New Year's Eve 2007 Thanksgiving

Photo: Aiko lights her New Year Candle (Fukuoka, Japan 2004)

(New Year Candlelight Ceremony- part 2 of 3)

Before the New Year, here's a recounting of what I'm thankful to have done or learned in the year since arriving in the beautiful mountainous central prefecture of Nagano. The links are to posts from the past eight months.

Communicating with you...

Over the years I published at least a hundred newsletters about my adventures and ministries-- in Mexico, five years in India, and then the U.S. where, eleven years ago, I started emailing newsletters, as we headed first to China, and then Japan.

With my ever expanding band of children and grandchildren and friends now on five continents -- all with varying degrees and angles of interest-- I've found it difficult to say all I wanted to some, without boring the rest.

Blogging has helped. I can now post whatever happens, interests me or I care to share for the interest or benefit of friends or family-- and they can view or read what interests them. Now I spend less time agonizing over what to leave out-- leaving more time to—communicate!

And I've really enjoyed the increased personal e-mails, photos, calls and web-cam meetings we've had this year- quality person to person communication-- Thanks for calling and writing!

...and Fun with Friends

This year, usually with Andrew-- and often his friend Leina, who is also ten years-old-- I've found time to enjoy mountain-climbing, hiking, bike rides in the countryside, my first trip to Tokyo, and taking many photos. And, since we missed our (sniff) Fukuoka friends from the southern island of Kyushu-- Andrew and I hitchhiked to visit them in August.

Simplifying...

I've made progress this year in learning to focus on priorities – meaning not just being lead by what I find in front of my nose each morning-- like this quotation that I adapted and adopted for myself:

'Get up each morning and set your heart-- not on what you have to accomplish in your own energies-- but set your heart on eternity, and nothing else will matter-- and nothing will be able to defeat you.'

...and Prayer

When I think of all I want to do myself and see done for others-- and remember to measure the task and my own strength against the power of heaven-- then I think of prayer.

I've found a new, distinct focus for prayer in my life. Rather than an 'add-on' to my others activities, it's becoming a major part of my life in its own right-- and the more I pray, the more I want to pray.

And there is so my to pray for-- from my newest grandchildren-- Izumi in Hungary and Kevin in California-- to the 'gettin' grow'd up' ones in Texas and Zambia. For my mom and dad, sisters and brothers, nieces and nephews-- and you!

It's no wonder grandparents are often known for their prayers-- they finally realize the limits of their human resources and begin to lean on the divine.

Lumangwe Falls in Zambia

My daughter, Amy-- in Zambia with her husband and six children-- sent me this note. They live in in a remote-- and beautiful-- area and she had an opportunity to enjoy it that I want to pass on to you.

(from Amy) I wasn't looking forward to my birthday at first, but then I was invited to go with some friends-- who are in Zambia as volunteers-- to see two of the amazing waterfalls in our area.

The following day two of the same girls came over and cooked me an Indian dinner while my kids baked me a chocolate cake with orange butter frosting.

The waterfalls are about 2 1/2 hours away from us-- the last hour is a dirt road. At one point we hit some wet mud and slid out of control for a bit before the driver was able to pull us out of it. Very scary! We also hit some large potholes and, since I was in the back of the four-wheel drive, I hit the roof a of couple times. Definitely a new experience-- since I am so short, my head rarely hits anything.

(If you want to see a photo and read the details of where she is about to tell us about, you can look here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lumangwe_Falls)

The falls were absolutely breathtaking. It really puts life and its problems in perspective. Like I said, I hadn't been looking forward to this birthday, not because of a number or anything-- I think it was more that I was just worn out and needed some time to myself and my brain latched on my birthday.

When I thought there was nothing to do for my birthday, I got a bit depressed-- but then the falls trip opened up. Standing there looking at the vastness of the waterfall, being drenched by the mist, it was all so awe-inspiring and reminded me that the same One who made these incredible sights was the One who was looking after every detail of my life. Who was I to grumble, worry, or get worked up?

I am amazed that more people don't visit the falls up here but the roads aren't paved for the last hour and there really aren't facilities around it to make staying here a possibility. Such a shame. On the other hand, it was so nice looking at a marvel of nature not surrounded by tourists and signs absolving whomever of any liability-- no gift shops, etc. I wish the whole world knew about these falls and, at the same time, I wish I could keep them all to myself.

There are two falls close to each other. We went to the first one and after looking at it from the top we climbed down the gully to the bottom of the falls so we could swim. I hadn't brought a swimming suit since I rarely go swimming-- preferring to read at the water's edge. But since this was a big day for me I decided to go for it all the way and swam in some of my clothes.

My kids were horrified when I got home. First of all, they were disappointed that they missed out on seeing me in the water because they are always begging me to swim and second, because they couldn't believe I swam in anything but a regulation swim suit.

After swimming for a few minutes we drove down to the second waterfall. In order to see this one we had to follow an overgrown path. I use the word 'path' in the loosest of terms-- We had to push our way between tall grass and thorny vines, climb over and under fallen tree trunks, and navigate slippery slopes. A couple of times we couldn't tell where the path was and had to guess.

Then, all of a sudden the path opened up and we were standing on this bluff looking at this amazing waterfall. The mist was blowing over us and the water was rushing down. It felt like perhaps we were the first ones ever to see this sight.

I got quite the workout that day-- climbing down and back up the first gully and then navigating the second path. As I was working my way back to the vehicle I was thinking how the memories of this day would last me a lifetime and my muscles would remember it for at least a week.

Thank you for the birthday greetings! It made me feel so loved to open my e-mail and see them there.

Amy

You can see more of Amy's family's work or write her at these addresses:

http://www.missionaryfamily.com/

missionaryfamily@gmail.com

One of My Last Christmases

I just received an update from friends in Fukuoka, Japan concerning a place that we visited each Christmas to share some warmth and cheer

(that's Naomi-- lower left-- and Erica-- lower right in 2005).

"Every Christmas, members of our Family International community visit a nearby retirement home. This year, after dancing and singing, we sculpted balloons to the delight of many of the residents.

One of them, a fireman who had only recently moved to the retirement home after his wife had passed away, was particularly interested in our work and projects.

“I am so happy to see you children,” he said with tears in his eyes, “because I haven’t seen my own grandchildren in a long time. You remind me of them.”

He reached out and gave each of the children a big, warm hug.

“Thank you for coming today. You have made my Christmas very happy. I’m old now, and probably won’t live much longer, but I am glad to have spent one of my last Christmases with you.”

He continued. “Please don’t stop sharing what you have with other people. People need love and warmth at Christmas, and you are providing that. I admire you so much.”

Please pray for them and for us as we visit dozens of similar centers here, sharing love and the message of Christmas. Thank you!-- and thanks, Olivia-- on the right in this photo-- for this story.

Check Out These Great Christmas Resources

Are you looking for some beautiful free Christmas MP3s? -- some stories for children? Poems? Here's a link to fun page to explore with these and more. There are dozens of free Christmas E-cards too.

http://www.thefamily.org/christmas/

If you follow the 'TRACTS' link at the top of the main page, you'll see some of the small messages that, each Christmas, I love to give out to people that I meet... you can read 'em-- print 'em out-- or pass 'em out!

I've been wearing a 'Santa' hat when traveling on the train-- brings smiles to the faces of the normally highly reserved Japanese-- making it easier to offer a meaningful Christmas tract.

Our Christmas in Japan

Our team here in Nagano-- in the Japanese Alps-- is giving at least a couple dozen Christmas shows in shopping centers, nursing homes this month-- as we do each year. We'll distribute hundreds of magazines, music CDs and tracts-- all culminating in a Christmas dinner and program for those we regularly minister to.

No, in Japan they don't have a Western-style Christmas season, but people are still aware of the season-- and many even are somewhat aware of the reason for the season-- celebrating Christ's birth-- even though the commercial 'buy, buy, buy!' spirit is what is promoted everywhere.

Part of the emphasis on shopping is because most employees in Japan get a year-end bonus in December-- Also businesses and government departments nearly all have year-end parties for their workers-- but the biggest reason Christmas has been so commercialized, sadly, is the influence of the West.

The good news is that this season is still a wonderful opportunity to share the Good News. Just as it was in India and China where I spent eight Christmas seasons. These are places where it can be sometimes difficult to approach people directly most of the year. But Christmas is a time when people will readily receive a printed or personal 'Christmas message of God's love'.

Christmas brings new hope and courage, as through the darkness, the Christmas star shines its promise of God's unfailing love.—David Brandt Berg

The Dayspring from on high has visited us; to give light to those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.—Luke 1:78–79

Follow this link to an article about a recent film by Christian Carion, Joyeux Noël (2005), which retells the story of a well-documented event that occurred on a battlefield in France on Christmas Eve, 1914:

http://www.activated.org/reading/thisnthat_article.php?article=183

[above photo: singing at a local center, Christmas 2006]

Things seem to have stabilized...

...an update from Amy in Zambia regarding my grandkids.

"Thank you for all the prayers and notes of encouragement. I copied them down and will share them with everyone.

Jennifer and Jasmine are doing much better. Their eyes are still sore and weak but they have regular appetites now and are getting stronger every day. We have been discharged from the hospital and are staying with friends in this town until Monday when they will repeat the blood work and chest x-ray.

Tom is at home with the the other four children who it now seems have come down with measles. We are attacking right away with antibiotics and forced eating. We won't let them get weakened the way the other girls were. Knowing what is happening is a big help. So far they are all doing okay.

Please pray for their cases to be light and that Tom will have the strength and wisdom for taking care of them. The medical care is usually my department so God is testing us all in every area. I am in regular contact with them and have been able to send boxes of food and medicine on the local buses so Tom has what he needs for the kids.

We still don't have a water pump or Internet due to the lightning strike. We don't know which piece of the Internet equipment will need to be replaced. Our water pump control box will need to be replaced (this was just installed 3 weeks ago and had a surge protector on it!).

Please pray for God's supply for this and the medical bills and other expenses related to the medical care.

God has been so faithful during all this. Please continue to pray for full recovery for the kids and for our strength. We love you all!

Amy for all the Morrows"

Some Welcome Good News From Africa

I promised to update you about my grandkids in Zambia:

...Dear friends, family, loved ones and all who have prayed:

We love you all dearly and thank you for standing by our side in the Spirit this last week. I am writing from Mansa as our Internet still has not been replaced/repaired.

The girls are doing much better! Praise God! I wanted to fill you in a little on what has been going on and what the Lord has brought us through.

A few weeks ago we had a baby brought to us that was severely malnourished. We began to integrate him into our program. The second day he came he had a fever and cough so when his guardians came we asked them to take him to the clinic and care for him before bringing him back to join the orphanage. We also told them to come each day to collect milk for him.
We didn't hear anything for some time and later found out he was diagnosed with measles. We asked them to keep the baby at home until he was fully recovered but to continue to collect formula to keep up his strength. Unfortunately, they did not do this and we heard that he continued to get weaker.

About a week later Jennifer came down with a fever and two days later Jasmine also fell ill. When the telltale symptoms of measles showed up and the girls were not able to eat we decided to take them to a local hospital for monitoring and treatment.

Jennifer responded well to treatment but Jasmine got worse. The crux came when she was given a different IV fluid and began having facial seizures which caused her tongue to curl up and she could not swallow. Her condition was first diagnosed as hypoglycemia since she had not eaten for 5 days and the new IV did not contain sugars.

Thankfully she continued to be able to breathe, her pulse remained strong and she had all her mental faculties. When she didn't get completely better and her legs and arms began to have muscle problems and her jaw was clenching tightly shut the doctor was concerned that it could be meningitis or cerebral malaria. He told me that if it was his child he would pray and that she may have only until the next morning. As you can imagine this was scary to hear when we are 12 hours away from the best hospitals and things move so slowly here.

We decided to take Jasmine to the nearest large city (usually 4 hours away--although this time only took 3) and contacted a doctor to meet us there. A friend from the city where we first took the girls offered to drive us to Mansa and he has stayed with the girls and me the whole time-- being such a help-- another blessing since Tom had to remain with the work and the other kids.

After desperate prayer we got on the road and, miraculously, after the first few minutes, Jasmine-- who still had trouble with her jaw clamping shut involuntarily-- fell into a peaceful sleep for most of the drive.

Upon arrival at the next clinic both girls were put on two antibiotics and blood work and other tests were done.

The doctor diagnosed Jasmine as having encephalitis (a complication of measles) and said the antibiotics should fix the problem. Jennifer's x-ray the next day also showed traces of bronco-pneumonia. Both girls have severely low white blood counts.

Since arriving here though both girls have made steady progress. They are still quite weak but are getting better day by day. We know this is testament to the many, many prayers that have been offered up on their behalf.

Working within the local hospital system here has been very challenging and frustrating at times but God has been so faithful. Someone asked me at one point if I trusted the doctor and I said no, I trust God. That is what it has come down to. Our lives are in God's hands and His are the best there is!

The girls should be able to go home by Friday or Saturday, God willing.

Continued prayer requests:

• For the girls complete recovery--especially that their white count can come up to normal-- and that none of the other children contract measles

• That our water and Internet problems will be sorted out--It looks like we may have to buy the equipment again.

• For our encouragement, as the little baby that originally had the measles passed away yesterday. This is very hard for us as we already fell in love with him. We feel discouraged that his family didn't take better care of him despite our best efforts.

• For the work here to continue to grow.

Thank you so much for all your prayers. They saved us! Praise be to God!

Amy and all the family...

Urgent Prayer Request For My Granddaughter In Africa

I was in the midst of planning a post to introduce my daughter, Amy Morrow, and her family's work in Zambia, Africa-- where she, her husband, Tom and their six children recently begun receiving orphans into an orphanage they are building-- however, circumstances brought my plans forward...

(Written from a message sent by JoAnne Leppo --Tom's Mother:)

...I just received a call from Tom in Zambia. Two of their daughters were very sick from measles that they contracted from one of the orphans last week when, yesterday, 12 year-old Jasmine's fever got so high that Amy took both girls to the local clinic.

They were tested for malaria and it seems that Jasmine possibly has cerebral malaria-- which can be fatal. She hadn't eaten for five days and reacted badly to the medicine the doctor gave to stop the vomiting.

Both girls are now on IVs; Jennifer's fever has subsided-- but Jasmine is still serious.

The clinic doesn't have facilities for further testing, and she couldn't survive the 12-hour ride to the capital's hospital-- so they are taking her to a hospital two hours away, where a Russian doctor is going to meet them. If they can't help her, they will possibly life-flight her to Lusaka or South Africa.

So please desperately pray for Jasmine's life and health-- and Amy as she makes many needed decisions.

Tom is at the mission with the other children. He just returned from a trip in the bush trip-- three days of Bible classes and ministering to tribes. As soon as he got back, lightening struck-- damaging their Internet system and the control box for their water-pump. They are also in the midst of the longest power-outage they've ever had.

So, on top of the children's sicknesses, they also have no Internet, no running water-- and only emergency battery lights.

They are, as you know, quite isolated, so please pray for their encouragement, strength and against any further problems...

I'll write more as soon as I receive news. I don't think there will be any updates on their site for a while-- due to the lightening strike mentioned above-- but you can learn about the Morrows and their work here:

http://www.missionaryfamily.com/

So Far, So Good

I recently updated my 'gateway' website at www.tipserve.com as it was pointing to an 'experimental' blog at Wordpress, rather than this one-- sorry. It will eventually be a digital hallway with doors to lots of interesting things, but for now, just one door that will take you here...

Websites and blogs have been a learning process-- see my: 'Blogging 101'. Most recently I've been researching which online resources have the most, while requiring the least from me-- Yes, you can read that as, 'finding sites that offer a lot for free.'

Right now my focus is to find a home for my photos. Over the past few months, I've edited and posted hundreds of photos on several sites. I have hundreds more chronicling decades of adventure in China, Japan, India, the U.S., Canada and Mexico. I'll soon be posting the stories to match these photos.

So far: Picasa was the easier to get started; Flickr proved to be the most resource-rich-- including 'tagging' which pushed some of my photos near the top of certain searches. I've also just tried Photobucket, and really like it, but it's too soon to draw a conclusion-- although they have also just added 'tags' for their photos.

If you have any tips for me, please send 'em! Thanks!

Picasa (1) Over 100 of my most current, up-to-date photos in folders by category

Picasa (2) Again, ten categories with about 100 photos of Fukuoka, Japan

Flickr a few folders, I just started here

Photobucket Also just started here.

Poignant Performing Pointers

The Fun and Function of Mime and Balloon Art Performing

Costumes, Performance Tips-- and a Bit of Banter-- Enjoy!

I've had some small opportunities to perform over the years-- a little mime, a bit-part in a movie, commercial voice-overs-- but in the last ten years, more regularly. Beginning as a balloon art performer in restaurants or parties or a clown for special events, hospitals or fund-raisers, I migrated to using mime, balloon art and banter as a street performer.

I'm not a professional by any stretch of imagination. I can't do magic, perform acrobatics or juggle. However, I've developed a routine that works for what I do-- fun, fruitful and functional. I enjoy entertaining, or just mingling and meeting folks to communicate my favorite subject-- God's love for them.

During over 2000 hours 'on stage', I think I've gained even more than I've given. In this short series of posts explains a bit about how I started and what I've learned-- costumes, performing tips and more.

You can see a narrated series of photos of my performances in Fukuoka, Japan here:

http://picasaweb.google.com/tipserve/FukuokaJapanBusking

And here is a 'balloon art' how-to' site:

“Airigami, the art of folding air in specially prepared latex containers.”

read more on Larry Moss' site: http://www.balloonhq.com/

Step out today, outside the boundaries of conformity;

If it will make a way, for love to work in its enormity!

Next: Mime, Make-up and My Costume