Prayer requests:

My relationship with God 

Tokyo Vision Church and Leadership

Noah's Ark Preschool

All of my friends and activities

My parents walk 

As per the title, indeed He is always in the business of wondrous works! Thanks for tuning in to what will probably be the third to last entry here. Amazing to think that provided things continue as planned, there's only 7 weeks remaining for me here! I have the option to stay for July too, but as of now I haven't made that commitment.

Things picked right up where they left off last month. A lot going on, meeting a lot of people, seeing some set free, some healed, and hopefully all (maybe me the most) encouraged. Not too much to report from the church or preschool, except that Pastor Kang is traveling to the USA for his yearly trip to speak at churches around the country for a month. Please pray for him and us as we pick up the slack. At the preschool we have very infrequent free classes, but everyone that comes likes us. Usually a big road block has been the fathers of the families end up saying no due to it being Christian. Today another student comes for a trial.

My friend said to me the other day, it's like there are people competing to see who can be the kindest to you Jesse. It's true, it really feels like that! The favor of knowing the Perfect Provider has more benefits than we can ever comprehend, but not more than we can wrap our hands around. Every spiritual blessing is ours (Ephesians 1:3) and we've been blessed with every gift. My Japanese Mom continues to shower me with gifts and home-made frequent meals that you couldn't even buy if you wanted to. The other day a Japanese man walked into her church, having visited church for the first time, and sat down at their coffee shop. She called me and said, "I told him I have an American son he should meet, can you come?" So we met and became friends, and he took me (paid for) to see Les Miserable. On the way, we can to talk about deep spiritual issues, and what I saw as the most common misconceptions from Japanese secularists. Then, on my last day of the "Golden Week" holiday here, he surprised me and took me to see a professional soccer game, my first since I've been in Japan. Another Japanese friend I've written about before (and am reaching out to!) gave me an Ipad for my birthday, just to name a couple of things.

It feels like things are just accelerating as more people, like a dear friend Yukiko who told me she committed to praying for me every day, have entered my life. Almost every day in the last month or more I've been able to talk about Jesus to someone. Here are some stories:

If you read the last entry, there is a girl named Rachel (8) that had a manifestation of the Spirit. When we met her friend, she encourage me to pray for her, and this Japanese girl that has almost no understanding of God said she felt "raku" which is one of the most common things I hear when I ask what they felt. This manifestation opens the door some times for them to receive with more seriousness a message of an Eternal Power of the universe that cares for them and is present.

There's a soccer league with mostly foreigners that I joined a while back. The most recent game I went to, I saw an older black guy sitting on the bench, so I talked to him before the match. I found that he was in the military for a long time, and his son plays soccer so he had come to watch him. After the game we talked for a few more minutes, and I mentioned he must have seen some terrible things. He opened up a bit and told me some things he was struggling with, so I asked to pray. After with a very sober look, he said along the lines of "yes I feel it. Something happened", and thanked me hardily.

One day I went to do my laundry and saw a woman with a limp. I asked if I could pray, and got a very volatile reaction. I realized later that she was deeply disturbed, and maybe even possessed, as she started shouting at the top of her lungs when she left. It rattled me a little bit, so I thought I needed to find someone else to talk to about The Lord. I saw three marginalized looking youth, complete with eccentric hair and hip clothes, sitting together outside. I approached them, asked if any could speak English, and just started conversing. One had seen me at the local high school CAJ. We talked for a few minutes, then I asked if I could pray for them for anything. All three had something, one a mental illness, the second was stabbed in prison and had shoulder pain some times, and the third had back pain. The pain left the second two, and the first one with the mental illness said he didn't feel anything. But when he went home he later reported that he felt all fluffy inside and was amazed! I shared my testimony with them and ended up sitting there about 30 minutes.

Through my Japanese Mom, who introduces me to all sorts of people who have need of freedom from the enemy's chains, I met two cancer patients  After prayer one said she felt something moving in her body, and God's presence. The other said she looked at me and saw Jesus, not normally feeling comfortable around men, and said she felt totally comfortable around me. She said she felt changed from that day. Both were very touched and grateful!

I have seen God take away a lot of people's pain, but had not seen Him do it in my own life through my own belief up until recently. I woke up with terrible stomach pain, and tried to ignore it for a few minutes, but it was just too great. So I put my hands on my stomach and told the pain to go, and in about four seconds it was completely gone, without a hint coming back. It was very very cool!

I went to an Indian restaurant one day and felt like I might have a word for the waiter (also the owner) and asked him if he needed prayer. He said he has headaches and even then had a head ache. So I told him I would pray and that God could make him well right there, so we prayed and he got better! Then I saw a large group of college students (about 10) so I asked them if anyone needed healing of anything, and that God lives in me and heals people. Three people asked for prayer, and two of them said they felt better, to their astonishment and laughter of the others. Then I got to tell them a bit about Jesus. This was in the same restaurant, and the owner was watching me the whole time. But when I finished, he didn't say, "can you not do that in here" or "I appreciated prayer but please don't hurt my business", but "you are a man of God. Please come visit me any time and we talk about God. I also believe in your God I am a Christian, thank you so much." He shook my hand with both hands, and as is common gesture of kindness in Nepali culture, led me by the arm to the exit.

My Japanese mom took me to an Israeli restaurant one day where the waiter and owner is half Israeli and half Japanese. We befriended him, and at towards the end of our time there, started asking him questions about Israel where he had grown up. I eventually asked if he was non-religious, like I heard most of modern Israelis are. He confirmed, and as a response I told him about my experiences with God, and how God loves and accepts him. That it isn't about performance but understanding of who we are. We looked up old testament prophecy of Jesus (he had a Hebrew bible!) and then I asked if I could pray for him. Since I know God, he will touch you right now if I asked him, I said. So he accepted with a skeptical look, and after said "Yeah, yes, I feel it inside", then got up and said "I feel stronger I feel good". 

Another friend who deals with depression met up with us one day, and after we prayed and had spend time together, said she was totally healed of her depression after many months! She has all kinds of difficult life circumstances, and it might take her time to understand who she is to be totally free, but that's a pretty neat comment about what He is doing in her through fellowship in His name.

I'm helping at the local high school soccer team here as a volunteer once and a while again, and one day recently while I was there a student stopped playing for the seriousness of an old injury. I asked to pray for him on the side, and then for him to check it out after I did. He says "whoa, that's crazy" as he saw it get much better. I got to tell him it's about the power and love of the universe met through the reality of Jesus living in us, released by faith. Yay!

There are many other stories which I did not make a note of, and many more people that I've gotten to talk to about Jesus briefly or in more detail. He's working in me to understand the basics, that we are meant not to incorporate Jesus, not to work for him, but to become Him. It's not about letting anyone else or any thing determine our day. All our security and value is found in Him, and if that's really our base, we will never be moved. We are being conformed to love. GBY.