Lessons Learned in 24 hours

Well, Kan has only been gone a little over 24 hours and I have already learned a few lessons. One, a coke zero from McD's, although is not quite the same as a diet coke, it does give you a little satisfaction. I am definitely a coke girl, not pepsi. On a more serious note, I have learned that I am richly blessed with friends! I looked at our calendar for this next week and realized I have morning play dates, Bible study, and Japanese class filling our mornings until next Friday. I have afternoon play dates or dinner dates filling our evenings until next Friday. I am headed to Nagoya tomorrow to see a dear family friend for the weekend. I am not lonely here in Tokyo. The super spiritual answer would be, "Shari, you are never lonely because Jesus is always with you." Yes, I hold steadfast to that truth, but we are made to be in community with others and God has given me a great community here in Tokyo. I do not know what I was so nervous about. The week may feel slow at times, but I am blessed.

The other lesson I have learned is that I would rather be here right now than doing what we did in the US. I know this is where we are supposed to be as a family for this stage in our lives. I think back to how we lived with this current job in the US - it meant Kan traveling back and forth to Japan every 6 weeks. While on vacation we were looking at his passport and until we moved here in February, he had been in and out of Japan every month over the course of a year or so. Y'all can do the math but that is a lot of back and forth. It takes a toll on his body, it takes a toll on your family, and it just is not fun. I am so thankful to be here, where we only have to go overseas for work once, maybe twice a year. Sure, he has the trips to Korea or Taiwan, but those are 2 hour flights, 2-3 day trips, and no jet lag to recover from. Those are easy. We are away from family and friends, and by no means do I mean to make light of that. We have lots of great friends and wonderful family stateside. But God has given us friends, like family, here in Tokyo and we definitely spend more quality time together as a family living here. In spite of the long work hours, Kan is generally "home" and that is another blessing.

Praise God from whom all blessings flow.
Praise Him all creatures here below.
Praise Him above ye heavenly hosts.
Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghosts.

Tonight, I go to bed, praising Him for His blessings in my life, for the gift of the Holy Spirit showing me these things, and for His grace that sustains me. I cannot wait to see what He shows me in the next 24 hours.