Japan trip

The above picture was taken at a combination Buddhist Temple and Shinto Shrine in Tokyo, Japan.  This image represents millions of people in Japan.  Just as this idol is bound ritually by the Japanese using ropes, so too the people of Tokyo are bound in the traditional religions of Buddhism and Shintoism, along with such spiritual strongholds as materialism and secularism.  May God grant grace to many Japanese so that they might become bound only to the Lord Jesus. 

If you read the previous post you now know that I (Kevin) have returned from Tokyo, Japan.  Although I still have remnants of jet-lag, I'm doing much better.  Well, going to Tokyo, Japan was incredible!  For those of you who prayed, thank-you.  God was gracious to me and the others in our group.  As in all of my other short-term trips overseas, God revealed to me that He is sovereign over all.  Three other things stand out from my trip.

1. Japan needs prayer and workers in the field.  Many Japanese live without hope.  Every day I read about at least one suicide in or around Tokyo.  In Japan, over 30,000 people a year take their lives.

2. God is displaying His grace to many Japanese.  Out of the blue, we met a handful of Christians in Tokyo.  It seemed that wherever we went God had us run into Christians.  We met Japanese Christians in parks, restaurants, and at one of the busiest street corners in the world.  This was cool, considering that only a 1/2 percent of the Japanese population is Christian. 

3.  It pleases God when brothers and sisters in Christ dwell together in unity.  Our short-term team was a real blessing.  We experienced the fullness of God's Spirit, boldness in witnessing, oneness in purpose, and the "surroundness" of God's presence. 

To the King of Glory! (Ps 24:7-10)