How To Hack The Equation Without Formulas

Today begins our summer study in Proverbs.

Please follow along in your bulletin as we share a few of these.

Like a gold ring in a pig's snout is a beautiful woman who shows no discretion.

Better to meet a bear robbed of her cubs than a fool bent on folly.

Some people dig a fork into a pie but are too lazy to raise it to their mouth.

A foolish child is a father's ruin and a quarrelsome wife is like the constant dripping of a leaky roof.

Like the one who grabs a stray dog by the ears is someone who rushes into a quarrel not their own.

Just as a door turns on its hinges so a lazy bones turns back over in bed.

Better to live in a tumble down shack than in a mansion with a nagging spouse.

As a dog returns to its vomit so fools repeat their folly.

Like a broken tooth or lame foot is reliance on the unfaithful in a time of trouble.

Better to live in a desert than with a quarrelsome and a nagging wife.

Do not answer a fool according to his folly or you yourself would be just like him.

But answer a fool according to his folly or he would be wise in his own eyes.

Dreamers fantasize their self-importance.

They think they are smarter than a whole college faculty.

A nagging spouse is like the drip, drip, drip of a leaky faucet.

You can't stop it and you can't get away from it.

Like the useless legs of one who is lame is a proverb in the mouth of a fool.

Like a thorn bush in a drunkard's hand is a proverb in the mouth of a fool.

Good morning, Watermark.

How are you guys doing?

My name is Mike.

I'm working with university students here at Watermark Community Church.

Tobin is out this week and he'll be in Oxford for some more training.

And yeah, so it's just exciting to be here again.

And last time I preached here at Watermarks just a couple weeks ago

was the night after the Champions League final in Europe.

And I preached on idols in our lives.

And I had a really hard time figuring out like do I stay up all night

and would I just watch the game or would I actually do the right thing

and stay in bed and get some rest before preaching.

And I can't believe it's the final of the Euro Cup.

I think Tobin just plans all his traveling around all that

so that he sees how I deal with the idols in my life.

Actually, between the two sermons, I've done a lot of traveling too.

Right after the Champions League final,

we actually took 14 students from Watermark out to the Philippines.

And we worked with the local church north of Manila

and did some outreach there and worked with the Slam kids,

also taught on church planting.

And I just wanted to use the opportunity to say thank you to you guys

for the support and your prayers and your love for the students.

It really brought the students together.

Some of them are here and they're nodding.

And it was really a great week.

And just after the summer, we hope that we can get you an update

on what's going on and the impact that this has.

We just don't want this to be just one trip.

But just continue to build a relationship with people there

and stay in touch with them.

And then after the Philippines,

I actually went to Germany with my wife Katie.

I was just on vacation to see family.

And one of the things you may not know about my hometown

is that it's the place where the brothers Grimm

spent most of their time studying and teaching.

If you don't know who the Grimm's are,

think of fables like Cinderella or Hensel and Gretel

and Rapunzel, Snow White.

Actually, in 1812, exactly 200 years ago,

they published their first book in my hometown.

The book included all these fables and a lot of others.

And when Katie found out that Sleeping Beauty's castle

is only 30 miles away from my hometown,

she really wanted to go.

We didn't make it, but next time I'll take her

and I'll give her a kiss in Sleeping Beauty's castle.

So why do I tell you about the Grimm's?

And we are actually kicking off a new sermon series

on the Proverbs.

And today we'll also talk a little bit about the Grimm's

and how they relate to that, you'll find out.

So for the next five weeks,

we will look at the books of Proverbs.

And in preparation of the sermon series,

I asked a few people what the experience is

with the book of Proverbs.

And a common response I got was

that they haven't really looked at the book before,

so in detail.

Some actually didn't even know

that the Proverbs was a book of the Bible.

So it's something that probably is not really taught

in church very much.

Some actually had skimmed through some of the Proverbs

and studied a little bit,

but never really in depth.

And one response that I got very often

was that Proverbs has a lot of good principles

that we can apply to life.

Now the Proverbs are a part of what we call

the wisdom literature in the Bible.

So for the next five weeks,

we want to see what is that kind of wisdom.

What does it have to offer?

Or is there something that can be applied

to our lives today?

So we will have an introduction today.

We'll dive into Proverbs,

kind of get a feel a little bit for what it's about.

And then the next four weeks,

we will look into specific areas of our lives,

our work life and study life,

our family life.

We'll look at how the Proverbs can be applied

to the words we use in just relating to people.

And one of the things that we would hope for you to do

is to get plugged into community group for that as well.

Our church life doesn't really so much

revolve around Sunday morning.

We really would love for people

to engage deeper with one another,

to not just hear what is said on Sunday morning,

but we have a place to get into community,

to discuss things, ask questions.

And that's what is happening in our community group.

So if that's something you want to do,

we invite you after the service

to talk to the leaders and people outside

and just find a group that is close to you.

We can help you with that.

The book of Proverbs is basically a collection of sayings

containing a lot of insight into life.

The book has its origin with King Solomon.

And in 1 Kings 4.32, it says

that Solomon spoke 3,000 Proverbs

and his songs numbered 1,005.

And in verse 34 of the same chapter, it says,

from all nations, people came to listen

to Solomon's wisdom,

sent by all the kings of the world

who heard of his wisdom.

So thousands of Proverbs and songs came from Solomon.

Now, how did that really happen?

Did Solomon just have one day a really creative night

and started to sit down and say,

I need to come up with some really smart things

that people can apply to their lives.

And this is, I think, where a little bit of the story

of the Grimms can help us connect

with what really happened there.

So the Grimms published this book 200 years ago

called The Children and Household Tales.

It included 86 stories,

many of which nowadays have been turned into movies

that you know.

But the stories at that time,

the way they came up with them

was not just that they started to write them,

but they collected them.

They studied the culture.

They listened to people.

They tried to see what the stories were

that were passed on to the children.

Then they saw different variations

and they asked why these variations were there.

And then they found out that some of these stories

were really good now for teaching.

So they began to put these stories together

and it wasn't there to entertain,

but also to teach and educate the kids

and to pass on some of the wisdom of the culture

and to let people wrestle a little bit

with the morals of the story.

The first edition that was published 200 years ago

was actually not received very well.

It was called Only the Children's Tales,

but many of those tales were not very suitable for children.

So one of the adjustments that was, for example,

made by the Grimm's to the second edition

was that the mother in the Snow White story

and the Rapunzel story

suddenly turned into a stepmother.

I think the moms didn't really want to read these stories

where the moms plot against their children,

want to kill them,

and that's better for the stepmom to do that.

And also some of these sexual references,

like Rapunzel, a little shady person,

they were removed over time.

So there was some adjustment.

And so in the next years, up to 1857,

he actually began to collect 211 stories.

Things were edited and added and removed.

And then we now still today use the stories for teaching,

but even the movies now have adopted a little bit

to our culture.

So how about the wisdom that we find in the Proverbs?

And what Solomon wrote down,

can the wisdom of someone that lived almost 3,000 years ago

still apply and teach anything to us today?

Is there any relevance for us in the 21st century

in what people said at that time

and what they wrote down

as something that was supposed to teach people?

I think what Solomon did at that time as well

was he listened a lot to people.

He collected the stories of the people around him

and he knew about his culture.

His people, the Israelites,

they were the people of God.

And the nation for centuries was on a journey

to seek more about who God is

and how he invites them to live a life honoring God.

So many of the sayings of the culture

probably were passed on from generation to generation.

But if one of these Proverbs or sayings of the culture,

if they realized that it's not very suitable for teaching,

it is not really honoring God,

then these sayings probably disappeared over time.

But other teachings, they grew over time

and were added to the collection of stories

that were passed on by the culture.

And so Solomon begins to read and learn

and wrestle with that wisdom.

And he looks into what is it that is suitable

for people to see what it means to honor God

and to find that wisdom that is in him.

But the Proverbs are not formulas to better living.

They are not like a list of like

the 10 things you should do to be a better dad

or to be a more ethical businessman.

But maybe in our modern mindset,

we sometimes look at the Proverbs like that.

That, oh, a proverb is a good teaching,

we'll take that,

and we just need to apply it to our life

and everything will be fine.

So the Proverbs are not blueprints to our life.

But how do we then understand the Proverbs

if they are not like a formula

that is easily to be applied?

How do we hack the equation of Proverbs

without formulas?

Over the past year,

I actually have learned a lot of things.

Last year,

I probably learned more about life

than I've ever learned in a year before

because last year I got married.

And one thing I learned is

it wasn't new to me,

but somehow still I had to experience it

before I really believed it.

There is no formula to really understanding your wife.

Guys think there is,

and we've been looking for that formula

from the foundations of the world,

but there is no such formula.

But even though there is no formula there,

there is a lot of wisdom.

There is experiences that people have had

in their marriages,

things that you may pass on

and read in books

of people that have made certain experiences,

but you still have to figure out

how do I take all that

and how do I apply it to my life,

to my spouse,

to the context that I live in.

If, for example,

you plan to apply

any of the proverbs

that were read in our drama

before the sermon,

you have to make sure

that you use them in the right moment

and in the right context.

So do not,

and I just repeat that,

do not end an argument

with your wife or girlfriend

quoting that

it is better to live alone

in a tumble-down shack

than sharing a mention

with a nagging spouse.

You may get some practical experience

in applying the proverb.

Bible scholar,

Tremper Longman,

says that

one feature of a proverb

is that it does not teach

universal truth.

On the contrary,

proverbs are true

only if stated

at the right time

and in the right circumstance.

So look at one of the other proverbs

that you heard

in your scripture reading.

Proverbs 26, 4-5,

it says,

do not answer

a fool according to his folly,

or you yourself

we will be just like him.

Answer a fool

according to his folly,

or he will be wise

in his own eyes.

So what is true?

It's a contradiction.

Like what are we supposed

to do with that?

It depends on the circumstance.

We must not only know

the proverb,

but we also need to understand

and read the people

to which it applies.

So proverbs otherwise

are useless,

or they can actually

even be dangerous.

And we all know

what can happen

when people take scriptures,

move them out of context,

and try to apply them to life.

We learn in two other proverbs

in our reading,

in 26, 7,

like the useless legs

of one who is lame

is a proverb

in the mouth of a fool.

Or in 26, 9,

like a thorn bush

in a drunkard's hand

is a proverb

in the mouth of a fool.

The ability to read

the circumstances

and the people around you

is crucial for speaking wisdom.

The proverbs

are not simple formulas

to apply

whenever we feel like it,

but they require wisdom,

and not wisdom from us,

but wisdom from God.

They require

a deep understanding

of people,

of life,

and of circumstances.

Let me tell you a story

that may move us

towards kind of like

seeing more of

what that really means

to find God's wisdom

and acting

according to God's wisdom

and not human understanding.

In 1940,

my home country of Germany

invaded the Netherlands.

One of the families

living there

at the time

was the family Ten Boom.

The Ten Boom

were Christians,

and when they saw

what was happening

all around them,

especially to the Jews,

they felt convicted

that they needed to help,

that they couldn't stand

on the sidelines,

and they decided

to put a shelter

in their home,

a hidden shelter,

a hidden room,

so that they could

hide the Jews there

from persecution

and from the fear

of being deported.

So as they built

the shelter

and they invited people

in there,

more than 100 Jews

over the period

of the next two years

stayed with the Ten Boom

in safety.

They fed them,

they made sure

that they could escape

the country

whenever possible.

But in 1944,

an informant

told the secret police

about their shelter.

And as a result,

the Ten Boom family

was imprisoned

and then later brought

to a concentration camp,

which only Corrie Ten Boom,

the daughter,

survived.

Her father and sister

both died

in the concentration camp.

Corrie Ten Boom

said about her experience,

there are no places

that are safer

than other places.

The center of his will

is our only safety.

His will is our hiding place.

Let us pray

that we will always know it.

The world may have said

to the Ten Boom's,

save your life.

Just don't get involved.

You just need to stay quiet

and wait until it's all over.

It's not your battle to fight.

It's not your responsibility.

But for the Ten Boom's,

they followed God's wisdom.

They followed a higher wisdom

that of the kingdom

that stands for justice

and mercy

and beauty

and goodness

and that mattered

to the Ten Boom's.

There's an image

that Corrie Ten Boom uses.

She talks about a rug

and when you look

at the backside of a rug,

you only see the knots

and you see the threads

dangling down.

It's like the picture

on the right.

They sometimes seem

a little messy.

The colors seem like

they don't really fit

and they are a random mix.

And when the rug is made,

like threads actually

may still be dangling down

and they're not really connected.

And that's how we see the world

and that's how Corrie Ten Boom

described how we may see the world.

That we only see

the unfinished product.

We don't see the beauty

of the picture.

But God,

on the other side,

he looks at life

and he looks from his perspective

and in his wisdom

and all is different.

He has a full understanding

of what is happening

and for him,

that beautiful picture

unfolds of life

and then he draws us into that.

Everything for him

fits together.

The wisdom is found in him.

But we cannot see

from our perspective.

So we want to apply a proverb.

We need to see

a glimpse from God.

A glimpse from his perspective,

from his kingdom

to make sure

that we know

what God is moving us towards.

We need to know

about his kingdom.

We need to know

about his justice and mercy.

We need to know

about how God is restoring

and putting it all together.

We need to know

that we are living

in a broken world

but God is making it whole.

And the Proverbs

invite us to take part

in that healing

and the redemption

and moves us towards

the beautiful picture

of that kingdom.

But when we don't have

this perspective,

if we have no glimpse

of what he is inviting us into,

then we are trying

to make sense of things

by our own strength.

We are trying to explain things

in our own understanding.

And that is the way

it is in our world.

We often rely on

the wisdom

that is found in our world

and in our context

all around us

and it leaves us

sometimes as fools.

When I think of Hong Kong,

we also write

our own Proverbs.

We have Proverbs

written by human wisdom

of the city

and the people in the city

and they are based

on an incomplete picture

of the messy picture

that does not value

what God values.

The Proverbs

we have created ourselves,

they may look like this.

Gather as many resources

as you can.

Take what you can.

It's all about

what you have.

Or a proverb

of Hong Kong

may sound like

study hard,

it will give you

a good job

and that will give you

money

and that will give you

happiness.

happiness.

Or a proverb

may say

your self-worth

is just found

in how respected

and loved you feel.

Be successful,

get status,

get power

and you will be respected.

That is how

the Proverbs look

when we don't see

a glimpse of the kingdom

interpreting our Proverbs.

God is calling us

into seeing

his kingdom

and moving

towards that.

Let's look deeper

into one or two

of the examples

of that tension

between God's wisdom

and human wisdom.

Between us trying

to look at life

from the backside

rather than

asking God

to reveal

what he has for us.

Let's take the example

of relationships.

I think anyone

can relate to that

on some level.

So if you want to

find the right person

or you found

the right person,

what does your culture

say or human wisdom

say that you

should look for?

Maybe find someone

on the same social status

that you are.

It's important

that you can provide

for each other,

that you can keep

your living standard

and maybe make sure

that she looks

presentable,

not just for your own sake

but also for what

people may think

about you

like when you associate

with the person

that's with you.

Hong Kong

is quite shame-based.

So what happens

when things

don't work out

the way

that you thought

the relationship

would look like

once you enter one?

Divorce is not

really the best option

and so

maybe ignoring

each other

is better

and just live

in a miserable

relationship.

Maybe actually

an affair

is culturally

even more appropriate

than just getting

divorced.

At least it keeps

the appearance

to the outside

and you still

get the respect

or love

that you're longing

for.

And when you hear

a proverb

like the ones

we heard before,

we may only hear

the Bible

saying,

oh,

when there's

a quarrelsome

wife,

it's better

to actually

just be gone,

just pack your

stuff and go.

But when we look

through the eyes

of God's wisdom,

we realize

that it's a very

dangerous way

to apply a proverb.

When we separate

it from the movement

towards the kingdom

and what the kingdom

of God stands for,

it is dangerous

to apply it

in that way.

So if we look

at it in a different

light,

we first of all

see that the kingdom

of God

is about

reconciliation

and redemption,

also our

relationships.

So in the first

place,

we have to see

that God

in Christ

is redeeming

everything

and he calls

us for all

relationships

to be reconciled.

So here's the

challenge,

the first challenge

to see a proverb

like this

in a different

light,

to realizing

that we are

called

at first

to redeem

and work

towards

solving

problem

and conflict

within our

relationships

to honor God.

If God

calls us

to restore

our relationship,

we cannot

separate that

from the way

we should

interpret

proverbs

from that

calling.

Also,

we may read

these proverbs

and feel like,

oh,

that's a great

quote that I

should give

to my wife.

I should quote

that every time

we have some

problems,

not all of them

but some.

In a way,

it's a good

way to put

down your

woman,

but

the reality

is that the

proverbs

were written

not as

something that

you learn

to memorize

to quote

to your

wife,

but they

were actually

written for

the man

to study

and to

gain deeper

insight about

life.

So if I

would rewrite

the proverb

1122,

the first proverb

in your bulletin,

it may basically

say,

why would you

men fall

for the beauty

of a woman

if you already

know that her

character is a

disaster?

Why would you

enter a relationship

in the first

place?

If you would

not be

blinded by

the world

and the

standards and

the values

of this

world,

and instead

see through

God's eyes,

you would

see it's

like a

golden ring

in a

pig snout.

Would you

be blinded

by that?

You need

to see

clearly and

get your

priorities

right.

So here

we see

that when

we begin

to look

from the

lens of

the kingdom

of God

at the

proverb,

we see

that it

draws us

towards

something.

Let's

look at

another

proverb

in 1712,

the next one.

it's

better to

meet a

bear

robbed of

her cubs

than a

fool

bent by

folly.

I've made

some pretty

bad choices

in my life

about people

that I

have allowed

to step

deeply into

my life.

Especially

when I was

working still

in banking

and the

investment

world,

I looked

more for

the status

and the

power and

the money

people had

so that I

would be

associated

with who

they are

and the

power they

had,

than ever

looking at

their

character.

I invested

into

friendships

that went

never very

deep,

would go

out and

have a

good time,

but I

should have

seen that

when you

surround yourself

with people

that have

no accountability

to other

people,

that have

no transparency

about the

troubles they

go through

in their

life with

anybody in

their lives,

people that

are driven

by their

insecurities,

that when

you surround

yourself with

it,

you ultimately

become a

part of

that and

your own

problems come

out and

your own

insecurities

come out.

And it's

true even

in church,

that sometimes

we adopt

the standards

of the

world and

we look

more for

the business

success and

the status

and the

name card

that people

have,

the influence

that people

have,

and then

we put

people in

leadership,

but the

reality is

that when

we look at

the Proverbs,

we see that

they are very

different

standards that

stand for

God's

wisdom.

I call it

toxic people.

Toxic people

are people when

you step into

a relationship

where you get

burned and

hurt.

And I think

the first

question we

need to ask

ourselves,

are we toxic

people?

To the people

around us and

the people that

we enter in

relationship.

Just think back

of who did

you spend time

with last

week?

Who do you

share your

meals with?

Who do you

share your

time with?

who is there

that you

allow to

step deeply

into your

life,

to know

you,

to know

you deeply

and walk

with you?

The

Proverbs

warns us

that we

rather should

face a

crazy

grizzly

than people

driven by

their own

wisdom,

their selfishness

and their

destructive

motives.

And if you

see the

underlying

message of

God's

kingdom in

this

proverb,

it also

calls us

not to be

fools

ourselves.

So in

that

proverb,

are we

maybe the

fool that

people should

not meet?

For the

next five

weeks,

we will

go deeper

into the

proverbs.

We'll dive

deeper into

what it

means to

see the

proverbs

through the

eyes of

God's

kingdom.

We'll look

into proverbs

relating to

our work

and our

study life,

our family

life,

and different

elements of

our personal

life,

and we'll

try to see

how they

can be

applied to

our lives,

not through

our own

wisdom,

but through

God's

wisdom.

As I

want to

close,

I want to

look at

1 Corinthians

1.27.

There it

says,

but God

chose what

the world

considers

nonsense

to put

wise people

to shame.

God

chose what

the world

considers

weak to

put what

is strong

to shame.

We see

the wisdom

of God

most clearly

in the

foolishness

of the

cross.

When God,

who is all

wisdom and

who is

everything,

steps into

human history,

when he

leaves everything

behind and

lives among

us in the

person of

Jesus Christ,

and he

shows his

love to us

on the

earth through

his death

on the

cross,

his great

wisdom about

redeeming the

world.

When the

one who has

everything

humbles

himself to

become

nothing,

and walks

in obedience

to the

Father,

and even

in obedience

to the

death on

the cross,

we see

God's

full wisdom

revealed.

Over the

next few

weeks,

we want to

see that

more clearly.

We want to

dive into

what it

really means

that Christ

is the

wisdom that

helps us

interpret

Proverbs

and apply

them correctly

to our

lives.

The Proverbs

point us

to how

God is

doing his

work of

restoration,

to restore

relationships

and to

live by

wisdom.

So we

invite you

guys to

join us

for the

five years.

So again,

join a

community

group,

begin to

discuss

that with

people,

because

ultimately,

as we

go into

the

Proverbs,

we don't

just want

you to

think about

it and

it being

wisdom in

terms of

something smart

that you

learned,

but it's

something that

we all

go on a

journey on

to apply

to our

lives,

that it

begins to

impact our

personal lives.

that it

begins to

impact our

families,

that we

take that

wisdom and

God's

perspective on

life to

begin to

impact our

workplace and

our neighborhood,

our communities

and our city.

So let's

pray as we

close and as

we begin this

journey on

the Proverbs.

Father, you

are the

great wisdom

and we

just confess

that so

many times

we rely

on our

own wisdom,

our own

strengths and

we think we

have it all

figured out and

that we

often fall

prey to

the idols

of this

city that

promise us

wisdom and

a different

way of

life and

they have

nothing to

do with

your

values.

So let's

pray that

you would

begin in

this journey

to touch

our hearts

and you

would stir

a conversation

within us

as a

community to

see you

more clearly,

to see what

you have for

us in the

fullness of

your wisdom.

And Father,

we pray that

in that

journey we

would see

the wisdom

of Christ

more clearly,

that we

would see

the foolishness

of the

cross,

we see it

as your

wisdom,

as the

invitation of

grace and

forgiveness to

invite the

world back

into a

relationship

with you

and to

enter the

journey of

restoration.

Father,

we just

pray that

you just

do your

work in

this church

and through

this church

that we

would just

not take

this message

for ourselves

as something

that changes

us as a

community,

but that we

would see

your longing

to restore

this city

and that we

would just

be ready to

take part in

that and be

willing to be

the hands and

feet in this

world.

We pray this

in Christ's

name.

Amen.

You may be

seated.

We have a

few announcements.

The first

thing is, if

you were here

last week, we

introduced you

to Pastor

Aldrin.

If you are

here, can you

stand up?

Oh, there he is.

So Pastor

Aldrin is here

with us for a

few months to

work on a

vision of how

and if we

can plant a

Filipino

congregation or

church with

us.

And so after

the service,

there will be a

vision meeting

and you

find information

in the

bulletin.

So if you

are interested

in participating

or just dreaming

and envisioning

what that would

look for,

Watermark, to

be part of

that, and

you don't

need to be

Filipino.

Everybody is

welcome, right?

To dream and

envision, a

lunch will be

provided.

So please come

and see Pastor

Aldrin after

church and read

the information in

the bulletin.

And the second

thing is that in

August, we will

have a VBS.

So we just

want to give you

a heads up that

if you're planning

your schedule for

your kids, then

you can talk to

Natalie or

Melanie and

people involved

in the children's

program.

Finally, if you're

new to Watermark,

you probably have

noticed that we

don't really pass

an offering back

around here.

We believe that

the offering and

money is just a

part of worship.

And so we

would just ask you

to go to the

kiosk if you

feel called to

give back to

God.

And it's just a

big island in our

lives and we want

to allow you to

wrestle with that

on your time and

how you want to

just respond to

that part of your

worship.

Actually, there's

something that's

connected to your

giving.

A little over a

year ago, we had

a special offering

towards a church

in Tokyo after the

tsunami.

And we want to

invite Roger here

and he's pastor

there at the

church, right?

The worship

musician there.

And he'll just

come up and share

a little bit about

what has happened

since then.

So I just want to

invite you up.

Good morning,

everybody.

It's an honor to

be able to worship

with you this

morning.

I send greetings

from Grace City

Church, Tokyo,

your sister church

in Tokyo and

nation of Japan.

We're only a little

over two years old,

so we're not very

old and we're

definitely not this

big.

We're well under

100 people,

about 65 or so.

But we are

encouraged because

God is working

there and we

see the gospel

working in the

hearts of the

Japanese people.

As you can

imagine, it's

been quite a

year.

I mean, we

have been a

church less than

a year when we

found ourselves

faced with one of

the biggest

disasters in human

history.

One of our

pastors,

Seema Oyagi,

had just moved

in three days

before the

earthquake, so he

had boxes

everywhere.

And for months

afterwards, his

family had to live

out of boxes.

And yet, we

were encouraged

by your prayers.

Thank you.

And for your

extreme generosity

of giving, which

allowed us to go up

north and bring

food, water, and

supplies to people

who really needed

it.

The earthquake

happened on a

Friday.

On Sunday, we

were able to

collect goods from

our church and

other churches.

And then on

Monday, we

headed up in a

truck.

Me, Seema Oyagi,

that other

pastor, and

another missionary.

It was kind of

like a scouting

trip.

You know, we

didn't know if we

were going to be

able to get up

there.

We didn't know if

the roads were

passable.

All of the

highways had been

shut down, so we

had to take little

mountain roads,

driving all night

long.

There were a lot

of traffic as

everybody was

fleeing south.

The roads, some

of them had been

washed out.

There was big

gaps between the

steel structure of

the bridges and

the ground.

And so if we

weren't careful, we

would break the

axle of our car.

There were fears

of nuclear

radiation.

If you remember

those early days,

every day the

news seemed to

be getting worse

and worse.

Saturday, Sunday,

Monday, Tuesday,

a new fire, a new

explosion, fears of

meltdown.

Yet, despite all

this, nothing had

prepared us for what

we actually saw when

we got to the

tsunami area, there

were entire towns

that had been wiped

away.

There were boats the

size of probably the

middle part of this

room here, as big,

sitting right in the

middle of busy

intersections, what

used to be busy

intersections, in the

middle of town.

I saw automobiles on

top of four-story

buildings.

And I saw raw

displays of emotion

that I'll never

forget.

Of course, Japan is

not like that now.

You know, by the

end of the summer

last year, most of

the debris had been

cleared out.

And so now we're

focused on trying to

get people back into

their homes, getting

their homes fixed,

trying to restore

neighborhoods and

communities.

We're also trying to

get people back to

work.

The economy was

extremely hurt by the

tsunami.

All the businesses

were wiped away.

And so what one

business owner at a

time are trying to

help get them the

equipment they need

is so that they can

expand, so they can

hire people, and so

the economy of the

region can come

back.

Now, it's interesting

when you think most

of the area where the

tsunami hit were

actually heavily in the

fishing industry.

And I think back of

Jesus coming to

fishing villages,

taking fishermen,

making them fishers of

men.

And we long for that

in Japan.

We want to see

churches planted where

the tsunami hit.

And we are seeing

that and are

encouraged by it.

In fact, we're seeing

more people come to

Christ in Ishimaki,

one city we're

focusing on, well

above what you see in

the rest of Japan.

And so we look

expectantly to see

what God continues to

do in the disaster

area, in Tokyo, in the

whole nation.

So please, we covet

your continued prayers

for Japan.

We need them.

So thank you.

God bless.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

I think all of us

here remembered that

Friday pretty well, too.

And I think something

that we were able to do

as a church was,

on that Sunday, we

decided to spend some

time to pray for Japan

and to pray for

northern Japan and

what happened.

And what we did was

we sang the chorus

from Mighty to Save

in Japanese.

And I think we sang it

in Japanese because

we wanted to, I

guess, proclaim that

these truths that are

true here in English

or in Chinese or

whatever, that these

truths remain true in

Japan as well.

And it doesn't matter

what language we sing

them in.

It doesn't matter what

country we're in.

That our Savior can

move mountains and

that our Savior is

mighty to save.

Thank you so much

for your update.

And I hope maybe we

can all stand together

and sing this again.

And let's pray for

the nation of Japan.

Let's pray for

Ishinomaki and let's

pray for Tokyo and

Japan.

So we're just going to

sing this and try it

in Japanese.

Receive the

benediction as we

leave.

Father, we just pray

that as we leave

this place that we

would not be the same,

that we would seek

your wisdom.

Father, that we

would love God,

love beauty,

live life to the

fullest and participate

in your work of

redemption and

restoration of all

things.

Father, we thank you

for the reminder of

how you are restoring

in the midst of

disaster in Japan and

how you long to

redeem a city that's

broken.

So God, may we take

that challenge, may we

take your calling to

bring back things to

the kingdom.

we pray this in

Christ's name.

Amen.