Cell phones

My cell phone plan in Japan allowed me 30 minutes a month of outgoing calls. (Incoming calls were free.) There were no free nights and weekends. I paid half of what I pay in the U.S. for my cell phone plan.

My cell phone plan in the U.S. costs double what I paid in Japan, and last month I talked 73 times as much as I did in a typical month in Japan.

Granted, the U.S. bill includes both incoming and outgoing calls, but the discrepancy is still large!

Serendipitous

::at the Virginia Welcome Center on I-81::


My college roommate and I just "happened" to both be driving north on 81 the same morning, a fact we discovered when she called to chat, so I pulled off at the Welcome Center, and within five minutes, she was there. We took pictures, talked a few minutes, and then set off to our respective destinations.

A fun meeting by the side of the road!

A Year Ago

On November 27, 2008, I wrote a post titled, "Thanksgiving Lunch:"

I had my normal Thursday lunch when I stopped off at the convenience store in the industrial park on the backroad between the town where I teach Bible studies Thursday morning and the town where I teach an English class and Bible study Thursday afternoon.

I stopped in and parked next to all the trucks, hurried in and bought a juice-pack of fruit & vegetable juice, and picked up a package of McVitie's digestive biscuits, which I quickly digested while sitting in the car, reviewing the handout for English class.

It's not a bad Thanksgiving Day, when you get to partner with local believers in opening the Word and explaining God's justice and grace all day long with people who are eager to understand.

I am thankful for each of the local believers, the ladies in the studies, the powerful Word of God, and the Spirit which led the studies and is working in hearts!

If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium, #2

A few days ago, I wrote of my past few months of another day, another place.

This week has been similar.

Another day, another doctor.

If it's Wednesday, it must be the gastroenterologist.

And so, on Thursday, I shall be thankful that this round is over. My prayer has been that each doctor or radiologist will see what needs to be seen. In my head, I am thankful for so many things (modern medicine, that these tests exist, the skill of the medical professionals, that I have insurance, ETC.). Now, just to move the thankfulness from my head to my heart!

Weekly rhythm

For the past four years, although my life had its share of chaos, I had a certain rhythm I could count on. Although every day was different, there was a general schedule for the week.

Sunday was worship (3/4 of the time with the same congregation). Monday was my day off. Tuesday I did office work at the center, fielding questions, fighting fires, and trying to plan ahead and help problem shoot for our large team. Wednesday was Team Day, with various meetings: training, English worship, Concert of Prayer, business meetings, etc. Thursday I taught various Bible studies and English classes in a couple churches/ church plants. Friday and Saturday were office days with flexibility to help with special events, or schedule the occasional committee meeting. Evenings and Sundays I met with girls for discipleship and Bible study.

HMA has a completely different rhythm.

I was at my home church the first three Sundays, but since then I've been there 4 times in 16 weeks.

Visiting supporting churches usually requires a trip. Visiting relatives after 4-5 years usually requires a trip. Vacation time, too, requires a trip.

Some trips are just day trips; other trips last a week.

All are people-intensive. When I am not on a trip visiting supporting churches or friends or relatives, my days are filled with hosting friends who are visiting from out of state (or country) or having meals with friends (or relatives) I have not seen in four or five years.

The holidays are not prime missions conference times, so the next nine weeks look to be a little quieter. I'm looking forward to finding a new short-term rhythm, and having a somewhat more normal life.

Maybe. :) (If I can stop going to doctors, that is.)

Day of Preparation

The bottle of powder sits in my kitchen at the ready.


My fridge is stocked with drinks, in hopes of masking the powder.




Tomorrow morning I visit the G.I. man.

Today I pray for patience, contentment and a thankful heart in this circumstance.

1000 Gifts, Vol. 3, #3

21. a flock of wild turkeys walking past the window during Sunday lunch
22. the choreography of a flock of wild turkeys taking off into the air
23. a Thanksgiving card that has been exchanged back and forth six times over the years
24. a preschooler's interest in and wide eyes while hearing about the false worship in another country
25. the encouragement of older Christian men and women
26. a last-minute invitation
27. 36 hours of looking forward to that special time
28. a notecard giving assurance of one's prayers and a reminder of a guest apartment waiting for me if I'm ever in the area
29. being led into worship
30. time to be still and be creative

If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium

August 6th - November 19th in pictures:














103 nights, 56 of them away from home. Well, all of them away from my heavenly home, and all of them away from my Japan home, but 56 of them away from my current temporary home in Tennessee.

16 beds, two of which were repeats.

Eight trips.

13 states.

Nine airports.

5000 miles driven.

8500 frequent flyer miles.

My calendar pages for those months are almost illegible. Breakfasts, lunches, suppers, missions conferences, visiting relatives, phone appointments, church visits, and, when I'm in town, medical check-ups.

The numbers point to the real story: I am rich with friends. And I thank God for each of you!

The Aftermath of Two Trips

I'm still not unpacked.

My faithful duffel bag is also pictured here.

1000 Gifts, Vol. 3, #2

11. thick afternoon clouds blanketing the mountains ~ and the two gaps I passed through
12. laughter and fun and joyful times with friends
13. SAFETY in 1000 miles of driving this past week
14. gorgeous weather every day I drove
15. anticipation of sitting still
16. 5-year reunions with friends
17. the connections that God arranged last weekend on my WV trip
18. getting to stop in for lunch with relatives as I drive through their city two states away
19. running into a friend at a crucial time that I needed her input & perspective
20. running into a friend at a welcome center on the interstate!

Thanksgiving challenge

A friend sent me this challenge. Care to join me?

Thank God for 100 things:

10 spiritual blessings in Christ

10 people who have sharpened you as iron sharpens iron

10 books that have formed you

10 pieces of music that bless you

10 material blessings

10 answered prayers

10 delicious flavors

10 beautiful sights

10 appealing smells

10 pleasant sounds

1000 Gifts, Vol. 3, #1

1. great fellowship with a new friend from a missions committee
2. unexpectedly running into friends while out and about
3. the gift of unplanned time with them
4. an invitation to an Advent celebration
5. a few days of resting from travel
6. a doctor who acts quickly
7. Mapquest, which does my thinking for me
8. glimpses of how God is redeeming "bad" situations
9. rainy days to help one relax
10. sunny days to help one be rejuvenated

1000 Gifts, Vol. 2, #100

991. a quiet rainy day
992. a good test result
993. Rx samples from the doctor
994. answered prayer: relatively quick recovery from bronchitis
995. being rich with friends
996. this season of giving thanks
997. the gospel
998. God's amazing providence
999. new friends ~ and the small world stories that accompany them
1000. the Spirit's work of growing a thankful heart

The End of Volume 2 of my 1000 Gifts. Stay tuned for Volume 3...

Who am I?

On the Coffeegirl blog recently, a woman who has "embarked on the cross-cultural adventure of sharing the love of Christ outside her home culture" tackled that question:

Missionary, counselor, director, leader, teacher, writer, wife and mother are simply roles that I fill.

Redeemed child of the Creator is my identity. I long for that to be the ultimate satisfaction of my being.

~Coffeegirl

How often do I let my roles identify me?

Today may I find my identity in who I ultimately am ~ redeemed child of the Creator!

Living an extrovert's life

Each time I have taken the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, I have come out a strong I for introvert. Strong, as in it would be hard to come out stronger.

Yet, a close friend often asks, given my schedule of time with people, "Are you sure you're not an extrovert?!?"

This summer when the book, The Introvert Advantage, was recommended to me, I ordered it immediately and practically inhaled it.

Since then I have been almost evangelistic in recommending it to friends ~ and even strangers.

If you're an extrovert, read it and understand your introvert friends & family better.

If you're an introvert, read it and understand yourself better.

If you're a parent, read it and understand your children better.

It just might change your life!

You know you've lived in Japan too long when ...

someone on the plane seated near you is eating salami and you think natto would smell SO MUCH BETTER!

What type of hot drink do you drink?

Honey and vinegar ... to cure what ails you!

Beginning of the list season (Christmas gift idea)

It is the beginning of the list season: lists of menus, lists of hand-made projects, lists of addresses, lists of baking goodies ... lists of gifts.

I too begin... but only, currently, one list: A List of a Thousand Things, beginning with #1. I am daily jotting down items on my Thousand Gifts List, working, one-by-one, up to a thousand gifts. Not of gifts I want. But of gifts I have.

So begins an article that caught my attention in November 2006, and which propelled me onto this journey of keeping a gratitude list.

This List of a Thousand Things just might be the only item you need to put on your Christmas gift list this year!

Are you looking for meaningful Christmas gift ideas which won't break your budget? How about a pretty notebook or journal (from the dollar store or handmade by you) with a note giving the recipient the idea of keeping a gratitude journal? It may very well be the best gift your friends and family receive this year!

(Consider printing the following pages and giving them with the notebook: The Thousand Gifts and/or Gratitude Community. Or consider personalizing your gift by adding some hand-written quotes about thankfulness or Scripture verses on this theme.)

As Ann writes at A Holy Experience,

But consider yourself warned: counting gifts is addictive and becomes the happiest of habits that becomes away of living praise!

[B]egin to feel more joy, less stress, better health, more connected in your relationships, and more delight in your everyday life. Praise is what we are made for!

In November 2006, I began writing 1000 gifts in a special journal. My friends could tell that something had changed. And when I reached 1000 and ... stopped (gasp!), my friends could also tell. Thus I began again, in August 2008, because I knew my heart needed the discipline of growing in thankfulness.

Volume two began with humble beginnings, as I mustered thankfulness for the very basic essentials of life, but one becomes thankful by being thankful, and as time has gone on, my eyes have been opened to more and more gifts given to me by the Giver of all good gifts.

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.

You can read Volume two, numbers 1-99, of my my 1000 Gifts entries here.

You can read Ann, the originator's list here (with beautiful photos).

1000 Gifts, Vol. 2, #99

981. the pleasure of watching leaves fall after four autumns in a land without large yards with tall trees
982. gentle strains of a CD of instrumental music
983. the surprise of eating Asian food in Kingsport (!)
984. encouragement to slow down
985. a few days to stop and do just that
986. a nurse practitioner who was thorough in searching for the root of my cough
987. living in the age of modern medicine!
988. automatic washer & dryer (I cannot imagine the time it would take to do laundry by hand!)
989. anticipation of time with family and friends in the next few days
990. the fruit of cultivating gratitude

On being a newcomer to your hometown

The pharmacist did not have pills in stock to fill my prescription.

"Would you like me to call around and see if another pharmacy has it? Which pharmacy?"

"I don't know. I just moved here."

"How familiar are you with the town?"

"I grew up here, but I don't know where the Walgreen's are."

"Oh, well then you know where the old Wal-mart was."

WHICH old Wal-mart?!?

My airport road and idolatry

I love driving "my" airport road, heading out toward the beach, away from Tokyo, cutting through green forested hills, driving through fertile farmland, and passing vegetable stands, and fresh egg vending machines! I love the feeling that I am not on my way to or from a world-class airport.

The last stretch of road is the "Haniwa Road," named for a clay figurine that was buried with or near the dead during the Kofun-jidai, or Tumulus Period of Japan (250~538 a.d.).







But these are not just interesting archaeological artifacts; these are items associated with worship even today. (Emphasis in the following article is mine.)

The Shibayama Haniwa Festival will be held Sunday November 8th from 9.30 AM - 4.30 PM.

The festival starts with many of the local townsfolk, including students at the local elementary and middle schools, dressing up in costumes from the Tumulus Period and gathering at the kofun off of the main road. Here there is a ceremony in which the representative of the ancient people presents a message to make a peaceful town to the representative of the modern people, the mayor. Then there is a maiden dance by girls in costume.

After this ceremony everyone moves in a procession to the local temple, Shibayama Nioson, where there is an exchange between the ancients and the new citizens in the form of drinks.

Next the procession moves to the nearby Shibayama Park, and the local citizens show their thanks to the ancients through a number of attractions and folk entertainment. Booths like those at any other festival can be found here, selling a variety of food and goods.

There is a stage where various performances are held, and in the park there is a reproduction of an old fashion Japanese house with a straw roof. At one point mochi is thrown to the crowd from the back of a truck. But be careful! That mochi is rock hard, not the soft chewy stuff you may be familiar with.

The festival ends with the ancients ascending to the Shinto Shrine [the festival website actually says the ancients ascend back to heaven], accompanied by torches and a priest chanting.

~ Chiba Nanohana News, Ed. 74

Mrs. K is now in heaven

Mrs. K, baptized last December, is now in heaven! Her funeral was last week.

And so now we pray for the relatives and friends who attended her funeral, most of whom had probably never been to a Christian funeral, nor ever heard of the hope of heaven.

May they join her there one day!