by Karis Hicks
“The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” John 1:5
Only three full days have passed since Sarah and I landed to join the rest of the team, three days of observing the beauty and calmly collected order of life in Japan. And yet the heaviness of a broken world has been so felt, the presence of darkness here in Japan so crushingly evident. Darkness that is waiting for the hope and joy of the light of Jesus who promises, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” John 8:12
Seeing so many, both Japanese and global visitors, bow before a shrine in an effort to be heard by their god was so deeply heartbreaking. Observing millions of homes, schools, office spaces and streets full of image bearers who have no idea that they are missing the most important part of their identity (God) was overwhelming. And realizing the magnitude of those yet to be reached in Fukuoka, the nation of Japan, and ultimately the world was discouraging beyond words. BUT GOD! Even in all of this heavy dark brokenness, He has been so clearly at work, and He IS bringing His light to the world. His hope and light arrived in Jesus’ coming to earth as a man, and now He invites us to continue sharing that joyful news with those who haven’t yet experienced the light.
Today, with the gorgeous Monday weather of 84F, sunny blue skies and a lovely breeze, our teams (from four different churches!) headed to the beech to share as much light of the good news as the Lord brought! Equipped with pickleball, frisbees, volleyball, spike ball, sunscreen and joy of the Lord, we quickly drew a group of very enthusiastic participants. Through laughter and running and teamwork we began slowing down to walk like Jesus walked, as a “three mile an hour God”, focusing on human relationship, not human power (Koyama). We even had a moment where a lost roof-frisbee and a nearby ladder (graciously lent to us from a nearby beach restaurant!) became the source of attention of a large crowd who then stayed to participate. The Lord works in mysterious ways, and that was such a good bonding moment for all of us! I have no official numerical count of gospel-lived-out conversations that occurred today, but as I paused mid-way through an ultimate frisbee match and looked out over the beach, I couldn’t help but smile with joy at the many pockets of believers sharing the light and joy of the Lord with so many for perhaps the very first time in their lives!
Thank you for your faithfulness in prayer, we are so thankful for that! Please keep lifting up the new friends we have already made, that they would come to English Connect on Thursday and ultimately come to know the Lord! And keep praying for the remaining outreach days, that the Lord would bring more and more opportunities to meet those who do not yet know the True Light!