Side-note before continuing: my mom e-mailed me earlier this week to let me know that I was awarded a $1000 scholarship from NSU, so that was a huge blessing and just goes to show that God is taking care of what I left behind in order to be in Japan this summer. He is faithful, my friends, always faithful!
Another amazing week in Tokyo!
Tuesday:
Ministry at Todai. Robert and I came to campus early and sang worship songs out by the "big tree" in the middle of campus. I thank God for the freedom we have in Tokyo - and I pray for more openness and less resistance to the Gospel. It was a blessed time, just worshiping there in the open - people walking by, some curious, and all the while God was just opening us up for the day. It's been a busy couple of weeks, we are all tired - but He always refreshes us and renews our spirits and our hunger to reach out to those around us. Robert taught out of The Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren at Bible study, about defining our life's purpose. It was good and we had a really great fellowship time at lunch after Bible study.
That evening, we had some friends over for tacos and watermelon! Rob cooked while I met our guests at the train station. We had so much fun! The food was delicious and we played Spoons and Uno after dinner. We finished the night with another ridiculous game of Chubby Bunny... definitely good times and I really connected with one of the girls that came with our friend Takeshi from Waseda, who is really an amazing guy. Be praying for him, I want him to be my brother!
Wednesday:
I went fishing...in Tokyo. Yes, yes. Fishing. For goldfish! Kohei, who went to DisneySea with us and also came to Todai's Bible study on Tuesday, took Robert and I fishing(we caught 8 and then set them free!) and then the three of us met some more friends for an Italian feast. We do a lot of eating in Japan...
Thursday:
I ate lunch with Izumi at Todai, sadly Yuriko couldn't join us because of exams coming up. After lunch, I went to Waseda where I met this really awesome girl in the international communications center! I asked to sit at her table and we just started chatting about what I was doing in Japan and about her life as a student at Waseda. She's really interested in keeping in touch through e-mail and meeting up, so join me as I pray and believe for an opportunity to share my faith with this beautiful young lady!
XHOP that night was amazing, as always. We were joined this week by two Malaysian guys who are staying at the student center for a week, Jason and Leo. They are so much fun and they love Jesus so much! I really enjoyed talking to them before prayer about missions. The prayer time though was really intense. A long, long time ago - I was very active in the intercessory prayer of my church. This was like in middle school. I still actively intercede in my life for the ministries I'm involved in and for the people God has laid on my heart, but a renewed love and passion for intercession has come over me while in Japan and I'm so thankful for it. I know now that God was also preparing my heart at this week's XHOP for an attack on myself that was coming. The enemy would love to distract me and slow me down, he'd love to bog my mind with worry and doubt about things I've left behind me and things that are waiting for me back home but he has no power when I know what he's up to and I know who is really in control. So, I just thank the Lord that He orders my steps, He forgives my sins and He corrects my heart.
Today:
I did a massive load of laundry! Yay! Clean clothes to serve the Lord in! :) Then I went to visit a campus I'd never been to. I was curious about the 1st and 2nd year Todai students since they don't attend at the Hongo campus where we do ministry. Izumi told me the other campus was somewhere in Shibuya...so I did a little research...and made my way to the Komaba Todai campus. I would say that the students there are not as closed off as the ones at the Hongo campus, but not as accessible as the ones at Waseda either. There were posters all over campus warning students of "cult groups and bogus brokers" who were targeting them. Later on, Susan would tell me that they have done ministry there before but the administration is hostile to religious groups. Granted, there is a lot of new age craziness here too but it makes it a little more difficult to start a ministry where the administration thinks you are just trying to swindle or manipulate students. It breaks my heart - watching these students. They don't know how much He loves them. They have no idea that they could be free to just be who they are, and not what they are expected to be according to society norms. They could have hope for something more than what everyone else has had before them.
It's not at all hard to get a glimpse of what they feel, after only being here for a month and a half - I get tired on the train and feel as if I could sleep. I find myself with my mind blank as I change platforms. It's a new experience for me to not be thinking of anything. You become just one of many, a silent body filing in and off trains, shuttling here or there, and then going home. I wonder how many people go through a whole day without really talking to anyone. Sometimes I just want to hug the person standing next to me.
I love these people, I love them so much...
Keep praying,
-Amanda
I am definately prayer with and for you. Keep going girl! Beautiful blog.
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