God is moving!!!

Hey!
This weekend we went to Hirakata to visit with one of the churches there. It is called Hirakata Christ Church and it is amazing. I could totally see God moving in that church and the people there. We stayed in a house right next to the church. It was small compared to the house we are living in here in Toyota. It made me very grateful for our house here. We left on Saturday afternoon from Toyota when the pastor of the church, Pastor Fujino, came and picked us up. He is Japanese but speaks English very well. He is very passionate about God and the people in Japan. He also makes jokes tbat we don't really understand because he uses a really serious tone of voice. But he was really fun. We arrived in Hirakata after a two hour drive and were shown around our house had fellowship with the pastor and met Christina an international student from the states. She spent the whole weekend with us acting as a translator and helping us out. We went out for dinner with a family from the church. They were so friendly and their children were so cute. On Sunday we went to the service at the church we were visiting. I was so encouraged by the members joy and faith. We had fellowship with the church members and international students from a university in japan the whole day. The church members made us a special dinner and at the end of the night they sang us a song and prayed for us. It felt like we were all one big family. I felt the idea that all followers of Jesus are a family to be so true. On monday Pastor Fujino took us to Kyoto. We went and visited a castle, the Golden Pavillion and some Bhuddist and Shinto temples. What was really heartbreaking was to see the people offering their prayers to the different gods when they don't know what they are really worshipping and to see that it is so empty. I urge you to pray for the people of Japan that their hearts would be opened to the truth and that God would reveal Himself to them in big ways. That night we went to a sushi bar for dinner. These are really popular in Japan. You sit at tables and a conveyer belt with sushi on it passes around and you grab whatever you want off it. You can also special order things and there is a little plastic train that will come to your table with your special order. We went shopping in the evening. On Monday we went to Osaka and went and saw Osaka castle. Inside was a museum with displays on the history of the castle. When we were leaving two Japanese girls came up to us and asked for our picture. I think it is funny that we have instant celebrity status here because we don't look Japanese. I am pretty sure it is not the last time something like that will happen. We then met up with Pastor Hiebert and he drove us back to our home here in Toyota. His wife made us dinner and it was wonderful. I really enjoyed seeing the rich history of Japan and how God is working through His people here in Japan.
Until next time,
Sayonara