Heart for Japan

Konnichiwa watashi no yujin!
(Good Afternoon my friends!)

Your Japanese lesson for the afternoon! :-)  It has been a while since I have blogged. The internet has been down for two full weeks. In the meantime, Jennifer and I both contracted an illness that had a heyday with my lungs and both of us had a fever for a full week.  I should have gone to the doctor but being here only a few weeks at the time, I had no information on how that process works, so.....I didn't go. A big THANK YOU to all who have been praying for us.  We have been fever free for a week now and my lungs are at 85-90%. I have a sporadic residual cough but improving every day.

 

We are still waiting on our missionary visas. We should be hearing from the Japanese government this month. Please pray that there are no hang-ups in the process. A delay would mean a trip to South Korea in August for a couple days. We would then re-enter Japan on another tourist visa while we continue waiting for our one-year visa to be approved.  We don't want that to happen!

Meanwhile, we are busy. In the past week we have taken a trip to Shinjuku with another missionary partner and two new Argentinian friends. Marcelo and Gabriela are here spying out the land and considering becoming permanent missionaries in Japan. Here are some pics of the city from the viewing deck of the twin towers in Shinjuku...

 

 As you can see it is a very smoggy city.  The towers are 45 stories high, by US standards, not very tall. About 30 stories below the Rockefeller Center and less than half as tall as the Empire State building. Nevertheless, great views!

Here are a few pics from the street in Shinjuku.

We are steadily learning Japanese. I am in class here writing Hiragana, one of the Japanese alphabets. Our teachers are awesome but they do not speak English! We are forced to figure out what is being said.

 

After 2 hours of this, I am exhausted and I feel like my brain is on fire! I am seriously trying to wrap my mind around this very foreign way of speaking and writing!

Last week our Japanese class, even the men, dressed in Yukatas, which is the summer Kimono, and learned two traditional dances as well as a few fan poses. Every movement has meaning. The dances were harder than the poised Japanese dancers made them look! At least for me!  We had a great time trying!

But it is not all fun and games...wait, yes it is! No matter what we do here it is our pure pleasure and joy to do it! I have started teaching a private English lesson to a very cute, smart 4 year old. She is wearing her Denver Bronco's T-shirt to our next class!! Her parents just happen to love American football! Score! So do I! Our hope is that by doing what we do well and by demonstrating love to the children and parents, they will see Jesus. Pastor Rob, just know that I plan to be ten times better!

 

I want to make you and Denver United proud!

 

Jenny and I are making friends of the Japanese people around us. We hug them and tell them how wonderful they are and they giggle! Pray for us to have the Wisdom of God to reach them for Christ. Our heart is that Japan be saved!

 

I love you and pray for you! Anata ni oku shukufuku! (Many blessings on you!)

Rhonda