So, I’ve finally met some of you readers!  Granted, I knew a few of you who read, because I get comments or emails later about it.  But I met some new friends over this weekend who mentioned things I wrote about and I was surprised– and very encouraged. Even if I’m just writing out to… Continue reading Selah; C’est la vie

Post coming soon. Delays are currently due to: Jet Lag Lack of Sleep Heaps of emails, texts, messages (on all sorts of programs), phone calls and otherwise go-betweens between us and everyone else in the world A Cold A Fun Toddler Outside of Her Norms right now And Great Times with so many people we… Continue reading Status: Delayed

After a while, I feel like I can’t stop. Over the last few months, it seems like I’ve been running on adrenaline of deadlines and meetings and preparations and correspondence.  Today’s biggest culprit is not so much the adrenaline but the cup of coffee I had at 5pm.  I knew better but enjoyed it anyway.… Continue reading In Pursuit of Rewards

The phrase that comes to mind is one I heard years ago in a living room in Mexico where my senior trainer missionary wife made a joke (I don’t even know what about now), but she exclaimed (literally), “Holy Cow Batman!”.  I laughed excessively when I heard her say it.  It was boisterous and unexpected… Continue reading Holy Cow Batman

<p><a href=”https://vimeo.com/155052757″>Trailer: MISSION JAPAN</a> from <a href=”https://vimeo.com/creativeimpactministries”>Creative Impact Ministries</a> on <a href=”https://vimeo.com”>Vimeo</a&gt;.</p>   Hey all!  Here is the trailer for our upcoming film to be released late March. We thank you for all your support, love, prayers and encouragement that has made this outreach possible! Please take a moment to share this video with your… Continue reading Mission Japan: Mission Impossible?

Our two cell groups gathered together, we all listened in silence as a new believer from the other group shared some heartbreaking news. A thin middle-aged man with glasses, he spoke in a low, slow and steady way as he shared that his high-school-aged daughter’s friend had committed suicide that week.  As he shared, he… Continue reading Reality

Some people have very specific labels as to what their job entails. Yoga instructors. Hair stylist. Secretary.  Of course, those jobs can be extremely challenging, requiring many skills to be effective in that position. However, when you come to “cross-cultural worker”, such as we are, well… The job description is rather… all inclusive. No matter… Continue reading The Things Tears Are Made Of

This last Christmas, I spent a good portion of time slaving over my tiny oven, baking 8 cookies at a time for my neighbors and other Japanese contacts.  After that came another significant and messy time decorating said cookies for delivery. It was a lot of work, but fun. I had been praying a lot… Continue reading Cookie Rewards

So I recently blogged about my observations while teaching English at a local elementary school here.  As I was there yesterday, I realized that I had only communicated a fraction of my learning experiences. So here are some more. The first time I went to the school, it was a rainy morning.  I’d never even… Continue reading School Part 2