I Won't Relent!

Oh, how often we sings songs never taking a moment to reflect on what those songs are really saying.  Now, please tell me that I am not the only person who does this! How often I have sung along at church, not because I desire to praise God, but simply for the fact that I don't want to get into trouble or be judged.
We sing doctrine rich songs, not as nourishment for our soul and for the souls of others, but simply for the fact we enjoy the melody. This is a selfish way to look at music.
Music--or more to the point Christian Music--was designed to get a point across. It is meant for us to reflect upon the meaning as the lyrics get stuck into our heads.

Let's walk together through a song and gaze upon the depths of the lyrics. The song that I have chosen is "Won't Relent" by Jesus Culture.

I set you as a seal upon my heart, as a seal upon my arm

A seal is not something that is put onto documents lightly. A seal takes the place of a signature, saying, "I take responsibility for this!" Now, setting Jesus as your seal is the same as saying you are representing Jesus, and that what you are doing is on his behalf. Think about the implications! Setting Jesus as a seal means that everything you do now is not for your own sake, but for Jesus's sake and the sake of the Gospel. Similar to a brand, a seal is not something that goes away. It is saying that you are Jesus' representative on earth.

For there is love that is as strong as death
Jealousy demanding as the grave
And many waters cannot quench this love

For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, not depth, nor anything else in all of creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8: 38-39)

Come be the fire inside of me
Come be the flame upon my heart...
Until You and I are one

Many times Jesus has been compared to an eternal fire within a person. 1 Peter 1:6-7 reads, "In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith--more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire--may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ."
Jesus/God being a "fire" isn't something that we should take lightly either. If we want Jesus to be a fire in our souls, it means that he will burn everything but himself. That means you will face many trials, forcing you to choose Jesus or your sin nature.  In this song you are asking Jesus to put you through many trials until You and I are one. That means you are giving God permission to do anything he wants with your life until you die. That is also not a claim to be taken lightly.

I don't wanna talk about you like you're not in the room
Wanna I look right at you
Wanna sing right to you

Don't talk about Jesus like he is some relic from a past time--he is very much alive! Perhaps it's just me, but often the time I feel closest to God is when I am singing. There is just something in the music that a lecture can't capture. Maybe the emotion that comes with it. You can hear the anguish, passion, and hope in the songs. There will be thousands of people singing "Praise God" for a thousands different reasons, all in the same spirit. Music was meant to be something to unite the Church. Sadly we have turned it into a dividing faction for churches all around the world. We get caught up in the meaningless (the type of music) and forget the eternal (the meaning of the song). 

You won't relent until you have it all
My heart is yours

Whatever your relationship with Jesus right now, it's not good enough! Jesus is never satisfied with how well we know him, he wants us to learn more. We could study the Bible for a thousand years and still not know all there is to know about God. In the chorus of this song we cry, "my heart is Yours!" But have we really surrendered our full hearts to Jesus?
The surrendering of our hearts means forfeiting all that we are, and all that we have, to follow Jesus.  
It could cost you:
your social standing
your job
your family
your hobbies
your friends
and even your very life.

That is what surrender means. Are you ready to follow Jesus despite all it may cost you?

Forfeit

Mark 10:17-22
And as he [Jesus] was setting out on his journey, a man ran up and knelt before him and asked him, "Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" And Jesus said to him, "Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. You know the commandments: 'Do not murder, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor you father and mother.'" And he said to him, "Teacher all these I have kept from my youth." And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, "You lack one thing: go sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure I heaven, then come, follow me." Disheartened by the saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.

Despite the fact that Jesus already knew his heart, he still loved him. Jesus knew what this man's idol was--money. It's not an uncommon idol now. He commanded him, "Go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me." (v. 21b)

Would I go, sell, give, come, and follow him?

Who else can I turn to? Who else is worthy? Only God is worthy--fully worthy-- of praise.

When I decided to follow Jesus, all other things are forfeited. I no longer claim the perceived right to have a comfortable, or even a good, life. Jesus says in Matthew 10:38 "And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me."

In those days if you saw a man carrying a cross, you knew, and they knew, they were going to die on that cross. It was a grim fate, one no one escaped from. You would be dragged to the edge of the city, humiliated, and crucified. Your body would be left on that cross as a testament to your crimes.

"Taking your cross" was not supposed to give us a warm, fuzzy feeling. It was not meant to be put on coffee cups and printed across t-shirts. But this was a phrase to set us in our final destination. It was a claim of death--but also a claim of eternal life.

Perhaps phrasing it another way would help you understand. Those who "took up their cross" was the same as saying, "I would rather have you torture me and kill me in the worse way possible than to deny God!" Saying you are "taking up your cross" and "following God" are not phrases to be taken lightly.

Before you claim to be a follower of Jesus, followers who must take up their cross and follow in Jesus' footsteps, ask yourself this:

Are you not only willing, but prepared to suffer and die for the Gospel?

Roadblocks to the Gospel: Foreigner

"Gaijin! Gaijin!" Unless you are ethically Asian while in Japan you will run into at least one kid that will yell "gaijin" at the top of their lungs while pointing at you. Even though adults don't say that, you know they are thinking it. When you walk though the train station many heads will suddenly turn towards you, and every eye is glued on you. You feel like a mix between a superstar and a freak show.

"Gaijin" is Japanese for foreigner literally meaning, "outside person." While there is technically a more polite version (Gaikokujin lit. "outside-country person"), it is shortened to gaijin. It is not meant to be rude, although some people view it as rude, but is meat to be non-formal. In Japanese there are several levels of politeness and different levels uses different conjugations etc. Whereas English does not have any levels for politeness because of this, Japan often sees English, and English-speaking people, as people who don't care about politeness.

While in Japan, unless you are ethically Japanese, you will always be viewed as an outsider. This is not a racist thing, but rather a cultural thing. America has been called the land of immigrants. Even someone who is Native American knows people whose ancestors immigrated to America. It is not unusual to walk down the street and see people who are ethically from Europe, Asia, Africa, and South America. The way we realized that someone is not American is not by their skin/hair/eye color or by their religion, but by if they have an accent.

Now consider Japan.

Almost everyone in Japan is a Native Japanese person. Only 1.22% of the population is not Japanese, and many in Japan are from China and Korea. For thousands of years,  no take-over of Japan has been successful. The country was was rather isolated because it was an island. When Europeans cam over to trade, many ports would not accept them or imposed harsh trade sanctions. When missionaries came over, many were killed--crucified and left on display. Many Japanese believers were also killed.

Being Japanese is a source of pride and history. Many can trace their family lines back many generations--all Japanese.

No matter how many Japanese customs you follow, or how good your Japanese is, or how dark your hair or eyes are--you will never be Japanese. You will always be considered an outsider.

But that does not mean you are not accepted. You can be accepted in your community, gain lifelong friends, and meet people who will judge you on your character rather than your skin color.

An Opportunity too Great to Miss

But being foreign give us an incredible opportunity! 

Let me explain. 

Because we are not Japanese, we can question the way Japan works. 

We can believe in Christianity and (generally) not suffer the social consequences. 

We can not follow all the Japanese customs and not be considered rude. 

We can ask questions about Shintoism and Buddhism and compare them to Christianity. 

I think you get the point. 

But perhaps the best opportunity comes from the ability to speak English. Right or wrong, it is what it is. Many people will seek out foreigners simply to learn about a different culture and practice/learn English. 

This is an opportunity far too great to miss. 

People are seeking us out, why would we waste such an opportunity? Many will agree to read the Bible because it is an important text in English. Also, the Bible is one of the easily accessible text that will have English and Japanese side-by-side. Japan is an unreached country, meaning most people have NO ACCESS to the gospel. They have never heard about the gospel, and many couldn't find a Christian if they tried. 

Even if they don't accept the gospel, having access and knowing what the gospel is so much better. As Christians, we can never force someone to believe the gospel.  All we can do is present what we know, and pray that God would touch their heart. 

Never stop praying!

Roadblocks to the Gospel: Harmony

Many who go to Japan, especially during sakura season, say that Japan is peaceful. Peace is something that is promoted in Christianity. Romans 12:8 reads, "If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone."

Sakura flowers

There are several cultural things that fit into the Japanese ideal of harmony that do not follow the Bible. I will try to stay away from semantics,  but understanding the difference between Christian's harmony and Japan's harmony is key. 

Don't Rock the Boat!

We have all heard the phrase, "Don't Rock the Boat," but have you ever stopped and considered what that really means? 

The phrase means, "don't cause an argument just for the sake of the argument." Basically if you are in a group project and everyone but you agrees to do it one way, you should just go with the rest of the class. 

In Japan this phrase is taken to the extreme. Unless you are the boss or leader of the group, you are never to go against the flow. If the culture demands it, you follow. Often this is a good thing, like leaving the handicapped seats on the trains unoccupied, but is really a nice form of peer pressure. It also can have very negative affects. 

In Japan, many companies have "drinking parties." While attendance is mandatory, it is very strongly encouraged (as in you may loose your standing in the company or be fired if you don't go). At these parties you are encouraged to drink as much as the rest of the people. They have to drink how much the boss drinks. This can lead to an endless cycle of alcohol abuse.  

In Christianity, we are told to live at peace with those around us. But we are to be uncompromising on moral issues. We live at peace in the world, but we do not live as the world. Many people in Japan don't understand why we would abject to certain activities because by objecting to them we might inconvenience someone else. We rock the boat--and will not yield to doing what we believe is wrong for the sake social convince.

But that's the way it has always been done! 

In Japan, there is only one way to do anything--the Japanese way. In America we have people from all over the world that have live in America for many years. "There's more than one way to skin a cat." In my classes at ESU I know people from China, Japan, India, South Korea, Brazil, Bolivia, and various countries in Europe. Japan does not have this multicultural perspective. Almost everyone is, well, Japanese.  

Japan has been a strong nations for thousands of years. Many practices in Japan have been practiced for as long as the country has existed. In comparison, the United States is a new country with not unique cultural practice that are uniquely American. 

In the same way, Shintoism and Buddhism have been the religions in Japan for thousands of years. Christianity seems like some kind of new religion from the West that has nothing to do with them. You are either Shinto or Buddhist or Shinto-Buddhist because it as been that way for thousands of years and Japan has been peaceful (at times) under those religions. 

Honor your Family

Matthew 10: 34-39 "Not Peace, But a Sword"

Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. And a person's enemies will be those of his own household. Whoever loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. 

To become a Christian in Japan, it often means you will lose your family. Many lose their friends as well. This is a sad truth. Japan has the freedom of religion, but Christianity is not accepted among many people in Japan. 

Becoming a Christian (there) is like saying your family doesn't matter to you. It is seen as rejecting those around you, both family and friends, and rejecting your culture and heritage (Japan), for some religion in the West. It is seen as a betrayal to what Japan holds dear. 

Not Ashamed to be Alive

For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation. Romans 1:16

Be not conformed to this world. Romans 12:2

As missionaries, we are the ones who don't conform to this world. People can pass off as Christians and still be conformed to this world, but missionaries can't. Who moves around the world, endures hardships, learns a new language and culture, while leaving theirs behind?

...Stuff is no match for "the power of God."
Lost people have always be cold to the Gospel. To use the terminology in Ephesians 2, they are DEAD to the gospel. We expect corpses to be cold, but not the living. That is why Christians get rebuked for lukewarmness, not the lost (Revelation 3: 15-17)....

Never before have I understood this. Now I know that Christians don't have the choice to be cold (to the gospel). If we are alive, why are we still without a pulse? Now I understand your spiritual health can have setbacks,  but it just doesn't stop. For non-Christians, they were never alive. How can you expect someone to act alive if they have not been raised to life? The dead cannot raise the dead. Nor can those who are alive. Only the one who is the source of life can raise the dead. It is not on my own power that I can be a missionary, but God's power alone.

...We tend to look at the people and say, "This gal would make a great Christian." or "That people group will never turn to Christ." That is a Christ-less way to look at the world. The first statement assumes some natural merit in the sinner. The second denies the savior's power.... 

What we should really say is that everyone would make an amazing Christian. Oftentimes the people we think would be farthest from the Gospel are the ones hearing God's knocking.

Our job is simply to proclaim the faith, faithfully and expectantly. Yes, some will reject the Truth, others will delay, but some will believe (Acts 17:32-34). 
No Satanic effort to halt the advance of the Gospel can be ultimately successful, but perhaps the Devil's best strategy to date is this global cooling of the Christian church through our own materialism and defeatist attitudes. Have the people around us become cold to the gospel? Perhaps the better question is this: Have we? 

The italicized portions of this text were taken from Gospel Meditations for Missions.

Hey! Listen!

"God, surprise me!"

By praying this who knows what will happen? Here is what we do know: God can/will do much more than we can hope or imagine. We also know that God is faithful. 

Give yourself away

Jesus literally gave up everything for me. How could I not do the same? But I am selfish and want things for myself. It should not be how can I get ahead, but how can I serve others.

Obey God

The only way I can find true fulfillment is by doing what God has planned for my life. The only way to do that is to obey God. "She has real lasting fulfillment in her heart, finding the joy that only comes when we say no to ourselves and yes to God." (Brown Like Coffee pg. 126)

Seek God

I don't know all that God is capable of. He can save the most evil hear, When God says to witness to someone--obey. Would you deny them access to the Gospel?!? God will always who up, I just have to seek him. "I don't even believe in God, but God was in that room. What happened?!" (Brown Like Coffee pg. 127)

How can I impact eternity? 

"She is leaving behind a wake of impact that will last into eternity." (Brown Like Coffee pg. 128) This goes back to the question: "What is my calling?" And, "What does God want me to do right now?" 

Surrender

The only way that God can use me is if I surrender and obey him with my whole self. Not, "Do I have the strength?" But, "Will I obey?" 

Pray for opportunities 

Again, God can/will do so much more than we can hope or imagine. If we pray for opportunities to share the gospel we will get them. The real question is will I have the courage to share my faith/the truth?  The second coming/death is much too close to not pray for opportunities!

Make disciples of all Nations

This is God's command  in Matthew 28:18-20. As an aspiring missionary, this is a verse that I hold close to my heart, but I often forget the ALL nations part. Yes, "all nations" includes Japan, but it also includes ALL NATIONS. I can't just be passionate about Japan! I have to be passionate for the Gospel to reach ALL nations and EVERY person in the world. 

God's dreams become my dreams

What are my dreams right now? Honestly, to watch Netflix for the next week uninterrupted. Now, I don't claim to be God, but I can say with confidence that Netflix is not God's dream. I know that it is not God's calling for my life. Anytime my dream is not to tell the Lost about Jesus and grow deeper in my relationships with Christ, we have a problem. A big problem called SIN and IDOLATRY.

True sorrow for those who do not believe the Gospel

The world is broken and lost and we have the answer! Those who do not believe the Gospel will be in Hell forever. Let me say that again. They will be in HELL FOREVER. How can your heart not break? We are Hope to a Hopeless world. Weep and cry for the Lost!

Pour out my Life

After all it is not mine. I was bought at a price. He poured out His life for me. How could I not do the same? 

Culture: Food

So far I have had several interesting foods. I have liked most of them, but it has been quite the experience.

The first place we went to was a conveyor belt sushi place. Yes, you heard me, a place that serves sushi in a conveyor belt. It takes a whole new meaning to food being delivered directly to you. You are sat down at a table and at one side of the table a conveyor belt has sushi going around to your table and other tables.

 But let's say that you don't see your favorite sushi or want to order something like soba (Japanese noodles), then what do you do? Well, they have that covered! At each table is a touchscreen menu that allows you to order sushi, soba, and drinks. They even had a menu in English (although "first bonito concrete floor" does not seem like a good translation).
You are seated at your table and then the free-for-all begins.

I could go on and on about all the new an interesting foods in Japan, but this one takes the cake.

Tokyo Team

Airport

After Peter’s flight left we came to our nearly empty terminal. Sitting across from us was a couple going to Brazil. They struck up a conversation with us and asked where we were going and what we would be doing there. We told them that we were going to Japan in a Trek 7 trip. Although we didn’t know a lot of the details at the time, we told them that we would be doing different things there including teaching English. They were excited and told us that they were Christians and that several people they knew were Christians.

The woman then asked if we were “praying folk,” to which we excitedly said “yes!” She pulled out her phone and tuned on the lock screen. “It’s my son.” On the lock screen was a young man in a hospital garb, bald, smiling, going through chemo. She told us how he his cancer was one that was hard to cure and that he was going through chemo in a desperate attempt to save his life. What amazed me more was this man’s attitude. He saw his diagnosis as having no downside. Either he live and got to spend more time with his wife and kids, or he got to go be with Jesus. Even though he wasn’t there, his faith, and his parent’s faith, amazed us, affirming our decision to go on this trip.

Please pray for their son, Brent.

PRAY YAMANOTE

 For those of you who, like me, can’t read kanji (Chinese characters) the lime green train line is the Yamanote (Yah-mah-no-teh) train line. The Yamanote line makes a circle around the middle of Tokyo. The ministry gathers believers to ride the whole Yamanote line and pray for Tokyo. Each time they also get off at one of the many stations and pray for the station.

Our group met the group at one of the train stations. Many Christians were gathered, both short-term teams like Trek 7 and long-term missionaries, all praying for Japan to glorify Christ. We rode the Yamanote line, praying for the people riding on the train along with praying for Japan as a whole. Some people prayed quietly in groups, others read their Bibles, some sat or wrote quietly, and some listened to worship music.

We got off at the Shinagawa (She-nah-gah-wah) station. This station is over 100 years old, making it one of the oldest stations in Tokyo. It is near many offices in Tokyo and many salary men get off at this station. In Japan, an average work week is about 60 hours a week or more. The Japanese try to find meaning in their work and rank instead of in Christ. Despite all the time and effort they put into their work, many realize that it seems fulfilling and commit suicide.

Praying in the train was an amazing experience. Despite the fact that it took over an hour to ride the whole track, we didn’t run out of things to pray about. I have the feeling that we could ride the train line from the first train (5:00AM) to the last train (11:00PM) and not run out of things to pray about.

Colossians 1:9-14

And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, giving thanks to the Father, who has qualifies you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. He as delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

Day 1: Arriving in MN

I arrived in MN safe and sound (despite the fact that both planes had lots of turbulence). I met the other team mates that I will be working with. My team will have three girls and two boys.
We had a pizza dinner and played intense Uno (our game lasted at least twenty-five min.).

Count Down: 2 Days

Where is home?

Being a Christian, I have heard the phrase "we're not home yet." While I agree with what the phrase is saying, where would our "home away from home" be? While I am tempted to say "with my family" or "in my house" (both are true), that is not really the point of being "aliens and strangers" where we live. It does not mean that we won't or don't have a home down here (on Earth). Our homes on Earth are more like temporary living arrangements. It is like living in a tent. It is not something you would want to do forever, but it gets the job done. 

Aliens and Strangers

First let me define what I don't mean by "home." Home is not the building that you live in. To keep is simple I'll call that a house. House=building. Families move, but they still live in a home.

I also don't mean a place. Like "the mountains feel like home to me" is not what I am getting at. 

We are called to live as aliens and strangers. That means that we live our lives (according to the Bible) and because we follow the Bible, our actions will stand out. People who don't belong stand out. Let's say you see a picture. this picture is black except for a single green dot. What do you notice first? While you take in the black background, your eyes are drawn to the green dot because it stands out. In the same way a Christian's actions are to stand out against the world. 

Christians don't fit the world's idea of normal. They don't meet the status quot. However you want to say it, there is something that separates Christians from the rest of the world.

Re: Home?

So, if out home is not a building, or a place we live, where is it? Our home is with other believers. When I am in a group of believers, I get this feeling of wholeness. This thought of, this is where I am meant to be. Most people would call it contentedness. I think of it more along the lines of true freedom. When I am in a group of people following God, I can be who I am because they will love me no matter what. They will spur me on to be better that I thought I could be. They will be happy when something good has happened to me, and sad when something bad has happened. 

Each person might have a different race, gender, interest, or background, but we are all united by one thing: Jesus on the cross. 

Church Shooting

This week there was a shooting at a historic black church. When the shooter was caught he said his goal was to start a civil war between whites and blacks. Rather than causing racial tensions to become even more strenuous, it has had the opposite effect. It has united the black communities and the white communities. 

Nothing was more powerful than the picture I saw on TV. In a nearby church, a service was being held in honor of those who died. The entire church was full. Every seat was full. People were crammed in to every isle. It was like a massive sea of faces, half of them black, and half of them white. But in that church I noticed one thing even more--a group of true believers praying for a community, who, thorough tragedy, was slowly being healed.