希望の家 - Kibonoie

It has been such an incredible blessing to go each month to Kibonoie (House of Hope) which is a care facility for the disabled/handicapped. We meet at the church around 9:30 and drive out in the countryside to the facility. (I don't think I would ever find this place if I didn't go first with someone else). We arrive, greet the staff and then go upstairs to a meeting room. We drop our stuff off there and go to pick up those who want to attend. There are two buildings connected by a little hallway. The one is where those who are not as bad off physically stay (attendees from this building come on their own to our fellowship time) and the other building is where those that take a lot more constant care, nearly all of whom are in wheelchairs. All told, there are about 12 people who come (of which about 8 or 9 are believers).
Once everyone is together, we sing some songs from hymnals, the pastor gives a brief message, we sing another song and then we have communion. Our meeting time takes about an hour, maybe just under.
So that's what we DO, but what we experience is the joy of the Lord written all over those dear believer's faces! Many of them have marbled speech and are difficult to understand, some of them have very awkward motor skills, and many of them have been in the facility for a long time. One of the ladies entered Kibonoie as it first opened some 40 years ago, and has been a faithful follower and worshiper of Jesus the whole time. They are always excited to see us and are full of the love and the joy of the Lord though they have no reason to be joyful from an earthly point of view. I am looking forward to seeing those believers in heaven, when they will have perfect bodies and where they will receive great rewards. I will not be surprised in the least to see them receive greater honors than myself, for they are the least now, but they will be called great in His kingdom!

Settling in . . .

Arriving in Kansai after a long over-night bus trip we found our way to the house that we'd be staying in, briefly met one of the guys staying in the house, then plopped down our things and took a long mid-morning nap. The weather was certainly a lot more blistering than what we had at Nojiri but thanks to the location of our home stay we got a nice cool breeze that the lower parts of the city didn't get.
The guys we are staying with are two great Christian guys, Souichiro and Kazuya. Both are single 29 year olds (though Kazuya is getting married in December) and growing in the Lord! Kazuya's younger, Sarori, is also staying with us.
Our responsibilities while in Takarazuka are the following:

* Tuesday evening (a couple times a month) - marriage counseling/discussion (a recently married couple along with several of the single youths in the church)
* Wednesday evening - English Bible Discussion (believers and unbelievers come)
* Sunday mornings - help with set up, etc. (a retired pastor will be bringing the messages each Sunday)
* Sunday evenings (every other week) - International Night (an outreach to people in the community)

In addition to these things we will be involved with:

* college outreach (there is a university about 30 min. from the church)
* once a month visit to a handicap hospital (where we, along with the fill-in pastor, hold a church service with the believers among the handicapped)
* English classes (enough to supplement our income but still leave us enough time for our other responsibilities)
* language study

Nojiri

Ahhhhh, Nojiri . . . . Praise God for a place of relaxation and beauty, much time with the Lord in the Word and in prayer, time with family and relatives and other believers, as well as opportunities to testify of the Lord to unbelievers!
Arriving up at Nojiri only a week after climbing Mt. Fuji (which was barely a week after JBC) it was a blessing to be able to relax and recuperate.
Both of us were able to get a LOT of reading done in the cabin while we enjoyed the sounds of nature and the incredible view of the lake out the window. I (Caleb) got more reading done in those first couple weeks than I had the previous months of the year AND last year!
We were able to head up a "youth group" which really was a praise and worship time with sharing from the Word (and a few games). Both of us were involved in teaching Sunday School and I (Caleb) was given the chance to preach on one of the Sunday mornings. Of course having family and relatives around was wonderful as well!
All in all, it was a great time from the Lord!


family/relatives movie night via the computer

cousins and friends getting baptized! =D