After riding the spinning tea cups! You can see the boys in school uniforms in the background. Tokyo Disneyland is the theme park with the most yearly visitors in the world! We went early on a school day, and still there were crowds!

A 360 view of a park lookout at Hakone. It was too cloudy to see Fuji-san in the distance, but on a clear day it would've been in the distance across the lake. At the end, please excuse the fast zoom, but that is the European-styled observation tower.

I forget who these wrestlers were, but they were near the end of the day so they were probably Ozeki's, the rank just below the Yokuzuna (grand champion), Asushoru. The idea is to force your opponent to touch the ground inside the ring with anything other than his feet, or force him outside the ring. This is a medium-length match - some are much faster!

Warning: may cause neck soreness. (sorry!)

The best part is the little ceremonial dance at the end. It takes a while for them to all get in, and they're being announced and cheered for individually. These are the higher-ranked professionals, and their skirts are very heavy and expensive gifts from their fan associations, although a little drafty.

The highest level, professional sumo wrestlers, exiting after performing their little ceremonial dance. Cute aprons, but perhaps a little drafty from behind . . .

In the midst of a bout. Our favourite, Kotooshu, is sitting in the lower right corner, in the green thong thing.

I am humbled and amazed.

Soli Deo Gloria

A significant theme in the History of the Church has been the question of who gets the glory in the enterprise of salvation. This was one of the major issues in the Reformation, because the Roman Catholic church taught (teaches) that salvation is partly the work of God and partly of man. Like the reformers, the North American church (myself included) needs to recapture the understanding of Soli Deo Gloria (to God alone be the glory).

Today, salvation is distinctively human-centered, ie. God saves sinners to make them happy, to feel good, to fulfill their potential, to enable self-actualization. But the Bible states explicitly and repeatedly that God saves sinners not primarily for their own sake at all, but rather for HIS GLORY! Thus, the purpose of my salvation is so that the God of the universe might put himself on dispaly by using me as a vessel of his infinite mercy and grace. In my North American world view, this strikes me as selfish and errant. My self argues, but doesn't everything revolve around me? God loves ME so much that he died FOR ME. I like the sound of that much better. Waymeyer goes on to state his thesis as "Salvation is ALL God's work, and ALL for His glory." I also thought this a little extreme. What about our free will, our need to seek the Lord while He may be found, to confess and believe . . .
Of course God loves me, otherwise he wouldn't have sent Jesus to die for me. And yes, I must believe in Jesus to be saved, and then continue to chose to obey his leading. But ultimately, it's not about me, it's about God. If I could take any step towards God apart from him, then I should deserve some of the credit, but it is impossible. I would not be able to believe it God did not enable me to do so. And I would not be able to obey in my own strength, which is one of the reasons believers are given the Holy Spirit to indwell and empower them. Anyways, the Bible (OT and NT) is riddled with phrases like "for my glory" and "to the praise of His glory" and such. The passage Maymeyer focuses on is Eph 1:3-14, which is one massive sentance containing 202 greak words. The sentance focuses on each member of the trinity in turn, as well as three aspects of time, (v 4-6 the Father's work of election in the past, v 7-12 the Son's work of redemption in the present, and v 13-14 the Holy Spirit's work of sealing an inheritance that is yet in the future). Beautiful. Thus from start to finish, Salvation is the work of God from election before the foundation of the world (v 4) to the future redemption at the end of the age (v14). Entirely God's work, and thus entirely to be praised. It makes sense that Paul breaks out in v 3 with giving praise to God, and after each section he proclaims it all "to the praise of his glory!" Amazing. I encourage you to mark up this section of your Bible (it's not so clear in NLT, but better in NIV and even clearer in more literal translations).

Anyways, this was just the introduction of his sermon, and he goes on to highlight "6 spiritual blissings that display the glory of God in the salvation of man" including:
- v 3-4 He CHOSE you for salvation (ie. God took the initiative.) It's amazing considering God's and my condition at the time of his choosing, since we tend to make choices based on something inherantly attractive or appealing or reasonable, and that's not how he chose me! There was nothing in me that would warrent God's choice. Charles Splurgen wrote how humbling this realization is, and brokenly states "Lord, I am nothing. I am less than nothing. Why me? Why me?" All praise and glory be to God.
- v 5-6 He adopted you as children. Not only did he chose me for salvation, but he welcomed me (formerly an object of wrath) into his family as his child! It was predestined by the Father, because of his love (motivation) and was enabled by Jesus (through his payment in blood). I was once an enemy and now am a dealy beloved child, none of it because of what I've done, but all due to God. Thus, praise and glory be to God!

I'm out of time, and this is way longer than the short post I intended. Maybe later I'll get around to posting the other 4! Argh, I'm so slow and not consise!

On Wednesday we went with a couple to Tscuba-san, a beautiful double-peaked mountain north of Tokyo. A large portion of Tokyo decided to go with us. It was a mite crowded! But we did some climbing, walking, eating, climbing, waiting in lines, road a cable car and a gondola, and were filmed eating soba (a type of noodles) by a film crew! I hope I slurped appropriately! This same crew caught us later and asked the women to pose for pictures, infront of all the crowds! I think it was because we were the only gaijen (foreigners) there. I mean, they were struck by my beauty . . . uh, yeah.

And Spring Grand Sumo Tournament on Tuesday! That's bound to be an eyefull . . .

Still more picts added to the gallery. The pictoral diarhea continues.

My appologies to all serious photographers, people with artistic sensibilities, and all those who are capable of making decisions.

There is such fear and dispair here. 70% of Japanese live in fear (of earthquakes, typhoons, losing their jobs . . .) and a best-selling Japanese book is a how to manual on the best ways to commit suicide (apparently jumping infront of a train is one of the worst options, since your family gets a large bill for the clean-up, and all the commuters are delayed . . .). There are so many loveless marriages (not like North America is any better -- at least in Japan the couples stay together until the kids are grown and the husband retires, thus putting a strain on to people who don't like each other to be together more often) and materialism is all-pervasive.

I know that it is not my responsibility to bring people to salvation, but I am to be ready and willing to do what God asks and thus I must also be in step with the Holy Spirit to know what He's asking! Living with my sister and bro-in-law continues to be an education and challenge as I watch their relational ministries, personal disciplines and even their marriage. Sometimes I wonder how many areas can I find in my life that need work. Apparently the list doesn't end. Well, I've rambled enough.

My body has finally recovered from my latest attempt at boarding. The gondola lets everyone off at the jump park, and although my coworker wanted to work on his jumps, I wanted to remember how to put my board on! I attempted to navigate down the park to get to another chair lift, at which point he felt the need to say "lets get you out of here before someone gets hurt" or the like. I fully agreed, with jumps and flying bodies all around and I couldn't remember how to turn! Things improved a lot throughout the day, and what I had learned before finally came back. It was a beautiful warm day, and the deep, soft, melting snow made a wonderful cushion for my tumbles and rolls. I was literally soaked through the rented snowpants to my underwear. (Good thing I brought I complete change of clothes, considering I had to ring out my clothes afterwards!) Twas a great (wet) day, especially since I didn't hurt until afterwards.

"One word, Ma'am," he said, coming back from the fire; limping, because of the pain. "One word. All you've been saying is quite right, I shouldn't wonder. I'm a chap who always liked to know the worst and then put the best face I can on it. So I won't deny any of what you said. But there's one thing more to be said, even so. Suppose we have only dreamed, or made up, all those things -- trees and grass and sun and moon and stars and Aslan himself. Suppose we have. Then all I can say is that, in that case, the made-up things seem a good deal more important than the real ones. Suppose this black pit of a kingdom of yours is the only world. Well, it strikes me as a pretty poor one. And that's the funny thing, when yhou come to think of it. We're just babies making up a game, if you're right. But four babies playing a game can make a play-world which licks your real world hollow. That's why I'm going to stand by the play world. I'm on Aslan's side even if there isn't any Aslan to lead it. I'm going to live as like a Narnian as I can even if there isn't any Narnia. So, . . . we're leaving your court at once and setting out in the dark to spend our lives looking for Overland. Not that our lives will be very long, I should think; but that's small loss if the world's as dull a place as you say."

What devotion, tenacity, faith. To cling to hope even if it looks like it looks like complete madness.

We have so much to hope for and rejoice in, but all through faith. A co-worker here is intelligent and educated, and also depressed and finding life to be futile and empty. I can't blame him. Without faith in God, this is a very bleak and pointless world.

And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. . . . . If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men. 1 Cor 15: 17, 19

Do I truely live my life that it could be considered madness and a pitiful waste, if (hypothetically) Christ had not been raised?

I don't want to think too long about what this means.

On a similar note, I was considering buying a t-shirt (I found one that actually fit) which I thought had the usual random english decorating it (seriously, I don't think they even try to make sense!), but then Lee Anne caught a glimmer of sense. It read, "A successful man is one who earns more than his wife can spend. A successful woman is one who can find such a man." SO typical Japanese!

Happy Easter everyone! Hugs and Celebration all around.