May 2019 Update

God is good guys!! He truly deserve all honor and praise especially last month
and this past month! He provided exactly what I needed for the month of April and the beginning part of May through your guy’s hands as I took the students to Tokyo and we did some ministry up there! Honestly I didn’t really press a need for financial help for the Tokyo trip but regardless of that the Lord really did a work and I was able to go to Tokyo without worrying about where my next meal was coming from. But even more than that I really want to thank the Lord for allowing me to serve Him here in Japan and giving me vision to do His work here.

In the month of May we finished up the CCBC Japan Spring semester and it was just awesome!! As I told you last month it was busy! April ended with pastors coming, Easter service, Block Classes, running a Worship Conference, and Cameron Dorsey coming. Then May began right away with the Japan conference.

I had been telling the students about the May Japan conference since the beginning of the semester and I wasn’t sure if everyone was coming but God made it happen and everyone came! Cameron (from CCH), Jacob (student), Dan (student), Megan (student) and I got to the airport at 11:30pm and had to wait outside for the airport to open at 1:00am. Our flight was at 2:30am and we were dead tired. I don’t even remember the flight because I just slept hard. To acquire cheap tickets on this major Japanese holiday we had to book some weird flights and so we were on the first flight out from Okinawa to Tokyo. We got in at 4:30 am and we just found some couches to take a few hours worth of naps to catch up on some much needed sleep. Hiromichi (intern), Rin (intern), Masaki (student) & Keegan (student) were on a flight at 10:30 am so they were getting in little later. Pearl (student) which was the last student would fly out at 1:00pm and would meet up with us later. So we all got there at different times and started off the trip with little bit of site seeing because we had nothing else to do that day except go to the place we were staying. We went around to Harajuku and checked out the place and decided to go to Tokyo Station and eat food together. We then headed to Fuchu where we stayed with Pastor Rich, pastor of Calvary Chapel Fuchu. The Ladies stayed at the church as the guys stayed at a school that Pastor Rich runs down the street. We got our things together and headed off to Onsen which is a Japanese Hot Spring. It is a cultural experience which should not be missed if you ever go to Japan. Although there are a few edict things you have to be mindful of but it is well worth going! Some of the students did not want to go in which is fine but all of us that did were glad we did especially after a long day of travel. Afterwards Pastor Rich graciously picked us up and dropped us off at the church where we staying and we ended the night there.

May the 2nd started off the conference and so we hurried off to the train station and headed to the conference center. For those who do not know Japan has an amazing train system that allows you to travel basically anywhere in and around Tokyo. It can be confusing if you are not paying attention but we had gone a few times in the past so we were used to going around by train. Plus we had a few Native Japanese speakers with us so that makes things a little easier as well. As we got to the Conference center it was a blast! Just saying hello to old friends and helping them as they got ready for the conference. We even had a guest speaker from America his name was Pastor Dan(OR DAVID GOTTA CHECK) Frinfrock who is a famous Pastor who made IBS famous and teaches it all over the world. It was a blessing getting to see Pastor Chizuo (Pastor of Calvary Chapel Kokubunji) who Pastor Ron from Calvary Chapel Houston knows. Since Cameron was with me as well it was fun to see him as he interacted with some people he got to see when he and some other young people from Calvary Houston came out to do relief efforts back in 2011. I on the other hand was not able to go back in 2011 because I was too young to go. But reguardless it was fun to reunite with everyone, help out and jump right into the conference. We then went out to lunch with some people that had come out for SOS (Summer of Service) a few years back. Afterwards we finished up the day and went back to Calvary Fuchu and went to bed early to prepare to come back the next day.
May the 3rd we jumped back on the train in the morning and headed to the conference center. This year there were no workshops but instead there were more teachings. We went to lunch with some people from a Calvary in Osaka and we ate Ramen as we talked about the next generation of Japan and the fact that we have to raise them up in Jesus. We had some great conversations and again it is always fun every year to go and just reunite and really talk about all the things God is doing in our ministries. The conference wrapped up and we headed back to Calvary Fuchu and helped out at a barbecue that Calvary Fuchu was putting on for the Conference. Pastor Rich is awesome for creating a space where we can continue to fellowship and just love one another as the family of Christ, especially as some of the people who came for the conference come from far away, or at least different part of Japan.

May the 4th was a free day to just go and hang out so we did exactly that. We went to check out different parts of Tokyo including Asakusa which is a pretty famous temple in Japan. I gave Cameron & the students an explanation on everything that was happening at the temple and told them these are the people that we are praying for as we minister in Japan. We pray for the people who have been deceived by the devil to pray and even sacrifice money to false gods for their own fortune and false hope. We then went to Shinjuku station because one of the students really wanted to go to see the huge Godzilla statue that was on a roof of a hotel. After all that we went back to Calvary Fuchu to attend their worship night and worshipped with the people there. We got opportunities to just worship Jesus as a family and fellowship afterwards.

May the 5th was a Sunday and so we headed off really early in the morning to Ome which was one of the furthest stations away on the Tokyo train line. We hung out with Pastor Tom Cotton who is actually a graduate of CCBC Japan and was an intern there for a long time. He showed us the church and just the ministry that was happening there and it was very similar to the way we run Calvary Ginowan. All in all it was a great time to just minister to them as we played worship & taught the Word that morning. I lead worship with Rin as a vocal backup and Hiromichi on the Cajon. Hiromichi taught the word and I translated for him in English. All in all it was a blessed morning. Pastor Tom Cotton also ran a English cafe ministry on Sundays and allows random people to come in and practice English so we had the students hang out and talk with people. We also had an evening service & I did a short devotion as we jumped into a time of prayer. Pastor Tom from Calvary Ginowan also came by and hung out at that time. We ended the day with fellowship as Pastor Tom Cotton took us to his house and fed us. His wife Chika and baby boy Jesse were there as well just hanging out and it was a blessing to just fellowship with another part of the family of Christ. Dan, Megan, Cameron and I after that went to Fuchu and we immediately left to go to the airport because we were staying the night there. We found some lovely benches to take a few hours nap and got on the plane at 6am to fly back out to Okinawa.

What was fun about the 6th of May which is the day we got back is that I had work! And so after we got picked up we went back to the dorm, took a little nap, sent Cameron off to the Cafe, and went off to work. Needless to day that day was tiring. But it was great fun as I get to teach children on the military base music! I ended this day, which was the last day for Cameron to be on island, hanging out with him, Jacob (a student) and Melisa who wanted to hang out as well!! That ended my week of grand adventure and fellowship in Tokyo. It also ended my two week fun time with Cameron after two conferences and showing him around. The next day a Tuesday I took Cameron to the airport and we parted ways. It was a blessing to just be able to hang out with him and show him all the awesome things that God has been doing here in Japan and in my life.

But the week wasn’t over! As Wednesday rolled around we had graduation for a couple of our students: Keegan and Dan, who have been here for a couple semester! Please pray for them as they continue in the plans of the Lord! Also pray specifically for Keegan as he is staying here for the time being as a missionary. With this week ending it also ended the last week of the semester and we started to say good by to some of the students. But as a last hoorah I planned some time on Saturday to go island hopping and so I took some of the students, some interns and Melisa to Kudaka island which is off of east side of Okinawa. It was a fun relaxing time where we got to just hang out on the beach and just relax after a busy busy semester. This semester really taught me a lot especially as this was probably the most busy I had been in my whole life. And I’m sure this is not the end of my busyness. I learned a lot about trusting in the Lord not only in the big things but also in the little things as I was doing homework and trying to make time to do different things in my ministry and even in my own personal life. Trusting in the Lord is a life long lesson I will continue to learn but I am so glad that the Lord is always faithful. After the semester the business kind of subsided which was great because honestly it was just a non stop roller-coaster ride. But I took some time to just prepare for the next steps. I am leading a 4 week summer program called SOS (which stands for “Summer of Service”) and it is a program that really shows how ministry is run here in Calvary Ginowan and also different parts of Japan. I am planning to go to different parts of the island and even minister with a few smaller churches a few hours away from us. Within the program we will be going to Kagoshima city which is in Kyushu the second biggest island in Japan and actually where I was born (in the city of Miyazaki). We will be assisting Pastor Rob and doing ministry out there for a few days and just be willing to be moved by the Spirit and be flexible and do different things.

I am also trying to do a few different things for work as well as trying to just set myself up little bit better! My job at the music school will be ending before SOS begins this summer.

All in all the month of May has been exciting and I am excited for the month of June as it starts the SOS program! We have two students officially and so please pray for Malika & Yael. Pray that they would really be strengthened in the Lord here and learn to love Him more. Not only that but to learn to love people across culture and realize that Jesus transcends culture! Pray for vision for me as I lead and just flexibility as well as a leader!



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Be blessed,
-Jona