Things the LORD Taught Me in Japan
He taught me a bit about his awesome power. We didn’t have a whole lot of time to look at all the devastation, but from Yamamoto all the way to Ishinomaki entire towns were leveled by the force of the tsunami. But as Cal put it, there is grace in the warning. The warning system prevented hundreds of thousands of lives lost. This is why the so called “health and wealth gospel” is so inadequate. If everyone trusted in their tsunami walls believing that their man-made walls could save them, so many more lives would have been lost. It was the warning system – and the people heeding that warning – that allowed their lives to be spared. We need to hear that on our own, we are in danger of being lost in the flood-waters of our own sin. But there is grace in the warning that there are none that are righteous; we are all in danger. And Christ will save us, and all we have to do is heed the warning and put our faith in him.He also taught me about the love that we share as brothers and sisters in Him. Even though we do not speak the same language, the love of the people there was so clearly communicated. The church service on Sunday was great. It seemed so appropriate that we celebrated the Lord’s Supper together. We are all members of his body.He also taught me that there is a lot of work to be done. While the Japanese people paid attention to the tsunami warning, it seems they need to hear the warning, and the promise, of the gospel. Edie had mentioned that her students all notice that it is Christians that are helping with the relief. No doubt other people notice as well. Let’s pray that this is the beginning of a stronger work of the gospel in Japan. At home yesterday we were discussing how God sent the serpents against the Israelites. But that the purpose of this was not merely punishment, it was intended to make the people repent of their sins and turn to him. They confessed their sins and repented of them, and when the bronze serpent was lifted up, they looked up in faith. Let’s hope the Lord uses this display of destructive power to turn the Japanese toward himself as well.