It's in a Book, a Reading Rainbow

I’ve start the book of the month, it is on loan to me from Dr. Peed. I’m only part way into the first chapter but I came across this quote from James Engel that really stood out to me:

North American Christian commitment to world evangelization is in sharp eetrenchment. Unless there is an intervention by God leading to across-the-board willingness in churches and agencies to cope with changing paradigms and realities, North America will become a secondary force in the world church.

I had to read that a few times before the whole meaning began to sink in. Questions Engel’s statement has me asking are:

1) If North America became a secondary force who would be the primary force?
2) Would it be such a bad thing if North America became the secondary force?
3) If change is to happen what and how would that look/work?

What are your thoughts on the subject? I have no answers just theories and ideals. Many finishing the books will help solidify my thoughts.

Three Thoughts and an Introduction

Intentions and reality are two different things; this blog is a prime example. My good intentions were to blog twice a week all month or at least weekly. Hell should be well paved…if the saying is true. Next month I’ll be more bloggernessee.

1) Last week I received an email from Selinda requesting prayer for Doc and Pat Taylor. Friday the 16th two men broke in and burglarised the place while they were there. Selinda has posted the prayer request on her blog.Yesterday I received an email from the Taylors also explaining what happened and requesting pray.

2) Japan was chosen as "country of the month" because Robin White was scheduled to share at my home church this past Sunday, which he did. Earlier this month he posted a book review on Will Ferguson’s Hitching Rides with Buddha. I loved the section about language issues:

"…like many Westerners, I also get confused by "human" (ningen) and "carrot"(ninjin), which once caused a lot of puzzled looks during a speech I gave in Tokyo on the merits of internationalization, when I passionately declared that "I am carrot. You are a carrot. We are all carrots. As long as we always remember our common carrotness, we will be fine." On another occasion I scared a little girl by telling her that my favourite nighttime snack was raw humans and dip."

3) The JW’s got it right! Well, maybe not everything right but they do seem to have some things about missions right. Over the past year I’ve enjoyed getting to know Andrea’s Adventures through her blog. Last week I read her post on Jehovah Witnesses in Japan. If the facts are true, should Christians (and GP, my denominations missions department) be more focused on Japan? Or is there another solution? After hearing how the budget for a missionary to Japan one of the church members asked me "wouldn’t it be better just to send Japanese churches the money?" What do you think?

Another New Feature

And to the Ends of the Earth has a guest author. Once a month (when it fits his schedule) Dr. Peed, professor of global ministry at Bethany Bible College has offered to write something ministry related. Below is his first article.

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Memories of Zambia, advertised as "the warm heart of Africa," come back to me every time about this time of year. Instead of snow, ice, and strong winds, this beautiful country is experiencing almost daily rains and temperatures in the 20s and 30s (C). While missionaries there my wife Marilee and I soon discovered that it was "tough" being a missionary, but, somebody had to do it!! There we were, "suffering for Jesus," in one of the most beautiful spots on the planet while our friends back home shovelled away. And not only was the weather different but, more related to the reason we were there in the first place, there was plenty of religious, cultural, and social diversity surrounding us.

Most of us who are passionate about global ministries say we value diversity. After all, none of us want to be called intolerant or arrogant or narrow-minded. These are especially cancerous in the life of the cross-cultural worker. Yep, we talk about being diverse, but how intentional are we about developing this trait in our lives? For example, how often do we take opportunities to "stretch yourself" culturally by seeking out and developing satisfying relationships with people who are ethnically different from us? Do we stay up on international news? Do we go to ethnic eating establishments? The list goes on.

Early on in our ministry in Zambia my wife and I had to decide either to embrace diversity and push ourselves out of our ethnocentrism or withdraw into our own worlds and become ineffective in our ministry. As best we could we opted for the former. Intentionally we tried to be people of diversity. I encourage you to make this choice also.

For Christ and His Kingdom,
Dr. Bill

Idea Postponed

Back when the purpose and concepts of this blog were still just a thought, I got this idea (that I thought was great) to do interviews with people some how connected to the country of the month. For January I thought interviews with two Bethany grads, Rachel and Jessica, who had done their internship in South Africa would work well. So far Jess has been a challenge to get a hold of. They are out whenever I call. But I was able to get a hold of Rachel the first night and had a wonderful conversation. She agreed to be my very first interviewee. We got caught up, shared about our lives, talked about the college days and our futures. It was very fun and I got three pages of notes out of it. And the sit on my desk waiting to be put into some coherent order.

Tomorrow begins a new month with a new country but I would still like to share the insights these girls gained from the experience. So someday there will be neat thoughts and such from their experiences in South Africa.

Tsotsi

Tsotsi n. thug, gangster, hoodlum

I have struggled to write a decent explanation of this movie. I made the mistake of reading two other synopses first. Their words are far superior. The official website says:

Set amidst the sprawling Johannesburg township of Soweto - where survival is the primary objective -TSOTSI traces six days in the life of a ruthless young gang leader who ends up caring for a baby accidentally kidnapped during a car-jacking.

The movie is rated R and defiantly not forever one. Another downside, for some, is that the movie is subtitled. These two factors aside the movie is worth seeing. It is about hope, redemption, and second chances. To see the fullness of change you have understand the world Tsotsi comes from. In the face of his harsh reality the whole story is beautiful. At first I wasn't able able to say that. The night I saw it I was disappointed and a little distressed. I have thought about the story since. It now holds hope I missed the at first.

The South African National Anthem

During a campus social at EWBC in 2004, students, staff, and missionaries shared a bit about their home country and sang their national anthem.

This is the South African's:

Beat the Drum

Beat the Drum follows the journey of a young Zulu boy in search of his uncle. It is a reflection of a culture dealing with the devastating affects of the AIDS epidemic while showing both the misconceptions and shame families and villages are facing. I first heard about the movie on my internship. It was being shown in Swazi high schools as an educational tool to open discussions on the subjects of sex, AIDS, and abstinence. At the time we were unable to get a hold of a copy. I was surprised this Christmas on my flight home when given the option to watch the movie. I found it beautiful. Just seeing the African country side, hearing bits of Zulu, and watching the story unfold was a joy. It is not the fast paced cinematography we are used to from Hollywood, somewhat predictable, and half the movie is subtitled. If you can handle those "downsides" I say it is a worth watching, if you can find somewhere to rent it.

Insight

Without language, one cannot talk to people and understand them; one cannot share their hopes and aspirations, grasp their history, appreciate their poetry, or savor their songs. I again realized that we were not different people with separate languages; we were one people, with different tongues.

Nelson Mandela
Long Walk To Freedom

More Talking and New Features

I want to thank everyone who joined in on the "Yes Lord, Send Me" discussion. The lack of single men in global missions is a growing concern and as Matthew pointed out a reflection of men’s church involvement in general. I wonder if the emphasis is put on compassion ministries and orphans outreach gives the impression that cross-cultural ministry "woman’s work"?


Two of the new features I am adding to And to the Ends of the Earth is a missions book of the month and a country focus. Links can be found on the sidebar (it took me awhile to figure out how to make them look right. I did a victory dance when I was done. Not really but I thought about doing one). January’s book is Nelson Mandela’s autobiography Long Walk to Freedom. I am about half thr the book. It is long but worth the read. I have been challenged and inspired. Before the end of the month I hope to share a few thoughts and insights I have gained. During my flight back to Halifax I sat next to a young boy whose family was moving to South Africa. We chatted about what he thought it where they would live and what he thought it would be like. It brought back fond memories of my internship in the near by Kingdom of Swaziland. I got an email from a Swazi friend asking how my Zulu was. I must sadly say horrible. I think I could still say yes. During that same flight I was able to walk the South Africa film Beat the Drum, the journey of a Zulu boy for truth. It was these little things and reading of Mandela that lead to my decision that South Africa would be January’s country focus.

Yes Lord, Send Me...

LarkNews headlines read:

Teen seeks missions assignment where women don't wear clothes

Oh how this article made me giggle. In different missions classes the topic would come up on the general lack of men and specifically single men in most missions organisations. We talked about how missions magazines put more male pictures to portray an image that missions is a manly thing. Of all the suggestions this never came up. It might boost the percent of single males on the mission field. Somehow I cannot see it being adopted, yet for those interested I know of a country or two….

What do you think the reason for the lack of single guys going overseas and is it possible to change the trend?

New Day, New Look, New Blog

After a four-month hiatus "Journey on the Other Side" is being reborn. For me it is more than a name and layout change. Over the year in Japan this corner of cyber space gave me a place to chronicle the adventures and share pictures. When I returned in August I wasn’t really sure what should be come of this blog. Then an idea began to form, of a blog that focused on cross-cultural ministry cultural anthropology. A place that would help keep my love for global missions alive while generating discussion on the subject. I am not 100% sure what this should or will look like. I have a few ideas we’ll see what comes. For now welcome to:

And to the Ends of the Earth

"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."

-Jesus

Reflections

I’ve been in Canada a week now. It is really good to be with my family, spend some time with my sister, and settle into my new place. I like it here but I am really missing Japan. It’s just different. The weeks also given me a chance to reflect on my year in a different culture to see how the time has shaped and changed me. I am really thankful for the past year and all that God has done in me. In the looking back here are a few of the good memories:

Liz Size
Turning Japanese
Vending Machine Fun
Maki’s Car
In Hiroshima
On Mt. Fuji

I’m going to be without a permanent internet connection till about September 7th. So I guess I’ll see you then.

Memoirs of a Moose

Over the past year I’ve shared my experiences of life in Japan. It is now the Moose’s turn. I still get some funny looks and questions about the Moose. So for those curious his name is Melvin. Before I left the New Hope youth group gave him to me so that I would have a traveling companion-bodyguard-mascot-something Canadian. Here are some pictures from his journey: Just thinking

Taste from home

Samuri Sanders

Yum Yum Green Tea

You say goodbye and I say hello

Tried to post this the August 4th, when I was leaving Japan but the internet decided to be mean.

I'm Home safe.
Life is good.
I've moved into my new place.
I miss Japan.

Gedo Senki

Maki and I went to see the newest release from Studio Ghibli, the company that brought us Totoro, Kiki, and the Howl’s Moving Castle. The biggest difference this one wasn’t director was not the acclaimed Hayao Miyazaki but rather his son.

I really enjoyed it. Only I have next to no idea what happened because my Japanese isn’t that good. I did recognize a few words but not enough to understand. Maki tried to explain after but that didn’t really work, she did a good job but there were just too many themes to explain. Still good times. I did like it. Some of the editing choices were interesting haven’t decided what I think of that. The movie is based off the Earthsea’s series I think the Farthest Shore. Thinking about reading them when I get home.

Then we went shopping and dinner. Can’t believe tonight is my last night in Japan. I hate packing.

God Wants You

Perfect Day

Creation Wonde

No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper;

and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn.

GOD WANTS YOU!

Sending you a warm hello!!

Got to love Engrish

Picture Club

One of my favourite ways to end good days is with a fun "pu-ri-ku-ra" (pronounced pu-lee-cue-la) It’s all the joy of a photo booth but the added fun of adding words and things after. The more friends the better. And they are printed on a sticker back. Most of times Maki and I go out we try and get a purikura done. Here are just a few from the past year:

And heres the process:

Word Up: Kawaii -Cute

Fun and Fireworks

Spent the evening with Yoko and her family. Good times. There was a great food and huge fireworks show. The only downside of the night was walking up the hill to their apartment and returning home after. Stairs are still my ultimate nemesis…and I found two new blisters. I think it was thought it.

One of my favourite parts of learning Japanese is use of foreign words. They sound so close yet so different. For example cheese becomes cheezu, coffee become co-he, Liz becomes ri-zu. Yoko shared with me that on trip to America she brought a music box for her sister and American brother-in-law as a gift. After opening the gift she was asked what it was. She said "It’s a orugooru" which is Japanese for music box. They didn’t understand which surprised Yoko because she thought orugooru had come from English. With that idea she tried again, time using her best English inflection and said: "all-gold". Classic language fun.

Word Up: Enjoy-ta Kudasai –a mix of English and Japanese to request you to enjoy, please.

Sunrise, Sunrise

Just got in from my two-day adventure up Mt. Fuji. It seems like it was all a dream, so surreal, except the pain keeps reminding me how real it was. I feel every jolt in ways I never imagined. Thoughts from the trip: I loved the parts were you need your hands to scramble over the rocks. I hate lose gravel. And stairs are my new nemesis.

July 30 began with a rocky start. I had over slept and woke up at 6am to Hideki calling to say they were ready to pick me up. Dressed and packed in five minutes. I was so out of it that when I jumped into the car Hideki asked where my glasses were I had totally forgotten them. The rest of the trip only improved. The woman sitting next to me on the bus was a God-sent she is Korean and speaks four languages including Japanese and English so she translated all the information for me. We arrived at Station 5 at 4pm ate supper and started to climb at 6pm. There were a group of Nova teachers also on the group tour so I climbed with them, Yeah for other foreigners! Arrived at station 8 around 10:30. We were suppose to crash for three hours. I couldn’t sleep then there was a mix up over which group was to leave at 12:30 so were got up a whole hour early. To pass the time the Nova boys had a farting contest. 2am we set out for the last leg of the upward journey. My thoughts of that time bitter cold and grueling. So thankful it didn’t rain. Saw a beautiful sunrise and arrived on the top of Fuji around 5:20. Looked around for about 20 minutes before the descend. It was so much faster going down but harder on the knees and joints. And arrived at the bottom at 9am. It was an awesome bang to finish my year in Japan. The next four days will be spent in packing and good-byes. Home is just around the corner.

Starting out