It is with sadness, shock and a deep sense of injustice that I write this. This past week, Manon Moriyama, the 5 year old son of Takeshi, one of the Crusade staff here in Nagoya, was diagnosed with acute myelogenous leukemia.
Manon was taken in for a routine vaccination when the doctor thought the colour in his face wasn't right and he noticed some bruises on his legs. Tests were done and the doctor had them go to the bigger hospital for more tests. They went to Red Cross Hospital where it was confirmed that Manon has leukemia.
What makes this even harder is that our Nagoya team leader, Seiji, had his son pass away from leukemia 5 years ago in the same hospital. So this is a huge challenge for him too, with lots of those emotions coming back to him during this time.
So I'm asking you to pray - we need a miracle from God. Pray for Takeshi and his family as they go through such a tough battle. Pray for Seiji as he leads the team through this tough time. Pray for the rest of the staff team as they come to terms with the battle we're all facing as a result. And please pray for healing for Manon, that he would be completely healed of this disease.
Friday, July 31, 2009
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Lessons Learned
Apologies for the delay in writing on here, its been a hectic few weeks and I'm only just finding time to rest and get my thoughts together. The semester is now over and this past week has been day after day of evaluation and reflection on the year so far. I've learnt a lot about myself, how I process things, my character, faults and failures, which has obviously got me thinking about how I fit in the ministry here and where my future lies. I won't go into details on my thought processes so far, because they're not completely solidified, but I would definitely appreciate prayer as this is a big time of thinking. Its very hard to think logically and clearly when you're in the middle of a rush-rush-rush semester of activity, so this will be a key time in figuring out what my future holds.
I was listening to a sermon the other day from a talk series at the annual student conference for Student Life in Australia - it was from 2006, the year I missed due to my big deam American holiday, so I hadn't heard these talks before. They were focused on Romans 1:16 and the verses around it, and one why Paul was not ashamed of the Gospel. One of the talks really hit home for me. John (the speaker) was talking about how we are so well trained in how to reap the harvest (ie. share the Gospel and bring them to Christ), but we are so incredibly lacking in knowing how to sow (plant seeds of the Gospel that will eventually come to fruition in someone accepting Christ). He then went on to explain that, as Christians, we need to develop a ministry-mindset to life. Basically, what that means is that we recognise that God is in control of the circumstances of our lives, and so we need to look at every circumstance and ask ourselves how God can use it to glorify Himself and bring others closer to Him. I kind of knew that this is how I should approach life, but had never had it so clearly explained before. It challenged my thinking no end! A verse that came to mind was Colossians 3:17: "And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him." EVERYTHING I do should be done in the name of Jesus, and for His glory. EVERYTHING! That is challenging stuff!
I was listening to a sermon the other day from a talk series at the annual student conference for Student Life in Australia - it was from 2006, the year I missed due to my big deam American holiday, so I hadn't heard these talks before. They were focused on Romans 1:16 and the verses around it, and one why Paul was not ashamed of the Gospel. One of the talks really hit home for me. John (the speaker) was talking about how we are so well trained in how to reap the harvest (ie. share the Gospel and bring them to Christ), but we are so incredibly lacking in knowing how to sow (plant seeds of the Gospel that will eventually come to fruition in someone accepting Christ). He then went on to explain that, as Christians, we need to develop a ministry-mindset to life. Basically, what that means is that we recognise that God is in control of the circumstances of our lives, and so we need to look at every circumstance and ask ourselves how God can use it to glorify Himself and bring others closer to Him. I kind of knew that this is how I should approach life, but had never had it so clearly explained before. It challenged my thinking no end! A verse that came to mind was Colossians 3:17: "And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him." EVERYTHING I do should be done in the name of Jesus, and for His glory. EVERYTHING! That is challenging stuff!
Thursday, July 2, 2009
The Empire Strikes Back
Just got a mail from another staff saying that he heard Gaidai was closed tomorrow due to some sort of flu infection, but not swine flu - some new kind of flu apparently. There goes another day of ministry - this is getting a little annoying!
In other news, we're having a spiritual birthday party tomorrow night to celebrate those who've come to know Christ this semester. It should be a really good night of fellowship and celebration. Be praying for all of us involved in making it happen, that everything would go smoothly.
In other news, we're having a spiritual birthday party tomorrow night to celebrate those who've come to know Christ this semester. It should be a really good night of fellowship and celebration. Be praying for all of us involved in making it happen, that everything would go smoothly.
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