Continued Feelings

After being back home since July 8, Phyllis and I have gotten our sleep patterns under control. It was hard to stay awake during the day time after being used to the 14 hour difference between here and Tomobe, Japan.

I love being home with my family. They are blessings from God...even when we have our little family spats! Ha! I missed my friends a ton too. But I'm also wrestling with the feeling of missing my new reader/friends in Japan. I pray hard for each of them that they may continue learning about God and his son, Jesus.

Our trip to Japan was one of the most amazing things I've ever done. To be able to teach English through the bible opened up many thoughts and emotions for me. I've done Friends Speak before, but something about going out into the world touched my heart in a different way. I know you can evangelize anywhere (even across the street here), but seeing another part of God's creation was wonderful.

The night we arrived home, my eyes quickly scanned the airport looking for my honey! As we came down the escalator, I saw Phillip first standing with flowers in his hands (Phyllis' son) then looked to the right and saw the love of my life standing with flowers in his hands too. My breath was taken away by the smile James had on his face. I fell in love all over again! Jerry (one of my older boys) was there at the airport too because he wasn't able to play with his brothers at their softball game that night.

Along with the Taga team, Phyllis and I shared our thoughts about the missions work we did in Japan with our congregation. Jake/Tanya, Scott/Luanne/Tyler, and Phyllis and I all thank all our contributors for helping sponsor our work this summer. I personally, pray God will lead me back to Japan next year to do this work again....although 3 weeks is a long time to be away from my hubby. He actually encouraged me to do this work. That's just another reason why I'm crazy about the man! Ha! He puts God and his work first in order to be a good leader for our family.

What's next for me, lots of listening to God about all things. When another reader comes up, I'll do Friends Speak again. I will continue sharing my faith and testimonies everywhere I go. I've done a few workshops since returning home, have gone on a couple of short out of town trips, and will prepare myself for school to start in a few weeks.

Oh, I've been in touch with some of my reader/friends. A couple have signed up to do a continued LST session with the missionaries in August. I believe I have that correct.

Maybe I'll add some other pictures to this blog in a day or two. For now, I'm just glad to be home.

Tommie