Happy Merry Christmas from Japan

so it's Christmas Eve here in Tokyo...i'm sitting here in the living room listening to A Muppet Christmas Carol while Michelle makes chili. our Japanese-style Christmas tree (aka, a tiny one) is all decorated behind me, in front of me are the stockings my mother made us and shipped...hopefully Santa fills them tomorrow. today i got a huge package from my aunt and uncle- a present (which i am refraining to open til tomorrow- aren't you proud?) and candy canes and a gigantic can of homemade holiday chex mix- it was such a wonderful taste of home. but it also reminded me that, well, i'm not home for Christmas. to be honest, as much as we try to make it feel like Christmas here, it doesn't really feel like it. i've lived in the same house my whole life, i've always been with family for Christmas, we always do the same traditions...without them, it doesn't really feel the same. but at the same time, as a friend of mine reminded me last night, if i were home, i wouldn't have the opportunities to serve God that i'm getting here- mainly, the homeless church, our STINT Christmas party, and getting to bring students to church and share the Gospel with them during the holiday. if i were home, i'd just be sitting by the fire eating cookies and waiting in anticipation to open presents. tonight Lyndsey, Michelle and i are having dinner together, then i am meeting 2 students to go to a Christmas Eve service at church. in the morning, we are waking up at 5 am to go serve the homeless at the Yoyogi Park homeless church and sing Christmas carols (in Japanese- eek!), then going ice skating, then hanging out with students who aren't doing anything on Christmas and watching movies and making food together. so basically, this Christmas will definitely be more productive in terms of serving God than my Christmases normally are, considering every other Christmas my focus has been on me, and my presents, and my desire for more cookies and hot chocolate, whereas this year my focus is finally starting to align more on God.

i mean, what is Christmas really about? in Japan, it's about cake and KFC. in America, to be honest, it's become mostly about presents and decorations. i was listening to a podcast by Tim Chaddick from Reality LA today on the True Meaning of Christmas. the true meaning? GOD LOVES US. GOD. the Creator of the Universe. He loves YOU. and ME. And He wants to have a relationship with YOU. and ME. He loves us so much that in order for us to even comprehend even a bit of what His love looks like, He became a man, He sent his Son Jesus, who has always existed as God the Son, to Earth in the most lowly and humble way, as a baby with no place to be born other than a manger in a stable. He then lived a perfect life and died in the most gruesome, horrific and painful way possible, on the cross, taking on all of our sins, and then resurrecting in 3 days so that sin and death would be destroyed forever. so why do we celebrate Christmas? BECAUSE GOD LOVES US! how crazy is that? the Christmas story doesn't end with Jesus being born. and it doesn't end with Jesus dying, or even being resurrected. it's always being told, because God is constantly loving us, if only we would accept His gift of love and follow Him. so....who are you going to tell? how are you going to share the Christmas story to your friends, your family, to strangers? how are you going to show God's love to the world today?

because Christmas isn't about giving or receiving. it is first and foremost about God's love for us, and how He showed it to us through Jesus Christ. i pray that the Lord would bless you with an amazing Christmas, but that it wouldn't be amazing because of the presents or festivities, but because you would be able to forget about the food, the wrapping, the presents, the preparations, the family feuds, and just for a second pause to focus on the amazingness that is our God, our Father, and our Creator who loves us more than we could ever hope to imagine.

here are some pictures from the past week: a Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!

the Homeless church in Yoyogi Park- about 100 people show up every week

Making food bags for the homeless church

Our STINT Christmas Party: MCs talking to the audience

one of the students, Haruka, sharing her testimony of how she became a Christian last Christmas

STINT Christmas skit

David thinking he'll get a date for Christmas....

David in despair about not having a girlfriend or date for Christmas. Enter Henry, and Henry's "Linus Moment"

Lyndsey, myself, and 2 students- Kanae and Yui

3 different spiritual conversations during the party- i know taking pictures of them is kind of sketchy but i was just so excited!

Tokyo STINT Team 2010, otherwise known as the Special Team Infiltration Ninja Taskforce

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!!!!