'Ello, everybody! It's been a few weeks since my last debriefing of my times as a YWAM staff member here in the humble but quaint town of Ayashi. Got a few cool things to share for y'all, including a neat discovery I found by accident after getting hopelessly lost in central Sendai. But first a few general updates:
We have some new faces to the team! There's Chrissy, an American gal who's been with YWAM for over ten years and has been mostly working a YWAM base in Taipei. We're all definitely excited to have someone with much experience join us here in our fledgling base! Faith, another potential staff member from America, is still in process of getting her religious activities work visa. Please pray that she receives it soon and can join us on our long journey of bringing the Gospel to Japan.
Speaking of new people, I have a roommate! Ezra, who's comes from the Land Down Under, is joining us as a volunteer for almost three months in order to see if God wants him to do a DTS (Discipleship Training School) here in Japan or elsewhere. He'll be staying in my apartment for his time here. Pray that the Holy Spirit will reveal his future and that his time here will be a good one!
And now, Ladies and Gentlemen, our feature presentation! Tonight's story: The Time I Got Lost Trying to Find a Church But Ended Up Finding Something Amazing (or also called A Remarkable Reminiscence By the Riverside)! It went like this:
A few weeks ago, on a Saturday evening, I was attempting to go to a bilingual church in Central Sendai called Grace Center Church Sendai (Facebook page link: https://www.facebook.com/GraceCenterSendai/). I'd been there once before with my other teammates and was interested in attending again. However, they change their meeting location every week, so this time I was voyaging through uncharted waters by myself. Despite having my smartphone on my person, the path to said church was not so simple. Apparently, Google Maps thinks that the quickest, most efficient route would be to zig-zag across the entire city, circling awkwardly around the train station, go through creepy backstreets, and end up at some kind of sketchy children center with security cameras, "Do Not Enter" signs, and cartoonish animals mocking me with their upbeat smiley faces painted on the side of said building. A hungry, grumpy Soren does not take mocking lightly, painting or not.
After doing a thorough reconnaissance of the area, and with no signs of the church anywhere, I came to the conclusion that trying to enter the center would lead to being arrested or shanked. Adding insult to injury, my phone decided it had enough of my incompetence and shut off by itself. iPhones can be jerks like that, in case you don't know. So there I am: in the middle of the city, lost, hungry, grumpy and disappointed in missing out in going to church. In my frustration, I prayed to God that if there was any reason to come all the way to the city, could He please make it apparent now? Looking up from my position, I saw that the main road ahead led to some castle ruins of the famous daimyo: Date Masamune, the founder of Sendai itself. Having meaning to visit the ruins eventually, and with few hours of sunlight left in the day, I saw this as an opportunity for an adventure and proceeded to make my way down the street to a piece of history.
On the road to the ruins, I came across a bridge called Ohashi, above the wide Hirosegawa River. Before crossing it, I happened to notice something to my right. A pathway, leading to a lower section of the river. Turning there, I noticed a rather unique memorial: three statues: two of them, a farmer and a samurai, bowing their heads in prayer, and one in the center, a foreign priest, raising his hands and head up to the heavens. This here is what I had found:
Some members at a church we'd attended a month back talked about a memorial dedicated to nine martyrs, including a farmer, a samurai, and a Portuguese priest, who were tortured by being lowered into freezing holes in the Hirosegawa river during February in the 1620's. Despite being ordered to recant their faith, all nine refused, and all nine died in the cold waters after three days of torment. Unintentionally, I had found this site by complete accident. If I hadn't gotten lost, most likely I wouldn't have found it till way later with my team.
Happening upon this historical site filled me with reverence, humbleness, sadness and resolution. Standing on the spot where these men died for their faith reminded me what a privilege it truly is to live in modern Japan, where I may worship and share Jesus freely to anyone without fear of torment and death. These men of God perished so that I may be here, as a full time missionary. I praise and thank God for leading me to this place, renewing my spirit and reinforcing my drive to serve and love Him fully, no matter the cost or consequences. So far, this was my most powerful moment working here in the missions field. I pray for more of God's signs of His presence and Spirit, whether it be from the present or the past, to be made shown to myself, my team, and to the people of Sendai. Amen.
"Then Jesus said to His disciples, 'If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.'"
On a quick important note, I lost one of my monthly sponsors, who sadly lost her job back in December, which along with all the moving in costs and buying the necessary appliances and furniture, I'm getting to the point were funds are a little bit tight. To be stable, I'll need at least $100 per month. That's a fair bit of money, but I know that God has brought me here to Japan for a reason, and I trust Him fully with my financial future. Please pray for a new job for the unemployed sponsor and for enough support for my career here in Sendai. Thank you all so very much for your prayers, well-wishes, and continued support. Love you all!
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