Rambling Notes from Japan
Here are some blog posts that we hope will make you feel a part of things, and help you understand how to pray better for us and Japan. Please see our external blog in Blogger, if this page does not display correctly.
Like Angel Voices
December 17, 2009 12:32
| Christmas, Church Planting, Handbells
| Permalink
The sound of handbells at Christmas are like angel voices announcing the birth of Christ. What an inspirational joy it was to have them as part of our Christmas celebration as a church!Our concert on Sunday featured handbells and gospel music, with a Christmas message from Kaori and I (bilingual), and Christmas carols sandwiched between. Rather than fussing with tickets and money, we simply made the
Thanksgiving Mouse
December 3, 2009 12:48
| Culture, Family, Tokyo Disneyland
| Permalink
Thanksgiving was a little different for the Laverman family this year. While our Stateside friends enjoyed Thanksgiving turkey, we enjoyed a mouse...Mickey Mouse, that is. Kaori's folks were down from Yamagata for a week and eager to experience Tokyo Disneyland with family here. So, Kaori's brother's family and ourselves took a day off to challenge the likes of Splash Mountain and Monsters, Inc. Yes,
Let the Children Come
November 16, 2009 07:00
| Church Planting, Culture, Holidays, Kids
| Permalink
Japanese celebrate a 1000-year-old festival in November called Shichigosan. “Shichigosan” literally means “seven, five, three.” These are the ages that are considered critical in a child’s development by Japanese. Parents will dress their children in traditional clothing, and take them to the local shrine where the priest will offer a prayer of blessing from the gods.This affords a unique
Family Time
November 9, 2009 01:43
| Church Planting, Family Festa
| Permalink
A few decades ago there were only a couple churches in greater Tokyo within our association. Today there are more than 20. All things considered, the rate of church planting has been fairly robust. There is still much work to do, and many setbacks in the work that has already been done.Annually we have a "Family Festa" or joint meeting of all the greater Tokyo area churches as a way of cultivating
Finding Resting in 7-11 24/7 Japan
November 1, 2009 09:22
| Church Planting, Family, Fuji, Rest
| Permalink
This past week I preached in our church on the importance of rest. I shared how the concept of rest flows thematically through Scripture, from God's modeling physical rest for us in Genesis 2 after creation through Christ offering spiritual rest to us in Matthew 11:28. Sometimes the preacher needs to pay attention to his own message. We have been far too busy as a family in the last two months and
No (Solo) Fishing
October 8, 2009 07:32
| Devotional, Evangelism, Fishing
| Permalink
"Come, follow Me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men." Mark 1:17Most days I feel a bit like that helpless child fisherman from a few weeks back. A few weeks back at our Kids English outreach in August each kid was handed a pole with a string attached. A magnet hung from the end of the string. Letter and object cards scattered about in a "pond" had to be snagged by their attached paperclips,
Ode to Quiet Shopping
There's a place in Japan I dread going. It sucks the breath of me when I know I must. No, it's not the dentist or even the immigration office (that is an experience, though). It's the large chain electronic store.Visitors to Japan will quickly notice that quiet shopping is hard to come by in Japan. The worst "offenders" by far are electronic stores. It seems that each store has its own unique theme
A Creamy Drink We Enjoy
I like this picture of Kaori, age 6. There she is sitting along the riverbank in Yamagata, sipping her Calpis (an uncarbonated dairy-based soft drink in Japan around long before Pepsi) with her brother, Ryuji. Never crossed her mind at the time that some 15 years later a foreigner would come along and -- for better or worse -- the adventure as a missionary wife would begin. Thankfully it turned out
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We serve with WorldVenture, an evangelical faith mission. Our sending/home church is Cornerstone Church of Lansing, Illinois.