Prayers

Dear Lord,

I pray that your love will fill the hearts of my friends, Bonny, Nichole, Roy, Sophie, Helen, Lily, Silent, Seng Qi, Amy. Heal all wounded hearts, and pour out your oil of mercy and grace, to conceal thier sorrows, to provide strength, to reveal love and hope that is so special in you. Lord, may the spring of the fountain flows within them! May they gain life! In Jesus, Amen.

I pray that you use every piece of work that you had thrust your hand on, and grant them a harvest in Japan! Lord, may you intervene and in our agony, and bring forth restoration of hope and faith and love in the Church! May you strengthen the work that you had placed in our hands. May you make good use of the findings of Keikyo, Kakure Kirishitan, Endo Shusaku, God's Finger Prints, Japan Harvest, Operation Japan, Hipopo Ministry, Lifeline, and many more! May your workers join their hearts and strength together in ploughing your land, to pray for your Kingdom to come, but not slander or stumble by your work!

God, I pray that you will use Dr. Ozawa on his missions in Feb and March. I also pray that you will bless the lineup team which is working to prepare the way for the ship, I pray that the ship will be able to serve the countrysides, and bring forth corporation and promote understanding of the churches! I pray that hindrances to be removed, so that people could come, and common people, non-believer shall come, to taste the delight in serving, to taste the love of Christ, to expose themselves to the light of life!


Lord, I also pray that you use the ministry of Jimmy Hayashi, the ministry of Ps. Suzuki, the ministry of Matthias & Yoko, Rie, Kazue, Masayuki, Richard & Candy and Sam Pillay. These people minister in different places, send your workers to the field, O Lord! They need helpers, they need prayer partners, they need teams of workers that are devoted and faithful!

I also pray that you bless Reimer and Nobuko who are now retired from their mission field. Lord, be our provider! A provider that will never fail us, never cease, always cheerful, always encouraging, always uplifting!


Thank you, Lord! In Jesus, Amen.


Love,
Roseline

What do you believe?

Japan, a place where St. France Xavier had held so closely to his chest. "The country in the Orient most suited to Christianity." This remark had caused more and more missionaries flushed in to this land, despite the seemingly never ended persecutions. We once thought the missions had borne fruits while the missionary schools were permitted, and the churches were built. We once witnessed the most glorious sacrifice for Christ in the believers' endurance in suffering. 26 matyrs in Nagasaki, followed by thousands and thousands of death of the devoted.

Some went because of their devotions towards God, some went because of the reports from many missionaries who went, some went because they knew, they needed to see God.

Some people get drunk when they try to forget haunting memories, some people prefer to run away from it. Seldom, there will be people who dedicately work on it. What does Japan means to you? In her long suffering of flock without shepherd? Was it a pain failure, or was this a wasted land? Or maybe simply God just abandoned this land, this people, this nation?

Does the Hidden Christian (Kakure Kirishitan 隠れ切支丹) mean anything to you? Or it was simply a joke?

Do you believe that God had preserved this place? Do you see the efforts of the flock risking thier lives to pursue the truth, to seek dignity of humanity? Do you see a flock of sheep without shepherd? Do you see a field thirst for water?

WHAT DO YOU BELIEVE?

Hikikomori, Individualism and Christianity ?

I am reading this book, "Shutting Out The Sun", by Michael Zielenziger. I don't really agree with all that he says, but here is one interesting quotation from the book.

~~~While young Japanese glean superficial images of what they believe to be "individualism" from the Western movies and TV shows they watch, they don't grasp the deeper Western sense of individual responsibility that accompanies such freedom, Kawai told me. "Their appreciation of individualism remains quite shallow," he said. "In your country, individualism is at first really based on Christianity. Even though you do what you like, you never forget about your God. God is looking down, like an ego, judging you. But in Japan, there is no God but ie," and no one to judge but the group. "Westerner have a long history of becoming individuals, and you have established how to create relations with others. But we don't share that experience in Japan... I often think that our challenge now as Japanese is to come up with a new way to become individuals without relying on Christianity." ~~ the comment was made by Hayao Kawai (Clinical Psychologist) -pg 69-70.

Matthias thinks that individualism can as well lead to very ugly things (as seen as well in the west) and he doubts that people in the west these days have, generally speaking, a great sense of "god who is looking down"......

Joe O. thinks that "individualism" is more of a philosophy of the French Enlightenment or maybe Greek philosophy.

All these are interesting points. However, reading the comment of Kawai, I was excited somehow. Wouldn't people be curious to know more about Christianity rather than seeing it from afar in such shallowness? Why didn't Kawai think that the Japanese can rely on Christianity too? ......

I know this is hard...... It is difficult to tell the Japanese to embrace Christianity, when the believe prohibits them to Matsuri, shrines and temples that had been heavily as a part of their lives.

I pray that God will reveal to them the Good News! Pray for wisdom to those who are ploughing on His field. Pray that they will be able to speak life into their neighbours' hearts. Blessed are those who poor in spirit. Mat5:3

Be Still And Know

The CNY is approaching, perhaps there is still an urgency in many things. When there is urgency in my life, I either did a lot of things by my own strength, calculating all the possibilities, and working hard to avoid damages, trying my best to save the situation. Or I would be doing nothing, just waiting, listening to the Lord even He was very quiet about it, but I would just wait to see what He is going to do next. Often the latter came after the first action, where I became too tired and exhausted, and I knew I couldn't work things out by myself, there was just no way to
it.

Leaving things in God's hand is not going to be easy either. But when He said, "Be still and know that I am God." He means it.

~ : Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still. (Exodus 14:13-14)

My mom often likes to sing this song, "God will make a way, where it seems to be non way. He works in ways we cannot see, He will make a way for me. He will be my guide, hold me closely by His side. With love and strength for each new day, He will make a way, He will make a way. " Amen.

And often, I find resting in Him and see Him moves, is much fruitful and fulfilling that I hop on it myself before I see His hand.

Being offered a place in the student mansion

Great! We see miracle again! I was offered a place to stay in the student mansion next to my faculty in Sassoon Road. A place where I always dream of. The cost of living went down, and I will begin to mix with students. Most of all, I can start cooking again, and have more space to move around and pray! Amazing, wonderful grace!

Visiting Churches......

My move to visit the churches proved to be right. In January, I felt that the Lord was kicking my back to move out from ICA. I had been comfortably stayed in ICA for more than 3 months, it became a habit for me to worship in that church on Sunday. Somewhere deep inside me, I was still searching for a family, a spiritual place where I can feel belong, and grow.

Until the Lord showed me in the beginning of January, my family is in His FAMILY, and I don't really need to search for one, He has one for me! He had actually bought many nice people to my side, since beginning.

But as I was naive, hoping much to have a church where I can feel as home, and thought that's the only way to be, and then totally forgotten about my mission here to visit churches and meeting people. I was pretty tight with study, and visiting churches with a "complicating" identity is strange. It is pretty tough to answer the questions, such as, "Why are you here? You are praying for Japan? and you are here as a HKU student? Your church sent you? How do you pay?" I was tired, embarassed. Then, God brought me to ICA Cantonese service. He told me to stay, one month. Pretty good, I thought. I had a shelther. The worship songs were familiar, the youths took me in warmly, the elderly people were kind, the pastor was energitic, and there was a girl, who like Japan a lot. After one month, I stayed on. In December, I found that it had become a habit to move my legs to that direction of the church on Sunday.

January, I was very depressed. I didn't really see people who had a heart4japan, and that was the fifth month. EPF still had not pay the school fees, the exams were tough, the church back home decided not to support me financially, I miss home, and I had no more money to go on. Then, the Lord supplied, in His mysterious way. More, He brought me to a church, moves heavily in prophetic worship, the pastor himself is a missionary, and they have services on Wed, Thu, Fri and Sat evening. Very much like FGA, great! There was an opening in the ministry, they need a staff. Prophetic, Worship, Missions, Services, Church Staff, most of all, DISCPLESHIP! Everything that I miss were presented before my eyes. What a blessing! I was in awe. But very quickly, He said, "You got what you wished, but it is not my will for you to work here. This is not your vineyard."

I went to Tong Fook Church the next Sunday. God grace, I thought I went there for sermon, but God brought me there to meet Joe Ozawa. He had always been an inspiration to H4J, and now we met in HK. Unbelievable!

I told him my struggle in learning Japanese, and felt I just couldn't be a "Japanese". He laughed, and he explained, "Somehow or rather, I feel the devil just do not want to give up Japan. Every people just wanted to be Japanese so much, and they became so tired, and disappointed, and gave up. You were just praying for Japan, not even there, but you already felt the same. You just need to be yourself!" Suddenly, the knots opened up one by one, I fell into the trap of the enemy! My homesick started as I found myself couldn't really expressed my inner thoughts as how a Japanese do! Then, one piled up with another, I could hardly breathe.

Gracious God! By knowing that, I was set free. Of course, then God showed me His healing power not only on me, but on many others too. I was amazed, and deeply touched by His gentle kindness. I took it one step further, knowing that was a promise from God, the prayers we have for Japan today would not just be washed down to the drain, a transformation is happening there! The cocoon is waking up.

I also received long distant calls from church, affirming me, and I knew I was not abandoned, but loved, and being blessed.

So, I went on visiting other churches as He led. But this time, not with the aim of finding myself a family, but observing closely at the place that He brought me too, and paying attention if there is anyone He wants me to meet. Today, I met someone in the church, been in Japan, loved Japan, and did a study on Hikikomori before they came back. Isn't that amazing?

I believe there are more people that He wants me to meet! He wants to bring us together, to uphold each other? to pray together? to share information? to encourage? I'm not sure... but I am excited to see His hand, joining us to form a theme!


yeah... I think so. Most people don't get to move around! If I'm back home, I wouldn't prefer to move around churches especially on Sunday. So, I become a thread that He is using, to link one another together! Wow... Amen and amen.

Shalom!


p/s: I met another friend here in HK, and she is here to pray for HK. For that, she stayed here for 3 months. So, these are the sort of people that "walk by faith". Not really knowing that 'where' and 'what', but we are sensitive to the 'time'. I was deeply encouraged, knowing that I am not the only weird one eased me a lot, ;p This is the kind of people that FGA is producing, I guess ;-) Maybe not many, but there are some.

Qualitative Research

I think what is happening in me now, that I am asking questions like "What is going on here?" to the missions field in Japan, to the culture block in Japan, to the disturbing phenomenons in Japan. And by systematically exploring to the topic or setting as a learner, holding assumptions and knowledge in "abeyance" until they are confirmed.

So, this is a value-free approach, it just that I do not allow the theory to drive my research. In research means, this is called qualitative research. I am trying to organize the data and to formulate theory through the analysis. Then, comparing the findings from the setting with established theory and the results of my own research, drawing a template of others' work over the emerging analysis, to compare the fit.

From the book "Qualitative Research Methods", the researcher asks questions constantly about the data, such as, "Is this interaction supportive? Is this social support? How does this manifestation of social support compare with the definitions in the literature? How is it different? Why?" The researcher will then expand the sample to include participants who will be able to provide the information necessary to follow interesting leads identified in the data. ....... the continual comparison of these two levels of information and the multiple decisions that have to be made ("What is right, my data or the literature?") force the qualitative researcher to constantly think about his or her project.

So, this is what I am doing, and what God had put into me, a quality of qualitative researcher!

Qualitative research: It opens a door to communications. A window to the inside world of the subject. These areas are often been relatively neglected by other researchers or to look suspiciously at areas which the researcher believes may perhaps be incorrect or in need of modification.