Wednesday I entered a Japanese speech contest for Japanese language students, where I was significantly behind all the other contestants, who all had studied for anywhere from 14 months to 3 years, compared to my 6 months. I didn’t do as badly as I feared, but I didn’t really do that great either.
When I was 14 my parents made me join a Jr. Toastmaster’s club, which I hated. The first few speeches I gave in English I was a nervous wreck and sputtered through on memory alone. But in the long run it was probably one of the most beneficial things I ever did, and after a year or so I pretty much got over all fear of public speaking. Over the years I went on to give speeches in college, lead Bible Studies and preach sermons. I thought I was getting pretty good at public speaking. But this first speech in Japanese reminded me of the first speeches I gave in English, and I realize that in many ways, I’m starting all over again. It’s a humbling thought, but by God’s grace I’ll one day be able to preach again in a language that those around me can understand.
Tomorrow I’ll get a little break from Japanese, as I’ll be helping out at an English language outreach at Iwate University. English is required in Japanese schools, so frequently Japanese students look for ways to sharpen their English skills. There is a very small Christian club on campus, the founding member of which is a student that started attending out church this past April. There’s a school festival on campus tomorrow, and the Christian club will be hosting two English Cafes, where our family, and our neighbors, (who are also missionaries at our church, from the UK) will help out at.
This Christian club was in operation a few years ago, however all the members graduated and there were no other Christians left at the school to take it over, so it disbanded. Our prayer is that through this club more students will be drawn to Christ, and that our church, which is a five minute walk from the University, will be able to effectively support and disciple them. The Cafes will be at 2:30pm Saturday and Sunday which is 10:30pm Fri. and Sat PST. If you think of it, please be praying during that time for these two events. Also, be sure to check out the video update that I shot today on campus (and watch out for the student dancing in the background before she realized I was recording.)
Last weeks missionary meeting was really nice. I think there were 11 of us who were able to make it, representing 3 countries and 7 different missions organizations. This really hammered home the sort of missions frontier that we’re serving on. No missions agency has a base of operations here, or even a large presence. As a result, missionaries from all these different denominations and agencies are coming together to support at partner with each other. There are some theological differences between many of these groups, and yet I gladly count them all as my brother’s and sisters in the Lord. Together we share a common faith in Christ, and a common hope to see Japanese come to salvation. Please pray for increased unity, and for all of us to keep in mind that we serve Christ above and before our missions agencies or denominations, and that we might continually put the needs of the body before our own agendas.