The Merger

I’m officially moving my ministry info and updates over to my new website, so I won’t be updating this blog anymore. Please re-direct your links, RSS feeds and eyeballs to RobinWhiteOnline.com. My latest newsletter has just been posted there. Thanks!

Japan Adventures, May 2009

April Prayer Letter

Hi Everyone,

I hope this letter finds you well and enjoying Spring wherever you may be. The streets of Nagoya are lined with Sakura (cherry blossoms) now, which is a sure sign of Spring in Japan.

This month I had a 2 1/2 week break from language school for Spring Break. I wasn’t on vacation, however. Besides spending time reviewing my Japanese, I also continued teaching English, did some music ministry, and helped out with Sunday school here at the Nagoya Church. And last week, I was in Yokohama for a few days for the Immanuel Church’s national annual conference. It was a good opportunity to catch up with some friends and fellow missionaries, as well as to connect with the Japanese church on a larger level.

Thank you for your prayers over the past month. Here are some things you can be praying with me about in the weeks to come:

1. Language studies – I’m back to school for another 6-month term of learning Japanese.

2. English class — My weekly English lessons continue to be well-attended. This month we are making some changes and doing some promotion to hopefully attract some unchurched people to the class. Please
pray that God will use this to help us build bridges with the community.

3. The future — I’m well into my second year of my two-year internship with Global Partners. So it’s time to start praying and planning for what comes next. I definitely plan to continue living and ministering in Japan, but the details of where and in what capacity are yet to be figured out. Please pray that God will lead me to the right opportunities for next year and beyond.

Thanks again for praying!

Strawberry Picking: the Aftermath (video)

It’s been a while since I posted a video, so since my friend captured these on the weekend, I thought I would go ahead and share them with you all. In these videos you get to meet some of my friends, hear my poor Japanese, and see me slowly figure out that I’m being videoed and not photographed. Taken last Saturday after a strawberry-picking expedition with some friends from my church. Enjoy.

I just realized I could subtitle these on YouTube, so maybe I should do that some day… But not tonight.

March Prayer Letter

Hi Everyone,

As I reported in last month’s letter, I’ve recently started teaching a new English class at my church. Thank you for praying with me about that. We’ve now had classes four weeks in a row, and it’s been a lot of fun. The challenge has been in figuring out what level everyone is at and trying to teach accordingly. Adding to the challenge is the fact that so far there has been a different mix of people every week. On the bright side, this shows that there is a lot of interest; only time will tell who will keep coming back regularly, though.

Please pray with me about the following things this week and throughout the month to come:

1. Please continue to pray for me as I teach English, and pray that this will be a good “bridge-builder” between this church and the community.

2. Pray for my continuing Japanese studies, which are a huge challenge for me. I have definitely made progress in the past year, and I am thankful, but still have a long way to go!

3. The national Annual Conference (Nenkai) of the Immanuel Church is taking place in Yokohama from March 23-26. I will be attending and bringing greetings (in Japanese). Please pray for this event, as many from across Japan gather for worship, and our pastors and leaders “do business” and receive their assignments for the coming year.

4. I’m also getting more involved in some other areas of church life, mainly involving music and youth ministry. Please pray for these opportunities as well.

Thank you so much for your prayers and support on my journey so far! You are definitely appreciated! May God bless you as we enter Spring together — a time of new life and new beginnings!

- robin

February Prayer Letter

Hi Everyone,

I hope this email finds you all well; hard to believe we’re a month into 2009 already, isn’t it?

January has been a busy month getting back into the swing of things after the holiday season. As usual it has been my Japanese studies that have kept me most busy. It is always a challenge, but I can definitely see a difference from last year. Of course, I still have a long way to go, so your continuing prayers about my studies are much needed and appreciated.

Next week I am starting a new English class for youth at the church. It will be held on Sunday afternoons. It looks like there will be about 6 students to start with, but we are hoping in time it will grow and multiple, becoming a way for the church to build relationships with people outside the church. Please pray for me as I prepare this week and teach in the weeks to come. Also pray that God will use this ministry.

By the way, the attached photo is from a recent evening I spent, along with my pastors, having dinner with a family from our church, the Yashidas. They are a really nice family, and some of the many people who have helped me feel at home the past year.

Thanks for reading and for praying!

- robin (www.japanlog.wordpress.com)

Backtracking a Little…

Just an update on the previous post’s announcement: The new site is up and running (at least the blog portion). However, contrary to what I said before, I will be continuing to keep this site going as well. It just won’t be updated as often, and will only feature ministry-related stuff (eg prayer updates on the blog, newsletters, and of course the ministry info pages).

So, summing it up for clarity’s sake: For my personal blog featuring thoughts on life in Japan, the arts, and faith — along with photos, music, sketches and cartoons (eventually) — you can visit robinwhiteonline.com. For ministry news, prayer requests and general info, check back here at JapanLog.

Sorry for any confusion. And by the way, speaking of newsletters, I should have a new one really soon — hopefully tomorrow.

New Site

This may be a premature announcement, but I’ve set up a new blog and already moved all the content from here to there. From now on I’ll be blogging over there, and you can find it easily at my main domain: robinwhiteonline.com. I’ll be tweaking it over the next couple of days, so please excuse any glitches along the way. Also, please be sure to update your links, bookmarks and RSS feeds. Thanks.

Bicycle Parking Lot

A friend posted this on Facebook and I had to share it here, because it’s so amazing. Note how quickly they retrieve the bike later in the clip. Also note the creepy similarities between this place and something out of the Matrix.

Photo of the Week

At the temple in Osu Kannon, here in Nagoya, there are a LOT of pigeons. Just a reminder: I’ve got a new photo album up and you can view in HERE.

Eddie

I recently lost a friend.

Eddie was one of the men I prayed together with on a semi-regular basis when I lived in Osaka. I found out about his death last week, and have been putting off blogging about it because I wasn’t sure what to say. I wasn’t super close to Ed, but he was a brother in Christ and a really great guy.

The photo above was taken back in early October when I visited Osaka. Ed was one of us grown-ups who tagged along with our friends’ kindergarten class when they went sweet potato picking. I saw him again that night when we had a concert/dinner at the school. I had no idea that would be the last time.

Ed had been under a lot of stress and concerned about many things. He went missing one day, and it was almost two weeks later that his body was found. This has left everyone with a lot of questions. But more importantly, he leaves behind a wife and son here in Japan who could really use our prayers at this time.

Mujo No Kaze

I’m breaking my weekday blogging fast because I took a sick day from school on Monday (nothing too serious, just a nasty cold) and finally got around to watching a DVD that I received a while back. Before I tell you what I thought of it, why don’t you check out this trailer?

Mujo No Kaze is an award-winning short film that my friend Paul (from the Japan Christians in the Arts Network) was involved in the production of. What’s it about? The official site describes it like this:

After a Japanese exchange student is murdered while studying in the US, his best friend in Tokyo is thrown into a world of depression in which a series of hallucinations lead him to a divine encounter in the countryside. Mujo No Kaze is a short film about finding hope in the midst of depression, suicide, and the futility of life.

I found the film to be really well-produced, culturally relevant, and redemptive but not preachy. I’m looking forward to seeing what Studio Re comes up with in the future, and I’m excited to see them stepping out in faith with this ministry.

If you’re interested, you can view the entire film HERE. It’s pretty short, just over ten minutes, so it’s definitely worth your time.