What a long time it's been since I've written on this blog! So much has happened in the last few weeks. I cannot recount all of it, but here's a brief overview.

Mrs. T's septic tank, taken from inside

 After the Canadian team left, Nate and I, along with another man from the Canadian team who decided to stay longer, continued to work in Mrs. T's house. Nate and I found an old partially covered septic tank in Mrs. T's house. We spent three days cleaning it out with her. She was so grateful that she took us out to lunch twice and bought us bentos another day. She loved holding hands and hugging, so after every work day, we would gather in a circle, hold hands, and pray with her. If we forgot and started to leave before praying, she would say, "Aren't you going to pray with me??" and then we would pray and she would hug us when we were done. Mrs. T was such a blessing to me as a homeowner. To receive that kind of love and kindness while working is so encouraging and fulfilling. I didn't want to stop working for her because she is such a sweet lady, but alas, we finished work on Mrs. T's house and said goodbye.

The famous (or should
 I say infamous) field!

After we finished Mrs. T's house, we moved onto some odd jobs that Dean Bengtson (a Lutheran Brethren missionary that we as a mission work with when concerning relief work), had on hand. Some of the things we did included doing yard work at Dean's house (since he doesn't have time to do any himself - he's always in a different city an hour and a half away one way, doing relief work and building relationships, so we helped him get ready for spring), getting a roof ready for painting, sifting through dirt in a field to get out cell phone parts, and pulling trees out of a few people's yards, at their request. One thing I would like to point out is that the field we worked in has been worked on since the early summer, and it is the exact same field that my grandparents worked on when they were in Japan for two months last summer leading teams up north to do volunteer disaster relief. I am happy to announce that the field is completely clear of cell phone parts and of hedoro, or toxic mud, in this case specifically from the tsunami. That night I went with Craig and Yas to Tome where Nate and I stayed the first time we went up north. We visited the Samaritan's Purse Tome base, since we knew it would be closing soon, and got to see lots of familiar faces. Wayne (do you all remember him?) gave me a picture in a frame of Okaasan (the homeowner I worked for with a carpenter team) and the rest of the guys on the team that they had taken the day of the house's dedication. When I get home I will put that picture on the wall or on my desk to remind me to pray for Okaasan and her family's salvation. 

Me with some of my friends from
Samaritan's Purse Base Tome

The next day we worked with Grace Mission Tohoku (the place we were staying at) and did some of their jobs for a day. We sorted, packaged, and weighed wakame (a kind of seaweed) for an hour, then strung oyster shells on a rope for about two hours. The oyster farmers put the rope into the bay area and grow oysters on them. Come December, this locally owned business will harvest hundreds of delicious oysters which they then sell to a local processing plant.

After all of this, we all went back to our respective "bases" for a week to rest. I was able to see some beautiful cherry blossoms (sakura), even though they were at the very end of their blossoming and viewing time, and I gained a brother in the form of one of the Ellison's sons, Phil. He came to visit them and to see their new one in Chiba for three days. I also had the opportunity to meet with Don Wright, retired missionary to Japan, and current director of RJC (Reaching Japanese for Christ, an organization that my family, specifically my father, is very involved with) and talk with him about the things I've been experiencing as a volunteer here in Japan. I got to see Roy Peacock, pastor of Raging River Community Church in rural Washington state, who is a friend of mine. I was also able to spend some time with the Short family and have dinner with them before I went back up north. It was wonderful to see so many familiar faces, as well as new faces, while I was in Chiba!

Now I'm back up north with a team of five men from Sylvan Way Baptist Church in Bremerton, WA, which is Yas's home church. Pastor Ric, his son Eric, and three other men from the church came to volunteer for two weeks. We are staying in Taiwa, a city just north of Sendai, and we commute 45-90 minutes one way to Ishinomaki every day. Right now, and very likely for the rest of the time this team is here, we are working and will continue to work on one house. It is Mr & Mrs A's dream home, and they built it four years ago (three when the tsunami hit). While they are not all that excited about living there again, since now there is almost nothing between the house and the ocean, they may not be able to live anywhere else due to financial reasons, so we are helping to mud out their home and help them feel some sort of hope about the situation. The house has barely been touched, except to clean out the first layer of mud right after the tsunami, so we are starting from scratch. Yesterday was our first day, and we got most of the ceiling out, as well as many of the walls. The house is well on its way to being rebuildable now, and hopefully the homeowners will be able to see that as we progress further each day.

After the team from Sylvan Way leaves and goes back to Tokyo, I will stay in Ishinomaki and live with Ms. H from Kokobunji Baptist Church in Tokyo. She is moving here and will be working on starting a children's ministry, which will include sports camps, crafts, Bible lessons, and fun and games as well. I will assist her in getting the children's ministry up and running, and will be staying with her until the end of my time in Japan.

I also have plans to visit Iwaki city, where this entire journey started for me last summer, for five days in the middle of May. I plan to arrive in Iwaki May 15 and depart May 20, after a church service there.

Please pray that Mr and Mrs A will see progress in the work that we do each day and will gain hope from the things we do, and that the Lord would provide safety for everybody for the next two weeks as we do physical labor, travel, and minister to those around us daily.

Please pray for my transition to living with Ms. H, as we don't know each other very well and language barriers could be very difficult. Also pray for the children's ministry I will be helping set up. It is a wonderful ministry that is desperately needed here, and the sooner it is up and running, the better.

Please pray for my trip to Iwaki, that I would not be a burden and would be able to effectively help their ministry.

Please pray for Okaasan and her family, that they would see the Lord's love and hope, and would surrender their lives to Him.