Sunday 2,07,10 : After having breakfast as a team and catching up with some other stinters, we had our first message by the head of the stint organization in the US, a devotional time, and then another session for the guys and the girls. We quickly finished lunch and then as our team leaders Matt and Maria went for a team meeting, we (Robin, me, Mike, Lyndsey, AJ) went to the beach to swim. It was my first warm ocean swim, although it wasn’t completely clear and blue. =/ We also dug a 3 feet deep hole and buried Mike in it. xD I got sunburned even though I was only there for 2.5 hours. =( I came out, caught up with some Korean stinters, and then went to two more seminars before dinner. We went to Chili’s for dinner and got to hang out with some east asia stinters and share stories on how God is working in our campuses.

Also, on the way to the restaurant we went through a mall, and there was a salesman asking for volunteers to try to win a free pillow. I was surprised that no one was taking him up on his offer, so I went up and got his pillow. XD On the way back to home through the mall, our team asked him for more opportunities for pillows so he got 6 of our teammates up to play a game to win 2 pillows. xD It was so cool to see my team up there having fun; I feel that we’re much more crazy and fun than the other east asia teams. =) My team is so crazy it’s awesome. =)

Monday 2-08-10 : Had breakfast and met some Canadian stinters from Toronto. Then we had a message on suffering for Christ’s glory and what being an apostle is like. After a break for an hour of devotions, we had another seminar on spiritual warfare. It was soooo good and it was a good reminder that we are involved in a war for souls and for His glory. They also reminded us that this midyear conference is designed to give us time to refresh ourselves in God and spend time with HIm. I pray that I will continue to keep fighting hard and equipping myself adequately for my position in the frontlines.

After lunch, I had a small nap, then spent another quiet time in my room. It was a really good time as I finished “The Knowledge of the Holy” by A. W. Tozer. I am understanding more about the reason of my time in Japan and how I fit in God’s sovereign plan. I came down after my devo to catch the end of the superbowl party, then had a coaching time with John ask I asked him many questions about my future. He was really helpful and give good advice and his experience being on staff.

We decided to take a snorkeling trip so we planned it with the other stint teams and friends. Then we had another seminar on “Love My Team” and how we can love the team that God has given us. As I hear all the problems past teams had faced, I realized how incredibly blessed I am to have such a good team. We love each other, and we really click and have fun with each other. I pray that I do not take it for granted and not show love to my team more often, but that this next semester will be one where I can bless them even more.

We finished the meeting then planned more for the snorkeling trip. Then we had dinner at a Chinese restaurant. After dinner, I finally got myself a juice bag! XD I had starfruit juice and it was great. =D We wandered as a team to 7-11, then came back and I hung out with an east asia stinter and gave him advice for his future. It was a really good time to talk about our ministries, passions, and our struggles learning how to walk in step with God, but in the end he told me that I was able to really bless him and now he is able to make his decision regarding next year.

After these few days of blogging, I have realized that I am learning so much about God but I have written so little about the revelations about Him that He has revealed to me. This blog’s first purpose was to give a glimpse into my daily ministry, but now I am thinking I should put more of my personal walk with God here so you can see the journey that He is bringing me through.

Thursday 2/04/10 : We had breakfast then met up at 11am to decide where to go. We decided to go to the national rainforest reserve in the middle of the town so we took a bus to the park. We hiked around the park for 2 hours,were eaten alive by the mosquitoes, kept our eyes out for dangerous animals (large spiders, snakes, scorpions, and bees), and then got up to the KL tower. There was a hilarious monkey there who was trying to steal food from the stores. =D On the way down, we saw another monkey named Nola and were able to pet him/(her?). Then we walked to a nearby mall and found some really cheap food for lunch (about $2 for the BBQ duck and rice dish I got, and $1.5 for the mango drink). =) Then we split up with Robin going back home and the rest of us took taxis to Midvalley Mall, the biggest mall in the area. We got there late for Maria’s appointment with her relatives. It was difficult trying to find them because we were without cellphones in the big mall, not to mention that Maria hasn’t seen her auntie in 10 years and sort of forgot how she looked like. She was getting worried that we missed her aunt, but as I prayed, the relatives showed up right next to the guys! O_O

After introductions, we left Maria with her relatives and then we wandered the mall looking for Robin since we were supposed to meet up at one of the stores. After a futile search, we decided that Robin would probably be good on his own. So we hung out in the mall, had dinner, and then went home.

Friday 2.05.10 : Woke up at 9 because the girls really wanted to have breakfast as a team. But even though all the guys woke up on time, the girls came 15 minutes late when all the guys finished breakfast. ^^;; Then 7 of us decided to go to the Batu caves, which is a cave formation up in a cliff. It takes 272 steps to go to the top and it is also a site of a sacred hindu shrine. The taxi driver that took us there was trying really hard to give us a tour of the place and take pictures of us. He was being too friendly that it was a little annoying, but at least he was helping. ^^;; I felt a little sad that there were so many people coming to the shrines and praying there.

On the way back, Mike, AJ, Lyndsey and I decided to stop by Chinatown instead of going straight to the hotel. We shopped around for souvenirs and had HUGE glasses of juice to go with our lunch. =D Lyndsey bought some stuff and then it started to rain hard again. So we took an expensive taxi (we got ripped off) back to our hotel. After resting a bit, we went downtown as a team and looked for western food for dinner. We settled on this chicken place and had an awesome dinner. =D Then as we looked around the shops, we got separated from Matt. After looking for him, we trusted he got back safely so we took the train back to our hotel and found Matt safe at home…

It’s crazy how we stayed safe with all these things that go on. We stayed in a hotel in Chow Kit, which is the seediest and scary place in all of Kuala Lumpur. Also, it is funny how many times we got ripped off by the taxis. =/ But God took care of us the whole time we were in KL, so all in all it was a great adventure.

Saturday 2-06-10 : Woke up and left the hotel at 9:30am. We took the taxi to KL Sentral then a bus to the domestic terminal. It was a super short trip from KL to Penang. We ran into some stinters in the airport in KL! =D

Penang is super nice! The hotel rooms are amazing and we can see the sky blue ocean from the hotel. We went through the troublesome registration (Robin was listed to room with a girl, and all of the Japan team didn’t have rooms). We got to meet up again with a ton of other stinters and then we went for dinner with our coach. We got lost on the way to this place she wanted to take us to, so we ate at this Chinese restaurant instead. Then on the way back, we weren’t sure how to get back so we got even more lost. But we finally found the bus stop, and we got on this super shady bus back home. It was sooo old and creaky and the doors didn’t close. But we got home safely and with an adventure for the night. That sort of thing has been common for the Japan team as we keep getting into crazy situations and having a good time. But I think we scared our coach with the night…haha

After getting back, the guys hung out on the beach for 2 hours and then went back. On the way, we found a crab and I caught it so we can scare the girls with it….um….I mean, give it as a gift for them. xD Our team is awesome.

I haven’t been able to update my blog until today, but I have been able to write it down on my computer as I waited for internet. I have slow internet right now so I can’t upload any pictures, but I’ll do that later. =) So here is my update from my short vacation and conference up to now.

Tuesday 2,02,10 : I didn’t sleep from the night before since I came home late from the movie. I finished my admin stuff and my newsletter, and by the time I finished, I started packing at 3:30 in the morning. I finished by 5am and Matt came by and we left our apartment by 5:30. Since it snowed and the bus doesn’t come until 6:30am, we decided to take the taxi to the Mitaka station (best 600 yen spent, it would have been horrible to get to the station with our bags in the snow). We took the rapid Chuo down the Tokyo and waited for the girls and met them at 7am, and then we took the Sobu line down to Narita airport (it was 83 minutes long, so I got to take a nap). We got on the airplane (Malaysia Air) and took 8 hours to fly to Kuala Lumpur.

It is hotttt here. We got off the plane and exchanged $10 into the Malaysian ringgit and then took a bus all the way to Kuala Lumpur Sentral. Then we finished changing our money and then took a taxi to our hotel. after settling in, we went outside for the outdoor restaurants and had some good Chinese food. Oh, and the fruit drinks are amazingly huge for a cheap price. For a tall glass of starfruit juice, it is less than a dollar, and for a super huge upgrade it is only $1.5. O_O

Something we enjoyed since coming to Malaysia is the ability to hang out late into the night. In Tokyo, we would be restricted by the train schedule and the long commute home. But now as we live on the same floor of the hotel, we can hang out as a team late into the night, telling stories, cracking jokes, and planning our next activities.

Wednesday 2.03.10 : I woke up at 10 and got downstairs for the free breakfast. It was interesting as you can see the 4 types of breakfast foods available, reflecting on the population in Malaysia. There was the Chinese breakfast foods, the Indian breakfast, the Malay breakfast, and the foreigner style breakfast stuff. After breakfast we took a walk to the train station and went to downtown KL, wandered around some shops, and had some cheap Chinese food. Then we went into a shopping mall and found a Borders! It felt just like America, with English books and music. I miss Borders back home. =(

We took the train to a station close to Chinatown, and after getting a little lost, we found Chinatown. It reminded me of Ladies’ street in HK, with all the shops selling random things like shirts and watches and knockoff brand goods. We shopped for 3 hours and then had Chinese food (yay! I love Chinese food). Then we continued shopping for a bit. I bought a messenger bag and haggled it down to almost 50% off. I know I could have got it down to 30%, but I am sucky at haggling because I feel bad for asking for such low prices. =( The rest of the team went back to the hotel while Mike and AJ and I went to find a massage. We found a place and haggled it down to $17 for an hour of massage. XD I hope we can find some cheaper massages though.

After the massage, we wandered around the place and looked for a converter for our computers. Malaysia definitely seems much safer in the day, because at night all the shady parts seem quite dangerous (and most likely are). We found what we needed and then got a taxi back home. We hung out at the other guys’ room until 11, at which they decided to go eat 4th meal and I decided to return back to my hotel room and spend some quiet time with God. =)

Big update before I go to Malaysia. It’s uncertain if I can keep updating while I am there, so perhaps I’ll be back Feb 12th or 13th…

Friday 1.29.10 : We had our last day of Stint Boot Camp. After prayer and worship, we went over our testimonies for the last time. I got to share my 3 minute testimony and received good feedback on how I can improve it. We also went over effective ways to transition into the gospel. Then we spent a long time going over the Japanese “Knowing God Personally” booklet and how we can use it more effectively.

After our long meeting, we surprised Matt with a birthday cake. =D After eating cake, we went to the Village Vanguard in Kichijoji for some awesome American style burgers. =D It was such a good taste of home. =D Then we went to an English pub for happy hour and they gave a super huge birthday drink with sparklers for Matt’s birthday for free. O_O After the happy hour ended at 7, we went to an arcade; Lyndsey won 2 things from the crane game and Matt/Robin tag teamed for the 3rd win. But the star of the arcade was Mike, who showed off his blazing fast feet on the DDR machine. Apparently he is a master at DDR, playing on the max difficulty for a 300 beat per minute song. O_O We ended the night going to a theater to watch “Where the Wild Things Are.” I think it was a waste of my money, as I didn’t really enjoy the movie.

Saturday 1/30/10 : I had a lunch appointment with Alvin’s sister in Shinjuku. We went to Din Tai Fung, which is a world famous Taiwanese restaurant. Their specialty is Xiao Long Bao, and I really enjoyed it the last time I was in Shanghai and we had TONS of it. But it was a little more expensive in Tokyo, so we settled for a lunch set (still expensive). I was able to pass on a gift from Alvin to his sister and had a good time chatting with her. She asked what I was doing in Tokyo and what her brother did in Davis, so I shared about why we enjoy our work. I was also able to share with her a little about who God is. =) I hope that some time in the future I will be able to invite her to church with me. =D

When I returned to Mitaka, I dropped by the student center and got to say goodbye to some of the Yokohama stinters. Two of them are ending their stint in Feb, so they are returning to Korea soon. I thanked them and requested for them to return soon. xD

Sunday 1-31-10 : I skipped church so I can work on a student’s graduation thesis. My teammate Mike met a student who used to attend impact meetings, and Mike, not believing in fate/coincidence, realized it was God who set up this opportunity. So he offered to help her proof her senior thesis. But when he read it, he realized he didn’t understand anything that was going on, so he asked if I could help. I read it and realized it was Biochemistry, and right away I could see a glimpse of why God had me study Biochemistry in college. Before, I was always asking God “Why did I have to take Biochem? Couldn’t you have allowed me to take Japanese or something useful?” Now I can see a small reason for why God had me take Biochem instead of any other major. =)

So after finishing the proof, I went to Holy Spirit for dance practice. OMG…..it’s so cool and soooo hard to do. Waging War’s hip hop dance is much more complicated for me than the Rejoice dance. =( I am praying really hard for God to help me learn quickly, but I need lots of practice. After practice, I showed off the Holy Spirit T-shirt design I created and we also worked on another project for the future with A-chan. You’ll find out what the project is later. =)

Monday 2/01/10 : I was doing admin and errands for the morning and then we went to Roppongi for dinner with Waseda friends. =) We had udon for dinner. Rachel, Isabel, Jean, and Dhani joined us (Maria, Lyndsey, Lillian, Evan, and Me) for dinner, and Keisuke, Saori, and Ryosuke joined us for the movie. We watched the Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus for half off ticket price. =D The movie was crazy but interesting. It has many moral and philosophical ideas portrayed in the movie, but in the end it left me with a off feeling. I was hoping for more, but I was disappointed in the ending. I can clearly see the sad side of human nature portrayed in the movie. After the movie we went to a cafe and had good conversations over drinks. Jean asked Isabel and me questions she had about the Bible and we had a good conversation. =)

IT”S SNOWING IN TOKYO RIGHT NOW. I heard from a student that Tokyo doesn’t snow often, but today it was just coming down hard. The Singaporeans were ecstatic to see the snow, as Singapore doesn’t have snow, so they ran around screaming and having fun.

I’m packing now for Malaysia. I’ll be away for 2 weeks!

Prayer Requests:

1. For wisdom as we go to stint conference and have training and coaching. Also for wisdom in discerning our next year’s plans

2. For protection, as Malaysia isn’t the safest place

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Thursday 1.28.10 : Went to lunch at a pho place with Mike before going to the stint boot camp. Today we had worship then prayed for Gaidai, Seikei, Waseda, Hitotsubashi, and International Christian University High School. Afterwards we continued to work on our testimonies and heard AJ and Lyndsey share about God working in their lives. I wish we had more time to hear about each person’s testimony, as the 3 minute testimony only scrapes the surface of each of our lives.

Then we went to karaoke for teambonding time. =D Everyone is so good at singing or having fun singing random songs; it makes me wish I knew more songs to sing. ^^;;

Team karaoke pic =)

Mike and I got an appointment at a hair salon after our karaoke place. I haven’t had a haircut in 5 months since it was so expensive to get a haircut in Japan. I was going to wait until Malaysia but then we got 50% off coupons for a hair salon. So I went and got a Japanese style haircut. It was my first time ever in a salon, and it didn’t help that they said everything in Japanese. ^^;; But Mike and I came out with some pretty nice styles, shampoo, and a short massage, so it was worth it. =D We finished off the night with ramen at one of the popular ramen shops near the student center. =)

New haircut =)