A birthday post

It's nearly a week since my birthday and I wanted to recount the blessings of that once-a-year day to you. I've learnt not to have too high expectations, but also to plan something fun for myself.

This time I got some surprises: two invitations from friends. One from a friend I've invited out for coffee before on my birthday (yep, don't be shy!). She blessed me with a great conversation, a cute card signed by her kids, and some lovely "Pillow perfume"!

Another friend invited me out to lunch on Friday. I recounted this on Facebook at the time:

A friend said, “I’ll buy you lunch for your birthday.”
“Where?” I asked. 
“Anywhere!” 
So I asked if we could go into the city to one of the spots people come from overseas to see in this Sakura season and she said, “Sure!”
So for the first time ever, I joined the crowds around the Imperial Palace in Sakura Season.

I'm always amazed at these elderly Japanese people
who are really into photography. And I mean "really"!
It's very common to see them along the river with their
"foot-long" lenses.

Tulips were a big discovery in our first spring in Japan.
We'd arrived during the snowy winter of Sapporo and
the splash of colour that tulips made was a wonderful delight.

On my actual birthday I also took a couple of hours to ride to my favourite park. It's a popular sakura viewing spot, but there are other flowers out too. The whole place was pulsing with energy: lots of kids, families, and various groups celebrating the visible start of spring in Tokyo. The tulips and following park photos are from that ride.

Groups like this are common. They're having a "hanami" or "flower viewing" party. Often it involves alcohol and snacks.

So many bikes!

I also got some cool presents including a potted rose from my hubby. He reasons that even though it might die in my care, it will last longer than cut flowers do.

I received two necklaces. One from my parents and one from my 13 y.o. The latter is extra special because it is a rock he found while we were camping the week before. He got David to help order a chain and attached it himself with left-over wire he bought for another project. Wow!

I also spent an hour talking to mum and dad via video chat and another hour talking to a close friend the next day. We "dragged" the boys out to dinner at a family-friendly Italian restaurant in the evening and had a reasonable family time too.

I'm thankful for one more year of life. Each year brings surprises and challenges. Possibly my last year had a few more than most in the last few years. But I continue to be grateful to my rock and foundation, the Lord Jesus Christ, who holds me steady through all the changes and surprises each year brings.

Unexpected

Today I have "something I prepared earlier". I don't think I shared much here about what happened with my job in February, because that month was also somewhat dominated by taking our son to Australia. But I had some significant other stuff happening too.

So, I'm going to tell you a little now. One of my two main jobs is currently social media manager for OMF Japan. OMF is a world-wide organisation and at the moment the international communications team (based in the UK) is running monthly prayer foci (is that grammatically correct?). As in, each month they have a prayer focus that they post about throughout the month on social media. In February it was Japan, so obviously, though they had the lead on that, we had a big part to play. It was exciting to be working in a larger team on this and also to be using material that other people have had the time to create. It was also exciting to be able to re-use stories that I've worked on both on the OMF Japan blog and with Japan Harvest magazine. But on top of travelling and helping our son, it was also a pretty frantic month.

That's just background to say that this year I've been trying to dove-tail our OMF Japan social media with the international monthly focus, where appropriate (last month they had China, so that didn't work). This month, however, is "The Journey to Long-Term Missions", which we can totally work with. We've got blog posts coming up on those themes and I'll be working to create Facebook and Instagram posts that match the theme too.

The other day, to my surprise, I found that that the international team is using a series that originated on this blog. I wrote it as a series of answers for a friend I haven't seen since primary school. She was at Bible college and had an assignment to ask a missionary some hard questions. So I blogged my answers. That was 2012. Then last year I rewrote the posts to kick-start getting content up on our OMF Japan blog and new website (the first post of the series is here). Now, they are being shared this month on the OMF International social media channels. Their Facebook page is followed by more than 7,500 people and their Instagram page is followed by nearly 1,500 people. So that is a very much wider audience than this blog has!

It's always exciting to see things that I've written before being used again, and to reach a different and wider audience, especially if I've not had to write something new, or even edit the old! My husband faithfully prays every week that my writing and editing will be of help to others, something like this is a tangible answer to that prayer.

If you're interested in finding out more about OMF International's campaign this month about The Journey to Long-Term Missions, there is a succinct prayer guide here.

Today was a gift

Today I had an adventure, a good adventure. Earlier this week I anticipated that I'd have time to go for a ride today and the weather forecast looked good too (sunny and 23C, as opposed to the cloudy cooler days we've had recently). But I wasn't sure what exactly I wanted to do with this ride. Would it just be a ride to the park and back? Or more? I was hankering after some coffee-shop time, especially a "date" with Jesus. I nearly ignored that impulse when I struggled to make a decision over where and when and what.

In the end, after haggling with myself for about half an hour after I'd planned to leave, I just left. Not really sure what I was going to do, except go to the park. I had my camera, half of a lunch with me and my phone.

It was a gorgeous day. I made it to the park in about half an hour. It's been six and a half weeks since I'd had enough time to go there and what a difference that time's made. Last time the Sakura (cherry blossoms) weren't quite fully out and there were lots of people sitting under them. Many other trees weren't fully dressed for spring either.

Today it was so green and leafy. New-spring green in a way I didn't understand before I came to this land where the seasons are much more marked than Australia.

A gentleman asleep on the bench.

There were many in the park again, but this time large groups of kindergarten students and their mums. I counted about half a dozen groups that were a hundred strong at least.

There were lots of people strolling, or just sitting. I saw a painter, heard a trumpeter and saw many just happy to be out on such a pleasant day.

One of the massive groups of kindergarten kids in the park today.

What is this?

I spent some time riding around and shooting some photos. While I ate my banana and muesli bar I got a message from a friend who was at the store I'd thoughts about visiting on my way home to get a better "hanger" for my obi (see here). She offered to get it for me (actually it was her who told me about this in the first place). I said, "Yes please" and that freed me up from taking a detour on the way home.


So, I decided to ride another three k's south to a city centre with a Starbucks. 

It was a surprisingly quick ride, but I quickly found myself in that inner-city dilemma of "where do you park your bike?" I rode a long block west till I found a legal spot and then, on my walk back to the place where Starbucks allegedly is (I still haven't laid eyes on it), I discovered a different cafe I've never heard of before: Pier's Cafe. Prices looked reasonable and it appeared to have some nice nooks to sit in, so I took the plunge.

Then I pulled out my phone to read the Bible. Again, no plan, but the verse I spied on Biblegateway.com's home page was from Hebrews 6. I clicked on it and got James 3, no idea why, but I went back to Hebrews 6.

I was blown away when I read this:

Hebrews 6:10-12 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, so that what you hope for may be fully realized. We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised. (NIV)

It spoke right to me:

• My job is to help God's people (I'm in support work). 
• It's been tempting sometimes recently to give up. Thoughts like, Isn't this just busy work, is it really important that you do this? have been popping up occasionally.
• The verses encourage us to continue to "the very end" whenever that might be, and not to give up.
• Finally, we're instructed to not be lazy, but imitate those who have already inherited what we've been promised (i.e. heaven). Which of course brings to mind the two missionaries we lost last month.

Then I found myself wiping tears away. I read it again in several different versions and the tears kept coming. It's been a teary few months, more so than usual.

There is a portion at the end of the chapter which is also encouraging, though it also includes confusing bits and pieces.

 Hebrews 6:18-20 God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope set before us may be greatly encouraged. We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, where our forerunner, Jesus, has entered on our behalf. He has become a high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek. 

Now I don't claim to understand all of that (and Bible commentators have different opinions too), but a couple of things also jumped out:

• "Fleeing to take hold of the hope" reminds me of the tower in Proverbs 18:10 "The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous man runs into it and is safe" (NIV). This verse has been a special image in my spiritual walk since 1994, the year after my short-term trip to Indonesia, and probably one of the lowest times of my life.
• We have a safe and secure anchor for our soul. That too is a strong and encouraging image. No matter what assails us in this life, if we have Jesus as our Lord, then we are secure.

Yep, just as the verse says, I was greatly encouraged! I dwelt on these verses for a while. It wasn't longer than half an hour. We're not talking a super-hero retreat here. But it was exactly what I needed.

As I was on my phone (not the best method for contemplating scripture, I know) I was also getting periodic alerts for other things going on—like a message from a friend organising to get together for coffee next week for mutual encouragement. Then I saw that my long-term friend who was my Matron of Honour commented on something on Facebook. In March I'd dashed into a coffee shop for a late-morning boost to finish my errands for the morning and "run into" this same friend online. We spontaneously chatted online that day too. Such joy! She's a homeschooling mother-of-six, so it's not easy for us to connect. So, today, I tried again: I messaged her, "Do you have time for a chat?"

I held my breath for a couple of minutes. Then my phone started buzzing. We chatted for half an hour using FB video call. It was wonderful, just like having her there across the table from me.

Oh, my heart is full. I didn't know how it was going to turn out, but it turned out that God had some wonderful surprises for me. Thank you Lord!

These last weeks haven't been easy. Not just grief, but extra busy too. It was such a wonderful gift to take time away from my responsibilities and spend time in nature as well as in the Word, with the bonus of unexpected time with a friend too.

Today's joys

One of the few trees in the park today that was fully in bloom. Most were only
partly blooming. The effect when it's all pink and no leaves is spectacular.

First I want to clarify something from yesterday's post, because I've had a couple of people worried. The final point in the list was vague and could have been interpreted any number of ways. I was only referring to the fact that we're fast approaching a new stage in our family: children becoming adults and not living at home anymore. It's a big change after nearly 18 years of parenting. Sorry if I had any of you worried!

Today is my birthday and I planned a couple of special things:

I'm always captivated by these crazy bushes at this time of year. Very ordinary
the majority of the year, when they're allowed to, they have these crazy
loopy branches covered in flowers (often they're pruned back along paths
and roads).

1. I arranged to meet a new friend for coffee (she was so sweet—though I'd initiated the meeting, she paid for my coffee and a snack). It was a delightful time of getting to know one another (though I feel like I talked too much).

The park wasn't peaceful. There were hundreds of
 people and bikes and dogs.

This tree is just down the road at "our" river. I've
been watching it gradually break out into delicate,
vibrant green for a few weeks now.

2. As the weather was shaping up to be pretty good and the cherry blossoms are almost in full bloom, I decided to take my new camera (an early birthday present) and ride to my favourite park, which happens to have a Sakura Festival. The photos in this post are from that ride.

These also are gorgeous, but a little more robust than sakura. Rapeseed plant.

3. I've also organised for dinner that I don't have to cook. It's home delivery from a small, local Chinese store. We've never done this before, so it will be interesting to see how it goes. They come highly recommended.

I just love tulips.

It's the good unexpecteds that always delight me on a birthday, but I know to make some special plans and keep my expectations low otherwise I'm likely to be disappointed. Looking back in "On the Day" in Facebook, I can see some unpleasant unexpecteds that happened early on in parenting (like a poo-accident I had to clean up). Thankfully those days are mostly over, but teens can still be remarkably unpleasant.

Today's pleasant unexpecteds so far:

I loved watching this little family trying so hard to get their
 daughter's first ever photo with sakura. 

• Two boys switching pre-school jobs to enable the one with a gash in his palm to skip his usual washing up. They were very diligent and responsible and the best thing is that I didn't have to intervene at all.
• A very busy friend messaged me and offered to take me to coffee later in the week.

The day isn't over yet, so we'll see what else turns up.

The lowdown on yesterday's day of wrestling

Sorry for the poor quality of these photos, I've pretty much
given up on taking photo. These are screen shots of the videos.
This feels like a retro photo. Our youngest son pinning his
opponent, something his big brother has done many times
before. Of course our eldest is much bigger now, so seeing
a younger, smaller version of the same thing takes me back.
The coach in the background is the same too: Coach Rudd
who patiently answered all our questions in those early years
of attending those meets.

Well yesterday, as expected, was a big day. We all left between 6.10 and 7am and got back between 4pm and 6pm. 

We didn't go so far distance-wise. 11km for David and our two oldest boys to the high school meet at the American School in Japan (ASIJ), about 45 minutes drive to get there. 22km for myself and our youngest to the middle school meet at  Yokota US Air Force Base. It took us about an hour to get there (longer to get home, because I missed a turn and took a while to figure that out).

Our school is at the top right in this map. These weren't our exact routes,
but are close enough to give you an idea.

This was the first time I'd seen our youngest son wrestle live in Japan. And one of the few times I've missed our eldest son wrestle in Japan. 

Our eldest son piling on the points in his second match
yesterday. These two have opposed one another many times
in the last two seasons. They've both won, so the outcome
is never certain. However our son has not been beaten by
him yet this season.

It was like going back in time, just a little. We cut our teeth in wrestling on two seasons of middle school meets. Going back to that was indeed interesting. Middle school meets are less intense and slower paced. 

But I missed sharing the day with my veteran-high-school-wrestling-parent-friends. We had a lot of parents at the middle school meet (eight parents for seven kids plus the coach), but most were at their first or second meet watching their brand-new young wrestlers. But it was fun to help them understand some of what was going on, like how a ref decided who won in the case of a match finishing in a tie. Or why a wrestler might do the move you can see our eldest doing in the lower photo here: grabbing the opponents legs and flipping them over.

However, those same high-school-parent friends were messaging me with regular updates from the high school meet. One even did a Live video on Facebook with our son's most challenging bout (the lower photo is a screenshot from that bout) and I watched it in the foodcourt at the air base just before we left for home. So encouraging to have friends do that!

The surprise for me yesterday were the girls. This is the first time we've had a female middle school team and only the third year we've had them in the high school team. They added so much life to the team yesterday. The boys were all pretty quiet and keeping to themselves, but the girls were interactive and bubbly. I've often felt a bit lonely as one of the few females around (though having enthusiastic mum-friends coming in the last year has been wonderful). I'm okay with hanging with "the guys" but yesterday was delightful.

Not just joy and personality, but they were so intelligent about their wrestling. They were asking questions, analysing the bouts gone, and planning ahead for the coming ones. Always learning. And they were good. They've impressed others too. I talked to some of the female wrestlers from another school who expressed their admiration (and fear). Additionally on the end of one of the videos we heard (presumably) a coach tell his wrestlers: "If you guys wrestled half as hard as the CAJ girls do, you'd be really good. I'm not kidding'. They're mean!" They are very intense, but there are smiles as soon as the bout is over. They have great on-off switches. And they really enjoy their wrestling to boot!

I enjoyed the status of being the mum of one of the wrestlers that these new wrestlers admire (our eldest seems to be a bit of a hero...), but I could encourage them in the knowledge that his early seasons weren't spectacular. They could barely imagine that he was once 12 and in grade seven, skinny and lanky, and not winning like he does today!

If you're wondering, our girls don't train with the boys, nor do they wrestle boys in competition. I think that is something that's quite appealing to them (this clear line is not generally drawn at other schools). Not only is it not that fun for a girl to wrestle a boy, it's not that great the other way either. 

The lowdown on the results from yesterday are this:

17 y.o. son: There were three "duels" (see Friday's post), but one school didn't have someone in our son's weight category, so he school full points for the team by just turning up. He won his other two matches too.
11 y.o. son: He had a round robin competition and was in a four-"man"-bracket. He won two of his three bouts and got a silver. 

This afternoon I'm trying to rest in preparation for getting back into "real life" tomorrow. Though my body has finally succumbed to a cold, after three days of a scratchy throat and slightly drippy nose. Perhaps yesterday was the last straw? Unfortunately it isn't a slow week, but if things continue to go south (especially with my inevitable asthma), I may have to cancel some things.

My storytelling adventure

Christine and I as I guided her on her first journey through
the Tokyo train-subway system from the airport to our house.

I'm always fascinated with encounters leading to unexpected outcomes, especially when it's clearly not designed or planned.

Ten days ago we had a missionary-friend guest from Taiwan. Christine Dillon is an Aussie missionary and author. She's passionate about evangelism via biblical storytelling.

The main reason she came to visit us was for her to see some "real" Japan before she dived into teaching an evangelism and discipleship course from Monday to Friday. That was mostly to be a long bike ride with me. On the way out of our city we stopped so I could show her our church. While she was taking some photos our pastor came out and introductions ensued.

She had planned to go over to our headquarters on that afternoon, but began to think about staying another night so she could come to our church with us the next morning. It turned out later that that was the best option (her next host became unexpectedly busy on Sunday morning). So she stayed an extra night.

The next day at church she was introduced to everyone at the end of the service, as is the standard custom in Japanese church. Almost immediately the service ended the most extroverted Japanese person I think I've ever met, a long-term member of the church, came over and introduced our guest to a Taiwanese lady who's been coming for a few years to our church. It also transpired that a long-time Japanese missionary to Taiwan also was coming to the church that Sunday for the next service and lunch (something we hadn't known).

Anyway, Christine ended up talking with the Taiwanese lady and her Malaysian friend. While we waited for the missionary to Taiwan to turn up, Christine offered to tell these two ladies and me a story, a Bible story. So, standing near the entrance to the worship area she told the story of Abraham, Sarah, and Hagar (Gen 16). The ladies were excited, but were clearly not as familiar with the story as I was.

After returning home we did what often happens these days when meeting new people: we connected up via social media. The Taiwanese lady was a new friend who I'd planned to connect with over this month anyway, so I messaged her asking if she had time to meet, suggesting maybe her friend could join us as well.

After we'd organised a time I dropped the suggestion that we could learn a Bible story together. This wasn't something I've ever done before, so I was a little shocked but pleased when they both responded enthusiastically.

While washing up our lunch dishes Christine briefly told me her method for learning how to tell a short Bible story in a group. What particularly encouraged me was her exhortation that I didn't need to do any preparation. She gave me six question cards to use after we'd learnt the story (you can see them here).  What basically results is not just learning how to tell a story from the Bible from memory, but a simple Bible study.

I'm glad there was no preparation required, because as it turns out, it was a crazy weekend for me. We met, spent time getting to know one another, and learnt Genesis 3:1-15 together in English (that is our best common language).

What blew me away was how enthusiastic both ladies were. They've done Bible studies before, but not one like this. They really liked this and are keen for much more!

The other thing that amazed me was their answer to the sixth question card: "This week, who could you tell this story to?" They both had people in mind, but neither encounter was going to be in English, these multilingual ladies had Japanese-speaking and Chinese-speaking people in mind. 

So I was not only able to help them learn a story and improve their understanding of Scripture. But they were going to go out and do what I couldn't do. Not only do they have language abilities that I don't have, but they obviously have many friends and colleagues I don't have. It seems almost too basic even to write this out. But if, in my little way, I can equip these ladies to tell people stories from the Bible, and continue that so they get all the way to being able to tell the gospel, it doesn't matter if my language and evangelistic skills aren't great (the things I always beat myself up about).

Exciting and not at all in my usual scope of ministry! But something that's landed in my lap that I intend to follow through with. We're meeting next Wednesday to learn the next story in the series of eight to give a Bible overview that seems to be the current "best practice".

The whole thing reinforces to me that what we're doing in Japan is not of our own making, God has a plan for using our willingness to serve him here and sometimes we get a glimpse of his plans.



If you're interested in this method of ministry, do check out Christine's website: storyingthescriptures.com. If you are on FB you can ask to be accepted into the "Storying the Scriptures" FB group dedicated to supporting each other and asking questions about this.