combustion

::: that's what you get when the following sequence of events takes place...

• first, lunch is given in an open recreation room to a group of hungry 30 japanese kids -- ranging in ages from 3 to 10

• second, with the kids brimming in a state of sugar-induced restlessness, a curious boy wanders from the group and opens a large cabinent in the back of the rec room, discovering hundreds of small colorful plastic balls -- a tempting rainbow of fun

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...the match being lit, in a matter of seconds, several boys sprinted to the other cabinets, finding the same jackpot inside each one...before the child care team could blink, hundreds of these objects were being thrown around the room, zipping here and there like particles under a microscope...

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! combustion !

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...many of you who have - or work with -- children know what we're talking about...experiencing this combustion was part of a nonstop day as we served in the morning and early afternoon as limited translators/helping hands for a 12-person short-term team from new jersey...

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...this spirited team was comprised of three families...talk about merging ministry with family vacation plans...listening to both of the men, i appreciated how they have taken concrete steps to share their hearts for missions with their adolescent children (who, themselves, are active members of the short-term team)...divided into two groups, this team conducted a sold-out scrapbooking class for japanese women while providing childcare for 30 kids...

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...later in the day, after finishing toban (see previous post), we hosted a friday-night dinner fellowship in our home with tadanao...

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...who introduced us to two new friends, a lovely couple from southern california thinking about returning to japan on a long-term ministry basis...another soul-lifting reminder from the Lord that we are not alone in praying and persevering for the gospel in this unreached nation...

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:::