cold weather, changing circumstances...

It's getting colder here in Okinawa, which has also brought a lot of random spurts of rain.

(Take note of our hats and coats)

Like today, in the morning it was raining super hard! But then mid day it was bright and sunny and hot!

But now, it's raining again and cold again. Praise the Lord then, ね?

We also headed down to Kokusai dori a couple weeks ago (sorry, haven't updated consistently).

All of the students got to see the cool shops and had sea salt ice cream (i passed, it didn't look great, but i'm also lactose intolerant ahaha).

(the students are stoaked!)

(this little tiny Okinawan lady helped me try on a Kimono)

(gotta have one of my infamouse "dorky" posed pictures)

So, there is an update in my life to post on here.

I had applied for my missionary visa a long while ago, and have been waiting for it to come in.

The visa I was staying here on only lasts for 90 days, and that 90 days ran out today (Nov. 24).

So, the office amazingly granted me (and Dean, another student out here) an extention on our passports to have time to buy tickets out of the country.

Well, here is a prayer request: I have two options, one is to head back to the states, to Michigan and stay with my family there, and the other is to head back out to Korea and help at the church there again.

So I would like to ask prayer for God's guidance; that I would be senesative to the Holy Spirit and go where He wants me at this time. Both places are good places, I just want to be where He wants me to be. (and this is not a long term stay either way, but the first step of many on this next continuing adventure of my life with Jesus).

Thank you for all of your previous prayers, and your future ones. Prayer is one of the most precious gifts we have here in our lives. Thank you God.

-'manda

skype calls

Sometimes, i get to talk with my family on skype, and i really get blessed by it.
My family is growing up a lot (my little sister and brother are all big now and looking older and older...). It's sad not to be there with them as they grow up, but i know they have will grow, and sometimes grow better with an absence there.



Being away really makes me love my family, shows me what i have. I really enjoy talking with my little sister. She keeps getting more and more pretty. If you think too, please pray for her, she is making life choices, and i want her to make one's that please the Lord.



He has blessed her with a talent to dance, and i know she can use it for His glory, that it would please Him. I really want to see her do good with it.

God has given us such a gift ot have a family down here while we wait to come Home. Even if it's hard and difficult at times, it also comes with many blessings which we all too often look past. This life is not promised to be easy (in ministry, in our families, in everything in life). But it is promised to be a blessed life as we follow Jesus Christ. He is amazing.

That's all for now. There is not too much ministry that i am joining in, but a lot of school. There are only 4 more weeks left of the semester, and then graduation. This time has really been a lot of growing and learning, which i know is going to be put into use and action/application in the coming days after graduation. Pray for the students here, as they go back home and variouse places during the break. We want to live for Christ, and a life that counts for Him.







ありがとう


-'manda

John 13:1-38 (i encourage you to read this)

"Jesus left us such an amazing example of love and serving one another. He said “hey, look at these people around you. Your not above them, you are not too big to serve them. Go, love them like I have shown you.” There is no excuse that we can give to say we don’t know how to serve them or love them. Yes, it will be hard, but Jesus has shown us how to, He even loves us with that same love He wants us to show. This is an amazing love He is calling us to give and to show, but it should be displayed in our lives, despite our circumstances and the people it needs to be towards. You’ve got to show love, its part of you now since Christ saved you.
I keep having moments when God just whispers that He is love. “I am love.” I remember something that I love that I learned first semester of Bible college and partly from church back home. The grammar in the text when God says to the children of Israel “I AM” is an un finished sentence, there is no period at the end of it. It’s a sentence left unfinished, that we might fill in the blank of whatever our need is. He is our strength, our courage, our wisdom, our righteousness, and our love. He is all of it.
He’s going to be what we need, and He won’t call us to do something we can’t do. He will give us what we need to show this kind of love."

This is something i studied for my homework, and it gave me an amazing, preciouse, golden "nugget" to hold onto and really learn and understand.

I really encourage you to read this chapter and see what God shows you. This is something too many of us take forgranted, i know i did. I brushed over the verse where Jesus tells us to love as He has also (verse 34). We should not do so, don't follow my example, follow His.

Don't forget: God so loved us, He Sent His Son.

^_^

-'manda

Semester Girls

So we've been missing our girl's this semester as they have been in Korea this past week.

We have 5 girl students this semester (if you don't count me), which is smaller than last semester, but still very big for what they normally have for girl students at this campus.

We are SO blessed by them this semester (God's hand is seriously in our lives and on our D' House, we really have no problems living together.

After class one day, Tamiko took us up on the roof to take some group photos, and here they are! Everyone is so beautiful (God blesses us with beautiful young women, in face, but more so in heart and in spirit).

(It was rather bright that day...hard to keep your eyes open)

(Ina was excited to be out of class teehee)

^_^

(me with Anna and Emi, our two international students)




And this one's for Tamiko, because she got cut out of the other photos that we took by accident!
We love you Tamiko, thank you for being faithful to teach us in our class each week ^_^

Praise the Lord, He is so good to us and for us. He provides all things, and gives us the strength to do all things He has prepared and called us to do. :] who is a God like our God?

God bless

-'manda

Swine Flu, Typhoons~

So, the Swine Flu has died down, which is a blessing (considering that right before i came back to the island, the whole bible college had it almost). I have only had a bad cold/stomach flu being here so far, and that passed in two days. Praise God, i think He is strengthening my immune system!

(something my brother drew while we were chatting)

While that has died down, a storm is brewing as i type this. A typhoon is hittign the island! But, it is supposed to be moving in a different direction, so we areo nly getting the tip of it, if not even that, but just the winds. We typhoon-proofed the cafe and our girl's house to protect againts the winds (which are harsh enough to blow me around while i am standing).

It's sort of exciting (partly because we have chub parties here if there is a bad storm), just to see a different kind of a storm. In Michigan, we have tornados, and in california they had earth quakes. It's sort of strange how it's not the same wherever you go (Ana and Christina were complaining nothing exciting happens where the come from haha).

Everything is going awesomely, the Lord is doing so much in our lives. Each student is being changed, and stretched. I didn't expect it to be such a stretch with the things i am beign stretched with (thought it would be in different areas of my life). But it is all soo good, no matter how hard my flesh wants to make it, Jesus makes it easy if i just yield and submit to Him (i have already felt that relief several times).

This friday, the students are leaving for the mission trip to South Korea. I am sad that i am not going, but i know the other students are going to have their socks blessed off completely. The people there are so impacted by a life lived for the Lord at such a young age, its amazing what God does through just that. Please keep them in prayer, that they would be led, grown, see God's love and Spirit working, and to have the most amazing life changing time ever.

I wish i had more pictures to put up and show you all the little things i get to be a part of everyday. If you get the time and think of it, please pray God would provide me a camera so that I could share the wonderful things He is doing out here and in my life. Thank you greatly.

A cool thing i read, "to shine Your love; even in the least of things."

God bless.

-'manda

MORE!

So, updates have been absent!

We have been pretty busy here at the college, school is about 4 weeks in, and there is lots of homework (atleast for me).

I am a student/intern this semester (Sort of? if you want to call it intern). So I have a bit more on my plate than last semester, but it is so, so good. I have been blessed by it and growing already.

All the students here are great (i wish i could take photos for you! maybe i will steal some off facebook). We have a few that are actually from mainland, and one from Germany! It is very exciting, i love getting to know them all.

(up at the house in Nago, spending the night in the Tatami room)

(our semesterly trip to Pineapple Park!)

Life is pretty chill here, though it does get exciting and busy at moments during the day. It is starting to cool off from the killer heat (it feels like fall today!). I think i am going to wear pants tomorrow!

Thank you for all your prayers, I know I have people out there praying for me. I can feel them, i know i need them. Thank you so much.

God is so good, and so strong. Trust in Him for everything, He loves us dearly.

More soon,

-'manda

An Update!!

Yay! everyone, Praise the Lord! i have a converter for my laptop cord!

(me praising the Lord with an instrument)

my new roommate Ana (She is from Germany!) let me have one of her european converters and it works with my korean plug! I'm so happy!

So, it feels weird to update without any pictures to share, but i will update anyways.
(actually, i found some other people took so i added them)

We just started our second week of classes, and it's going pretty well.

I have five classes, and i will be leading a group out to a base each sunday to minister there.

It's a step up with responsability and things i have to get done, but it's really good. Growing hurts a lot, but it's so, so good for us.

This past weekend we went up to Nago for our frequent Pineapple Park trip, and a visit to the beautiful beach there.

Me and three other students headed up there a couple days early than the rest of the group, to help with the first service for the church Tim started in his home there, and to pass out fliers for it. It was very fun, and amazing to see another part of beautiful Okinawa. It's more woodsy up there, with tons of green and more mountainy trees rather than tropical. We went to the beach Saterday evening, and stayed until dark. Got to see the stars and a beautiful moon coming out of the foggy clouds. Very beautiful, God is great at His creation.

I'd like to ask you to pray for us here. There are four of us here that need to get missionary visas to stay this semester, and it might be difficult for one person particularly. Please pray, God can do ANYTHING. We know He will provide them when we need them, His timing is wonderful we just have to wait for it.

We need God's guidance, we want to live to please Him and to be with Him. We really want to stay strong in our quiet time with Him each morning, please pray that the students would learn how important an appointmant that is each day. It's so beautiful to meet our Savior each day.

Thanks for keeping us in your prayers, we appreciate them beyond what you could know. we see them, and we feel them.

trust God with all you've got, He is amazing and faithful always.

-'manda

(this one's for amber ahaha) miss you :]