After church a group of us headed over to the Macaroni Grill on Foster for a special lunch for Joanna's birthday. We had a good time eating our pasta and bread. It is always fun clownin around after a good meal. Rob, Zach and David entertained us by drawing pictures on the paper tablecloth. Again, Happy Birthday Joanna, may the Lord continue to bless your years with great happiness in ministry!
Today we had lunch at the Macaroni grill, and who did we see working today; Zen. This brother has been a part of our lives for the last two years, but lately we have not seen much of him. He works many hours and often they keep him away from Church fellowship. Please keep Zen in your prayers that God will open the doors for him to be again an active part of our lives.
This Sunday morning Pastor Tim was not available to teach because of an emergency, so someone needed to fill in for him. I was at Foster Chapel helping early in the morning so it was either up to Zach or Rob to fill in last minutes notice. Zach felt from the Lord that he was to teach as a result of things the Lord was already speaking to his heart earlier in the morning. So Zach taught the Word with Natsuki translating. It was such a blessing to see that both of them did a wonderful job filling in at a moments notice. The Bible tells us to be ready "in season and out", both of them stepped up to the plate. It is a blessing, all of the teachers at CCGinowan understand the importance of having a message ready at all times in case of situations such as these. We are so blessed with many good translators and teachers ready at the spur of the moment.
Well, that is our own Daniel Sedota sportin the new hair dew. He decided while visiting the onsen (Japanese bath house) to give himself the new style. This picture was taken this Sunday at Foster Chapel where the youth are in charge of leading a majority of the service. They call it "youth servant sunday". Daniel is doing a good job of leading the youth group at Foster Chapel.
Saturday afternoon evening we had a Children's Outreach at Reikosan's apartment complex in Chatan. It was a total blessing being able to minister to the children in Okinawa. For such a long time we have been praying for the opportunity to outreach to the kids out here and God has given us this blessed open door. Please continue to pray that God would open more doors for us the minister His love. Afterwards, we all went over to Reikosan's apartment and had Okinawan Soba. Praise the Lord!
This month Pastor Rick came to the Koinonia Cafe for our Calvary Pastoral Breakfast. He gave us an encouraging message on James chapter 5. It is always a blessing when the Calvary Pastor's get together for a time of prayer and the word.
At the "going away party" for Josh, Nate and Eric, everyone had a great time. We are going to miss these guys, they have been such a blessing to the body here at CCGinowan. Nate and Eric will be heading to San Diego and Josh will be with us until the end of the year, but he will be taking off for a month in a couple of days. God bless you guys, thank you for all the blessings.
At Josh Perry's house we gathered together for a "going away party" in which we cooked many things, one of them being "homemade fish tacos" with handmade fresh salsa. For many of us we have not had a fish taco since our California days. For many of us our first encounter with a fish taco was on a missions trip to Mexico. These tacos brought back a lot of memories and they were "outstanding". Mm Good!
Friday afternoon Satsukosan and her friend came to the Bible College and taught the students how to make Moochi. It was a real blessing and so much fun. You have to beat the rice in order to get the right texture. In the picture above you see Rob "the Hammer" Wunderlich. It is a difficult process, but someone has to do it.
Some of the Bible College and church brothers and sisters got together and bought Joanna something that she has wanted for some time now; a pressure cooker. Yes, you heard it right folks, this is what she has been looking at for some time now. She is going to be making some good dishes through this machine, and we are all going to benefit from this great gift. Thank you everyone, and Happy Birthday Joanna!
Today is Joanna's Birthday so we took her out to lunch. She wanted to go to "OnDish" one of her favorite restaurants because you can have "all you can eat" ice cream. We had a good time eating and goofing around. When you get a chance, please leave Joanna a birthday greeting below.
When we were in Korea, this car parked in back of us and "locked us in". No problem for these guys, they just lifted up the car and moved it out of the way. Don't worry folks, no one got hurt. They just superman'ed the car and we were on our way. These dudes are strong.
At Naminoue Beach we had a good time playing Frisbee, swimming, playing "dog fight" kiting, and Samurai Warrior. The guys and gals had a good time with the wooden Samurai swords, slicing and dicing. Check out Daniel flying the kite and Joanna sticking it good to Zach.
In Naha City we visited the famous monument for Dr. Bettelheim. He is considered the first Christian Missionary to visit Okinawa. Like Hudson Taylor is to China, Dr. Bettelheim is to Okinawa Japan. He was an interesting character, but we will leave that for another time. He preached the Gospel here in Okinawa for many years, with few converts. He later on moved back home because of health problems. We are so grateful to men and women like Dr. Bettelheim, who gave of their lives for the Okinawan people and came to Okinawa. They did not experience much fruit from their labors, but without them plowing up the hard ground, we would not be as fruitful as we are now in this country. We are beginning to see God pour out His Spirit in a powerful way. Like the Bible tells us "one sows and another reaps", we are reaping the harvest as a result of the faithful men and women who preached the Gospel before us. Thank you Jesus!
Monday we visited the Buddhist Temple in Naha City. It is a famous place where people come to pray. It is located in a beautiful area of town right next to the water. Just behind this place is the beach, the weather was perfect today.
Monday we went sightseeing in Naha City. We had lunch at a famous place where Natsuki once took us; Jack's Steakhouse. Only the local Okinawan's really know of this place, but the word has gotten out to some famous Japan Mainlanders who often come to this establishment when they are visiting Okinawa. Here you can get a reasonably priced good tasting Steak. Also, they have some good specials. We ordered the "C" lunch special that came with a lot of food; chicken katsu, hamburger steak, salad, rice, soup, and tea. It cost only 500 yen ($5.00 dollars). Some of the guys ordered a hamburger and fries. It was really tasty!
Well folks, it is a record, 70 posts in one month and still going. In the almost 4 years that we have been posting on e3missions we have never posted more than 69 articles in one month. There was just so much going on that we had to share it all with you. Travis here, the worship conference, the Beach Bento Baptism Bash, Rob coming back, the Korea trip, food, outings, you name it. It is a real blessing being able to publish what the Lord is doing here in Okinawa. Thank you for checking out the site. Our prayer is that you would remember us here in Okinawa and lift us up before our Heavenly Father. God bless you all, and thank you for checking out the e3missions website.
Saturday night was Reiko's birthday, so Sunday night we celebrated Koinoina Cafe style. Reikosan and her family are a real blessing to us at CCGinowan. Recently she has joined the worship team and this Saturday we will be doing a Children's Outreach at her apartment complex in the Mihama area. God bless you Reiko, and Happy Birthday!
At the Koinonia Cafe we had a guest speaker at w2; Damien Velarde. Many of you know Damien, he used to be here in Okinawa for over three years, but now he is back in New Mexico. Soon, his family and he will be heading out to Exeter, England. He will begin planting a new church in that area. It was a total blessing having him out here ministering to the diverse group of people at the Koinonia Cafe.
