theboekfamily's Xanga

Saturday Night Japanese Worship

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 15:15:25 GMT

Jeremiah's Saturday usually consists of an early morning run, family Saturday breakfast, and then prepping for the message either on Sunday, Saturday night, or both. If it is his turn to give a Japanese message on Saturday night, then he is spending extra time developing the message and translating it and then working on the Japanese. It is quite hard work, we are so proud of our dude dad.

And then here are the action shots of a long day laboring over a message to give entirely in Japanese.

"How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher?" Romans 10:14

"How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, who bring glad tidings of good things!" Isaiah 52:7

So proud of this man, it's not easy teaching in another language. Gambare!!!

The Gospel Cafe

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 04:10:45 GMT

We have some wonderful folks at our church who recently opened up their own cafe at the next train station from Machida. It is called "The Gospel Cafe" - and it is their hope and prayer that the Lord would use this place to draw all kinds of people the reality of Jesus. Please pray for A-san and S-san as they seek the Lord regarding their new business venture. They also have live music at the cafe, and one of our Worship leaders goes their on Wednesday afternoon to play. We visited recently when Mom and Dad Boek were there.

Monday, November 09, 2009

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 03:49:09 GMT

Hide is one of our closest friends here in Japan. He is such a picture of a life transformed by the power of the Holy Spirit. It is wonderful to see him growing in his faith. Jeremiah has had the pleasure of discipling him and meeting with him for prayer and bible study.

He recently gave a short devotional for our children's ministry event. It was his first time giving a devotional. He was nervous but did a great job. We are so thrilled at all that the Lord is doing in his life.

Enjoy the pictures!

Can't believe it is already November...

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 03:30:27 GMT

How is it possible that it's already November? This time last year, we were packing all our bags and getting ready to go home to California for our short two month furlough. Time sure flies. There's been lots going on, so I'll try to speed catch everyone up. Thank you for your continued support and love... we are eternally grateful.

October was fast... so I'll cheat and put out our November prayer request and update email that some of you have gotten already. I will, however, add pictures so enjoy.

Hello friends,
It now seems that fall is in full swing here in Tokyo. It is our family's favorite season so we are all thrilled with the cool crisp beautiful mornings. We have finally put away the "sempuki" (Japanese for fan) and time to pull out the kerosene heater. Thank you for thinking of us and standing with us in prayer. We appreciate you all beyond words.

Here are some October happenings...
1. Grandma and Grandpa Boek were here for a month. It was such a joy to have them here with us. We were able to work together in an outreach concert with all the Boek family. Grandma and Grandpa sang, Jeremiah gave the message, Cali translated and Geigy cooked the chili and cornbread. It was a great time and so great to work together in ministry. They left the first week of October and we already miss them.

2. Our ladies bible study started in October. Michiko-san is helping to co-lead the bible study with Geigy. It has been great to watch her grow in leadership and to have the ladies begin to grow under her leadership.

3. Cali turned 12 this month. She is growing up to be a responsible, capable, and talented young lady. We are so proud of her.

4. We had our children's ministry fellowship night this month. We had a great sleepover and we got to sow into the lives of young people in our church. We had a great night together. And the next day was our Fall Family Picnic. It was a great time together hanging out with our fellowship and growing in our "koinonia." So beautiful.

5. FEVERS AND FLU - all three of our kids' classes have been closed due to tons of kids being sick. Our boys have been hit with fevers. They've been home all week and will be returning to school sometime next week. Thank you for praying for us, please continue to pray for health and safety for our children. The latest newspaper article said that up to 1million people in Japan have been infected with the N1H1 virus since July. That's a lot of folks, and the winter months is still upcoming. Please pray.

6. We had our Fall Masquerade outreach on Oct. 31st. We helped with this Horizon Language School event. Cali translated in for the Children's program, she is so great.

Our prayer requests:
1. Please pray for God to guide and direct us in regards to upcoming ministry changes that we have been praying about. More on that later...

2. Health and Safety for our children as we approach the winter season.

3. Please pray for us to have wisdom as we research schooling options for Cali for Junior High. Cali will be graduating in March from 6th grade and we are now trying to figure out what to do for Junior High. We are looking into a homeschool academy online, and also at a private Christian church school. We covet your prayers for discernment and guidance we listen to the Lord's leading.

4. Please pray for us as we plan our Christmas outreaches. We are now getting dates for all our ministries to host the Christmas events. And it's still not to late to come to Tokyo for Christmas or part of December and join us in brining the Good News of Emmanuel (God with us) to those who still have to hear. Email us if you are interested in coming.

5. Jeremiah will be starting a leadership training session, please pray for the men and women who will be attending.

6. Ladies Bible Study - we currently have one lady who attends who is not yet a believer, please pray for her to come to Christ.

Blessings to you all and Happy Fall!
:)The 5 Boeks.

Hanging in there...

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 05:15:37 GMT

Thank you for all your prayers. Jazz and Justus are still battling fevers but they are both responding to medication. Praise the Lord for that. Cali is well and should be ready for school on Monday. Justus' class goes back on Tuesday and Jazz is suppose to go back on Wednesday.

We're trying to keep everyone healthy around here, so we've done a lot of fun cooking together.

When are kids are sick, our Japanese tradition is that they get Anpanman (an anime cartoon character) bread and fruits therapy pudding. Here's our little Juice trying to get his fever down.

We also made some yummy taco soup. Mind you sour cream is extremely expensive here in Japan, about $3 for a little Dannon yogurt sized cup, but a friend from the military base gave us some so we were very happy.

And then we had Make-your-own-Pizza Nite. Thought you might want to see our creations....

We'll keep you posted on our happenings. Thanks again for praying for our little dudes.

A Sick Household

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 01:28:46 GMT

Hello friends,
We hope you are all doing well and loving our Lord Jesus.

Today all three of our children are at home. Cali and Justus' classes have been closed due to illnesses. Yesterday, only 5 kids showed up to Justus' class and so they are closed until next week. Justus was feverish yesterday and stayed home from school. Jazz came home and was feverish as well. Now both boys are home sick and Cali is doing good, but can't go back to school until next week.

We ask that you would please pray for all of us to stay healthy, and for the sick little dudes to get better quickly.

Schools are closing all over Japan. In Tokyo, there is a mad scramble for the flu vaccines and with nearly 30 million people in the greater Tokyo area, the red tape as to who and where the vaccines are distributed continues to make the process tedious.

We are thankful for your prayers on our behalf. We remain eternally grateful.

blessings,
:)Geigy for the Boek household.

And joy comes in the morning..

Thu, 08 Oct 2009 06:11:38 GMT

The storm has passed by us, thankfully with no damage to this area. Although, we did hear of a fatality report of a newspaper delivery man who hit a tree while on his route this morning and died. The storm is headed to the northern part of Japan. We continue to pray for an uneventful outcome. Thank you for your prayers in advance.

The first picture is the view from our front door. The sky was beautifully blue this afternoon with not a single cloud in the sky. I had hoped to take a day off from laundry, but two loads later; it was just a shame to waste a great laundry drying day. And I thought we'd be stormed in all day so I quickly made a pot of chicken soup this morning so we'd be all set, but now it's warm, sunny and balmy. Oh well, sounds great anyways with homemade cornbread :) YUMS!!

What a mighty God we serve!

Wednesday, October 07, 2009

Wed, 07 Oct 2009 22:13:46 GMT

Typhoon Day - The rains started late last night. By 3am, the thunder and lightning was waking us up. The schools called around 7am to cancel classes for the day. We will all probably just stay indoors today. The school has advised that the children are not to go outside due to probable flooding.

Our kids are pretty happy that they are out of school today - little do they know that I have a ton of English homework for them to catch up on :) First order of the day - hot cocoas in bed, and of course big cups of coffee for the grownups. Thanks Uncle Les and Auntie Deb for the kids personalized mugs - they are beautiful Browe/Hoymans, our favorite potters.

Please pray for Japan. They are predicting flooding. One source said maybe up to a foot an hour of rains. In this busy metropolis, I don't know what Tokyo will look like flooded. I can't imagine it. Thank you for your prayers in advance.

Psalm 107:29 "He stilled the storm to a whisper; the waves of the sea were hushed."

Psalm 23:5-6
You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.

Surely goodness and love will follow me
all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the LORD
forever.

Another typhoon on its way

Tue, 06 Oct 2009 12:14:50 GMT

Typhoon 0918 (Melor) is bound for Japan, and is expected to hit land sometime tomorrow. There is expected winds of 150knots and 30knots. The storm is described as "very strong." Additional information can be found on JAPAN METEROLOGICAL WEBSITE

In the past couple of weeks, our hearts have been turned towards the devastations here in the Far East as natural disasters have wrecked havoc and brought calamity. We continue to pray for the city of Manila, and the country of Indonesia. Please join us in prayer for the people in these two countries who have lost countless lives and many of who still need to hear of our eternal hope found in Christ alone. And now as Japan is bracing for this next typhoon, please pray that we might have opportunity to shine as bright lights in this dark area of the world.

Isaiah 25:4
You have been a refuge for the poor,
a refuge for the needy in his distress,
a shelter from the storm
and a shade from the heat.

We remember that our God is that God who spoke to the storm "Peace, be still."

Country Western Concert

Sat, 03 Oct 2009 10:34:11 GMT

Mom and Dad Boek are here now and we recently had an outreach concert at our church. It was a totally hee-haw time, complete with a chili and cornbread dinner for the fellowship. It was a joy to work with the entire Boek family. Mom and Dad provided the music along with some guest musicians, Rich and John. Their bluegrass tunes and country gospel were well received by all who attended. Jeremiah gave the message in Japanese that night, while Cali translated for her grandparents. Cali was a little nervous as it was her first time translating without any practice and just side by side translation. She did a great job but if you ask her, she'll tell you she didn't do very well. We, however, are extremely proud of her. Geigy, along with some helpers made the chili and cornbread and it was hit, especially the dessert of brownies a la mode. YUMMM!!!
We had a few people come that night who have never come to church before, what joy to sow seeds into their lives. Here are some pictures.