Getting Down to Business....

let me preface by saying i'm still jet lagged and it's been almost 2 weeks....i can't believe it's still affecting me. anyway, it's about 1 am here and i'm on the verge of passing out, so forgive any lack of eloquence in this post. also, i'm really sorry i haven't been able to post any photos yet- right now we're "borrowing" internet because for some crazy reason our own router/internet connection STILL won't work, but for some other crazy reason my computer's the only computer in our apt. that can't connect to the borrowed internet. so i have to borrow my apartment mates' computers every time i want to do anything. this is why i've been writing blog posts at 1-2 am, because i wait for them to finish w/their computers and go to sleep.

Friday was our first "meeting people" day at Waseda. because ministry in Japan is such a slow process, our goal is normally not to immediately share the gospel w/ students unless we feel specifically called by the Spirit. our first goal is to get to know them and hang out with them on a regular basis. we do tell them right away that we work for Student Impact and we are Christian, and are free to talk about spiritual things if the conversation develops, but we don't want to try and force a conversation- it becomes awkward and they get the feeling that we're only talking to them b/c we have an ulterior motive. friday lyndsey and i went to the cafeteria and asked 2 girls first if them spoke english (they said yes) and second if we could talk with them- they said yes and we ended up having a 2 hour conversation with them. their names are Yui and Kanae- they were so nice and fun, and want to meet us again next week! friday night myself, michelle, lyndsey, ariel, david and esther (Korean Campus Crusade STINTers) went to a performance of The Shockers- Waseda's All Male Cheerleading Team. now, michelle and esther had met some cheerleaders who told them about this performance- we were curious but assumed it would be maybe a 5 minute show. but then we saw a crowd of people (mostly girls) standing by a huge building. the show started at 6:30, this was at 5 pm. turns out they were waiting in line to see The Shockers. so we got in line too. we waited over an hour to see the show, but it turned out to be worth it- it was a 2 hour performance, mostly by the Shockers, but also with a few guest dance and cheerleading groups. i am now unashamedly a Shockers groupie for life. here's a video that lyndsey took- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cjEI7j9CoWs

Saturday we had a free day, so we went shopping for some apartment things and had a fun day exploring. Sunday we went to church at New Hope- the message was all about living sacrificially and learning to break away from a self-centered life and centering your life on Christ. the pastor talked about how we have the CHOICE to influence people or not, and the choice as to HOW we influence people- we are called to be the "aroma of Christ" (2 Cor. 2:15-16). he ended reminding us that we are not here for our own glory but for God's. Sunday night was my first time going to JCCC's dance ministry called Holy Spirit. first they do a Bible study, then learn dances, then all have a meal together and fellowship. it was SO MUCH FUN. i've officially joined, and they're letting me be in one of the dances they are performing at our Halloween party since i learn so fast (and begged them to let me perform). it was so glorious just to dance again, and since they dance to worship music, it's so much more meaningful and i feel like King David dancing for God. Monday was a national holiday- Health and Fitness/Sports Day. seriously. it was awesome. we spent the day geocashing at a huge park, then we got korean food and did karaoke.

Tuesday we had a team meeting, then went to Waseda again. michelle and i teamed up and ended up talking to several girls, but the 2 that really excited me were Yuki and Kaori. we originally approached them because Yuki had a dance team bag, but turned out that they were both amazing at English and super friendly and fun. we had lunch with them and talked for awhile, and we're meeting them again next week. they were even interested in trying out Holy Spirit (the dance ministry) sometime! i'm hoping i'll even be able to go to Yuki's dance team sometime. every Tuesday evening Waseda's English Club meets for a couple hours, so ariel, mike and i went to a coffee shop and relaxed until it was time to go back to campus. originally i wasn't that excited about it, and i was really exhausted/jetlagged- i even dozed off in the coffee shop AFTER having coffee, but it was so amazing! it was 2 hours of students wanting to talk to me and being excited, and they were so welcoming and fun- one girl, Yumi, even asked if she could take me shopping sometime, even though i'd only been talking to her for a few minutes! one of the guys i met, Eric, told me he was really interested in learning more about Christianity after i told him that i wor,ked for Student Impact. there were 2 girls from China, Jane and Ellen, who were in my discussion group i was interested in meeting but didn't get a chance- one of the girls, Jane, had expressed her love of hiking during discussion group. Mike's church is going hiking next weekend and my mind immediately thought "YOU SHOULD INVITE HER" but then they disappeared. but God gave me a 2nd opportunity on the way out the door of the university- i turned around and saw them right behind me and introduced myself, Ariel and Mike and we talked all the way to the train station, during which i invited them to go hiking and they seemed really excited about it! God totally refreshed me with their enthusiasm, and i made a lot of new contacts, and am definitely going back next week. it was a really encouraging day- i never expected to meet so many people/make so many new friends in one day. Today our team split and henry, michelle and lyndsey went to Waseda while the rest of us went to ICU High School. we had a picnic outside again and 3 new girls from last week came and talked with us for awhile. after classes were over we played ultimate frisbee and football in a big grassy area, and met 2 new girls and 3 new boys, so that was really encouraging as well. tonight Kat, the 3rd member of the KCCC (Korea Campus Crusade for Christ) STINT team arrived- we all went to the JCCC center to meet her and eat a late dinner. it was really exciting to finally be a full team. tomorrow and Friday we will be going on a training retreat as a whole STINT team (PSW + KCCC) and a few of the JCCC Staff to learn more about effective evangelism and working with our team. even though i've only been in Tokyo about 1 1/2 weeks, it will be nice to go to the country and refresh a bit.

PRAYER REQUESTS:
- please be praying for Yui, Kanae, Yuki, Kaori, Yumi, Ellen, Jane and Eric- that the Lord would provide more opportunities to meet and smooth ways to share the Gospel with them
- for energy
- for team unity, wisdom and discernment in ministry

SPECIAL PRAYER: PLEASE PRAY FOR THE EXCHANGE RATE- SERIOUSLY. it's been fluctuating between 78-82 yen to the dollar right now. that is really not good. if it stays this low there is a very good chance we'll have to raise more support just to stay in Tokyo since we're losing so much money because of the rates.

may the Lord bless you and keep you, and may every day you make the choice to serve your Creator, and to be a positive influence in the lives of others.