day 2

[day 2] multitudes

The Japanese love New Years. The first 4 days of the year are traditionally called 'holiday' and most people take off work to

travel back to their hometown to see family and go to various temples. The roots of tradition are deep within the Japanese, and in spite of the extreme modern day demeanor of Japan there is always a sense of respect and homage to traditional ways. On our second day in Tokyo we met up with a missionary in a downtown Starbucks to hear his perspective and insight from

living there. He shared so much with us about the culture, everything from religion to cuisine was briefly covered. Then it came time for a first hand experience of 'holiday' in Tokyo.

As we stepped onto the street I learned what the real meaning of multitude is. I found myself completely overwhelmed at the magnitude of it all. We were literally shoulder to shoulder with millions of Japanese on the street walking towards the Sensoji Temple. The first picture at the top gives you an snapshot of the path leading up the temple. It was lined with small shops selling kimonos, lanterns, trinkets and food. Multitudes of people all slowly moving towards the gate of Sensoji.We didn't actually go into the temple but we walked along the outside perimeter on the edge of the gate. When the people walked inside the gate they could approach drawers full of blank paper to write their prayers on. These prayers were tied to trees or small wire that surrounded the trees. There was a small barrel of burning incense that also represented their prayers rising up to

their gods. Right beside the barrel there was a statue that was gated off. I was told that the water beneath the statue is usually ladled out and sipped to 'purify their mouth so that they may speak well'.

Everything seemed so routine. It seemed empty. I think that the weight of watching all that went on will stay with me for a long time. I long to see salvation spring up through the nations. And the gravity of what it means to be separated from God pierced my heart that day. If I believe what the Bible says about God's children, I must also believe what it says about not knowing God. Praise be to my God and Savior that I know him and I have the utmost privilege of being called His child. I am incredibly thankful.

But along with my thankfulness comes a brokenness for those who have

bought into the lie that there is any god besides the one true God. To be completely honest my heart was very heavy as I made my way

between vendors and seemingly inexpressive multitudes. I wanted to

them to know that this isn't The Way. I wanted them to know joy. I wanted

them to understand forgiveness and salvation. I wanted them to know the love of the one righteous God. More than that, I wanted them to know that God wanted all those things for them way more than I ever could. I could talk for days about these few moments, the Lord spoke a lot into my heart as I watched and prayed for these precious people.

We left the temple grounds and walked to an area called Harajuku. Harajuku is the place where a lot of the younger, more outspoken Japanese hang out. If you can imagine lots of chaos, Japanese anime characters, gothic dress, tons of street food, roar of trains rolling in every 7 minutes- you're in Harajuku. I loved people watching there. I took a lot of pictures from this day so I just included a few of my favorites.

Day 2 in Tokyo was fantastic and overwhelming. I felt like I was completely submerged into the culture.

Sorry this post is so long, lots happened this day.