Surprise Fruit

There is one very important thing you should know about me: I have the blackest thumb on this planet. I have succeeded in killing any plant I set out to grow. My roommate from college can attest to the rosemary bush that went bald on one side and then turned brown and died. My husband can give you the list of potted plants I thought would be fun to grow, then only to end up with a pot of dirt with a stick poking out.

So, it was my utter and complete surprise when I discovered that in my own yard there was a harvest of grapes on the back fence. A high schooler pointed them out to us when he was over. I honestly don't think I would have even found them; they were so hidden by the branches and leaves.

As a non-aggie type, there are somethings in the bible that always left me scratching my head. But now, after being up close and personal with a grape vine at harvest time, I have a new appreciation for John 15. This morning I set out with my scissors and a basket, and as I was collecting the harvest I enjoyed learning a bit more about a metaphore Christ uses for our relationship with Himself.

Jesus says "Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing (John 15:5)." Jesus is not saying, "if you want to remain in me, you better pull your weight and produce fruit." Or, "Show me your commitment, and make some fruit!"

I did NOTHING to help these grapes grow, besides set the sprinklers. Producing fruit was natural. As long as the branches were connected to the vine, they made grapes.

"He cuts off every branch of mine that doesn't produce fruit, and he prunes the branches that do bear fruit so they will produce even more (John 15:2)."

It turns out prunning is an essential part of the proccess that I missed. Not only did my lack of prunning cause me to almost miss the fruit on the branches, but If I had, more of the grapes would have been of a higher quality.

Have you ever produced any "surprise fruit" in your walk with God?

Not of our Hands

There is a lesson I am forever learning. If you look back through this blog, through my journals, my prayers, it seems God is always at work in me regarding patience.

So, as always, that is what God is stirring in my life in this season.

A song has been in my head recently. It is by a band that lead worship at Hume Lake Winter Camp, 2 years ago: 1000 Generation. The first time I heard this song, I felt the singer talking to me. At that season in my life, we were still in the application phase; waiting to hear if we would be accepted as missionaries with Asian Access. And as always, my heart wanted to press the fast forward button to live in the next stage of life (which are currently in). Well, now that we are here, does it surprise you that I am ready to press the fast forward button again to be in the next phase, the being-missionaries-in-Japan phase? So, once again, the Lord has brought this song to my heart.

"Let this be not of our hands, but by your Spirit... We don't want to move with out you."

The chorus of this song reminds me that it is God who is at work. It is not us at work asking God to join us, but the other way around. And that is the way it should be. He has perfect timing, and I do not.

I want to share this song with you. (Please forgive the odd video, it's the only non-live one I could find on youtube.) If you were at winter camp this year, I hope you enjoy the memories; if you weren't, I hope this new song touches your life in a special way.

the window, and the world

The window:

I woke up Wednesday morning raring to go to the post office and the grocery store. We'll maybe not raring, but I was finally motivated. When I got to my car, I was greeted with mounds of glitter and confetti, or rather broken glass from my driver side window. Looking where my cd player sat only hours before was now a hole.

My immediate reaction was to bawl, which turned out well because my neighbors from down the street (who I hadn't yet met officially) stopped and offered to help me vacuum up my window.

Once I was able to gain some perspective I started laughing to myself: the cd player didn't even work! The same CD had been stuck in it for 2.5 years. Luckily I liked that CD, and luckily I burned it to my itunes so it is not lost forever. I know people always say this, but I REALLY would have given it to them if they would had asked for it. a 5 year old broken cd player is MAYBE worth 20 bucks, A car window is worth a lot more.

When I went to file the police report, I found the box the player came in to check the serial number. When I opened the box, I was pleased to find the tape deck that came with the car. stephen assures me this is even better because, you can't listen to an ipod through a cd player, but you can through a tape deck.

So thanks hooligans for helping me out. Hope you enjoy my CD.

The World...

is much smaller that I think.

On Monday I trekked to the Apple Store to make them fix my computer. Turns out when I ask people if I should by shoes or software, and they say shoes, I should listen. :P

I didn't mind though, because I brought my Japanese Language practice book and made up my mind not to leave until all was right with my lappy.

The girl next to me was in a similar predicament: stuck at the counter, waiting for things to upload and praying for a good outcome. I was really glad when she asked if I wanted to grab a pretzel with her.

FREEDOM! Good bye counter, I am taking a walk.

I'm so glad she asked, and that I went. Turns out she used to go to the same High School youth group as me, just a few years after. We even had the same youth pastor. You can check out her blog here.

The supper small world moment happened when I was home, though. After talking to Stephen, it turns out that she is friends with Stephen's only co-worker where he tutors. I know it may seem like nothing, but I was blown away. I always love playing the "do you know so and so" game, because of things like this.

Oh, and for those who are concerned, my computer is now fine. phew!

the long and the short of our time at language school

While we have been stateside, I have often lamented that there is nothing worth blogging about. No big ministry events, no Japanese coming to Christ, no cultural mishaps. while we have been at language school I have had the opposite problem. There have been so many paradigm shifts, interesting people to meet, stories to hear, and events to share about, that I feel I don't know where to begin, nor do I want to over whelm anyone. so for those of you whowould like the "Reader's Digest" version of our 2 weeks at language school, enjoy the headings and pictures below.

But for those of you, like me, who enjoy really long blog posts, as long as there are pictures and short segments, read on!

There are a lot of crazy sounds in the world.

Did youknow that the English language only uses 44 sounds, but there are many, many, many more used in the world. Most of them I would have said were nothing more than air escaping before coming to PILAT. I feel so very blessed to be learning Japanese, which has none of the SUPER crazy ones we learned.

Language is a natural human ability, not an academic subject.

Learning a language is more like learning to walk or run or ride a bike than it is like learning Math, or History. Because of this we should be using different methods. So if you see me watching Anime and writing down all the words I recognize, you'll know why.

We have wonderful friends!

These two weeks, we have been blessed to reside in the guest bedroom of our friends, Josh and Marilyn. We have felt so loved.

Mountains are steep and I am out of shape!

We enjoyed a 5 mile hike up and down a mountain, with our friends. I must say, I enjoyed the down part much more than the up part. Marilyn was kind enough to cite the elevation as the reason for my huffing and puffing. After reaching the top, I was pleased to enjoy the view.

Donuts baked at 14,110 ft just taste better.

On Saturday we drove above the tree line, to the top of Pike's Peak. At the top, we had to coax Stephen to walk within 30 ft of the edge. I was glad he conquered his fears to enjoy a donut and a cup of hot chocolate on a rock, over looking the Eastern Plains.

I am more excited, each day, to get to be a missionary.

What a treat it is to hang out for two weeks with 45 other missionaries in training. There is something to be said for the camaraderie that occurs when you are at the same stage of life as your community. I have so enjoyed sharing stories with missionaries to all over the world.

Thanks for hanging in there for the looooong post. :P

If I only had a camera cord

Packing for language school I was intentional about bringing my camera, camera charger, and laptop so I could communication with all of you about our experience here at MTI in Colorado. Yet, somehow it slipped my mind to pack the means of getting my photos onto my computer!

Grrrar.

I guess I'll have to post them when I get home.

a great night

What is the Vending machine to person ratio in Japan?

Which number also sounds too much like the word "death" for Japanese to sell things in this quantity?

What is a standard Japanese pizza topping?

If you were at Japan Night, at Trinity Presbyterian on July 11th, you know the answers to these questions.

We were blessed by our church with an evening to share about the work God is doing in Japan. The dessert and snacks went fast. I was surprised to see the red bean mocchi go as quickly as it did. And it was so much fun watching the group get so into Japan Trivia. I really felt God's presence through out the evening.

Stephen Sharing about Asian Access

Thanks to everyone who made Japan Night so wonderful!

Keep praying, God is on the move.

7-Eleven

Why are we standing in front of 7-Eleven?

Because it's 7/11, of course!

And that means it's free Slurpee day! oh, and our Anniversary too :P

2 years with the sweetest guy I've had the pleasure of knowing!

Hope you all had a chance to get a free slurpee, and share it with someone special :D