arigato go-zai-mas

...before seminary @ gordon-conwell, i was an attorney working in downtown l.a....worked for graham & james llp as a summer associate, which was then swallowed up by a larger firm called squire, sanders & dempsey llp (www.ssd.com) by the time i started working for them as a first-yr associate in litigation...this is the building where i worked...


...beginning in downtown and ending up in santa monica, today we had another full day of team building, each time leaving us with gratitude and joy for God's gifts of faith and friendship...as we invest in relationships on this side of the pacific, we trust that God will bless and use our relationships here to share the harvest joy of seeing God use our friendships in osaka for his glory...God, arigato gozaimas (thank you)!!!

...downtown: claire and i met up for brunch with nina, a radiant younger sister from church who is now doing so well as a 2L @ loyola law school, my alma mater (class of '99)...nina, keep glorifying the Lord in what you're doing...

...of course, since claire and i rarely spend time (and pay for parking) in la's urban forest, and plus, since we had to stay consistent with the "la law" theme, we had to go to a cultural landmark on the corner of 9th and fig (u downtowners know this place well)...

...the servers are cool and the food sticks to you for a couple days (buckwheat pancakes, ham steak, eggs, potatoes)...

...koreatown: after brunch, my eldest aunt and her daughter lauren wanted to meet up in k-town for fellowship...my aunt is one of those grandma prayer warriors who just lifts us up to the Father every morning...lauren is a wonderful testimony of God's strength and renewal and we love u so much, cuz!...claire and i always feel like when it comes to family, we receive more than we give but God reminds us that all is possible only by his grace and strength and so we are moved to keep praying regularly for those who pray for us...

...westside/santa monica: great time of mutual encouragement and refreshment with our dear friend cathy...girl, u know how much u mean to us so we'll just leave it at that...cathy took us to a great sushi place on colorado st./20th called roll'n'sushi, which makes....

...your standard rolls...

...and your not-so-standard rolls (this one "the kiss of fire" topped w/ pico de gallo & jalapenos, with the foiled centerpiece lit on fire when it arrives at your table)...

...as claire and i reflected on the day, we realized how much we need each other, to help each other along as we walk with God...with nina, we knew her in college, and now, as a young adult, we talked about how in this important life stage, as we try to discover God's will for us vocationally, socially, and spiritually, etc, it may be at times hard to live as a genuine Christian...by yourself it's virtually impossible (and certainly not biblical)...our culture is too tempting...our flesh too weak...so we need each other...to love God together...worship Him together...to serve and do justice and love kindness together (micah 5:6-8)...to pray for each other...to sharpen each other (prov 27.17)...to call each other out when necessary for each other's good...and that's the same thing with friends we had in college but with whom we now experience young adult life together...thank God that He calls us to love each other and shows us more of who He is and how awesome His love is when we love each other...