Why Japan?

A young boy observes his older brother worshipping at the Meiji shrine.  Attempting to emulate his brother's meticulous rituals, he claps his hands...but claps once too many times.  He is behind and cannot keep up with his brother's movements.  One can see the frustration building as he attempts to do the ritual perfectly, but instead makes countless mistakes.

I witnessed this scene last summer while visiting Tokyo for a day, and the image has vividly remained in my head ever since.  Upon further contemplation, I realized that this serves as a metaphor for the country of Japan.  For, the Japanese try so hard to be perfect.  This is by far the most respectful culture I have ever encountered, and the people are always concerned about another's needs rather than their own.  However, their efforts are in vain, for they are missing the mark.  Just as the little boy was trying so hard to do everything perfectly, yet still could not perform the tasks, the Japanese are trying so hard to work toward salvation, yet are missing the mark completely.

Sadly, because of their riches, Japan is overlooked as a mission field.  Many falsely assume that prosperity is directly related to percentage of Christianity in any given country.  Yet, a mere 0.02% of Japanese are Christian.  Few have even heard of Christianity.  Because of these unique circumstances, God has given me a heart for this beautiful country of Japan.

I, along with my younger brother Zach, am serving at a camp outside of Tokyo called Okutama Bible Chalet.  We work on grounds crew, and our daily tasks include cleaning the bathrooms, doing dishes, and general maintenance of the camp.  Although this job is not glorious, I have come to recognize its importance in spreading the Gospel to Japan.  Okutama Bible Chalet (OBC) hosts camps for various ages throughout the year.  During the month of July, they host English camps for two weeks.  Hundreds of children are sent to these camps in order to improve their English speaking skills.  OBC is known throughout Japan for their English camps, so many families, although non-Christian, send their children to learn English.  However, in both the morning and the evening, the children attend chapel and hear the Gospel spoken in Japanese.  Thus, those who may have never been acquainted with Christianity can hear from God's Word and learn about Christ. 

Where does my role come into play?  How can I aid in delivering the Gospel when I merely clean camp?  Yasushi-san, the Japanese camp director, sat us down on our first day at OBC and explained, "Your job may not seem important in bringing the Gospel.  But, what if the bathrooms are not cleaned and a child needs to use it and becomes sick from the smell?  He would miss chapel, and have to go home, and may never hear of Christ again, all because of a dirty toilet.  Just like the Body of Christ, your role is vital to allow the Gospel to be delivered."  

My prayer is to do my best in even the simplest of tasks so that the physical condition of the camp will not hinder the campers from meeting Christ.  It would be a blessing if you could pray for strength for both Zach and me, since for this next week, we are the only two members on grounds crew, which is quite an undertaking.  Also, pray for the preparation of the hearts of those who will be attending camps, and for their cultural presuppositions to not be a hinderance.  Lastly, please pray for counselors to be provided for the English camps, because currently the camp has reached its limits on the number of children able to attend, but is short on staff.

Yoroshiku onegai itashimasu! (Translates loosely to "think well of me")

-Brittany