Tuesday, February 28, 2012

A New Adventure

I think it was about 3 years ago that I really took an interest in Japan.
I have always been fascinated by Asia in general but over the last few years I really kind of narrowed in on Japan. I started reading and drawing manga, tried to teach myself Japanese – Hoping that someday I could go there and yet never really believing that it was possible. I mean really, I'm just me, and Japan is on the other side of the world. It was to big of a dream.

And then on March 11th, 2011 a 9.0 earthquake occurred off the east coast of Japan. As a result of the earthquake a tsunami was triggered that caused numerous fatalities, injuries, and extensive damage along a 310 mile stretch of coast line. An estimated total of 196,559 buildings were destroyed or damaged. Around 27,000 people were killed, and more than 460,000 were instantly homeless.
I remember waking up late that morning and hearing my Dad say something about Japan and being instantly curious. I googled what was going on and then sat in shock watching numerous news videos. I literally can't even put into words how I felt, all I knew was that I needed to be there to help them, to do something – anything. But what could I do? I couldn't just pack up and go halfway around the world...right?

Today is February 28th, 2012, almost an entire year after the tsunami. 

In eight days I will be boarding a plane heading for Tokyo, I will be going north from there, to Sendai where they are still cleaning up the mess from the tsunami. For five and a half weeks I'll be there helping clean out stuff from houses and getting them ready to be either remodeled or rebuilt.
Yeah, it's really scary. But it's also really incredible. But I'm really just learning to trust the Lord through it all, because I would have never been able to work this all out the way He has. It's just been amazing to see Him at work in my life.

So, I guess in closing, I want to encourage you.
God gives everyone talents and He gives everyone dreams. Don't be afraid if things don't go the way you think they should or if things take a little longer then you think that they should. God has everything under control and what He has planned will come to pass in His perfect timing. And it's totally true that the things that He can do are more then we could ever ask for or even imagine!


2 comments:

  1. I'm so excited for you Erin! I will be praying for you EVERY DAY. Keep trusting the Lord! I'm excited to hear what He will teach you through this trip. I'll miss you!

    <3 ya!
    ~Amy

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  2. What an exciting opportunity, Erin...the chance of a lifetime! I'll be praying for you that with God's help you will make the most of your time in Japan. I pray you will be a testimony - a light of truth in a very dark country.

    Remember to always "Keep calm and carry on!" ;)

    Great blog, BTW! Can't wait to see pix from the trip.

    God bless!

    Lydia L.

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