to the Gardners for a marvelous dinner of baked spaghetti.  Different and delicious.    Then it was back to church for the night.  

 The ocean

 Okinawan family tombs. There are thousands of these all over the island.

 Coral and sea shells on the beach

 The walls were painted ivory and the ceiling white. 

Friday, February 18, 2011

It was nice to sleep in a quiet neighborhood--no music blaring or extremely loud motorcycles at 4:00 a.m.   The Gardners live in a quiet neighborhood except for the military plane overhead sometimes, but none late at night.

We got up a little later than usual, had breakfast and then went out to China Pete's to exchange Sara's cup.  The lady refunded her money and was happy to do it.  We then walked to the Christian book store to find something else for Grandpa.  Sara took her time deciding but finally picked a small wood cross that would stand on a desk, and a couple of other small items.  She insisted on paying for these herself and conducting the transaction with the cashier.  She is learning.  

The guys came back after 4:00 p.m. and we got ready to go to another church tonight.  Dan drove us over to the Stearns home where we met the family and had a very simple, delicious dinner.  About 6:45 we went over to the church.  Henry played the piano for the service to give Mrs. Stearns a break.  I think there were about 13-15 in church.  Henry preached as well.  After service, Pastor drove us back to the church.  

Tomorrow we will go to camp for the day. 

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

It was nice to sleep in a quiet neighborhood--no music blaring or extremely loud motorcycles at 4:00 a.m.   The Gardners live in a quiet neighborhood except for the military plane overhead sometimes, but none late at night.


We got up a little later than usual, had breakfast and then went out to China Pete's to exchange Sara's cup.  The lady refunded her money and was happy to do it.  We then walked to the Christian book store to find something else for Grandpa.  Sara took her time deciding but finally picked a small wood cross that would stand on a desk, and a couple of other small items.  She insisted on paying for these herself and conducting the transaction with the cashier.  She is learning.  


The guys came back after 4:00 p.m. and we got ready to go to another church tonight.  Dan drove us over to the Stearns home where we met the family and had a very simple, delicious dinner.  About 6:45 we went over to the church.  Henry played the piano for the service to give Mrs. Stearns a break.  I think there were about 13-15 in church.  Henry preached as well.  After service, Pastor drove us back to the church.  


Tomorrow we will go to camp for the day. 

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Today the guys went back to camp and Terri came over mid-morning. Dan called and said they were thinking of spending the night at camp in order to get more done; he is to call later about the final decision.


Since Terri was feeling better we decided to do a little shopping then Sara and I would spend the night at her house and have a "girls' night."   The guys had decided to stay at camp.   We did some shopping at the San-A mall where a jeweler was located.  He fixed Sara's new watch for just 525 yen and it fits nicely now.  


After we got back to the house in the afternoon we watched two of the movies in the Love Comes Softly series.   It is one of those tear-jerkers.  I read the books years and years ago as Janette Oke was popular then.  These were made by Michael Landon, Junior, and quite good.  

Monday, February 14th, 2011

Happy Valentine's Day from cool, wet Okinawa.  It is again overcast and rainy here today.  Terri came over about 10:30 a.m. and left us some goodies.  She was doing worse than yesterday, so I told her she needed to just go home and rest.  We did not need to go any place today, so Sara and I stayed here at the church.  I took a walk to the post office around the corner then walked a couple of kilometers around the streets near the church.  There was a crew of men that were laying asphalt on a parking lot next to a new apartment building behind the church.  I watched them pour it and flatten it starting about 4:00 p.m.  By this time they were over half finished and it started to rain again.  They finished about 6:00 p.m.  That was the excitement for the day.

 About 4:45 p.m.

Finished

 One of the Japanese ladies from church invited us to dinner at the same restaurant we went to last week with Dan and Terri only this time Terri did not go.  She insisted we all get steak so we obliged.  It was delicious.  

On the way back to the church Henry got an email from Noseh-san saying that Kobe had four inches of snow!  It was clogging up traffic terribly, like snow usually does.  We missed it, but it could not have been that much colder than it is here.  Anyway, February is being February here in Japan.  

Sunday, February 13, 2011

We went to the Faith Baptist Church here in Okinawa.  Henry spoke in the 10:30 a.m. service while Terri, Sara and I went upstairs to the small group of kids for junior church time.  There were a total of 22 people in church, including the 5 Americans.   Then we had lunch in the fellowship hall and  Henry preached at the 2:00 p.m. service.  There were 9 in that service; two of which did not come in the morning services.

We then went over to Maranatha Baptist Church, a military work started back in about 1968.  That church has supported us for probably 20 years and it is the first time we have reported to this church.  Henry showed the presentation then preached the message on A Cup of Cold Water out of Matthew 11 (it was about the 5th time I've heard it).  It is still a good message about service God by giving a cup of cold water in the name of a disciple,to someone you don't like, and to those that hate you.

 

The chart on the right wall there indicates the church has just two more payments on their property and they will be debt free!  That is such a good place to be.  


After the service, Pastor Monteith and his family took us and Dan to the A&W Root Beer place where we ate a late dinner. Good food. (hope I have not gained too much weight while down here).  It was good to talk to Bob and Tammy.  We saw them at West Coast last May and again in June at BIMI's 50th Anniversary.  

Tomorrow Henry and Dan will head back to camp for more work.  Terri will not go as she has a cold, so Sara and I will stay at the church. 

Saturday, February 12, 2011

Happy Birthday Abraham Lincoln and my friend Glenice in Australia!

The day was cold again here in tropical Okinawa.  I don't think we really got warmed up.  Anyway, we Wards did some cleaning here at the church building  like mopping floors and cleaning the restrooms.  It smelled really good about 10:30 when the Gardners came over.  

Dan and Henry passed out church tracts and made some visits.  Terri worked on her Sunday School lesson and practiced the piano.  

We made a visit to China Pete's for some gifts then had a hot stew dinner.  Now it is time for rest before Sunday Services.  Henry will be preaching at two different churches tomorrow.   

Friday, February 11, 2011

Dan and Henry left for camp about 8:40 a.m.    
It was actually cold in Okinawa today.  It had rained hard overnight and was overcast all day; the temperature was in the lower 50's.  I needed my jacket and mittens when I took a walk around the neighborhood.  The wind was blowing hard sometimes, so that made it seem much colder.  I saw people with heavy winter coats and hats.  When the sun does not shine down here, it is really cold.  Anyway, not like Tokyo or Washington, DC, but cold for the tropics.  

Terri came over about 11:00 and we worked on things for Sunday. 

After Henry and Dan came back, we went to a local restaurant located on a new golf course where we had an early Valentine's dinner.  The men had steak, Terri and I had the fish platter, and Sara ate chicken fingers and fries.  It was a lot of food.  Delicious.

When we got back to church, we were having something hot to drink and Sara wanted to play the Chocolaopoly Game.  It is similar to Monopoly only everything is chocolate related.  Fun facts to know and tell about chocolate:
What is the holiday that has the most chocolate sales?  

We finished about nine and left the game up in case we get a chance to play again before Sunday.  

Thursday, February 10, 2011

Boulders that rolled down the hill

This week and next we will probably do a couple of overnights out there to get as much done as possible,  Henry will help Dan with the construction, mudding, painting and whatever else.  Terri and I will clean and make some curtains for the rooms.  Sara will help where she can and read the hymn books.  

Henry doing some mudding.

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

This morning Dan and Henry took off about 8:00 a.m. and went to camp to do more mudding and other stuff.  Meanwhile, Terri came over later and we ate lunch then went out in search of curtain fabric for the rooms at camp.  We went to a place called Shalimar, House of 66 Cents.  It is a fabric store in two buildings.  There was a variety of Japanese prints by Quilt Gate.com, a Japanese company.  The prints and colors were so gorgeous.  The cotton prices were very reasonable so I bought about two meters total of three or four fabrics.  I told Terri I did not need to be in this store.  :-)

She found a neutral fabric for the curtains also at a reasonable  price.   We saw some items made from waterproof fabric--a small purse and a folded book cover that was really spiffy and looked easy to do.  Maybe someday.

Later we returned to church and the men came back so we had dinner about 5:30 p.m.  There was a 6:00 p.m. English class in which a Mr. Miyashita came.  He was saved last August; his wife has been a Christian for a long time.  Henry then preached the service at  7:00 p.m.  He preached out of First Corinthians chapter 2.  

It was a long day, but we did get a lot done.  Tomorrow we will be cutting and sewing curtains.     It is a nice warm 70 degrees down here.  I am thawing out.

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Dan and Henry left for camp about 8:40 a.m.    
It was actually cold in Okinawa today.  It had rained hard overnight and was overcast all day; the temperature was in the lower 50's.  I needed my jacket and mittens when I took a walk around the neighborhood.  The wind was blowing hard sometimes, so that made it seem much colder.  I saw people with heavy winter coats and hats.  When the sun does not shine down here, it is really cold.  Anyway, not like Tokyo or Washington, DC, but cold for the tropics.  

Terri came over about 11:00 and we worked on things for Sunday. 

After Henry and Dan came back, we went to a local restaurant located on a new golf course where we had an early Valentine's dinner.  The men had steak, Terri and I had the fish platter, and Sara ate chicken fingers and fries.  It was a lot of food.  Delicious.

When we got back to church, we were having something hot to drink and Sara wanted to play the Chocolaopoly Game.  It is similar to Monopoly only everything is chocolate related.  Fun facts to know and tell about chocolate:
What is the holiday that has the most chocolate sales?  

We finished about nine and left the game up in case we get a chance to play again before Sunday.  

Sara in front of shark Jaws

We left about 2:00 p.m. and ate lunch in the van on the way to camp which was about 45 minutes from the aquarium located in the mountains.  Before we got there we went up a mountain to see the cherry blossoms in bloom.  The trees in Kobe are a lighter pink and bloom in April.  These were very pretty.




Dan has added an extension to the main building.  Henry helped do the mudding.  Terri and I cleaned upstairs.  There are three large rooms with bunk beds and room enough for about 35 campers.  They have had as many as 50 for family camp so they put futon out on the floors.   Each room has its own shower and toilet plus portable racks to hang clothes.  The bunks are all hand made and sturdy.

The camp sits on the edge of a hill and probably is about 2-3 acres all told.  They have had two retaining walls installed.  However, one was not done right so when it rained heavily the large boulders rolled down the hill.  Now that needs to be redone.  
Boulders that rolled down the hill

This week and next we will probably do a couple of overnights out there to get as much done as possible,  Henry will help Dan with the construction, mudding, painting and whatever else.  Terri and I will clean and make some curtains for the rooms.  Sara will help where she can and read the hymn books.  

Henry doing some mudding.

Monday, February 7, 2011

Today we took a flight from Kobe to Okinawa where we will spend the next 11 days helping the Gardners do some work at their camp.  We took a Skymark Airline flight which lasted about 2 hours.  The entire way down over the ocean we were above cloud cover.  As we approached Okinawa, it was still hazy, but we landed safely and deplaned out on the tarmac.  Passengers were loaded onto buses and taken to the terminal.  We got in about 30 minutes later than scheduled due to a delay in departure.

Three years ago they put up a steel-framed building for their church called Shinko Baputisuto Kyoukai  or Faith Baptist Church in English.   Henry and Joe flew down then to help out a couple of weeks; Joe stayed a month.  It is a nice square structure with classrooms, offices and a guest room on the second floor.  The first floor is half church and half kitchen/restrooms.

It has been nice visiting with Dan and Theresa, also called Terry.  It is also nice being in warmer weather and we may finally get over the flu from the past two weeks. 

The first photo is the wing of the Skymark Airline.  The second is approaching Okinawa.  The last is a display inside the terminal near baggage claim.

Saturday, February 5, 2011

We are getting over the flu after 11 days; it is still hanging on.  However we all are on the mends.  The weather here in Kobe has warmed up a bit into the 40's now.  The ice in the buckets is not near as thick.

Sunday we have a guest missionary speaker, Mr. Sato from China.  We will have lunch after the morning service and then the afternoon service at 2:30 
p.m.  After church is over we get to pack for our 10-day trip to Okinawa starting Monday.  Henry will be helping Dan Gardner do some work at the church camp and I suspect Sara and I will be helping.  The current temp down there is in the 60's F.  much warmer than here.  Now, what to pack?
 

Sunday, January 30, 2010

This past week Sara and I have had a doozy of a cold starting off with a cough, then a fever, then the general achy feeling.  I think it has gone to the chest.  I've slept for three days mostly, something that is not normal.  The cough now sounds more like a hoarse horse.  We are on the mends.  The upside is I have lost one kilogram!  I've been stuck since November and could not get over this hump until last week.  This is good news.

On the 7th we are to fly to Okinawa for 10 days to help a fellow missionary do some work at his camp.  It will be much warmer down there.  Currently it is -4C where we are; Okinawa is about 25.  I may actually enjoy going to the beach if given the opportunity.  Now, what to pack?

This week we will be passing out over 4,000 flyers for a special meeting on the 6th.  We have a Japanese missionary coming who serves in China.  He will preach in the morning, then we will have lunch and then an afternoon service where he will show his presentation.  Please pray some new people come. 

There were just 10 in the service this morning as several people were out with illness.  

Saturday, January 29, 2011

Fun Cargo by Toyota.  We have a "new" little car.  It is a 5-passenger vehicle with a huge cargo area.  The seats can like flat in the floor!  The color is silver; the interior is gray and it is about 9-10 years old.  We needed to replace our older van and decided the smaller vehicle would serve us best.  Since we don't have so many people living here, the three of us do not need a van as much.  We still have the Honda Step Wagon, also in silver, and is still a great vehicle.  We have not had such a small vehicle since before 1987.  

 Front Dash board with Navi! There is also a CD player behind it.

 Rear door opens like a door.  Plenty of cargo room

This is the rear seating area--5 would be a bit tight, but 4 comfortably.

 
The Fun Cargo will cost less to operate and maintain.  The tires are fairly new; mileage is low at about 76,000 km so there is some long life in it.  

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Today Teresa is 22.  Happy Birthday!  She said she celebrated by working!  There was a winter Bible conference at college and she is on the cleaning crew.  Teresa is also hoping to be hired off campus this semester.  As for the summer, she is not sure what she will be doing.  Could be back to Camp CoBeAc or staying at Lancaster, or going to Independent again.  We shall pray with her on this. 

Thursday, January 20, 2011

Happy Birthday to Henry!!  He is 57 today; does not feel any different than 56 he said.  We already celebrated on Sunday past by taking the January birthday people to lunch--Noseh-san, Mrs. Akamatsu and Teresa in abstensia.  Of course, Mr. Akamatsu came as well as Mrs. Miura who actually paid for the dinner.  

Sara asked since she paid for the dinner we have some money to go out tonight?  We went to a new udon restaurant which was actually inexpensive and really good.  You got your bowl of thick noodles, then could choose from several tempura items like chicken, shrimp, sweet potato and other veges. I'd go back just for the tempura!

November 14, 2010

We got a call early this morning, about 6:30, waking us up (we overslept and it was a Sunday).  Peter was calling and said he had been in an accident.  He and Joe were driving someplace looking for a car part and Peter ran a red light and smashed into a car.  The air bags deployed; Joe got a bloody nose and they were calling from the hospital in Waldorf.  They were fine, but the car is probably totaled.  It was a nice car.  He did not get collision insurance.   Character learning lessons. 

Friday, October 1, 2010

Peter seems to have secured a job in Vienna, Virginia, in the area of building maintenance, i.e., cleaning, which is similar to what he was doing at college.  It is a long commute from Clinton by either car (a pain in Northern Virginia traffic any time of the day) or via the Metro bus/subway.  Praise the Lord for answering this prayer rather quickly.

We learned Matthew's old Bonneville dropped an axle and is in need of repair.  He bought parts so hopefully he can get it fixed this week.  Trying times for #2, but also character building lessons.  Sometimes it is difficult to sit back and watch your kids go through testings.  However, God is good, all the time.

There were four new people in Wednesday night's service!  It was great to have our visitors, a very unusual happening.

Sunday, August 22, 2010

This is a statistical summary of the last three months, for anyone interested.  I like to keep stuff like this, details, details.
 
We traveled over 12,000 miles by car from California to the East Coast before the car was wrecked at the end of the trip.
 
We drove through or visited 30 states: California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Maine, Utah and Hawaii


Henry spoke in 18 Independent Baptist Churches, three of which were non-supporting ones.

 
I saw my five siblings: Joe, Bob, Barbara, Mary, Tom, and their families. Sara met her cousins for the first time: Nathan, Debbie, James, David and John, on my side and Chris Lynn's three kids on Henry's side.

 
We paid for seven different hotels on our own between meetings, and stayed in 5 other hotels supplied by the churches and in the homes of at least 14 families and friends.

 
We ate at numerous restaurants with good, All-American cooking. Had fresh lobster and clams in Maine and wonderful homemade ice cream.

 
The digital camera took 1797 photos, all saved on the computer. I made separate folders for the American Flags and the Water Towers which included in that number.

Sunday, August 15, 2010

This is my face a couple of days ago; the bruising under the left eye is gone and now just a small amount under the right eye, mostly hidden by my glasses.  The bump is considerably smaller and a nice shade of yucky green.  Perhaps in another week it will be completely gone.

In the meantime, I have developed a summer cold and am coughing more than usual; very annoying.  I hate colds.  

This is a photo of one of my iris beds taken on April 30th this year.  There were about 30 plants ready to bloom a week before I left for the states.  Missed all the pretty blooms. 

 This next one is what the same flower bed looks like now.  Something happened while we were gone that literally rotted all the iris plants.  This is true in several other places around the yard.  We were told that June and July were particularly wet which may explain the rotted chormes.  I am so sad to see these all gone; it took at least seven years to get the flowers to this stage.  However, there are some still around the yard in other places, so when the weather cools some, I will dig up everything and start over, putting some fertilizer and lime in the soil and other nutrients. 

Our pastor said recently that It Takes Time to Plant a Garden, speaking of building a church.  The real flowers take time also, some bloom for years, some wither and fade away, some don't grow big at all, while others are beautiful and have big blooms year after year.  The same can be said about the local church in many ways.    

While this flower bed looks more like a forgotten desert, it can, once again, produce beautiful blooms as before, but it will take some work, much like planting a church does. 

Saturday, August 14, 2010

Henry talked to Peter early this morning about getting tickets for him to fly East from California.  He will be stopping in Chattanooga to visit Johanna and family for a few days, then go to DC.  Henry also talked to her dad and he said that there are some cars there at BIMI that might do for a replacement for Peter's car.  Peter said the insurance company called him and said the Camry was totaled and they would get back with Peter about what amount they will pay.  Pray it will be a good amount so he can get possibly a newer car with less mileage on it.

Friday, August 6, 2010

When we landed in Hawaii, we flew over the island across beautiful green/dark blue seas. The flight itself was about 7 hours; the food was fine, the movies not so great. This big plane did not have the individual screens in the seat backs, so had to watch the big screen in the middle. Fine, except for the extra-tall man sitting in my line of vision. Hollywood does not do reality. One movie was called Date Night; I did not listen to it, but watched when I could. This couple decided to spice up their boring marriage and somehow get mistaken for another couple wanted by the mob or somebody. Anyway, one scene, they were driving at night in the streets of NYC and somehow attached themselves to the front of a taxi and drove at high speed through Manhattan. #1—no cops anywhere to be found. They wrecked several cars in passing and weaving in and out. #2 At one point I noticed no seat belts in use. #3 This couple gets hit broadside by a SUV and it does NOT hurt them—no scratches, bruises, cuts, nada. They wreck several police cars trying to stop them. After our seemingly minor rear-ended accident, this entire scene was outrageous. It did not appear they even had sore muscles at the end of the ordeal. 


Approaching Honolulu Airport

 

 The remainder of the flight was actually on Thursday, USA time, from Hawaii to Japan when we landed on Friday about 4:30 p.m. There was very little turbulence, mostly clear skies all the way and a smooth landing. The Wakimasu's got us at the airport and we drove back to the house amid some wondrous clouds that appeared to be stormy, but we did not see any rain. It has been dry around here.

Twilight in Kobe
 
When we got home, I noticed and expected the flower beds and yards to need some work. They do. Something has destroyed a bunch of my iris—rotted them; the leaves are all dried and none coming out of the chorme. I will have to find out what happened after I get to that section. He grass is tall; the weeds are taller and it will take some effort to get the yard looking nice again for the fall planting. August is not the time to do yard work, but it will need to be done.

We will also need to pass out a few thousand brochures in the area that have not been done yet; they are stacked in front of Henry's desk.

It is good to be back, but somehow anti-climatic. I would be dishonest to say I would rather be here than the USA where my kids are. Teresa flies into Maryland on Saturday to spend about 18 days there with the brothers and home church. The church people here are wonderful. It needs to grow with more young people and kids and complete families. Through it all, we know that we are where God wants us and we will stay until He says we can go.