So, I promised to tell you more about our readers and how LST is going so far... sorry it has taken so long! We are so busy that it is hard to find time to update! Overall, things are going wonderfully... 50 times better than expected, and God is blessing us immensely.
So... In this culture people tend to fall into 3 categories: Shinto (about 8 million different gods/spirits), Buddhist (live at peace with everything until you reach enlightenment), or completely non-religious (I'm doing just fine on my own, and why should I need a god?). It's so weird, because so much has been exchanged between America and Japan... cars, fashion, music... basically, our two countries have shared everything. Everything but Jesus. And there is very little missionary activity here, because ... what could Japan possibly need? They already have Toyota and Honda going for them! But so many people here are searching. It's no coincidence that we advertised free English conversation lessons in the newspaper using the Bible as the subject matter and 50 people (all but 2 are not Christians) signed up. Some are only coming for the English, but most of them have real questions. Questions like... why am I alive? Why do you believe the Bible is true?
As I am writing this Ian is sitting across the room with a man who just asked him, "How do Christians pray to God? What do you pray for?" And Ian is explaining that we believe that God created people and loves people very much. Ian just told him that he can pray anytime he wants to, because God is always listening. The man just asked Ian if he has to pray while facing a statue of Jesus. Ian just told him that we can pray anywhere, for anything, because Jesus cares about us. But this is a very foreign idea to a man who has grown up in a culture where you walk up to the horse god, ring his bell, clap twice, and then say the same words you said last time you prayed to the horse god.
Please don't misunderstand me, the culture here is beautiful. And I certainly don't pretend to understand it all after only 2 weeks of being here, but something is missing. They celebrate Christmas here, but they have no idea why Christmas even exists. They manufacture Christmas ornaments with Santa Claus hanging on a cross... not because they mean disrespect, but because they truly don't understand. The people I am reading the Bible with are basically fluent... they will mispronounce a word or two, but these aren't English language lessons so much as they are real Bible studies. And the people we are reading the Bible with know that... and they keep coming back for more lessons. They have so many questions.
Norie, one of my readers, shocked me on Saturday. She came to our session with 5 of the lessons already done. She had done them at home... because she was curious about the story of Jesus. I asked her why she was so ambitious. She said it was because she believes the Bible is true but she has some doubts, so she wants to study the Bible as much as she can. She's a little fireball! Daisuke and Etsuke had never ever heard the story of Jesus' birth before. Itosan and I were studying the parable of the farmer and the seeds that fell on the rock, the thorny weeds, and the good ground. I asked him what kind of seed he was. He said he did not know yet. He then told me that Jesus' teachings are like an iceberg. Before, he could only see the tip, and now that he is studying he is starting to see a little bit of the iceberg underwater, but he must keep studying because the iceberg is much deeper. He said he wants to know if Jesus is true or not.
The sessions are immediately rewarding for me... it is exciting to see someone learn for the first time what Jesus meant by "building your house upon the rock." But, at the same time, it is slow work. You have to explain things bit by bit. LST is not about pushing Christianity on people, or coming home and being able to say "50 people were baptized!" It's all about planting seeds... about showing people through friendship that there is a God that loves them so much he sent his own son to die for them. It's about teaching people that there is more to life than childhood, marriage, work, retirement, and death. It's about showing people that they are so special and that they really matter.
Well... you know how much I love pictures... so here's a few to help you see the people we are getting to minister to :)
This is the house where we stay that is connected to the church. It is really the church FLC + two rooms for the missionary Eric, and the pastor's house. So it is divided into 3 sections.
Daisuke came to our barbeque! He is one of my readers, and it was fun to see him making friends with the church members.
This is outside of the brand new sanctuary building.
This is Yumiko. I call her my little rice friend. She grows rice in the countryside of Numazu. Don't get her started because if you do she will talk your ear off.
Segamisan... he does not read with us, because he has read all the workbooks. But, he is on the brink of deciding to become a Christian. He comes to all our parties and corners each of us. "I want to hear your testimony. Why do you believe in Jesus?" He then records a tape of us telling why we are Christians and asks for a written copy. He likes to say that he is getting old and will die soon, so he needs to decide which ticket to buy (i.e. what religion is true?).... he brought his granddaughters to church on Sunday!
Norie! Neither one of us are wearing shoes... I am 5'2" if that tells you anything...! She is so sweet!
This is Hiroo. He read with Ian last year and has been reading with him again this year. He's a devout Buddhist. he's quite friendly and always brings pictures of his family and latest activities to show to the LST Team. This year, his wife is reading with Ian as well.
This is Sachiko. She is such a sweet little lady. Her current past times include sewing, knitting, and making jewelry. She is learning more and more about Jesus every day.
Noriko!!! She is a Christian, so she is coming to study the Bible at a deeper level. We are reading Acts, and our conversations are always very interesting! She encourages me because socially it is much harder to be a Christian in Japan than it is in America, but her faith is amazing.
This is Sho. He is moving to Australia to study abroad this week. He has been reading with Eric, and then started reading 3 hours a day to finish his Luke workbook before he leaves. Since then, he has read multiple times with the rest of us. He is very ambitious!
Itosan!!! He is smart as a whip!
This is Kobayashi. He's a world-class volleyball player that is about a bazillion feet tall. He's going to America to serve as the assistant coach to the U.S. Olympic team. He's very open to the Bible and seems to have read a little of it sometime in the past.
We were talking about where I go to school in Texas and where Mom and Dad moved to in Georgia. He used to visit Atlanta when he worked in the U.S. for business purposes, so he brought a map to show me.
