by Whitey | Nov 1, 2008 | Ministry News
Hi everyone,
Is it November already? It’s hard to believe it’s already been 10 months since I came back to Japan!
October was a busy month: In Gifu, the Gospel was preached (I spoke on the story of the Prodigal Son). In Hamamatsu, a church was encouraged (I did a solo and played a part in a short drama) and our church had a great time of learning and fellowship with the people of the Hamamatsu church. I also started a new (level 2) course at the YWCA Japanese Language School here in Nagoya, which is proving to be a big step UP in workload and difficulty — a good challenge but also a bit of an adjustment.
Please continue to pray for my English/Bible student; we haven’t gotten together in a while but I’m trusting that when he’s less busy we’ll get back to studying the Word again. Pray that God will draw him to Himself. Also, please pray for my church as we come to the nearer to end of the year and into a time of planning for the busy holiday ministry season and the coming year’s goals.
I’m sure my fellow Global Partners missionary to Japan, Andrea Swartout, would appreciate your prayers as well. She is currently in the US on home ministries, and is hoping to be back in Japan by the end of the year. Pray that her support comes in. If you want to keep up with her progress, you can check out her blog (http://swartyinjapan.blogspot.com).
Last, but not least, please keep praying for my language studies; pray that I will use my time wisely, stay focused, rely on God’s wisdom, get better at memorizing, and make some real, noticeable progress in the coming months.
I hope this email finds you all well. Thank you as always for your continued prayers and financial support, which have helped me to get this far. Let’s keep dreaming and believing together for the Lord!
– robin
ロビンホワイト
Robin White, Global Partners Missionary to Japan
by Whitey | Oct 25, 2008 | Life in Japan, Ministry News
First of all, many thanks to all of you who have been praying for me. As I’d predicted, this has been a busy month. School is getting harder and I had a couple of ministry trips, too. Last weekend I was in Gifu city, where I preached on Sunday about the Prodigal Son. It went well, but I’m glad to not have anywhere to rush off to this weekend.
As things get busier with school, though, I’m learning again to become a better time manager. My friend AJ wrote a post on his blog recently about focus that offers some good tips, not the least of which is the idea of a “stop doing” list. We get so focused on organizing and working through our to-do’s sometimes that we miss the fact that there may actually be stuff on the we don’t actually need to do.
For me, right now, learning Japanese has to take top priority. I’ve been having trouble keeping up, and last week one of my teachers sat me down to give me some advice — including the suggestion that should be studying about FIVE HOURS a day! That’s outside of class, meaning about 8 or 9 hours total, in class and out. So, to avoid distractions and stay focused, I’m forced to make my own to-not-do list…
1. I’m going to try not to go online more than once a day. I tried it this week, and did pretty well. If it’s work-related email or research I have to do, that’s one thing, but it’s amazing how we can feel compelled to check email, Facebook, and blogs several times a day. Well, no more, for me anyway. I’ll make an exception for weekends and holidays, but limiting my time online during the week will keep me more focused on more important things.
2. On a related note, I’m limiting my blogging to weekends. You might see stuff show up during the week, but usually it’ll be pre-written on the weekend, unless it’s really pressing (which it never is).
3. I’m going to stop doing the photoblog. For now, at least. I was doing all my pre-loading over there on the weekend, anyway, so it hasn’t been a huge time-sink. But it hasn’t been as fun as I’d hoped and may be a bit redundant, since I can and do post photos here as well. I think the occasional gallery and the weekly photo here is better than the daily photoblog thing, though.
4. I’m going to stop renting movies. I find I have a bad habit of renting something and then never actually getting around to watching it before it’s time to take back anyway. So this’ll save me money too. Plus my computer has run out of region-code switches and has forced my hand; I can watch my Canandian-purchased DVDs but not Japanese ones, without hacking. So my hand is forced.
5. I’m going to stop eating out so much. I tried coming straight home most days this week, instead of eating out and then studying and the coffee shop as I often do, and I had some really productive days. This one hinges on keeping a well-stocked fridge and coffee supply, though.
6. I’m going to not feel obligated to show up at every event. My church has been good about not pressuring me to get overly involved or giving me too responsibility, and letting me focus on my studies. But I’ve stilled tried to be involved and show up as much as I could. As a guy I knew in college once said, though: “Use your skips wisely.” I’m going to that now.
7. The podcast. It’s gotten so little response it’s probably not worth my time. Maybe once in a while, but no promises.
Well, there’s a parade going past the building now, and since it’s Saturday, I think I’ll go out and enjoy it. Have a great weekend, wherever you are.
by Whitey | Oct 10, 2008 | Weekly Re-Cap
I’m going away on Sunday and Monday, to Hamamatsu. Hopefully I’ll have some fun stories or pictures or something to share. In the meantime, here’s a video:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aSKzouakm0w&hl=en_US&fs=1&rel=0&border=1]
Ice Sculpting Contest in Nagoya, Japan. Specifically at Oasis 21. I came upon it after leaving Starbucks and shot some video on my cell phone. Probably the video quality doesn’t do it justice, but it was pretty impressive in person.
Thanks to those who commented on the previous post. Feel free to add your two cents if you haven’t already, and maybe I’ll come back to it with a follow-up sometime. For the record, I’m not worried about my future or anything; just curious to see how things will all pan out for us all, economically, and what that means for people like me.
I have been feeling a bit de-motivated, tired and distracted the past couple of days, though. I think I just need to re-adjust to school again and get back into a groove. Sometimes vacations don’t seem worth it. Anyway, prayers are appreciated; it’s going to be a busy next couple of weeks.
See you next week. That’s a wrap for now.
by Whitey | Oct 6, 2008 | Thoughts on Missions
This week Keith Drury talks about the current US economic turmoil and asks the question What will happen in the church if we enter a recession or depression? I thought he raised some really good points, and it brought to the front of my mind a lot of stuff I’ve been thinking about lately regarding how it might affect those of us in world missions. Here are the thoughts I posted in the comments section on Drury’s blog:
While it won’t be easy, if we go through a recession/depression, it might end up for the greater good. Would it hurt for us to learn to live below our means? Would it be a bad thing if we were less materialistic? Western culture (and some parts of the east, too, like here in Japan) has become way too consumeristic; we’re spoiled rotten. Maybe we need to learn the hard way…
On the other hand, as a missionary I wonder what it would mean for the future of missions. With less income, churches and individual Christians are less likely to support missionaries. Would we end up sending out less missionaries, or would we change the way we fund missions? Or would missionaries have to learn to live on a LOT less — like missionaries of past generations did, to the point of suffering?
This is so long I should just post it to my own blog… But one more thought: If any non-Americans (like me) reading this think that this won’t affect us if it happens, I disagree. With the world economy being what it is, and America being such a huge part of it, we are ALL in for a rough ride.
As Keith Drury would say, so what do you think?
And yes, I just block-quoted myself. I know.
by Whitey | Sep 30, 2008 | Ministry News
The following is a copy of my October Prayer Letter, as I just sent to my supporters via email. As an added bonus, I’m posting some photos with it here. If you’d like to be on the email list, you can sign up via my Support Info page. Thanks.
The guys.
Hi everyone,
First of all, thank you for your prayers during my recent end-of-term studies and testings. The good news is I passed the course and can go on to the next level, which starts next Monday.
Last night, I had a group of guys over to my place for a meal. A few guys from the church came, as well as my English student, who is not a Christian. It was a lot of fun, and a good chance for me to connect a non-Christian friend with some of his fellow-Japanese who are Christians. Please keep praying for my friend and for our English/Bible studies.
I’ve been enjoying a little bit of downtime since the first semester of full-time language studies ended. But as I said, next week I’m back to class. In addition, I’ve got a few additions to my schedule that will make for a busy month. Please pray for my studies and for each of these events. Pray that I’ll keep up with the studies and that God will bless and use the events I get to be a part of. Here are some dates…
Oct. 4 (this weekend) — I’ll be in Osaka visiting some friends, and I’ve been asked to provide some music for a charity dinner, where they’re raising funds to help build schools in Africa.
Oct. 12-13 — I’m planning on being a part of a team from my church going to Hamamatsu, where we’ll be doing some music, drama, etc, to help a partner church there do some outreach.
Oct. 19 — I’m scheduled to preach at the Immanuel Church in nearby Gifu. Pastor Oda will be interpreting again.
Thanks again for your prayers, support and encouragement! As always, you can check my blog for more information, news and thoughts on my life and ministry here in Japan.
God bless,
– robin
ロビンホワイト
We also played Jenga. Remember Jenga???
by Whitey | Sep 20, 2008 | Weekly Re-Cap
It’s Saturday evening at about 6:35 PM. I haven’t left my apartment all day. And it’s been great. I did some much-needed house-cleaning, some reading, watched some Lost, and generally just relaxed. I may do some drawing tonight, too. A good day of rest.
It’s much easier to relax now than it was about a week ago. This week was the last of the semester, so I’ve been pre-occupied with trying survive the big final exam. Took the exam Thursday. Found out yesterday that I — and everyone else — passed. Thanks, everyone who’s been praying for me!
So now I’ve got two weeks without any classes. This time I’m staying in Nagoya and getting some work done, as well as studying so I’ll be prepared for the next level when it starts after the break. I’m planning a long weekend trip to Osaka for the first weekend in October, but other than that, this is not vacation time, just a really nice change of pace and a chance to catch my breath a little.
October’s just around the corner. I think it’ll be a busy month. Not only do I start J-2 in Japanese school, but I’ve got a preaching opportunity in Gifu and a ministry trip to Hamamatsu (I think that’s the name) with a bunch of people from my church.
Should be fun times. Thanks for sharing the journey with me here on the blog.
by Whitey | Sep 10, 2008 | Ministry News, Weekly Re-Cap
Other than my latest Newsletter, I’ve been pretty quiet on here since coming back from my August Adventures. So I thought I’d take a few minutes and tell you what’s going on and what’s on my mind. So here, in point form, it is:
1. I don’t know if it’s my connection, my computer, my browser or the files themselves — or myself for that matter — but there seems to be something wrong with my Newsletters. Someone told me there were having trouble viewing it, so I checked it out, and I can’t seem to view or download it either. Anyone else having this problem? Let me know if you are. Maybe I need to re-think how I post them.
2. It’s the end of the semester for me, meaning this week and next are heavy on studies and tests. My interview / speaking test is on Friday, and “the big one” (the final exam) is next Thursday, the 18th. If you’re a pray-er, please pray.
3. I’m still planning to post some photos and stuff from the summer. So do check back soon.
4. I have a huge new desk in my room (actually it’s not new, I just swapped my small wooden desks — yes 2 — for this one big one that was being stored elsewhere in the church). It’s one of those big metal kind that are so common here in Japan. I read somewhere that these things first came to Japan with the Allied forces at the end of the World War Two. I don’t know if that’s true or not, but I could certainly believe they are of military origin. This thing’s built like tank!
5. Because of the new desk, there’s been lots of re-arranging going on. I moved the desk in on the weekend, and my apartment’s still a mess now. Actually my room looks quite a bit different now, between this and several other little changes over the past several months. I’ll have to post a new video sometime.
6. I’m pretty excited about a few potential opportunities coming my way: First, there are a couple of possible short-term missions teams coming here next year. I’m really hoping at least one of them works out. And, I may have a new cartooning gig coming my way. But that’s about all I can say about either of these things right now. Still, pretty cool. Trust me.
7. I’m planning a dinner party. Hmmm… “Dinner party” makes it sound fancier than it will be, so let’s call it “having some guys over to eat and hang out.” I want to introduce my non-Christian English/Bible student to some of my Japanese Christian friends. It should be a fun time of making connections and planting spiritual seeds.
8. I’m reading the Biography of Hudson Taylor… Wow. I’m pretty early into it but I’m sure I’ll get a lot out of it. He was a man of prayer and a man of action, and I could stand to be a lot more of a man of both.
Eight is enough.
Good night.
by Whitey | Aug 15, 2008 | Life in Japan, Ministry News, Thoughts
A couple of months (or so) ago, I was interviewed, via email for GP’s newsletter/magazine GP Worldview. I thought I’d share it here on the blog for those of you who haven’t read it. It was edited for space in the mag, so I’ll include some of the stuff that was cut out.
Tell me about your call to missions, especially to Japan.
I was “finished school” and working full-time as a graphic designer when I first started sensing God call me into ministry. I didn’t know where that would lead me ultimately, but it started with going back to school, where I received my Youth Ministry degree from Bethany Bible College.
After Bible College I still had no plans to go overseas as a missionary. I was a youth major, after all, and had a passion for worship leading. So I pursued various potential opportunities in youth and music ministry. But in all my searching for just the right ministry position, nothing I pursued worked out. For months, it seemed like every door I tried was closed. Then, through the internet, an opportunity came my way completely unexpectedly: a one-year position teaching English and doing ministry in Japan, at a little place in Sayama City, Osaka, called Grace English School.
After a lot of prayer and thinking, I really sensed that God was leading me to accept the offer. So in the summer of 2002 I left Canada for a year in Japan. It will be a great experience — an adventure, I thought, and besides, it’s only for a year, right?
That year changed my life. It was an adventure, yes. But it changed me in ways I didn’t ever realize at the time. It changed the way I looked at the world, the way I looked at missions, the way I looked at life in general, and the way I looked at myself. I fell in love with Japan and, seeing the great spiritual need, have been carrying a burden for the Japanese ever since.
I know this isn’t your first time in Japan. Tell a little bit about your first or past times there.
As I mentioned, my first experience with Japan was the year I spent in Osaka. My day-to-day life consisted mainly of teaching English, but since the English school I worked at was owned and operated by Believers, there was quite a bit of opportunity for ministry as well. We did a weekly event called “International Fellowship”, which was a time of sharing about culture, and a time for people to practice their English, but also a time of worship and Bible study. I played guitar and lead worship almost every week, and had the opportunity to do the Bible study on several occasions as well.
One thing that stood out to me about Japanese society was their ability to embrace modern ideas and technology while at the same time holding on to their distinctive culture and traditions. It’s a fascinating mix of the ancient and ultra-modern. But what I came to love most about Japan was the people.
How is the language learning process coming along? Are you able to communicate in Japanese?
I suppose that depends on how you define “communicate”! For a native speaking, talking to me in Japanese is probably like talking to a two-year old! On the other hand, that’s better than a few months ago. I have certainly made a lot of progress in my first couple of months of formal studies, but language learning is a slow and difficult process.
What cultural practices are the most challenging to adjust to?
In Japan, everything matters. There’s a rule and a right way to do everything. When you’re not from here, that of course means a you face a huge learning curve. Also, communication is often indirect, so you need to learn to read between the lines. And the language barrier just makes all of this learning all the more slow.
I know you have only been in Japan since the end of December, but so far what has been your high point?
It’s been a few years coming, so for me just being back in Japan feels great. But recently I had the opportunity, along with a new Japanese friend, to sing and play a duet during a Sunday afternoon outreach service. We sang a bilingual version of “The Love of God”. I also gave a brief introduction in Japanese. It was an amazing experience to be able to minster in this way in Japanese — even if (to be honest) I didn’t understand every word I said, and had to read the whole thing! One of my dreams is to be able to lead worship completely in Japanese, and this was a small step in that direction.
What will your ministry be?
During this term, my main focus is on learning Japanese. However, I will be involved at Immanuel Nagoya Church by doing some English teaching and helping with their youth ministry. I also recently began giving one-on-one English lessons to a young Japanese guy in exchange for his help with my Japanese. He’s not a Christian, but is open to studying the Bible, so we’re going to be going through the book of Mark together.
Do the Japanese know anything about Jesus? How do you go about sharing the gospel with them?
Japan is basically 99% unreached. That means the average person not only isn’t a Believer, but probably doesn’t even know who Jesus really is. With this being a group-oriented culture, where indirect communication is the norm, aggressive or confrontational forms of evangelism aren’t the way to go. Which is fine by me, since I’m not aggressive or confrontational. I think relationships are the key. That’s one of the reasons English teaching is such a great ministry tool here. As a native English speaker, this is a service I can offer the church as a way to help them to connect with people outside the church. And this is something I can do even while the language barrier keeps me from other areas of service.
What is your vision for the Japanese people?
I think there’s a great openness to the Gospel among today’s youth. I think the opportunity and possibility of reaching Japan may be greater now than ever before. My dream is to see Japanese Believers of this generation seize the opportunity to reach their generation with the love of Christ.
What has God taught you personally on this journey so far?
Patience! Maybe I should say he’s teaching me patience. Learning another language takes a lot of discipline and hard work. And with or without language and cultural barriers, ministry in Japan is a slow process of building relationships, planting seeds and trusting God to bring the harvest.
by Whitey | Aug 1, 2008 | Ministry News
Below is a copy of my latest prayer letter, as sent by email to those on the list. As you’ll see, August is going to be a full but fun month — I’ll hardly be home at all actually. Because of this I’ll be offline and not posting anything new to the blog — BUT I have a bunch of stuff pre-posted that will be going live automatically throughout the month. A lot of really fun stuff too (like the rest of the Engrish series — 5 parts in all!), so make sure to check back. Plus my Twitter feed is showing here now. Lord willing I’ll be back “live” in September. Have a great month, all.
———————————————————————–
Dear friends, family and supporters,
In Japan, this is the time of year that brings us extreme heat, humidity and the sounds of the cicadas. For students, it’s also time for summer holidays, and as a language student, that includes me! For the entire month of August I’ll have no classes, which will be a nice (and much-needed) break!
But that doesn’t mean I’ll be vacationing all month! Actually, August will be my busiest month of ministry so far this year. In addition to that, I’ll have homework to do (students in Japan generally have homework during their short summer break) and I’m hoping to spend some time each day catching up on some vocabulary and things I’ve missed along the way. At the end of the month I do plan take some time off, but for the first few weeks I’ll be busy — but a different kind of busy, so it’ll still be a nice change!
Here’s a rundown of my schedule for the month:
• Aug. 4-6 — Home in Nagoya getting ready for everything.
• Aug. 7-9 — My church’s youth camp; several unsaved junior high kids come to our youth events — pray for them to come and to have open hearts! I’ll be playing guitar on the worship team as well as being the “official” photographer.
• Aug. 11-14 — Youth Station (Tokyo) — the denomination’s national youth event of the summer. I’ll be taking part in a missions-themed discussion / teaching time, as well as teaming up with WGM missionary Zach Motts to lead some fun activities.
• Aug. 17-19 — Area Retreat (like family camp back home, but probably less “campy”). I’ll be giving a testimony and sharing in song during one of the services, as well as helping out with a youth service as an “MC”.
• Aug. 20-31 — Vacation!!! I’ll be visiting friends in Fukushima (Japanese countryside) and Tokyo (definitely not the countryside) before coming home, regrouping, and going back to school.
Please pray for safe travel, effective ministry, and that God will teach me some things along the way as well. Pray too that I manage to keep up with my studies and take advantage of the ample opportunities I’ll have to practice my Japanese in actual conversations at all these events. Pray, too, that this is a good time of relationship building for me, as it’ll be a good chance to get to know some of the teens I don’t usually see more than once a week.
Thank you so much for your continuing prayer support! I’ll try to send out a full newsletter in early September and let you know how things are going. In the meantime, I won’t be home much, so forgive me if I’m not able to respond right away to any emails you might send. “I’ll see you in September…”
Blessings,
– robin
ロビンホワイト
by Whitey | Jul 19, 2008 | Thoughts
I was reading through Philippians, one of my favourite parts of the Bible, this morning. A couple of things stood out to me I thought I’d share.
I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus… (Phil. 1:3-6)
I can’t read these verses anymore without thinking about all the churches, individuals and family members who are supporting my ministry in Japan through their praying, giving and encouraging words. So if I haven’t said it enough, THANK YOU! I pray God will bless you all for your part in my ministry and His kingdom.
… I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength. (Phil. 4:11-13)
This is a lesson I’m still learning to live out. For me the issue is not money or things. I really do have everything I need. And then some. But when I think about the future, with all the stuff I could be doing, the ministries I could be a part of, the opportunities I could have, sometimes it’s hard to be content now.
I’m a dreamer. I’m always looking ahead. I’m always looking for what’s next. It’s good to dream, it’s good to have goals and plans, but sometimes we can get so focused on the future that we fail to enjoy the present. Sometimes the work we have to do now to reach the goals and dreams we have don’t seem worth all the hassle in the present. We wish we could skip ahead.
I love Japan. I’m happy to be here. I even love learning the language. But it’s hard work. For me, the thing I have to remember is that this of focused language study is a step towards those goals and dreams for the future. It’s not a waste of time. In fact, it’s a necessity. But beyond seeing its value for the future, I need to learn to see the present as good in and of itself, and learn to take joy in the here and now.
There will always be a tension between being content and dreaming of a better future. But the present isn’t so bad. In fact I’m blessed.
Lord, help us to see Your blessings in the here and now!
I just realized how these two points tie together. One of the great blessings I have in the present is the many supporters standing behind me as I travel this journey. So again, thanks.
