Tiny Little Footprints

Today was sunny, warm, and beautiful! Jesus wooed me off to the beach to pray. As I was walking along, I saw these little footprints, prayed, and couldn't help writing:

Such tiny little footprints
scattered upon the black sand.
A little child walked along this beach
not so long ago.
Little prints next to big prints,
perhaps from mom or dad.
A little lady or a little man,
a dark haired, dark eyed child,
with little footprints in the sand.
With the mighty ocean so close,
and the roar of the waves behind me,
I stopped and knelt down,
placing my hands upon those footprints.
And Jesus led me to pray
for the soul of the little child
who left those little footprints.
That the little lady or little man
from whom those footprints came
would know the depth of His love,
would bring this people to His feet,
would reach the nations for His glory.
Behind these little footprints in the sand
is a little life,
a child created by God.
O that he or she would one day know Him!
What a mighty privilege
to be in this land
to walk upon this beach
to pray for the little ones
who leave precious footprints in the sand.

Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these." - Mt. 19:14

It's a brownie-batter day!

I totally made a batch of brownies just to eat the batter! The batter is SO much tastier than the finished product, at least in my book! It's a crazy day- just needed a little snack :)

Jesus is so Beautiful

The past month or two, God has really been doing some neat things in my heart, and in my relationship with Him. The short version is that He’s healing hurts and setting me free from feeling like I need to please other people (and other lies I've come to believe). This week I was driving in my car, listening to some tunes. I’ve heard this Sara Groves song a hundred times before, but that day, it hit me in a new way. I felt like the words she was singing, were the very lyrics of my heart these past few weeks:

Jesus You’re Beautiful (Sara Groves)
Jesus, bright as the morning star
Jesus, how can I tell you
How beautiful you are to me
My Jesus, song that the angels sing
Jesus, dearer to my heart
Than anything
Sweeter than spring time
Purer than sunshine
Ever my song will be
Jesus, You’re beautiful to me

This song resounds so well with me at this moment, because in a deeper way than ever before, Jesus really is dearer to my heart than anything.

Next up on the playlist was Amazing Grace, Tomlin stlye. Yet again this old old hymn was brought to new life as the words echoed in my heart with greater meaning than ever before:

Amazing Grace - My Chains are Gone (Chris Tomlin)
Amazing grace how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me
I once was lost but now am found, was blind but now I see
Twas grace that taught my heart to fear, and grace my fears relieved
How precious did that grace appear, the hour I first believed

My chains are gone, I’ve been set free
My God my Savior has ransomed me
And like a flood his mercy rains
Unending love, amazing grace

The Lord has promised good to me, his word my hope secures
He will my shield and portion be, as long as life endures

The earth shall soon dissolve like snow, the sun forbear to shine
But God who called me here below, will be forever mine
You are forever mine

My chains are gone, I have been set free. His mercy pours down on me daily. Unending love, truly truly amazing grace. I am forever his!

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has gone, the new has come." Thank you Jesus for redeeming my life, for setting me free from what the world, and others want from me, for holding me ever so near as you heal my hurts, and for fixing my eyes on you, for making me a new creation.

Question: What songs has God spoken to you through?

Celebrating a Language Victory!

Today marked a new language victory for me as I went to the doctor all by myself, and it was successful! Apart from confusing the receptionist when she asked what my illness was today, it went pretty well. The doctor speaks some English, and I managed to use a little Japanese to describe my symptoms and to tell him it was basically the same as the last time. This is definitely something worth celebrating... at least when I get over this cold. (Thanks Margery for encouraging me to give it a shot, and for being just a phone call away for any translation needs!)

More Frosting on Cookies or in Tummies?

This video cracks me up every time I watch it! I was decorating cookies with my brother's family while I was in Nebraska over Christmas. It was so much fun! Definitely more frosting in tummies than on cookies!

Tadaima!!! (I'm Home!)

Two trains, three planes and an automobile brought me home for Christmas! It sure feels good!

These boys are SO fun! And so big now!


Sunrise over the Pacific near California


Tokyo from the air


This the the beauty that brought me home!


Pizza Hut pizza- yum!!!

...I'll be home for Christmas...

Tomorrow morning I'll get a ride to the train station, take a bullet train to Tokyo, a local train to the airport, 3 plane rides, a 2 hour car ride, and then I'll be home for Christmas!!! Please pray for my time at home with my family and friends. I hope it will be a restful and encouraging month. I'm SO excited!
A few of the things I'm most looking forward to:
*hugging my not-so-little-anymore nephews
*eating Pizza Hut pizza
*steaks
*artichokes
*shopping at Target
*spending Christmas with my family
*attending church on Christmas Eve
*driving on flat, spacious I-80

YATTA!!!!! Tanoshimi!!! (Basically: "I'm really excited!")

Jess comes to Japan!

In September Jess visited for a week and a half, and it was GREAT! What a huge blessing!! Top two highlights: chatting over coffee at the cafe, & watching a movie at the theater, complete with pop and popcorn :)

Crazy kids roaming Tokyo!

Don't worry, we were not lacking for fun and laughter!

How fun to meet Hiromi & Miwa for dinner and a night view of Tokyo!

Adventures in Hokkaido...

At the end of August we took an 11 day trip to Japan's Northern Island, Hokkaido. 35 of us crammed into a small bus and a big van, driving 16 hours, catching an 8 hour ferry and then touring the island, staying a few days here, a few days there. It was a great time for getting to know our freshmen friends better, and personally I LOVED the scenery!! 11 days is a long time to travel with college students, particularly when you don't know much of the language, but we had a great week couple of weeks together!



Hokkaido is SOOOO beautiful! All of the flat, green farmland reminded me of home! It was nice to be in such a spacious place compared to the packed-in city. Isn't God an amazing Creator?!!


What's a trip to Hokkaido without a visit to the zoo? These little guys were my favorite!


We cooked most of our meals together over a campfire. Here Saki and I seemed to be enjoying our veggie cutting duties.


We helped dig a pond at the campsite we stayed at for several days.


Yes, that is ME, eating CRAB! It was ok :) I think Hikari enjoyed it more that me!


Winding up the old pitching arm for a fun afternoon of softball. And Elbert steps up to bat...

Summer Snapshots:

"Let them give glory to the LORD and proclaim his praise in the islands." (Is. 42:12)
Sunset over Tokyo.

Chinatown in Tokyo with Hiromi & Miwa.

Laughter filled photo-opp in our tent at English camp.

Girls weekend in Tokyo with Jennifer & Jamie. Thanks for the care-package, Jo!

Hanabi (fireworks) Festival- beautiful girls & beautiful fireworks!

It was funny... trust us!



Summer team farewell party- we miss them already!

Can he get any cuter??!!

Studying with Nami at Starbucks. Mandy: Japanese; Nami: English & Chinese- wow!!

Clarification on how to correctly use a "Western-style" toilet!