The team has met at the college after members traveled from Washington, Arizona, North and Central California, and the greater Los Angeles area. Over the next few days we will spend time together finishing last minute details and running errands.

June 29-30, 2002 - SOMEWHERE OVER THE PACIFIC

As this is written, the team is flying over the Pacific ocean on a full Boeing 747-400 bound for Narita International in Japan. The flight will take an estimated 10 hours and 40 minutes, which is ahead of schedule.  We have been treated to two above-average meals and will be watching a total of two movies plus documentaries and a few film shorts.  Dr. Halstead and our friend, Chi, helped us to the airport earlier this morning, and Dr. Halstead met one of his friends there.  That man has been working with Grace Community to teach ESL to Thai students.  Now he is taking upwards of 130 students with him to Thailand to learn there.  Oddly enough, we all are sharing the same flight, but they will continue to Bangkok after a short stop in Japan, where we will depart.

July 1, 2002 - TACHIKAWA, JAPAN

Finally we have all gotten settled with our homestay families and got some sleep.  Today we will be meeting at the Tachikawa Church with the Takahashi's and the Mortimers to discuss the trip itinerary and scheduling.  To get there, each of us will be riding the train or bus from our homestay to the Tachikwa South Station.  It is a short walk to the church from there.  Most of us are grateful that we do not have to walk because it has been overcast and drizzling the whole time we have been here.  On our bus ride from the airport in Narita to Tachikawa was a beautiful ride.  The city looks spectacular at night.  One of the things that stood out as different was the color of lights that were on the skyscrapers.  Instead of just white lights, there were yellow, white, and red ones, making the skyline look completely different than what we are used to.  Also the road we were on went over and under a river with just a few feet too the nearest building on either side.  What a beautiful city! 

July 2, 2002 - TACHIKAWA, JAPAN

Yesterday was a good transition.  We went to the Tachikawa Church of Christ and met as a team.  We then went with the Takahashi's to Coffee & Curry for a lunch meeting.  After we discussed the plans for the week, the team had a chance to get familiar with the local bus station and malls. Today started off with all of us meeting at the church at 9 to meet and have some quiet time.  Then there was a large English lesson with mothers and their young children.  It was a fun time!  Three of us helped the Mortimers with that.  Later, Tim, Brandon, and Amanda had individual English lessons.  They all were a little nervous about it at first, but really enjoyed it after they got their first session under their belt.  Mike and Missy went to Josui Church to help with English lessons there.  Josui is the sister church of Tachikawa Church of Christ.  Many of the seminary students go there.  One of Amanda's students was Joshua who is a student at the seminary.  For the rest of the afternoon, we just relaxed a bit before Tim and Andrew helped with a group English lesson, led by Hiromi.  The three ladies had a fun time, and we had the chance to encourage them to come to the Gospel Concert later this month.

July 3, 2002 - TACHIKAWA, JAPAN

Today started with a late team meeting.  Then we grabbed a quick lunch before our meeting with Yoshie.  Once again we had some schedule changes.  Our homestays were shuffled around yet again, and we had to add some additional English lessons.  Speaking of lessons, Mike taught Mrs. Tanokura.  The rest of us went to pass out flyers for our English lessons.  We did this a two local schools for younger children.  Some of the boys there would yell "NO!" and run by us, or the girls would just be shy and walk off in another direction.  But we were blessed when one of the boys misunderstood Andrew's Japanese and instead of rejecting the flyer, he accepted it and smiled.  Many times they would walk off and look at us from a distance saying "Amerika-jin desu", meaning, "They are Americans".  One of the girls was bold and talked to Andrew with a little Japanese before she ran off.  Christi got the chance to talk with the Yoshizawa's in Cantonese, as they were passing out flyers together.  At the other school, Joshua, a seminary student, Missy, and Amanda passed out flyers.  Later this week we will all go back to the schools to pass out flyers for an Ice Cream Party that Tachikawa church is putting on for the kids.  Later today Sensei Takahashi met with us and we talked about our expectations on the trip and had some prayer time. Tonight some of the students are going to the prayer meeting.  The Tachikawa and Josei churches do this every Wednesday. There were alot of people. 

July 4, 2002 - TACHIKAWA, JAPAN

Today was a special day.  Not only was it Independence Day AND Tim's Birthday, it was a day off!  We got to run around several of the malls and do some souvenir shopping and touristy things.  Later that night we walked to the Takahashi's for a party.  After a long walk and a long wait, we realized we went to the wrong house!  We stood in the general area of the correct house for about and hour or so!  But in the end it worked out.  All of the Takahashi family was there, and some friends.  We had a fun time playing the Coin Game and watching Tim play with the Japanese toy he got.  He also got a children's book about Sweet Potatoes.  Yoshie was kind enough to translate it for us, and we laughed for quite a while!  On a more serious note, Yoshie and Sensei's youngest daughter, Tomo, told us a story about a recent train ride that she took.  While she was in the crowed train, a man tried to molest her.  But she caught him and followed him when he got off the train.  She was able to catch him and drag him to the police.  In the end, she spent five hours there and missed most of school that day.  But there is one less madman on the streets now.  We were all relieved to hear that she was alright after the incident.  These kinds of things happen often in Japan, and the government does nothing about it.  So if you can remember, we would appreciate it if you would pray for that Japanese, that they will recognize this social problem and attempt to solve it.

July 5, 2002 - TACHIKAWA, JAPAN

Today was our big day for English lessons.  We had the beginning of the day to ourselves, but tonight we had five or six students on our schedule.  After lunch we went to pass out flyers for an ice cream party.  Though Tim and Andrew didn't see many kids, Missy and Amanda were kept busy.  The kids had fun seeing Americans.  Later that evening we had all of our lessons.  Unfortunately, Andrew's student was unable to come.  Instead he went around taking pictures of everyone as they taught.  Missy had her first lesson with Mrs. Hosokawa, while Christi taught Kikuko, who is Mrs. Hosokawa's mother-in-law.  Again, Brandon taught Chie.  Amanda had the most difficult lesson with Mr. Tanokura, because he knows very little English at all.  She says that she does well even with the difficulties, because she is able to use hand motions to describe what she is talking about.

July 6, 2002 - TACHIKAWA, JAPAN

Last night many of us got to experience a bit of Japanese culture.  Today is the beginning of a short summer festival, Tanabata.  This celebrates the meeting of two constellations, because a meteorite shower brings them together.  It is somewhat like a tragic Shakespeare play.  To celebrate, the Japanese write wishes on brightly colored paper and hang them on bamboo plants. Here are the wishes at the Hosokawa's.  Saturday is also the cleaning day in Japan.  In homes, businesses, and even out on the street, people are cleaning.  So, a few of us went to Josui Church, and the rest stayed at Tachikawa.  There we cleaned and helped to prepare for Sunday services.  Missy and Amanda cleaned all of the slippers.  Andrew helped Seiji and Yoshio learn a song for Gospel Night.  Tim just hung out with some of the other helpers.  Sensei, Yo, and Uki also practiced their song for Gospel Night.  When the cleaning was done, those of us who were left at the church were blessed with a dinner cooked by Yo.  After some fellowship, we played a couple lively games of "Spoons".  It was a great time. 

July 7, 2002 - TACHIKAWA, JAPAN

Finally, Sunday!  We sat in on the Sunday school classes, then finally, we got to see the church!  They filled the sanctuary, and we even had some people sitting in the hallway.  It was wonderful!  We were able to sing along, because one of the ladies in the church wrote out the songs in Romanji (Japanese written with roman characters).  So even though we didn't know the meaning, at least we could sing.  During the teaching, we went up stairs and listened to Sensei Takahashi over the intercom and Yoshie translated.  Then we went back down to the sanctuary and took communion with the church.  After this time, we got into groups and discussed what we had learned.  Fortunately, Yoshie made sure that we were in a group with someone who could translate for us.  Before the service ended, the Team was introduced to the church, along with several other missionaries who were visiting the area.  One of The Master's College's Professors was there too, Mr. Suzuki.  He was in Japan with his family, visiting his parents in one of the northern prefectures.  After the service, a luncheon was hosted by the church on the fourth floor.  There we met many of the church members.  Yoshie made a trivia game about us, so that the church body could learn more about the workers who had come to join them for the summer.  Once lunch was cleaned up and people left, the college group, Seinen-Kai, hung out a played games.  First we went on a treasure hunt for a newspaper and Hagan-Daas.  Andrew's team won that.  Then we competed to find various pictures and letters in the newspapers, then to play charades.  Once charades were over, we played a Japanese version of Rock-Paper-Scissors.  We Americans were not very good, but one of the Japanese guys, Shin, was very good.  He was also quite a character, along with his crazy team.

July 8, 2002 - ASAKASA, JAPAN

Monday, our day off!  Today we went to Asakasa, which is just north of Tokyo.  There we toured a Buddist temple.  The Asakasa temple is famous for its mish-mash of religions.  There is a Buddist shrine, a Shinto shrine, and various fortune telling devices around that area.  Sensei likened it to Corinth and Ephesus in Biblical times, because as we entered there was a long row of shops leading to the temple.  After a little photography and discussion, we stopped on the temple steps and prayed for the lost and confused souls in Japan.  These people certainly need direction if they must practice two religions to be fulfilled.  From the temple, we took a boat downriver to a park.  Not just any park, but a park that was once a Shogun's home.  There we took that chance to have some team pictures and enjoy the beautiful gardens and ponds.  We also contemplated the possibility of Godzilla meeting the local skyline.  From the Shogun garden, we went to the famous Ginza district.  There we window shopped and also saw the largest Kabuki theater in Japan.  Then it was back to the Tokyo subway and JR line for the long ride home. 

July 9, 2002 - TACHIKAWA, JAPAN

Back to English lessons today.  Andrew had his first lesson and his second, all in one day.  The others had their usual students.  Christi and Missy helped to teach a group of four Junior Highers.  Andrew enjoyed his lessons today.  His first group was three generation of ladies: the grandmother, the mother, and the granddaughter.  He particularly enjoyed it because the grandmother had lived through World War II.  She had planned to learn English at that time, but all English lessons were cancelled because of the war.  She had cousins who were second generation Japanese-American.  They experienced the relocation camps in the states while she supported her family in her father's absence.  Tonight we also had a typhoon come in.  The way home for all of us was quite wet.  Mike had a twenty minute walk in the rain without an umbrella.  He said that Uki's expression when he arrived was priceless.

July 10, 2002 - TACHIKAWA, JAPAN

Today was typhoon day.  It was raining all day, and we were mostly soaked before we even got to the church.  Brandon had a slight biking accident, because his bike got stuck in a wet groove in the side walk and he just slid for a good five meters before falling.  He only has a few battle wounds on his hands, nothing major.  However, our major event today, handing out flyers, turned out quite well, despite the rain.  Tim, Christi, and Andrew ran out of flyers and kids were still coming.  The ice cream party should be quite large this Saturday.  We had both good and bad responses.  Some kids went away chanting "Aisu Paati! Aisu Paati!", where as others didn't take flyers and said things like, "Christian, ha ha". Which we assume is translated, "Oh look, its the Christians again. Ha Ha".  Well it was worth it just to hear the few Ice Cream Party chants, and to see those kids smile, even if the others didn't.  The day ended with the Prayer service.  Another pastor came tonight.  Mr. Tateishi and his family came.  They are seeking support here in Japan for their missions in America.  They will be going, God willing, to Greenwich, New York, to work with the Japanese there.  He will help to pastor a Japanese speaking church, on the border of Connecticut and New York.  Many Japanese come to the States for short times, so if they can come and know Christianity in that culture, then they can bring it back to their country and reach their own people.  It was a very interesting experience hearing his plans to help Japanese-Americans.  Yoshie translated for us, but when Mrs. Tateishi got up to share her testimony, Mr. Tateishi translated for us.  He was raised in the states and spoke quite fluently.  We were surprised, but also thankful to be able to listen in English.  Mrs. Tateishi's testimony was also quite powerful.  She is a fifth generation Christian.  However her parents did not come to meet the Lord fully until after she herself was saved.  So please pray for the Tateishi's as they travel Japan seeking prayer and financial support for their missions work in our own backyard.  We now ought to think of where we can serve in our own country, with our friends and family that we see every day.  Seek every opportunity to share the gift that we have been given, because we only have a short time here to share, but an eternity to worship God.  Would you rather have your friends and family be eternally separated from God, or be there with you in constant worship before His throne?

July 11, 2002 - KAWAGOE, JAPAN

We visited Kawagoe today.  Some of the wives from the church were going on a trip there and wanted us to join them.  After another long train ride, like our first with Asaksa, we came to Kawagoe.  Kawagoe is a very old city.  Some of the buildings are centuries old.  We visited one of the older buildings that was turned into a museum.  It was very small.  From there we went to "Candy Street".  There we went and had snow-cones.  Oishi desu yo! (It was tasty!)  Then we all went and had cold soba for lunch.  That was excellent too.  Then we visited another Buddist temple that was next to another shogun's home.  This shogun was the second shogun in the Edo era.  His house was enormous!  There was also a very large garden in the back.  It even had a red bridge there too.  Though we weren't allowed to walk in the garden, Sensei pointed out a Cherry Blossom tree.  It was rather tall, and looked somewhat like a willow, but with larger leaves.  From there we visited the temple next door.  It was sad to see so much of God's creation used for man's folly.  From the ceiling hung three huge chandeliers.  Also we got to visit an area that had hundreds of small statues of devout Buddhists.  We found one statue that looked like each of us.  That completed our day and we headed home.  On the train home, a bunch of fourth grade boys just started talking to Tim and Andrew.  After struggling to introduce ourselves, they had to leave because they had reached their stop.  Later that night, Mike and Andrew got the privilege to have dinner at the Takahashi's.  From what we heard they had a blast, talking about Star Wars and explaining the mime that the team had learned.  (And they also had some wonderful home cooking!)

July 12, 2002 - TACHIKAWA, JAPAN

We had another slow day here in Tachikawa.  We had a few early lessons and several tonight.  So we met early and started choosing songs for Gospel Night, where we will be singing.  Andrew will play guitar, and Amanda will play bass.  Fortunately, the church has a bass guitar she can use.  She was playing it the other day, then decided that she wants to play for the Gospel Night.  Tonight we were all kept busy with lessons.  Andrew reported that he and Mr. Kurusu made considerable progress, such that they were able to hold a complete conversation in just English.  He was quite ecstatic about that.  Later tonight all of the guys went to the Umura's home and watched Star Wars:Episode I.  Tomorrow Episode II comes out in Japan.  Many people are looking forward to it.  However we are looking forward to our biggest event yet, the Ice Cream Party!

July 13, 2002 - TACHIKAWA, JAPAN

Ice Cream Party!  Yay!  Two years ago, the other team that Tim and Christi were on did an ice cream party.  They had about eighty kids show up.  Well this year we only had ten or so kids.  We were informed that many parents have been more cautious about their kid's activities.  This was sparked by some recent tragedies that involved kids.  So we entertained the few that came with singing in Japanese.  Then we played a few games that Amanda cooked up.  Then Mr. Yosozawa told a short Bible story.  Mike and Andrew then introduced the ice cream with a humorous puppet show.  The kids seemed quite happy.  After things cooled down, Mike, Andrew, Joshua, Uki, Tim, Brandon, and the Takahashi's ate together.  Yet again Yoshie cooked a wonderful meal, and we had more fellowship. 

July 14, 2002 - TACHIKAWA, JAPAN

Sunday again.  Christi and Brandon attended Josui Church, while the rest of us went to Tachikawa Church.  Mike taught the kids how to make cups and string into these incredibly annoying clucking chickens.  Many parents had to quiet their children during the service.  But I jest in good fun.  After church we all had lunch.  Then at 2 PM we had a time of sharing with some of the church body.  We were informed of this event the night before and had spent our evenings preparing music and messages.  Andrew led songs in between the teaching.  Mike and Missy shared their testimony, which was from the perspective of a Christian family, and Amanda shared her testimony which was from a secular family.  She would be thankful for your prayers, because her father outright rejects any mention of the gospel, but her mother is already a Christian, praise God.  Tim then shared about relying on God in trials.  Brandon followed with a lengthy but strong message on the need for accountability and discipleship among believers.  The Japanese do not actually have a word for accountability in their language, so this was new to many of the attendees.  Christi finished the teaching time by sharing about her role in team leadership, as a supporter for Tim's leadership.  Then we had time for questions.  We were asked about our home churches and Christianity in America.  Sadly enough, we told them that there were many churches, but very few taught truth.  They were surprised about the size of our churches, because Tachikawa Church is only about fifty members. 

July 15, 2002 - SHIBUYA, JAPAN

Like all other Mondays, we did some tourism and shopping.  This time we went to the Oriental Bazaar in Shibuya.  The Oriental Bazaar is a shop that has oriental souvenirs for decent prices.  Mike had the best souvenir, because he bought a sword!  After we spent some time shopping, we walked around the town.  Joshua, Tomo, and Hotomi showed us around.  Joshua took us to a famous art museum.  We didn't actually go inside, because of time, but the street it was on was lined with tall trees, a rare thing in Japan.  From there we headed back to the subway via National Stadium.  The stadium has no perminant team, but is used for various sports.  There was another stadium nearby.  That stadium was the home of the Shibuya Swallows baseball team.  Missy was fourtunate enough, because as we walked by, Swallow #71 walked out.  Mr. Nakanishi was kind enough to allow a picture with her, before he headed across the street to a training facility.  Joshua had no idea if he was a good player or what position he played, but it was still a fun experience.  Tonight we all went home and got ready for the next typoon which is supposed to hit the Tokyo area tomorrow.

July 16, 2002 - TAMA CITY, JAPAN

At this point, only Mike and I can speak for ourselves, because the teams morning events have been cancelled due to a typhoon.  So we have been content relaxing in our host family's home, the Honda's.  Just about everyone on the team has a class to teach at 7 PM tonight, so we assume that we will end up at the church sometime today.  Well we did finally get to church for lessons.  Our schedule was quite packed today, even though some were cancelled due to the typhoon.  They all went well and we were glad to get home tonight.  After her lesson, Mrs. Hosokawa shared some good news with us.  Her husband, an unbeliever, said that he would attend church on the 28th to say goodbye to us, since that is our last Sunday in Japan. Andrew was very happy to hear this, and the whole team was encouraged.  Last Sunday, one of Amanda's students came.  This was Mr. Tanokura's third time to church.  His wife and daughter are Christians, but he is an unbeliever.  So, thank you for your prayers, supporters and friends.  You can already see that God is working in the lives of people in Japan.  Please continue in your prayers, because we have a plethora of students this week, and Saturday is the Gospel Concert.  It will be another large outreach event for us, and we are looking forward to it. 

July 17, 2002 - TACHIKAWA, JAPAN

Yet another day packed with lessons.  We began the day with a team meeting to discuss changes and additions to our schedule.  Then we practiced our music for Gospel Night.  We will be prepared, we just need a few more practices, then we will have it perfect.  Choosing songs was the hardest part.  After that, it was lessons until our meeting with Sensei at 5 PM.  Tim and Christi had an unexpected lesson, for which they were asked to teach a Bible lesson.  This turned out quite well.  Tim said that his impression was that they did not know about the Gospel at all.  But because they asked for a Bible study, Tim went on to lay out the Gospel for them.  One of the lady's has done yoga for fifteen years.  Sensei talked with us at the meeting about the influences of different religions and religious practices here in Japan.  This was quite interesting, hearing about Buddhist funerals and the like.  He told us that he explains the differences of Christianity and other religions when he does a one-on-one study with believers who desire to be baptized before the church.  This gives him the time to explain such detailed matters.  He also explains differences when those topics come up in the general study on Sunday mornings. 

July 18, 2002 - TOKOROZAWA (or JOSUI), JAPAN

We split today, guys and girls.  The girls went to help with the ladies' group at Josui church.  They did shrink-a-dink art.  Some of the work the ladies of the church did was amazing.  The guys went with Yoshie to visit her parents in Tokorozawa.  Tokorozawa is famous for being the place where the first Japanese plane flew.  It was also a military air base at one point.  Much of the land is still undeveloped, so there are open fields in the middle of the city.  Next to one such fields is the air museum.  There we met Yoshie's parents.  Together we toured the museum.  We went to an Italian restaurant for lunch and there we had some of the best non-Japanese food that we had had in a long while.  Yoshie's parents took us to their home in Tokorozawa and showed us some family pictures.  Tomo was rather embarrassed when we told her we had seen pictures of her when she was younger.  After spending some time there fellowshipping, we headed home for the day. 

July 19, 2002 - TACHIKAWA, JAPAN

Today is the last day of English lessons, so we were swamped.  We had some additional classes added yesterday.  We were all sad that it was the last time that we would see some of our students.  However many of them said that they would attend the Gospel Night tomorrow.  Hopefully they will, so that they can hear the gospel, and some good music.  Speaking of Gospel Night, much preparation has been going on too.  We got the chance to try out our music on the stage for the first time.  We feel that we are ready, even though we've only been able to fit in two practices so far.  We will see tomorrow.

July 20, 2002 - TACHIKAWA, JAPAN

Gospel Night!  Today we got to sleep in a little, because our events are in the evening.  Yay!  We were looking forward to this day for quite a while.  This is our biggest ministry event while we are here.  Many of the people in the church have helped to put this on.  And it was a blast!  Everything turned out and several unbelievers heard the Gospel for the first time.  Among those was Mr. Satiyama, who had never been to church before.  Christi and Missy were ecstatic that he came.  The only other church function that he went to was the baseball tournament that the team did two years ago.  As for music, ours turned out well, and everyone had a blast when Sensei played.  The final song tonight got everyone dancing.  One of the college group girl's led hand motions that got everyone moving.  We had a blast!  On a more serious side, Mr. Yoshizawa did give a message in the middle of the concert, and Tim shared his testimony.  Both had an impact on attendees.  So, thank you for your prayers, because tonight was definitely blessed by the Lord. 

July 21, 2002 - TACHIKAWA, JAPAN

Our second to last Sunday in Japan.  This saddened us, but we still kept busy today.  Amanda shared her testimony during service.  We had some additional short-termers today.  They were from the east coast and were working with a youth oriented ministry in Japan.  Yoshie asked them to join us when the team headed upstairs to hear a translation of the message.  They were thankful for that.  After the service they had to leave to go to another part of Japan, but the rest of us went to the fourth floor for lunch.  Because the rainy season has been officially over for two days now, we were sent to the roof to clean it.  This involved brooms, a hose, elbow grease, and some horseplay.  In the end, the roof did get cleaned, and we all got soaked thanks to our own antics.  Then things calmed down and we met with Yoshie, Joshua, and Hiromi to discuss this weeks activities.  Tomorrow is a free day, be we decided to go to Nagayama station to visit the Nagayama festival. 

July 22, 2002 - TACHIKAWA, JAPAN

Unfortunately, the Nagayama festival finished yesterday.  But fortunately, we found out before we met to go.  So everyone had a relaxing day at home.  Later tonight we met at the church, played some spoons then hit the sack to get up at 6 AM to leave for Mt. Fuji.

July 23, 2002 - MT. FUJI, JAPAN

Today we did our largest tourism event yet, 12300 some-odd feet tall to be exact.  We reached Fuji at 9 AM and headed up shortly after.  Joshua, Mr. Hara (Joshua's friend), Amanda, Brandon, and Andrew started out at a faster pace, and took the lead.  The others stayed in a group and went up slower.  The first group reached the summit in about 4 hours, then the second group came an hour later.  Unfortunately, because we lost contact between groups, the faster group headed down before the second group reached the summit.  So we don't have a team picture from the top, but we do have tons of photographs.  The two teams met part-way down at one of the rest areas.  There we switched our groups around.  Amanda wanted to get down the mountain, so she and Joshua headed out early.  When Tim, Missy, Christi, and Mike met up with us, we began to head down again.  Christi was having trouble with her knees, so Mr. Hara, Mike, and Andrew walked with her, while the other three went down ahead.  The path splits on the way down, and Joshua and Amanda took the wrong one, because Tim, Brandon, and Missy never caught up with them as planned.  Mike eventually got quite frustrated about climbing and just took off as fast as he could, while Andrew and Mr. Hara stayed with Christi.  In the end, Tim, Brandon, and Missy reached the bottom first, then Mike.  Christi and the rest came after.  Then it was an hour and a half drive to reach Amanda and Joshua.  The road to them was quite twisty, so Tim and Brandon did not handle that too well.  The final damages are this: everyone is very sun burnt, especially Mike and Tim who have blisters from it.  Andrew's sun burn is keeping him from bending his knees much.  Amanda twisted her knee, and Christi's knees were becoming very weak.  Christi's other damage is a blister on her foot.  Missy is just a little red and tired, as is Brandon.  Joshua and Mr. Hara are perfectly fine, if not for a little sunburn.  We learned a little bit of wisdom from this: "Mt. Fuji is a mountain to be looked at, not climbed".

July 24, 2002 - SLEEPING AT HOME, JAPAN

None of us are up to much today.  Aloe Vera is our best friend, along with pain killers, cold showers, and water..  We had considered swimming to relax our muscles, but it sounds as though no one will because of our sunburns.  So we just have a meeting with Sensei tonight, then we will go back home to rest.  The meeting went well.  We found out that Tim is rather sick from his sunburn.  He has a fever and has been going through chills.  Brandon has been taking care of him, and the Takahashi's are also helping.  We are hoping he can join the party tomorrow.

July 25, 2002 - TACHIKAWA, JAPAN

Today is the "Summer Party With Americans".  This is a youth oriented outreach and just plain party.  We had only eight non-church members come.  They were Andrew and Christi's English students.  They seemed to enjoy themselves as we played various games.  They taught us a Japanese game similar to the "Huagh!" game.  We got all confused.  So we taught them our version and then they got all confused.  Hence, we changed gears and had a time for music and sharing.  Everyone but Tim shared their testimony.  Tim is still under the weather, but Brandon reports that the fever broke last night.  Tomo took some tacos home to him.  We all had home-made (well, team-made) tacos.  They were great!  After we ate and answered questions like "Do you have a girlfriend?" (which was directed at Brandon by a fourteen year-old Japanese girl), we went back to playing games in English.  The party was officially over at 4 PM, but all of the Japanese students stayed at talked with us for quite a while.  We really enjoyed ourselves, in the midst of our slight ailments. 

July 26, 2002 - TAMA CITY, JAPAN

We have some good news about Tim today.  He is doing much better.  He is up and about, eating and doing things.  The worst thing, he says, is that he is peeling like mad now.  But so are the rest of us burnt folk.  The rest of today is a recovery day and for spending time with our host family and Japanese friends.  (Obviously this is being written in the middle of the day, so I cannot tell you what everyone is doing... I'll add that later.)

July 27, 2002 - TACHIKAWA, JAPAN

The plan for today was to spend time with the high school and junior high school students in the church.  We met with them at 1 PM and played games for hours on end.  But it was quite fun.  Hiromi and Megumi helped us stay in charge over the wild ones, but I think Christi and Missy fall into that category too.  After we finished with the games, we all walked to Yashiyo's apartment.  As Yoshie says, "Yashiyo is a twenty-eight year old doctor who looks like a junior higher."  But one thing is for sure, she is a good cook.  We had so much food!  And all of it was traditional Japanese dishes.  Not just dinner either, we had jello and ice cream for dessert.  Around 7:30 PM we all went up to the roof of the apartment to watch some excellent Japanese fireworks.  The show started at 7:30 PM and finished an hour and a half later!  It was amazing.  Like every thing else here, they were better than the American stuff.  Of course, fireworks were invented in this area of the world and they have been using them much longer.  You could say that it was not unlike watching falling stars, only these stars flew up high an exploded into spinning discs of color flame, or gigantic mushroom clouds, or miniature rainbows.

July 28, 2002 - TACHIKAWA, JAPAN

Since today was our last Sunday, it was somewhat sad.  But there were many good things that went on today.  Andrew and Missy were both ecstatic to see Mr. Hosokawa come to church for the first time.   That was very encouraging to see.  After church today, we said a few goodbyes to those who had to leave immediately, but everyone else stayed around for the Summer Worker Sayonara Party.  There we had food, fellowship, and time to share, both the Japanese side and the American side.  Our homestay families told short stories about us, and those who had been with us at other events shared too.  We shared our treasured memories from the trip with them also.  Some of the ladies of the church sang their song from Gospel Night.  And we got put on stage to dance the "Ai Ai" song.  If you are wondering what that is, Mr. Ootomo recorded both Gospel Night and the Sayonara Party on VHS.  So we will have those memories in video when we return.  After the meal, some people went home and others stayed with us for pictures, talking, and just plain fun.  This went on almost until dinner time, and we enjoyed every moment of it. 

July 29, 2002 - TACHIKAWA, JAPAN

The Happiest Day on our trip!  Why? Because we went to the Happiest Place in Japan: Tokyo Disneyland!  We found out that we were going for debrief fun just a few days ago.  And now its already over.  Oh well, we had a blast anyways.  They did not have all the rides that we are used to in Los Angeles Disneyland.  Half of them were next door in the new park, DisneySea.  But they did have a better Tiki Room.  And they had a new ride, Winnie the Pooh's Hunny Hunt.  It was amazing.  We rode through a story book on robotic cars that were shaped like hunny pots.  Each car went trough the rooms a different way.  We bounced with Tigger and danced with Huffalumps and Woozels.  By far, that was our favorite ride in the park.  We all felt like we were at home in Los Angeles, because Disneyland is without a defined culture.  The biggest difference was everything was in Japanese!  Other than that, there were minute changes in the rides.  We ate the the Blue Bayou restaurant.  (the one inside the Pirates of the Caribbean)  And we took a team picture with a pirate.  Yoshie did the Tea Cups with Brandon, Amanda, and Christi.  Tomo was more reluctant about rides.  You could hardly see her in the Splash Mountain picture because she was ducking.  And she said that was her favorite ride!  Nonetheless, we got back to the church past midnight and just slept and slept well.

July 30, 2002 - KAMAKURA (DAIBUTSU), JAPAN

Our final day in Japan was spent with Wakagi.  He took us, by a very long train ride, to Kamakura.  Kamakura has a famous Buddhist temple and the largest Buddha statue in Japan.  Because of a tidal wave in the fifteenth century, the original temple was washed away and the statue was exposed.  Now it is a major tourist attraction.  We went inside the hollow statue and saw that the god of Buddhism was empty and dead, just like the religion.  While we visited the other temple, there was a ceremony going on.  We saw a family of Buddhists praying closer to the shrine in a special area.  Andrew noted a sign that said something about "5000¥" (~$50 USD).  We can only assume that they spent five thousand yen to pray closer to a large piece of metal shaped like a man.  Many of the traditions and religious rituals seem to be oriented around a person's financial status.  Doing things bring good fortune; having idols in the home brings financial gain.  It was disheartening to see so many people led astray by hopes of financial gain, when they were only giving away what they had.  Be thankful that our gift of eternal life was free.  And it is far more valuable than coins and paper here on this earth. 

July 31, 2002 - NARITA, JAPAN

Time to go home.  Though we have not left yet, we will soon.  The bus leaves for the airport at 9 AM (or so we believe) and our flight leaves Narita International at 4:55 PM (12:55 AM PST).  We are to arrive at LAX around 11 AM on the 31st.  So please pray for our travel safety as we go home.  Thank you for your support while we have been in Japan.  Our ministry here has been blessed, and we have enjoyed it fully.  Already little changes have taken place; we have seen many non-Christian spouses come to church and we have watched Japanese youth become more involved in the church.  Tachikawa Church is certainly blessed.  And we too have been just as blessed.  We ALL want to return to continue where we are leaving off.