Priscilla, Natsumi, and Mayu watching How to lose a guy in 10 days.


Christie, Ty, and I eating ice cream after the Onsen


"After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from EVERY nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice:
'Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb'" (Rev. 7: 9-10)

Before I came on this trip I began praying for at least one woman that I could invest in this summer. The Lord put a student named Natsumi on my heart. After spending some time with her I decided to ask her if she would read through John with me. Shes not a believer but she says she is searching. She told me that many Japanese see that there are many "paths" in life and they are confused about which one to take since they don't have a prominent religion in their families or culture. They are often raised and die without any religion at all.
Aside from that, one of the BEST club students, Keigo, shared how weird it is for a Japanese person to be a Christian. Its normal to meet foreigners who are (especially since they consider all Americans to be Christians) but to meet a Japanese person in Japan who is a Christian isn't acceptable.
It seems that they have so much more to lose in this life than the average American would in their society. Jin shared with us her feelings about this saying, "why should they miss out on the honor of being persecuted for Christ?" I understand Jin's heart more and more as i read through acts and see the joy of the apostles in every trial and persecution they have to deal with. We are praying that these students will see Christianity not as a way to lose everything "good" in their lives but as a decision that would give them life and love instead.
Praise God for their willingness to share and be honest with us. Please pray for our time with them.

Updated pray requests:
- Jerry shared the gospel with Yuri. ( You can read about it here: http://www.xanga.com/F_R_O_G). Pray for the Spirit to work on His heart as Yuri makes a decision.
- Reading the Bible with Natsumi
- Lord will guide our relationships with the students as we help them write speeches about love, life, values, etc.


Thanks for praying,
Ojen Aslanian

You can keep updated with the rest of my team at these addresses:

Christy: http://christyrandljapan.blogspot.com/
Ryan: http://rpm3japan2006.blogspot.com/
Mike: http://mikecainjapan.blogspot.com/
Jerry: http://www.xanga.com/F_R_O_G
Cole: http://www.xanga.com/CWRobinson