Sunday, May 22, 2011

Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.

In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:

Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;
rather, he made himself nothing
by taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
by becoming obedient to death—
even death on a cross!

Philippians 2.1-8

Sunday, May 15, 2011

More to Read...

These are two articles written on Sunday by a columnist in Eugene Oregon:

http://www.registerguard.com/web/sportscolumnists/26248391-41/ray-sarah-japan-basketball-says.html.csp

And also an accompanying blog:

http://www2.registerguard.com/cms/index.php/opinions-on-sports/comments/former-duck-ray-schafer-wants-to-help-japan-his-adopted-home-away-from-home/


This article was written by a sports writer for the Japan Times out of Tokyo:

The Global Mission Center, Iwaki City

The hope of both Ray and I in sharing our story of our time in Fukushima is that it may inspire others to give in whatever fashion they can, and to remind people just how much need there is. The Global Mission Center is set up in such a way that individuals and groups alike can come, have a place to stay and meals to eat, and serve in whatever area they feel called.

In the mornings we wake and have breakfast together, meet for a morning meeting to break into our service groups for the day, and do a little tai chi to get our muscles stretched out....

The building was converted from an old pachinko and slot parlour, or our equivalent of an American casino, so the building is able to house many people very comfortably. This was our room for the week...

Downstairs they converted the church sanctuary into a warehouse for donated items. Volunteers are very helpful in sorting and organizing goods...



In Iwaki there are many different kinds of shelters, ranging from 25 or so people, to some 100 residents. People sleep on the floors of gymnasiums, sometimes only separated from other families by cardboard "walls"...

Volunteers set up foot washing and massage stations. This is an incredible opportunity to show love and spend time helping the people relax and feel cared for...




Please pass the word: if you feel lead to go to Japan, or feel drawn to send supplies or a financial gift, anything helps (small things add up to great things!!). Please let me know if you or anyone else would like more information!! Let's make a difference and show radical love!!!

Saturday, May 14, 2011

Global Mission Center, Iwaki City, Part 2

"In everything I showed you that by working hard in this manner you must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He Himself said, 'It is more blessed to give than to receive."
Acts 20.35

Days 2 and 3 were spent removing debris at a seaweed factory...





Huge blocks in the seaweed press were so heavy that Ray had difficulty even budging them. It was a full team effort to remove them...

The beach is littered with skeletons of cars and homes...

The work seemed so overwhelming, but in two days we were able to make such great strides. This room was once chest high in debris...


For this particular location Ray's strength was very much needed. Everything was heavy and big. Thank the Lord Ray was there, aided by two other men from Alabama and several other guys that made a great and strong team...



The huge boxes and blocks of seaweed were ruined, and thus loaded in trucks to be taken to the incinerator and destroyed...


We had the honor of working alongside the owner of the seaweed factory and his wife. They were such incredibly gracious and grateful people, radiating joy despite their tremendous loss. In Japan the government does not offer any financial assistance to individuals, only to public aid (roads, schools, etc...). The people who lost their homes or businesses are left to try to financially and physically rebuild their lives on their own. So humbling...

After doing debris cleanup, Ray would leave every afternoon to meet with schools and teach basketball clinics. Our team from Otsu Baptist cooked a hot meal two night for a local shelter, so I stayed and helped serve food...

The residents of the shelters were a mixture of young and old; those displaced by the nuclear crisis and those who had lost everything...

This was the extent of the medical supplies at this shelter. There is a huge need for supplies...

There are so many elderly folks who either lost everything, or were too uncomfortable to stay in their homes alone so they moved to the shelter to feel safer...



Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Global Mission Center, Iwaki City, Part 1

In this way we are like the various parts of a human body. Each part gets its meaning from the body as a whole, not the other way around. The body we're talking about is Christ's body of chosen people. Each of us finds our meaning and function as a part of his body. But as a chopped-off finger or cut-off toe we wouldn't amount to much, would we? So since we find ourselves fashioned into all these excellently formed and marvelously functioning parts in Christ's body, let's just go ahead and be what we were made to be, without enviously or pridefully comparing ourselves with each other, or trying to be something we aren't.
-Romans 12.4 (taken from The Message)


Well, after waking up at 4am and driving approximately 9 hours to Fukushima prefecture in northern Japan, we arrived at the Global Mission Center, located in Iwaki City approximately 30 km from the power plant, and about a 20 minute drive from the coast. Iwaki has been serving as the nearest relief location for victims of the disaster, and the Mission Center has been fulfilling most of those needs, from serving food and delivering items to people in the shelters, to sending teams to do debris removal and cleanup.

Our first day Ray and I joined a team down near the beach to clean up a lot that the city had planned to begin rebuilding.



We separated recyclables- wood, plastics, glass, burnables- to make it easier for the heavy equipment to sort and remove...



Ray sat down with a woman and her family who were working on their home next door. He just began helping her, which encouraged the rest of us to work alongside this family to clean up their front yard. It was a powerful and humbling experience to see these people so determined to regain their lives in some way. It was touching to find photo albums and family memories buried in the thick sand. I felt like the greatest thing we could be doing was to physically help them with such demanding tasks, without words, just serving tangible needs. We were able to remove all of the debris in front of their house, and leave it with them relatively "clean". This was very rewarding.


The homes that weren't completely destroyed have been taped and patched to make them temporarily livable.

Others have been gutted by the incredible force of the water...

The result of many hours of work- so visibly small, but at least a small dent...




Red spray paint marks buildings that have been searched...


This photo shows just how far inland the massive devastation traveled. This is approximately a half mile from the concrete breakers that separate the beach from the first houses.


3:37pm, March 11, 2011. This date and time will not be easily forgotten by the people of Japan...

The houses closest to the beach are entirely removed from their foundations...

Iris and strawberry leaves pop up amidst the rubble, representing life, new growth and new beginnings...


Even over 2 months after the disaster, residents walk around the area seemingly still in shock and disbelief, perhaps gathering memories or just trying to grasp reality...


After our jobs at this site were done for the day, we returned back to the Global Mission Center to find a group singing and praying. A family who works for the center has a 4 month old baby girl with cleft palate and they were taking her to get surgery in Tokyo. We all gathered to pray and send them off...

Later that night one of the staff members set up an opportunity for Ray to spend nearly 3 hours with the Iwaki Daiichi High School Varsity girls basketball team. He taught them new drills and did a fabulous job teaching and coaching through a translator.


Afterwards there was a question and answer time. The girls were so fun and attentive. They asked everything from shoe size and favorite food, to what brought Ray to Fukushima. He was able to compare the concept of basketball, with that of serving on this "team" here doing disaster relief work- all the parts of the team are equally important and serve a common goal. If you work together effectively, there's always great success in the end.




Our first day was long and incredibly positive. I can't express how blessed we feel to be a part of this "family" at the Mission Center, and to be working alongside others from all over the world who share the same hope and love for the people of Japan.