It has been a minute since my last blog. There have been both parts bitterness and sweetness in that. I have felt homesick to the point of no end, but I have also experienced family and a home away from home. 

Some things that God has been walking me through in these past few weeks are breaking the habit of striving for approval and how to stay hopeful in the thick of life. 

When I first got to here everything was new. The house, the bed, the bathroom, the church, the people, and slowly me along with it. I felt the need to fit in and make people like me even though that has never been asked of me. This isn’t new in my life, but God has redeemed me, so He was able to bring me back to truth. God reminded me that He is and always will be the only approval I need. Then I read Galatians 1:10 and it says, “Am I trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.” This brought my eyes back to Jesus and the truth. Since then I have been able to live in the freedom of that and have just leaned on what the Lord says about me and who He has made me to be. One morning I was getting ready and it felt like an excitement of newness washed over me. It was like a new season of a tv show was starting and not in a bad “everything is new” kind of way, rather in a way of expectancy of the Lord. That has been really sweet to walk in because I just feel a peace to just follow where God leads and speaks. 

As my team and I have begun ministry here in Japan, we’ve experienced hardship. We have leaned on the Lord, spent time in prayer, and have tried to build relationships with people, but Japan is so hard to reach. There are people everywhere, yet what feels like there is no connection. As a team we have been able to encourage each other through the discouragement and the Lord is still so present. One day during worship I felt prompted to read John chapter four, and so I did. This is the story about the Samaritan woman at the well that where Jesus reveals Himself to her. As I read I wasn’t fully sure of why God had me read that story. I knew it and was well acquainted with the details, but it wasn’t even in that. Shortly after that part in verses 37 and 38 it says “Thus the saying ‘One sows and another reaps’ is true. I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labor.” I have heard that we plant seeds that we may never see the fruit of countless times, but until that morning I had never seen it in the Bible. God used those verses to speak so much to me in that moment. He gave me clarity and hope in what we were experiencing through ministry and that we’re not just sowing and laboring for nothing. His plans are so much grander than we could ever know. Jesus has also shown me that ministry happens all the time and often times when you’re not looking for it. 

Ministry 

Most of our ministry has been street and park evangelism in different cities which has been good but hard. We help our ministry hosts put church on each Sunday at their three services. And I am apart of our elderly ministry.  

On adventure day this past week some of the squad went to hike Mount Takao and when we got to the town we went to have lunch at a soba noodle shop. As we sat down and started looking at the menu there was a guy sitting next to us who was receiving his food. We started to talk to him. He is a high school teacher who teaches all subjects. As we talked we ended up getting to share the gospel with him and pray for him. That is an encouragement from the Lord that we were able to talk to and share the good news with him. Even when it has been so hard the Lord is still faithful. He is always moving. 

The first day at the elderly ministry we went in and sung hymns for them. As we sang they were just smiling. It was the most precious thing. As we were leaving the woman coordinating our ministry, Yoko, shared her testimony with us. It is a beautiful story of God continuously pursuing her and being intentional with her every step of the way. She shared that she was saved in the bathroom alone. Just her and Jesus. What a testament to the cross I thought. The entire reason Jesus came down to earth was to restore the relationship we have with Him. To give us access to His presence whenever and wherever and her story just directly reflected that in such a beautiful way. As I was listening I couldn’t help but see Jesus all over her story. Her devotion, her love, and her faith are so evident.  

A Squad 

“A Squad” is the name of our squad. When our leadership team was praying over this new season they came upon this verse, “Behold, I am doing a new thing!” Isaiah 43:19. So A Squad represents a new thing, it is the beginning of something. And God has been so kind and thoughtful with crafting this team. I am getting to know each person more and more and am just continually thankful. It is so evident that we are each here for a time such as this. I am truly so excited to see what God does in and with each of us. 

Prayer Requests 

Our ministry host Joanna shared some strongholds that Japan is struggling with, so I ask that you would be praying through this list if you feel led: 

•Suicide (there is a forrest dedicated to it because of its prevalence)

•Bullying (extremely bad in schools and in work, that can and does lead people to want to commit suicide) 

•Gaming/Gambling (people get into gaming and gambling especially moms when they’re in postpartum depression and then they lose their money and get even more depressed)

•Animation/Anime (young girls think that they need to get surgeries to change themselves to be more like anime girls - additionally some anime’s also have explicit content which isn’t good)

•Children Story Books (the books they make for children here are very disturbing and evil looking - not good to consume at any age)

•Isolation (people literally don’t go out of their homes and it is very bad - isolation is the root of a lot of problems and it is so severe here) 

•Declining Birth Rate (God calls us to be fruitful and multiply and the enemy is trying his best to stop it) 

•Child Abuse (terrible here - to the point that they have to do house checks multiple times a year just incase)   

You can just see how much the enemy has and is trying to take the people of Japan but it’s nothing new. So prayers against the enemy because the battle has already been won. Revelation 12:11 “They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.”

I also made a new instagram to document this trip called "livingsentwithcass" so go give it a follow for more frequent updates, pictures, and videos!

I love you all so much but Jesus loves you so much more!