WOW. There are so many things that I've experienced over the past week that it's hard to keep my head focused on the purpose of this blog post: explaining what I went through to become a resident in Osakasayama City.
Looking Back; Facing Forward
I didn't realize how appropriate it was to use my "official NorthLife portrait" on my little fridge magnet-prayer card thingie until just now. While that fridge magnet obviously represents my future in Japan, nevertheless, embedded right on it is a reminder of a part of my past that will continue to have affect me for …
We Are The Fellowship
So this happened last week. But it's been so busy this week at church/day camps that I only have the chance to post about it now. I am staying with The Fellowship. Many of my friends know that most of my training as a pastor happened at Morningstar Christian Fellowship, which is part of the …
Osakasayama-Shi
So, Osakasayasma-shi is the city that I will be moving to when I got to Japan. Now, I've been to Japan a bunch of times already, but every time I've gone has been to Tokyo (in the case of my last trip, Akita and Aomori as well). So going to Osaka is new. And so …
Visa Obtained!
So this is a few week late but I got my Visa to Japan! It was quite an ordeal, but totally worth it. It involved an overnight bus ride and several flights. But here it is! So it all started two weeks ago, on July 6 when I took the bus down to Calgary to …
Osaka Here I Come!
Osaka Here I Come! I just bought my plane ticket to fly to Osaka! I wasn't exactly planning to do it today. But I knew I was going to buy the tickets any day now... I have basically been checking online every few days to see what the ticket situations are, and which airlines have …
Certificate of Eligibility
Yesterday, I received the final document I needed from Japan in order to apply for my visa: the Certificate of Eligibility. I made a collage of it above so that I could block out the sensitive parts of the document. But that's basically what it looks like. On that note, I guess now is as …
Thank You, Dad!
I wrote this week's blog post that appears on my church's website and in our weekly bulletin. It being Father's Day, I of course wrote about that. Picture: The "dads" in my immediate family with my niece Kara Elise. My dad, my brother (Kara Elise's dad) and my brother's father in law. Praise the Lord …
Vacuum Bags And Stuff
My 7th blog in a row. Can you tell I'm excited about Japan? Of course, it's still March (despite when this is actually getting published). But also I've been sick. I was home sick all day on Monday. Then Tuesday, I worked half day because I needed to get stuff done. Yesterday was almost a …