Jesus, Japan and the Cowells

We have a new web site

2007-11-20T22:11:00.000-08:00

Clive and I have a new website.

Please visit http://web.mac.com/quagmaya39/Jesus_Japan_and_the_Cowells/Splash.html

Thaialnd 2007

2007-07-20T12:48:00.001-07:00

Thailand was a wonderful experience.

Clive and I were so blessed to be able to go on behalf of Honolulu Christian Church. What at different experience it was from our time in Japan. I have to say that it was a bit bewildering seeing so many children accept Christ.

Our team of 10 was sent to work with Zoe International based in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Zoe has three different homes that they operate there. One is devoted to raising orphans. The second is a Bible training school for older students. And I have to confess that I neglected to learn about the third house. We visited the first two but not the third.

The Zoe Children's Home in Chiang Mai is filled with delightful little souls who are rescued. Meaning, they are children who truly have no living relatives who are able to take care of them. They come from all over northern Thailand. Our first meeting with those kids was a power charged moment. The team walked in the main door to a riot of applause and cheering. How those kids longed to see us. Just as much as we longed to see them, only they displayed it much better than we could.

Mostly we visited and worked with these kids. We had some informal classes with them. We taught English, crochet, Stomp (the rythmic, beat keeping dance sort of thing), oragami and hula. We brought them gifts from Hawaii tailored to the specific age groups of the youth.

Zoe also took us out to visit another children's home in the local area.

As you can see it is a rather rustic place. The children live in the structure that you see behind us. It is made of concrete cinder blocks. It is very simple. Two large sleeping rooms, with boys and girls seperate bathing areas on either side. There is also an open air kitchen and a patio for school and eating. While very simple, it was clean by Thailand standards. And it was obvious that these darlings were loved by those who cared for them.

We had an entire lesson plan including crafts and games which we lead for the kids. Clive was our preacher/teacher and when it came time to invite those children to accept Jesus as their Savior, nearly every single one did. It was an honor to be there.

Zoe also took us up into the Hilltribe area of Chiang Mai. We went to work in a village that houses the area school, where over 200 children attend. The Hilltribe of that area is called the Karin (pronounced Cah-reee-uhn with a rolling of the r.) Here we were somewhat thrilled to discover that nearly 180 kids had stayed behind over the weekend to meet with us. We played games, lead a craft and even had Bible sharing - where yes, nearly all of the children raised their hands to accept Christ. (This is a Buddhist area.)

For us "Westerners" this was the place where we got to go native. We were allowed to sleep in the little local church. The floors were concrete and we had lots of mosquito nets to protect us at night. We used "squatty potties" when nature called and ate our meals in this awesome bamboo hut on elevated stilts. That was fun. We sat on the floor and ate family style. This was also the scene of our Sunday School class for the weekend.

The community honored our team by presenting us with these gorgeous hand loomed bags - which I will always treasure.

Zoe also took us up to Thaton and the Golden Triangle area. In Thaton we visited Faith Village which is a home for children that has a big vision. They have a band which is quite famous in the area and are invited to perform (with pay) all over the area. The one stipulation that the band has is that they be allowed to share the gospel wherever they play. Which is really unheard of. Yet they remain in demand.

The Golden Triangle is the area which unites Burma, Laos and Thailand on the Mekong River. Not more than 10 years ago this was under the control of opium drug lords and had been for decades. The government put in place some tough measures which cracked down on the drug rings. In addition, the rise of "Ice" in the West cut back on the demand for opiates. Now the area is popluar site for tourists.

In the Golden Triangle we were going to visit Mae Ab. In this village there is a home for children run by missionary Patty Culpepper. She has about 17 kids there. Unfortunately, there was flooding in the village which prevented us from driving up to visit. (You need 4-wheel drive to navigate the washed out roads.) So Patty brought the kids to us. Most of them have not been out of the village, nor had they been to a hotel. We managed to book a conference room there where we served the children a roast chicken dinner. Another first, they are used to eating on the floor, but we served them at a long banquet table. You never saw such tiny people stuff so much into themselves. And we fed them until they begged us to stop serving.

The whole team learned a lot. Most of the team had not been on short-term missions before, so it was a thrill for them to see that Jesus is worshipped in other places.

Expo Ministries #2 Ephesians 1

2007-05-15T20:41:00.000-07:00

Expo #2 was Saturday May 12th. Mother's Day was the next day May 13th, so we weren't expecting anyone to show up. But 15 people turned up. And the lesson went very well.

Several people let Clive know that they wanted to come but were unable to make it because of Mother's Day events they were either prepping for or attending. So Clive has determined to run Expo #2 again on May 23rd (Wednesday.)

We covered Ephesians 1. Mostly we focused on verses 1-3, the greeting. But even in those few verses so many good questions came up. The Scriptures are always alive and so relevant to life today, I should not be surprised a greeting could be so challenging to the hearer.

Expo Ministries - Event #1

2007-05-07T21:01:00.000-07:00

What you are looking at is Curtis Rigsby teaching from the Bible.

He taught us from the book of John chapter One.

We had a great turn out, there were 20 people there. I was of course excited, Clive works so hard to make sure that everyone feels invited and welcome.

The next Expo night is May 12th, that's right, this Saturday.

Clive's Own Blog

2007-04-13T13:44:00.000-07:00

Hey all!
Clive has his own blog through Honolulu Chrisitian Church. Look to the right, I have a link that will zap you there. Check it out!

Good Friday

2007-04-08T11:01:00.000-07:00

Good Friday Service was truly a blessing for us. Stan Miyamoto gave a fantastic message. The worship team ushered us into the presence of the Lord. They even used material written by Miles Lee, which was so gorgeous. Then a buffet dinner followed, which was excellent. (Thank you Norene and team!)

Here are some pics of familiar faces.

HIM Conference 2007

2007-04-07T11:42:00.000-07:00

Hawaiian Islands Ministry put on another fantastic conference this year.

Clive and I are so blessed by our luxurious apartment (thank you Teryua's) that we just ahve to share with others. So this year for the conference we opened our home for lunch Friday and Saturday for anyone who wanted to know.

Steve and Donna stayed the weekends with us. Loads of fun!

Parsonage Clean-up

2007-04-04T14:05:00.000-07:00

As administrator of the church, Clive is tasked with keeping (or in some areas making) the church clean. To launch that aspect of his ministry, he wanted to bless the youth of HCC first. So, the Parsonage Clean-Up was planned.

Oh the clutter...

Fearfully untidy...

A picture paints a thousand words.

For years the old parsonage has been used as a storage facility for various ministries. That's not a problem. The stuff has to go somewhere. What made the building cluttered was the large objects (old carpets and rugs included) that was too good to throw away but really didn't have a current use. Those objects were hauled to a very needy source.

The day started off with some Japanese style team exercises lead by
Assistant Pastor Stan.

Get into it!

What was most encouraging was the mix in ages working.

I was the handy photographer, who forgot to take any photos of the results, but here is one of Clive's joyful face -

Thank You Jesus!

And the youth were encouraged. They can now meet in a clean and clutter free environment.

Senior Ministry

2007-03-18T18:33:00.000-07:00

March 3, 2007 The Tsujimura Home
Andy Matsunaga

Playing a little tune on the harmonica after dinner.

Ruth Tsujimura has a heart for the seniors. She has suggested that Barney Kinoshita and Maya team up with her to host seniors for dinner at her house. For the inagural evening, she invited Andy. She offered a delicious Thai meal. Afterward, Andy blessed us with his musical talent.

Forgiveness

2007-03-13T12:22:00.000-07:00

On Sunday, Clive was able to preach a message on Forgiveness at Honolulu Christian Church. The reception was as we prayed for.

Clive preached through Ephesians, showing the many blessings that we have in Christ, in other words, the wealth we have in Christ. "With all that we have, how can we not forgive?" seems to be the question.

He then began to "unpack" Ephesians 4 with the emphasis on the "new" way of living. Part of that is dealing with anger. Identifying righteous and unrighteous anger. Not letting the sun go down on either, we need to act upon the former and let go of the latter. We mustn't let the devil get a foothold by neglecting righteous anger or acting out in unrighteous anger. We should not grieve the Holy Spirit by our unwholesome, bitter, wrathful, angry words we might use with one another because of wrongly identifying and wrongly dealing with anger.

4:32 "Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you."
In fact, Clive equated forgiveness in our hearts to the work which Christ performed on our part for forgiveness.

The illustration Clive used was one from his own life. He told the story of how his eldest brother had once badly beaten their middle brother. And on another occasion, how the eldest brother badly beat their father as well. Clive felt powerless in those days to do or say anything to his brother who was in a drunken rage. Years later, at the funeral of their father of which Clive was the minister as well as a pallbearer, his eldest brother was shattered by the grief and guilt he felt in harming their brother and especially their departed father.

Clive was able to share that because of Christ, he was no longer powerless. Indeed, because of the wealth that he has in Christ, he was able to forgive AND to comfort his eldest brother.

After his message, many people came up to thank him for the Word of God spoken into their lives and were able to share how God has illuminated the unforgiveness in their own hearts. Beautiful.

West Oahu Christian Church Banquet

2007-02-28T13:09:00.000-08:00

On Sunday night, Clive and I had the great joy of attending the West Oahu Church's banquet. The food was terrific and the fellowship was even better. Fabian shared his testimony and we were all moved by how God brought him to Jesus.

Clive has quite a connection with West Oahu. He preached there for a couple of Sundays in December and for the last seven weeks has been teaching a Bible Institute of Hawaii class there. Next week is the last week, it's going to be sad to say good-bye.

The Tour Continues....Punchbowl Memorial

2007-02-28T12:02:00.000-08:00

We have continued our photograhic tour of the island. On Feb 16, 2007 we took a trip up to the Punchbowl Memorial, which memorializes WW II, The Korean War and the Vietnam War.
Clive and I have been in Honolulu on and off since 1992 and we have never gone up to Punchbowl. We've driven around it hundreds of times, but we never ventured in. As mentioned before, we printed out a list of touristy things to do in Honolulu and Punchbowl was one of the places and then I received a comment on my myspace from:

John P. "I was thinking about you and Clive the last few days. I just finished reading two books by Joan Didion, both of which featured essays on Hawaii. The books are "Slouching Towards Bethlehem" and "The White Album" if you're interested. One of the best essays included a fascinating trip to a cemetery in the crater of a volcano. Know the place?"

We do and here it is. Thank you John.

I regret to say that I did not write down the name of the mother who the statue portion of the memorial was built for. She lost 5 sons in WW II.

One thing that struck Clive and I while we stood by the statue was the mood. It was respectfully quiet up there. All of the visitors spoke in hushed tones. The only sound was the wind violently whipping through the flags making a bursting sound, like bombs exploding. It was very moving.

A Tough Decision

2007-02-14T14:10:00.000-08:00

Clive has been praying about how to spend his time. As mentioned, he has more than a 40 hour a week career. Plus, he teaches with Bible Institute of Hawaii (BIH.) He loves to teach, it really fills him with joy. Plus, we are in the midst of deputation for Japan.

Last night he had to make a tough decision. We have set ourselves a goal of trying to have the bulk of our support for a return to Japan. The goal was two years from the date of our arrival in Honolulu. We have been in Honolulu for the better part of four months and have done very little to raise support. So Clive has decided that he cannot continue with BIH. This is rather a blow for him personally, as he loves to teach so much.

Please pray for him as he works through the details and the emotions of this change.

Thailand Short-Term Missions Trip

2007-02-12T16:29:00.000-08:00

Donna Kranz our Missions Chairperson

HCC (Honolulu Christian Church) is planning a short-term missions trip to Thailand in conjunction with Zoe International, an outreach for orphaned children. Yesterday, Feb 12, was the orientation meeting. I am very hopeful that God may be willing for me to go on this trip in June of this year.

HCC first sent a team of two ladies out to Thailand last summer. I really wanted to go, but just didn't have the time.

Fridays in Hawaii

2007-02-12T16:11:00.000-08:00

Clive is the Administrator at our home church Honolulu Christian. As anyone who is in full time ministry is aware, that is no 40 hour a week occupation. In order not to grow into strangers, Clive and I spend Friday afternoons together. Usually we go to the movies or dinner or both.

Recently, we have begun to spend all of Friday together. He's usually at the office every single day, so Friday is the day he forces himself to not go in.

Clive printed out a list of important places to see on Oahu. So we have decided to visit each one, as time permits and photograph the places. Last week was the first week and we went to #1 - Waikiki Beach.

Waikiki has many areas under construction. The new Trump towers are underway, and the Royal Hawaiian Shopping Center is having a major facelift which includes many even higher end stores arriving. At the moment, the construction is unsightly. So it is better to hang out on the beach than strolling the streets for fashion.

We stopped by our favorite hotel, the Moana Surfrider. I love how is looks like a gracious Southern home right in the middle of all of the skyscrapper hotels.

We finished the adventure off with a little lunch at the not so Hawaiian Cheesecake Factory. As they say in Hawaii, "No can help, the food stay broke da mao-fff." (mao-ph - mouth...)

A new camera

2007-01-27T17:00:00.000-08:00

It had to be done! I had to get a new camera.
So I went to Sam's Club and got it.

I then took a walk in the park (Ala Moana Beach Park) across the road from us and got a few pics. Nearly every morning I watch the sunrise in this park. I walk and jog there daily, and LOVE IT!

It's kinda neat how the picture thing-y zooms in on our actual apartment bedroom window as it fades to the next picture.

Enjoy the pictures in the two post below.

...more of the same day...

2007-01-27T16:57:00.003-08:00

A Day at the Park

2007-01-27T16:57:00.001-08:00

My First Slide Show!

2007-01-22T13:56:00.001-08:00

A New Year

2007-01-10T11:12:00.000-08:00

Clive is working very hard on preparing the lessons for the two classes he wants to teach at BIH (Bible Institute of Hawaii www.biblehawaii.org). He spends hours each night studying and writing. He loves it!
I say "wants to teach" because we still don't know if he will teach the classes. We don't know if anyone has signed up yet. That is the only factor at this point which will determine if he will teach. Each class needs a minimum of 12 students.
At this time, he really does have his plate full with the new work he has begun at HCC (Honolulu Christian Church www.honoluluchristian.org). There is a tremendous learning curve for him in the Administrators role. He relishes everyday, but there are challenges in knowing how to get the dozens of tasks accomplished, as well as realtional issues.
God knows best and will determine how much Clive can handle, although he REALLY wants to teach these classes.

Letters Around the World New Year Project

2006-12-26T09:58:00.000-08:00

I have a plan to send 4 letters around the world to myself. Go to the link "Message in a Bottle" (at right) and check it out.

What's the picture above? Taken in a lovely little English village in the Cinque Ports. Clive and I love to visit there with Clive's mother. It's called Winchelsea on sea. The cottages are gorgeous. Though it is not in the Austen area of Bath, it is a Naval town, therefore the dwellings harken me to the era of Jane (Persuasion).

Pictures of Hawaii

2006-12-12T10:12:00.000-08:00

Here at last are photos of our apartment in Honolulu, and some other fun pictures.

Here is Maya sitting at the living room desk.

Clive in the entry hall, just to the right is the "guest room suite."

Livingroom with donated rattan furniture, which is actually very lovely.

The "Gilligan's Island View" from the apartment. This is where they "set sail that day for a 3 hour tour..."

Attending a winter league baseball game with beloved friends. I was too busy watching the view to really understand what was happening in the game.

Merry Christmas to all, we love you and miss you.

Friends from Portland

2006-11-26T10:34:00.000-08:00

David and Helen York from Portland, Or. are here for a visit. They befriended us at Hinson Baptist Church.

So far Clive and I have run them ragged, dragging them here and there. Mostly there.

Yesterday we took them to Yummy BBQ at the Ala Moana Makai Market, and they sampled kim chee for the first time. Both loved it. Yes!

Here's a picture of Helen and I, circa 2004 - my first craft sale. You may notice a few of my knitted goods on the rack. I am also modeling a poncho, which at the time was terribly fashionable.

Honolulu Nov. 2006

2006-11-24T15:50:00.000-08:00

Here is a picture of a sunset as viewed from our new apartment.

Just a little side note, the view from our living room window is famous. It was used in the opening of every Gilligan's Island. As the song starts, "Just sit right back and you'll hear a tale..." and the ship that they all boarded begins to leave the harbor - that's our harbor! See the next picture.

This is a better picture, though it was raining.

I'll try to post more pictures as I learn to blog. I can get them from the computer. I can take the pictures with the camera. It's getting them onto the computer I have to learn next.

Getting Better/PHC

2006-11-12T16:18:00.000-08:00

Clive is slowly recovering from the sciatica and tendinitis which is flairing up.

Last night we were treated to an actual performance of the Praire Home Companion here in Honolulu. It was all very exciting and the performers were at their best. Though Clive suffered discomfort through most of the 3 hours, it was worth it. Thank you Steve and Donna.

Steve and Donna Kranz are dear friends. Without them our fantastic apartment would not have been. They have been the kind middlemen between the owners and ourselves. Also, they have cleaned this place top to bottom. It has been unoccupied for 7 or so years and was understandibly dusty and moldy in spots. I really feel that words fail to convey our gratitude to such friends.

Sciatica

2006-11-08T22:16:00.000-08:00

We have spent the last week waiting for Clive's leg to heal. At this time, I am prettty sure he has sciatica, which he has meds for. As the days pass he is not so certain that his leg isn't broken. He has had a stress fracture in the past, and thinks his ankle may be cracked. I am praying that it is not.
It has been a long few days, mostly with Clive in lots of pain. We languish in our fantastic apartment and ever depend on the kindness of our church family. Clive is completely unable to lift anything. He can't even walk. So when our boxes arrive from Hawaii, we will have to have friends help us bring them up. Which is not a problem, but very humbling. The last two months have been a lesson in trusting in the Lord to provide through His people - which is such a blessing but not easy. We like to bless other's but here we wait to be blessed. This is a good lesson.

By the by, I am so excited, I just added a link to the blog, the Daily Goblin. This is more fun then I ever thought it would be.

Now in Hawaii

2006-11-02T17:00:00.000-08:00

We arrived safely in Hawaii this past Tuesday. Ron Kam graciously picked us up from the airport. We stayed our first night at Steve and Donna Kranz' house.

Woke up early on Wednesday for the signing of a two year contract on the apartment we now live in.

This place is unbelieveable and we await our first guests to arrive. The tentative date will be November 25 - and the guests will be..... David and Helen York.

Jesus, Japan and the Cowells

2006-10-01T15:00:00.000-07:00

Oct 1, 2006

Wow! A blog of our very own...

The countdown begins for our return to Honolulu. Now that the calendar has been changed on the wall and I can see the day of our departure from Portland, the nerves have set in. It's good, it's all good. But I can see the day now.