Mt FUJI!!!

I just got back from climbing Mt Fuji!!!
Let me tell you, that was a ONCE in a life time experience. It was probably the worst 5 hours, 3 minutes and 16 seconds of my life. But I am glad I did it, if anything now I can say I climbed Mt Fuji. :)
My group started at level 5 at 9:30. There's only 10 levels total so you think 5 levels wouldn't be that difficult. Somehow the Japanese have made it difficult. The mountain really isn't that big; there are alot bigger ones in Colorado, but I swear the Japanese thought "hmm, since this mountain isn't big, we should make the trails really hard as if it were a big mountain!". There were steps and gravel that each step you took you slid back two steps, and then big rocks that you had to use your hands to climb over. The big rocks are actually what I enjoyed most. I would have been fine climbing those things for five hours. It's just the stairs that killed. And they weren't normal stairs; they were the kind that were uneven; some where very tiny while others you had to use your hands to get over as well as some were really long where you had to take three foot steps in between each step. I've never really had any issues with stairs before last night. Now I want all stairs to go away. I hate stairs.
I know the only way I managed to survive the climb was by praying continuously. I just kept repeating, "God help me make it up this mountain, God help me make it up this mountain..." while my other partners sang. How they had energy to sing, I have no idea. Alot of the other interns got altitude sickness, luckily I did not have that problem. Besides dead legs, I was fine.
It usually takes an average person around 6-8 hours to climb so it was really good that we only took five. We were quite proud of ourselves once we reached the top! The only thing was, we start climbing at night to reach the top by sunrise which is 4:30AM. My little group got to the top at 2:30AM. So we had a ways to wait. Which meant sitting at the top of a mountain with very little wind cover. I was afraid I over packed clothes but once I was on the top and being blown away by the wind, I was so happy I brought my wardrob. ;) There were enough of us that made it up early enough that we could all huddle together and try to sleep. It was miserable.
The sun rose at 4:30AM like it was supposed to, but sadly it was a cloudy day. The sun poked through at times, but it wasn't as amazing as others have said it to be. I waited till around 6:30Am to start heading back down, which meant another 2 and a half hour hike down. It was a lot faster because it was basically zig zag paths that had a foot deep of gravel. The easiest way to get down was to either run, gallop, slide, or attempt to walk but end up more on your butt sliding down. I chose to gallop; it was easiest and you had more control. :)
Overall I really am glad I did do it if anything to prove to myself that I could do it, but I definitely would never do it again. Once is enough for me!

One week, three days left

Hey!

The missionary kids left this morning. I really enjoyed having them here. They were like a breath of fresh air for me and my teammates. I liked talking to them and finding out all their stories. Like I said before, they are from East Asia so they know what it's like to live in spiritually dark places. They are all either homeschooled or attend international boarding schools so they don't have to really face what their parents fight against, but still, they know what it's like to struggle to spread Jesus. After I took them to the temple, many said they didn't feel the darkness quite as much there as they do in their home countries. That amazed me. I was blown away by the darkness the first time I was in that temple and here they are telling me for them, it was nothing! They enjoyed praying over the temple though, so they didn't think it was a waste or was pointless; which is good. Another thing they mentioned was how modern Tokyo was. They said it's basically like America, only with Japanese twist. That kind of shocked me too, because when I got here I thought, "this is so different!". I don't think I really had culture shock, but I had to get used to alot of things. For these kids, it was like going back to America. They really enjoyed it. I think their favorite part was the vending machines full of Dr. Pepper. :) I think we stopped at every vending machine in Tokyo. haha
They were really mature for their age though. Some were strange or immature at times, but that's to be expected when they are only 14-16 years old. Still, I would say there are alot more mature than 14 year olds in America. Which they sort of have to be living in a different culture. They all were very sensitive to Japanese culture and picked up on the customes really fast. Many of them learned a few Japanese phrases in less than a week! It took me like a month to finally get down how to say Thank you and your welcome! :D
They didn't lead anyone to Christ and they didn't have any Japanese come to their friendship party, but that's ok. They planted many seeds and they prayed alot for the people here. Their hearts were definitely in the right place and that's what matters. If any is learned this summer, it's that God honors our good hearts.
I was sort of sad to see the team go, I wish they could have stayed longer, but this just means I'm that much closer to going home! This Thursday night/Friday morning we'll be climbing Mt. Fuji and then next Thursday I'll be on a plane to go back home!

New group!

Hey all!
So we got our second group of the summer today! They are missionary kids from East Asia. We were all kind of nervous of them at first because some missionary kids can be a little weird, but I really like my group. They are all around age 15 or 16 but they are much more mature than that. Today we took them to Shinjuku Government Towers (the same towers I got lost at last time; but this time I went with other people so I didn't get lost :) ) and then we did five minute English with them. They are all excited about being here; some came from India and Thailand where they have to be careful about drinking water and still have holes in the floor for toilets! Needless to say, Tokyo is very fast paced and high tech for some of them. I'm excited for the rest of the week because I feel they will be a great group to work with and will meet alot of Japanese!
There is one downside to them though; we as interns have to attend all their orientations in the mornings which means I have to get up at like 6:15Am. I haven't been up that early in a while!! But I think it'll be worth it; you know, it's for Jesus and all. :)
Tomorrow we'll be going to Asaskusa temple to have them prayer walk and then do 5 minute English again. I'll try to share if any funny or exciting stories happen!
It's crazy to think I only have two weeks left. Time has flown by recently and will only go faster now that I have my group. Before I know it I will be back in KC!!

26 days left

Not much new has happened in the past week or so. Nothing as exciting as last time I wrote...although I'm kind of thankful for that. :)
We have more volunteers here but my station doesn't have any so the time is passing kind of slow again. We're all starting to get a little antsy to be going home. We haven't seen as many people come to Christ as in previous weeks and we're all starting to lose focus and wonder what we're doing wrong. It's hard and long, but we understand there's a purpose to us being here so it's not that bad.
On my off day last Friday we went to another city called Yokohama and walked around. It was sort of nice to get out of Tokyo and such but it was still a city with lots of buildings and people. I can't wait for the end of July when we go back to Mt Fuji to climb it. It will be nice to see nature again. On Friday we also went to TGIFridays to eat dinner. It was way too expensive but good because it was American sized portions which is rare here. Also they have free refills (if you're willing to pay the 499 yen-about $5) which is also a rare thing. I had a massive chicken burger which was incredible. I'm really going to enjoy American sized portions when I get back. :) Also, I'll enjoy eating fruits and vegetables. Here an apple is like $2 and they only have apples, oranges, bananas and sometims kiwi. I can't wait to eat watermelon, cantelope, honeydew, pinapple, and grapes!! haha, I'm basically talking about food in this post..sorry. :D
There isn't much on my schedule this week; just the usual. I'm meeting with the lady who bought me sushi again on Wednesday. This time I'm visiting her at work; she works at a hospital in a nearby sub-city called Shinokubo. She said she'll make food for me again, which I'm hoping is regular food and not something with eye balls...but we'll see. That's about it though..hopefully something exciting or new happens this week so I have something new to talk about in the next post!

Shushi and Bath Adventures

So Japan has these public baths called Sentos or Onsenes (I don't know how to spell those so hopefully it's correct). I'm not such an open person when it comes to bathing naked next to a bunch of Japanese ladies but I was dragged along by one of my friends and a missionary here, so I tried to keep an open mind. It actually wasn't that bad. Once you get passed the initial awkwardness it's rather relaxing. There are many different baths, most are like hot-tubs and there are sonas and relaxation mats and all of it is sooooo relaxing. We got stared at alot because we were the only white people there, but even that wasn't too awkward. The cool part though came when we were about to leave. We all were dressed in the locker room and waiting for the missionary to finish combing her hair when this older Japanese lady came up to me and asked where we were from. It's very out of the ordinary to have Japanese be that friendly, especially in a Sento! She asked why we were here for the summer and after learning we were Christian missionaries she immidiately said, "you must come to my house! And I will show you beautiful sights!" She was so excited to meet with us and even went to get here daughter and introduced us to her right there.
We were able to meet with her two days ago at her house. It was her, her husband, one of her daughters, and two foreign exchange students from Korea that live with them. She made us tempora which is basically any fried thing; which normally sounds like it would be delicious...until she brought out the small fried fish (with their heads and tails attached), raw octopus (with the suchen cups attached), LEAVES, and other unidentifiable objects. It's rude to not eat what Japanese offer you so we had to eat all of it. I got really good at swallowing things whole. And on top of that you have to over eggagerate all your facial expressions and so we had to swallow those things and then smile really big and nod a bunch of times and say over and over, "oh my goodness that is SO good!!!! it's so tasty!!! thank you So much!!!" The family was extremely nice and not like normal Japanese families though so I think it was worth it. They offered us into their homes, cooked for us, and talked with us. Later the lady drove us (it's the first time I've been in a car in over a month) to another much nicer Onsen that had spring water in it.
Yesterday I had my first experience with sushi. I met with a lady I met a few weeks ago doing 5 minute english. She also is extremely nice and took me out for sushi. She paid which is a HUGE deal for Japanese and ordered everything for me. The tuna, shrimp, lobster and salmon ones were good but then she started ordering things that were, once again, unidentifiable. All I know were I saw fish eyeballs, and Salmon eggs. And then a whole bunch of squishy tenticles and mushy blobs. Once again though, you can't be rude and not eat something and you must always be happy and smiling. I got really good at chewing everything once and then swallowing it whole and washing it all down with a bunch of tea. Which I've never liked tea until coming here. Tea helps wash alot of disguisting things down so I will forever be greatful of tea. :)
So those are my recent experiences I thought I'd share with you all. Things are going well so far. We have more teams coming soon and so I hope to have a group at my station since it's always better and more energetic with volunteers to help out. That's about it for now!

Intern Retreat!!

Today we got back from the intern retreat. It was awesome!!! We were in Yamanaka Lake which is one of the five lakes that was created by Mt. Fuji 200 years ago. We were basically at the base of Mt. Fuji. It was so beautiful. The lake was spring fed so it was so clear and awesome! We went swimming in it for a few hours yesterday; it was quite chilly but still refreshing!
We left early Thursday morning and had a competition to see which teams could get there first. It was sort of like "The Amazing Race". My team tied for 2nd place with two other teams....there were only four teams total. :) When we got there Mt Fuji was behind us so at first we didn't know it was there. We stood there in awe of the little mountains around us and then we turned around and BAM. There was Mt Fuji. It was so crazy. We go back at the end of July to climb it and none of us can wait.
It was so good to just get out of the city for the first time in a month. A month doesn't seem that long, but to us, it has seemed like an eternity. The city is so big and bright we hadn't seen the stars in a month! And there are trees and flowers at the parks but it isn't anything like the nature we saw these past few days. We got to ride bikes and swing on swings from trees, and play basketball and volleyball, and just have fun. We fellowshiped and worshiped the whole two and a half days and it was wonderful. We all got closer to each other and now it feels like we are truly brothers and sisters. We are all energized and ready to go out in these last few weeks and give it all we got!

Shinjuku Towers

Yesterday I took my volunteer group to the government towers in Shinjuku (a few stops away from where I live). The observation area is 45 floors high and it gives you an amazing view of Tokyo. You can see everything from up that high and it really put into perspective just how massive the city is. 33 million people live there and less than .5% call themselves Christians. It was almost overwhelming to see all the buildings and houses and just the mileage of ground. This city is absolutely gigantic and it seems like there is no way we can reach everyone. I had my team pray over the city for a while and that seems like all we can do really. We don't have the man power to physically speak to everyone in the city. It's hard to keep in the mindset that God is in control and that we, as humans, cannot change people's hearts; only God can do that. We are here to plant seeds and God will do the rest. That's what God has called us to do.
On a different note, yesterday was the first day I was lost in the city. I had never been to the government towers and I had no idea what they looked like, but I figured it would be easy to find them once I was there. One of my teammates was sick and the other had another assignment to do, so it was just me and five high school volunteers. I got them from our train station to Shinjuku just fine, but Shinjuku's station is insanely big! There are no really clear exits and it's so big that you have to choose the right exit or else you'll end up on the completely wrong side of the city. It's not like if you go out the south exit instead of the north you can walk around the building to get to the right area; if you mess up it's like a half hour correction time. Which is what my team found out. :) We walked around the city for a good 45 minutes trying to find the towers; everyone I asked for directions gave me a different answer. I called several other interns to help but without them being there it was hard to navigate. Oh, and another thing, you would think I would just have to look for two tall buildings...yea...Shinjuku is like the city for tall buildings. So we walked into about 4 or 5 buildings before finally a security guard practically walked us to the write buildings. Luckily my team was a good sport about it and didn't mind the extra exercise too much. Hopefully next time I'll be able to navigate the city better.
The volunteer group left today and I don't think I'll get another one for a week or so. We have an intern retreat to the base of Mt. Fuji next Thursday-Saturday so I'm really excited for that! Other than getting lost nothing much new has happened for me here.

Day 21

Hey all!

The past week or so has flown by which is sort of a relief! The first week and a half dragged by and I was afraid the whole summer would be like that! We began having the first group of volunteers come last week and I got to have my first group on Wednesday. They're a group of I-Witness kids from Nebraska and Kansas which is sort of cool to have people that live near me. Most of the other interns here are either from Texas, Mississippi or Louisiana. It's also cool to have a group because the more people we have on the streets, the more likely people are to stop and talk to us. Also, the groups have so much energy and it passes on to us! :)
I took my group to Asakusa temple last Saturday and this time it was easier for me to be there. Some of the girls had a tough time with it so I spent most of the time praying with them and reading scripture. It just re-enforced the power of prayer and the power of Christ's name to me.
My team at the station has yet to have any real, lasting contacts so that's sort of frustrating but I know we are still helping in some way. Just by being there and prayer walking and handing out Hope tracks makes a difference. We're hoping to met up with some people this week for Bible study; I'll let you know how it goes.
So far 20 people have come to Christ in the past three weeks and many more are on the verge. The interns that have been here before are amazed at how many we've had so far. God is doing great things in Japan. I posted more pictures on Facebook today and will write more when more things happen!

Temple Day

Today we went to the temple at Asakusa. It was the first time since being here in Japan that I really understood why I am here. As soon as we got there and saw the front gate I knew that this wasn't just an ordinary sight seeing adventure; I could feel it. The front gate had four "guardians" that really truly scared me. They were simply metal statues, but the feeling I got while there was creepy. It's like for the first time I could actually feel the darkness that surrounds Japan. There was a long passageway that was crammed packed with tiny little souvenir shops and food shops. All the proceeds went to benefiting the temple so we bought nothing. Once past the passageway was the inside of the temple. In front of the inside of temple to the side was a tiny statue of Buddha where people would come to drop money in the box and rub the part of Buddha that hurt them. For example, if their shoulder hurt, they would put a coin in the box and then rub Buddha's shoulder and they believe they will be healed. I stood there for a while watching people come and rub this little statue that they truly believed would heal them. I'ved learned about other beliefs but it has never hit me quit as hard or been quit as 'real' to me until today.
Right outside the temple people burn incense to 'cleanse' themselves before entering the temple. They then went in and dropped more money in and prayed. There were three men inside (I assume monks?) who were humming and praying in front of the elaborate alter. Along the sides were more places where people could drop money in and shake incense. It also is acostume for people to clap their hands two times before praying in order to 'wake up' their gods. The feeling inside the temple was something I've never felt before. It was so dark and strong. I always thought people were over reacting when they spoke of temples effecting them like that and even though the other interns warned me of it, I still didn't think I would be effected.
It is just so sad how the people here honestly believe that those gods can help them! People were coming to PRAY to these statues and gods that they had to clap to WAKE UP. I was almost in tears watching the people enter and leave, believing their gods could help them.
THAT is what we are fighting against here. Those other beliefs. And right now we are losing horribly because less than .5% of the people here believe in Christianity. I have met countless of people who haven't even heard of Jesus Christ!!! And the worst thing is, they don't even care. They are completely indifferent to religion or any thought of a higher being.
Today was a really rough day in many different ways, but one good thing that came of it is that I now have a much stronger passion to tell others about Christ. Because now I know what we're fighting against and now I can be better prepared.

Sixth/Seventh day!

Hey all!

I still don't have pictures to post...I haven't been good at taking many, but today I have most of the day off so I plan on going exploring and taking more pictures! :)
So far we have finished most of all our training and this week we'll begin our regular schedules. We've done campus ministry, five minute English, park evangelism, and rainy day evangelism.
Campus ministry is simply going to a set university campus and simply meeting people there and talking to them. It's sort of weird because we basically all split up and go eat in the cafeteria next to strangers. We try to start conversations with them. I sort of feel like a creeper. :) But Japan is NOTHING like America. People here are so much more willing to talk to foreigners. Even if they hardly speak English they will talk. And they even apologize for not knowing more English! When was the last time you heard an American apologizing to a Spanish speaking person for not knowing more Spanish? NEVER. It's crazy how polite they all are. They don't look at me like I'm crazy (most of the time) when I try talking to them. Also, it's crazy how many have never heard of the Bible or Jesus! I can't count how many times I have encountered (or my team members have encountered) people who have no idea what I'm talking about when I mention Jesus or the Bible. I've just taken it for granted in America that everyone knows about Christianity; I don't think I've ever met or heard about a person not at least hearing about God or Jesus in America. Religion here is not so big. Many don't claim to have any religion. It's sad how lost they are and how much they misunderstand Christianity (if they know of it at all).
Park evangelism I think will be the most fun. The parks here are HUGE and full of trees. Basically we just find stuff to do with the Japanese!
Rainy day evangelism is not my favorite so far. It consists of us going into arcades and other places and trying to talk to people. Not so much fun, but it has to be done I guess!
All in all it's slowly starting to become easier and easier for me and it'll be a really good experience for me!

First full day

Today was my first full day in Tokyo. We had orientation in the morning and then went out to lunch. After lunch we split up and each group went to a different train station to do 5 minute English lessons which basically is us standing on busy street corners trying to talk to people. We hold signs that say free five minute English and then on the back has five questions for them to follow along and repeat. Our main goal is to make friendships here and just get to know the people. The questions are simple ones such as "what's your favorite movie?" and stuff like that. The last question is "what's your favorite book?" This is where we're supposed to bring the conversation back around to the Bible and Jesus and such.
Tokyo is huge and the public transportation system is sort of confusing. There are so many different stations and subways to take! My group had to go the farthest (about an hour or so ride) and we got on the wrong subway a few times so it actually took us almost three hours to get to our location so we only did five minute English for about an hour or so. Most of the people here speak very little English so it's sort of intimidating trying to speak to them.
Jet lag is still showing up and after walking around all day and being kind of 'thrown' into the culture right away I'm very tired and ready to sleep for a long time.
I'll try to post some pictures pretty soon.