Saturday Night, July 20th - English Conversation Classes A Success

Dear Friends - It's 9:30PM and things are pretty quiet here.  Mason is sitting at the same table as me in the dining/sanctuary area.  Jayden is nearby sitting quietly against the wall - and I don't know what she's doing.  I think Donny is washing up and the rest are probably in their rooms.  This morning Seiko presented a cooking class of Spam Musubi.  She had 3 students - Chihoyo-sensei, Chi-chan, and the next door neighbor, Ito-san.  The mission team enjoyed the creations from the class for lunch.  Mason was taking photos of the class and invited the neighbor to attend the worship service tomorrow.  Although she is a strong Buddhist, she agreed to come.  After lunch we prepared for the English Conversation classes.  We prepared for 3 classes and had heard they expected 10 students.  We ended up with about 36  students.  Things went very well - I could hear the conversations going on  in the other two groups from the setting of our class, and it sounded like there was a lot going on with the adult students enjoying themselves.  We had over 20 children in our crafts class for children.  After the people left, the mission team members were sitting together talking about their classes.  The conversation was quite lively and everyone seemed full of energy from all that had taken place.  It was a great start to the activities we will be involved in for the coming week.  I was hoping to write more but my head is nodding and my eyes are having trouble staying open.
     Thanks again for your support - your prayers are working wonders.  May God bless you and your loved ones.  With love, Don

It's now 5:30AM Sunday morning.  I've been up since about 4:45AM after a pretty good night's sleep.  I think that most of the team members are starting to fall into a somewhat normal pattern of sleep at night.  There are still moments when the difference of time zones is apparent.
     I am still excited from the English conversation classes yesterday.  God blessed us with so many participants - far more than we had anticipated.  I think the activities showed me clearly why God had chosen each of the team members.  Seiko's attention to details and her love for God and her love for the people of Japan shines through her words and actions continuously.  Jonathan's exuberance and boldness were ideal for encouraging the beginning students to participate in the class activities.  Donny's friendliness and many life experiences allowed him to have a variety of conversations with the students in the advanced English class.  Mason, although a little more reserved than some of the other team members, is very thoughtful, considerate, and has a servant's heart.  He allows people to be at ease and relaxed when he interacts with them.  Jayden worked with me to present the craft activities to far more children than we expected.  I was a little overwhelmed, but Jayden stepped right in to pass out the material, help the kids with their problems and carried on conversations with them - what we were supposed to do.  Her kind, gentle spirit and willingness to step right in with a minimum of direction was ideal for the class.   Yesterday was a great start for the activities we will be participating in this coming week.  I believe it has energized everyone and filled us with anticipation for what lies ahead.   You should have been here.
     After our prayer meeting and breakfast, we will get ready for MEBIG - basically their Sunday School time.  Jayden will be presenting a short message and Jonathan will be leading some games.  We will then lead the congregation in the worship service.  Jonathan & Jayden will share their testimonies with Seiko translating for them.  It will be special because their grandparents, Takie & Daito Ono, will be joining us for the service.  They are currently sightseeing in Japan.  Takie was on four mission teams to serve God and the Kawano family in Chino beginning in 2007.  She has maintained a close relationship with them through the years.  Donny will give the main message.  He already presented it to our Japanese speaking congregation two weeks ago and I know it will be well received by the people here in Utsunomiya.  We will also be leading the singing of 3 songs.  There is a lot to look forward to this morning.  If you happen to read this blog before 5PM L.A. time, please say a quick prayer for us.  Thanks.  I'm running out of steam right now, and need to take a quick break before our prayer meeting.  You are in our thoughts and in our hearts.  God bless you.  Love, Don