Author: David

I was reading this in my devotions the other day, and thought I’d share with you guys a little of waht God has been teaching me lately.  I’ve been going through Isaiah and came accross this verse:

“Do not call conspiracy all that this people calls conspiracy, and do not fear what they fear, nor be in dread. But the LORD of hosts, him you shall honor as holy. Let him be your fear, and let him be your dread. ”

Isaiah 8:12-13

This world can be a terrifying place sometimes. Wars, catastrophes, natural disasters, there is always something to be afraid of, something people are talking about in hushed whispers or desperate cries. Certainly this was true in Isaiah’s day. When God gave this word to Isaiah, his country, Judah, was under attack by Israel and Syria. Israel and Judah were kindred nations, the same people divided under the rule of two kingdoms. They were supposed to be allies. However Israel conspired to conquer Judah and enlisted the help of Syria. Ahaz, the King of Judah planned to pay a large tribute to the king of Assyria, in hopes of persuading Assyria to side with Judah against Israel and Syria. Certainly there were many conspiracy theories floating around Judah at the time; it was a time of fear, confusion, war and turmoil.

In 2 Kings and 2 Chronicles we learn a little more about the peoples of Judah and Israel during this time. They were in the midst of a spiritually dark period of their histories. Both nations were following after false  gods, and had abandoned the Lord, the One who made them into a nation, and protected them from their enemies. Neither Israel nor Judah had any thought about God at this time, and instead were focused on the politics of the day, and the terrifying prospects of being conquered.

In a lot of ways this is similar to today, or almost any point in history for that matter. Human beings are always involved in conflicts, always scared of disasters, always coming up with conspiracy theories. And yet we as Christians are told to just trust God, he’s got everything under control, no matter how ridiculous that sounds to us sometimes. People often ask, “What is God doing?” not expecting any sort of answer, and rightly so; God has no obligation to explain Himself. The fact that He occasionally gives us glimpses of what’s going on behind the scenes is a gracious act on His part.

However, we are privileged to see God’s side of things in the opening chapters of Isaiah. It turns out that God was intentionally causing all this turmoil and strife. He was using one nation to punish another, because His people had abandoned Him. Judah and Israel were supposed to be lights among the darkness of the pagan nations surrounding them. Yet they had become just like the pagan nations but still were known to be the people of YAWEH. To allow Israel to be wicked and successful would be an affront to God’s character.

In this instance, things seemed like they were spinning wildly out of control to the people of Judah. But they were fearing the wrong thing. They feared Israel and Syria, they hoped in Assyria. They should be fearing God who brought these nations against them, they should have been hoping in God, repenting and turning back to Him, looking to Him for salvation. In truth this is what He sent Isaiah to proclaim in Judah, but the people did not listen. Nothing was out of control, everything was happening exactly as God was planning and willing it to happen, in fact in this case, it was God who was bringing calamity upon His people. The problem was just that no one trusted Him.

The same is true today. People say the world is out of control, that we are all doomed. There are hundreds of conspiracies discussed among politicians, whispered among friends and flamed across the internet. All these are ultimately a distraction from the real issue. God is in Heaven and He is doing all that He pleases. Not only is He capable of handling all the problems of this world, all of them are happening exactly according to His plan and purpose. He we must honor as Holy, He is the one we should fear. Isaiah is a testimony to God’s Sovereignty, His declaration that he knows the beginning from the end, and that He is working all things exactly according to His purpose. There is much wrong in the world today, but God is working both in spite of it, and through it to bring about the perfection of all things according to His promises.

Now, I want to be clear that I am not trying to make some point about God judging America, or that the tragedies which have befallen us lately are what we deserve. That may or may not be true, and regardless it would not justify the evils of terrorism, oppression and tyranny. My point is that if we as Christians fear these enemies, if we wrap ourselves up in politics and conspiracies at the expense of forgetting about God, then we run the same risk that the peoples of Israel and Judah did: we risk incurring God’s discipline. He will not be ignored. I believe He is more concerned with the hearts of His children, and the work of His Church than with nations and conflicts and politics. Certainly these are important, but if we fear them more than we fear the One who moves all of history according to His purpose we will be overcome with despair and hopelessness. Our focus must be on God, and His words, and His teachings, we should fear sinning and dishonoring God more than we fear wars and poverty. We should seek first to build the Kingdom of God before we concern ourselves with any earthly kingdom. Nations will rise and fall, but God reigns through eternity.

Our God is in the heavens;
he does all that he pleases

Psalm 115:3

Well, look at the time… it’s been two and a half months since my last blog post! Sorry about that, this is supposed to be updated weekly; I’ll try harder to hold up my end of the bargain, if you all will agree to stop by more often as well.

The last two months have been productive and educational. Despite the fact that I’ve technically been raising support for 8 months now, the reality is that I’ve only been really focusing on it for the last two and a half. Before I was too busy with short term trips to really sit down and work out how I’m going to get to Japan long term, but I’ve made that excuse too many times before, so here I go. Onward and upward. Since the start of this year I’ve formed my HEART (Home Encouragement And Resource Team) team, published my first Newsletter, sent out prayer updates, and started my bid to take over Facebook. Really I have no idea what I’m doing, but its exciting doing it, and even more exciting to see, little by little, God begin to bring in the support.

Most of what I’ve done so far is lay the necessary groundwork for support raising. The next phase is going to consist of actually looking for people who will partner with me, financially, so that I can go to Japan and spread the gospel and start churches, be a part of the amazing work God is doing over there. But I’m still nervous about asking people to support me. The whole process seems awkward, still, as I’ve noted before it all comes down to trusting God; if I can’t trust him to bring in the support I need, then I won’t make a good missionary anyways. I suppose this is a sort of on the job training.

Coming from a computer background (ok, so I’m only 27, and don’t really have a “background” yet), one of the things I wanted to do from the out set was to use technology as much as I could in the support raising process. That’s why I created this website, and intend to keep blogging. The internet is an incredible tool for contacting people, and support raising is all about making contacts. I’ve also been using Facebook more and more, and I’m begining to be impressed with its networking features, and the potential to get in contact with mission minded people that I’ve never met before. I started a group on Facebook for my mission to become a missionary (to do missions in Japan) and so far I have 114 people who have joined. That’s larger than my both my traditional mailing list, and my email mailing list. We’re having a great time over there right now, and I’m holding monthly contests giving away cool Japanese things that my brother Jon sent me. So if any of you are a member of Facebook, go join my group here: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=21081615028.

Let me know how you’re doing, leave a comment!

Well its been a week and a half since I’ve been back in the states, the remainder of my Japan trip went really well. Mom, Jen, Quentin and I all had a great time hanging out with Jon and helping to get him settled into his new apartment. It was a bus week packed with more sightseeing than I’ve ever done in Japan. I’m still waiting to get copies of pictures from other people on the team; as soon as I do I’ll post a bunch of them here.

Things have been really busy since I’ve gotten back, with the holidays and all. I’m well over jet lag, and almost back into a normal routine. Hopefully I’ll be able to get my first newsletter out to everyone in the next two weeks, as well as begin asking to speak at church’s in the area, talking about Japan and seeking support. Had a little bit of practice today as dad was down in Mexico with half the church on a short term missions trip, so I got to fill in preaching for him to the other half this morning. I put an MP3 recording of it in the downloads section of this site, or just click here if you’re like to listen to it.

Well, the team just got on the bus to go to the airport, kicking off what is sure to be a very, very long day for all of them. In the mean time, I’m still here in Japan, just starting off a week of vacation that I’ve been looking forward to for awhile. I suppose I could also classify it as “encouraging a missionary” as I’ll be hanging out with my brother Jon, who’s been here with SEND International for the last 6 months. Our good friend Quentin arrived last night, and tomorrow my mom and sister will get here to spend some time with us as well.

The Jesus Film Team was successful on all accounts. We distributed over 16,000 CDs with a team of 12 people over 10 days. The analogy of the sower comes to mind, although in the past Japan has proven to be very hard ground. However there always seems to be at least a few people who take the CD, listen to it, and show up at church to learn more, and of those few some will also come to receive Christ.  I met a young man at church who began coming after recieving one of the CDs the team handed out two years ago,and he will hopefull be baptized soon.To understand the significance of this, you need to understand a little of how Japanese Christians typically come to Christ. It is a long process.

The problem is generally getting new people to even consider Christianity. Here in Japan it is often viewed as some sort of western religion which isn’t compatible with the Japanese mindset. Often they view Christianity much the same way we view Buddhism in the states. How often have you looked at what Buddhists believe? How often do you go to a Buddhist temple? How often to do you consider converting to Buddhism? The comparison isn’t exactly equal,  given that Christians have the Holy Spirit to guide them, and confirm the truth of the Gospel, and thus I think that all true Christians are less willing to give up their faith (more specifically, I believe they can’t, but that’s another topic) than follower’s of Buddha. However it at least gives you an idea.

Usually a person hears the gospel, and is then invited to Church. If they do show up they will encounter the body of Christ for perhaps the first time in their life. If their curiosity is piqued they may begin attending church on a regular basis to learn more about this strange sounding religion. At this point these people are called “seekers.” This is sort of a transitionary period where they learn much about the gospel, often meeting one on one with the Pastor to have question’s answered. One of the biggest obstacles is the issue of syncretism.

Traditionally, the Japanese have no problem practicing a number of conflicting religions simultaneously. As a culture, Japan is both Buddhist and Shinto. The two belief systems have verry different worldviews and teachings about the after life, and conflict on many other important points. However this does not stop most Japanese from identifying with both Buddhism and Shinto. It is thus tempting for many to simply add Christianity to the list, and thus avoid any conflict with family, friends and culture, all of which exert a strong grip on the hearts and minds of the Japanese people. To leave the traditional religions is often viewed as abandoning one’s family and heritage.

The time spent as a “seeker” is one in which the person carefully considers all the ramifications of accepting Christ, and comes to understand that that will mean the renouncing of Buddhism and Shinto. It is not a choice that is made lightly. Often it will take two years before a person decides to become a Christian. If that happens, they are then baptized, and become a full member of the church.

Thus to see Tanaka-san baptized will be an incredible thing. It has taken him two years from the time he received a CD from one of our previous team members, came to church and began learning about Jesus Christ. Looking forward I wonder how God will use the 16,000 plus CDs that were distributed this year. Perhaps that one small spark of light in the midst of all the darkness and hopelessness that surrounds these people each day will result in a few more coming to find the forgiveness, peace, joy and hope that can only come through Christ.

Well, we got in last Saturday, and despite my plane being an hour late, and making meeting up with everyone a little more difficult than anticipated, we all arrived safely, and made it toTachikawa, where we’re staying, without incident. I’ve got a lot to update, but not a whole lot of time at the moment, so check back for another update soon.

Our team is really awesome this year, lots of people that really do love Japan, and have a heart for the Japanese people. There’s a real sense of purpose, and excitement about being able to satisfy said purpose. We distributed our first batch of 1,000 CDs last night, which went rather quickly in Tachikawa.

We have had a few setbacks that you all could be praying for. There’s been a little mix up with getting the CDs we’re supposed to be distributing, so pray that everything gets worked out and we’ll have the CDs we need in order to distribute them when we need to. As of this morning we don’t have any, but more should be arriving later on today. Please pray that they do, and that we get more as needed.

I haven’t been quite as regular posting here as I’d planned, but this last week I’ve got a bit of an  excuse. I’ve been getting ready to go visit Japan for three weeks. In fact, I’m quite literally just about to head out to the airport, but I figured I’d better giver you all an update first.

The Jesus Film Project coordinates numerous short term mission trips throughout the year, and as an employee of the Jesus Film Project, they allow me to go on one trip per year, up to two weeks in length, and still get paid to do it. They’ve been putting on a Christmas distribution project to Japan for the last three years, so I always signed up to do that one; this will be my fourth year in a row, and that’s what I’ll be doing the first two weeks. The project is titled “Love Japan” and consists of distributing as many multimedia CDs as we possibly can. From past experience this ranges between 10,000 and 15,000. The CDs are essentially a multimedia tract. They contain Southern Gospel Music (which is strangely popular in Japan), Christmas songs, portions of The Jesus Film and other coll things. The purpose of the CDs is to sort of act as bait to get Japanese people to attend Christmas outreach functions put on by local Churches and Campus Crusade for Christ. A few years ago one guy that we gave a CD to started attending a church in Tachikawa (where we’ll be based) and is going to be getting baptized while I’m over there, which is reall encouraging.

I’ll be staying an extra week to visit with Jon (my brother). My mom, sister and friend will all be flyingg out that week to, and we plan to do some sightseeing, go snowboarding in Nagano, and visit as many Onsens (Japanese hot springs) as possible.Should be an awesome time.

Keep checking back as I hope to update this often with pictures. Please be praying for the safe and timely arrival of all the team members. We’re flying from all over the US and are arriving in Japan on three different flights.

Mata ne! (See you!)

Written and Directed by David Robison
Narrated by Mark Gunderson
Originally Created for Jonathan Robison

This week I put my first full batch of support letters in the mail. And this coming Sunday I’ll be giving my first presentation in Church about going to Japan, and looking for supporters. In other words I’ve gotten to the part where I have to start asking people for money, which seems to be on everyone’s list of least favorite activities. My initial reaction to the thought, in this context, is pretty much what you’d expect: I really don’t want to do it. However if I think about it a bit I quickly realize that from a Biblical perspective, this can and should be a great opportunity for spiritual growth on my part, and on the part of anyone willing to support me financially.

For my part I’ve always been very self reliant. I like to take care of myself, and not have to depend on anyone else. about 6 years ago I remember thinking that I would only consider doing missions if I could do it without having to raise support. For instance, I figured that there would be such a need for computer skills that a mission would hire me to work for them overseas, and I’d let them worry about the financial part. Or perhaps I’d become a “tentmaker” and mininster like Paul did to the Corinthians when he supported himself financially while teaching and deiscipling them. Nevermind the fact that this was not Paul’s prefered way of doing things and that as a rule Paul prefered to be supported by other Churches and Christians on his trips. It still sounded more pleasent to be able to rely on my own ability to sustain myself rather than relying on God and His people.

My attitude towards this changed when I talked to a missionary who went this route, and heard about the frustrations he had in not having nearly enough time to learn master the language, and to actually do missions. Shortly after that I found myself in a similar position: I was leading a highschool youth group while working a full time job. I found that I wanted to do more and more to reach out to the highschool kids, but the fact that my church is too small to afford to pay a youth pastor meant that I had to spend far more time at work than ministering to the kids. I decided that if God should ever call me into full time ministry, I would have to jump through whatever hoops were required, and if that meant raising support, I’d do it.

But its even more than that. This is a chance for me to be completely dependent on God, something that I have always struggled with, and something that has always kept me from reaching the full potential He has for me. Whenever I insist on doing things on my own power, I find myself severly lacking. And the only reserve I have access to is God’s power, which requires that I first relinquish my own.If I live by faith in myself I run into some things that are possible, but far more that are impossible. But if I have faith even as large as a mustard seed, I am promised thatnothing will be impossible for me. And if the fact that I will be forced to be dependent on the generosity of God’s people is what constantly reminds me to be dependent on the grace of God, then I’m excited at the prospect. I pray God will move in the hearts of all who get my feeble support letter, and through His power provide for all my needs.

I’ve got some supporters! This week I had two more people tell me that they want to support me on a monthly basis, which means that by my calculations, I am at 2% of my needed monthly support. I know that might sound small, but I’m actually pretty excited about it, and very grateful to God and these first few people who He’s brought on my team. If any of you are reading this, thank you!

Also this week I wrote another update/support letter talking about why I want to go to Japan (an excerpt from that letter can be found here), and inviting people to join my support team. For many people this will be the first time I’ve officially asked that, so I’m praying that God will encourage people to do that. Those letters should be in the mail by Wednesday.

Next on the agenda, I’ve got to start putting out a monthly newsletter, and begin my speaking tour. Right now I’m slotted to speak at my home Church on November 11th. I’ll also start contacting other churches to see if I can come talk to them as well, or at least talk with their missions Pastor. Finally feels like I’m actually on the road to Japan!

Oh, and a quick update on my brother… he’s engaged!

… but busy in pretty much every other possible way.

I’ve been leading a high school Youth Group for the last three years, which is great. Right now we’re in between studies, so I’m just coming up with interesting/important topics and talking about them. This last Thursday we talked about how we as Christian’s have been chosen by God, and what the ramifications/implications of that are. Tuesday nights I lead a college Bible Study, and we’ve been going through Hebrews for that, which turned out to be a more challenging book than I expected.

Last Saturday I went to a wedding in Tehechapi (which is a three hour drive from my house), to see two of my friends from Master’s get married to each other. One of them was a girl that I spent six weeks in Japan with on my first trip there, and the guy lived in the same dorm as me for two years. The interesting part is that he had been to Japan with Master’s the year before me and his bride went, and even though both the bride and groom went to Master’s at the same time, they didn’t date or even really know each other till two years after Brandon (the groom) graduated. So for awhile they almost missed each other, but then God brought them together in His timing. I guess the moral of the story is we never know what God will do.

Sunday my housemate/landlord had an open house (he’s selling the place), so I had to make myself scarce (appearently if people saw that I lived there they would become less likely to buy the place). It’s been slow going with the market and all but hopefully it’ll sell soon.

Anyways, back on course, I learned that I have two supporters this last week, which is really exciting. That means that I’m roughly 1% of the way to going to Japan! So, I’m on the score board at least. I hope to get some more letter’s written and sent out this coming week, as well as start writing my first Newsletter, so you all can look forward to that (as I’m sure you are).

And while we’re looking ahead I might as well mention that this coming December I’ll be in Japan for three weeks. Two weeks I’ll be participating in Jesus Film’s “Love Japan” distribution project, where our team will hand out multimedia CDs (think high tech tracts) and invite people to attend Christmas events at Churches in the area. Christmas is a great time to do this, as they actually celebrate it in Japan, even though they don’t have the concept of Christ or His birth. So there’s a little curiosity about what Christmas is. The last week I’ll be haning out with my little brother Jon, and a friend of ours (Quentin) will join us. I just bought my (rather expensive) plane ticket this week, so I’m excited about that too.

Oh, and if you read this, leave a comment. I’m starting to feel like I’m just talking to myself.