August 7th 2014 Ode to half a century!

                                             Tomorrow is my 50th birthday!
                                                                   

 Looking back over my first half century I'm not real sure how much wiser I am but I'm definitely older and fatter! They say that the first five years of a child's life are the formative years. By the time I turned 5 years old I had lived in New York, Mississippi, Japan and Oklahoma... I guess that did kind of set the stage for my adult life! While we settled into Wisconsin rural life during the rest of my growing up years, it seems that once I hit adulthood I've been on the move ever since! I can honestly say though that my first half century has definitely been an adventure and while not $uccessful in the worldly sense, I know that even if I kick the bucket today, I won't enter God's kingdom empty handed. I was blessed to see some pictures from our first church in Mexico City the other day. It truly amazes me to see all that God has done when I remember all the trials we went through pioneering that work. It was definitely God, our Spanish wasn't very good and we were flying on a wing and a prayer trying to figure things out! And despite us, God built a work that lasted and is going strong for Jesus today! I am praying God does the same work here in Japan!
                                                                     

                                                                   (Mexico City)

God also gave us the opportunity to pastor in other cities and other churches and it's always been a blessing to see peoples lives changed and healed! I was thinking about our wedding anniversaries the other day. Our 10th was in Mexico City, 20th was in Panama City and the 30th was in Tokyo... wonder where we'll be for our 40th?!  God called me into the ministry when I was 16 years old, and I never had a clue what all that would mean, I truly never could have imagined all of this! My first half century was filled with growing up, marrying and raising a family.Our children are grown now and we're embarking on a new adventure here in Japan! God is good and I'm looking forward to what the second half century of my life is like! The one thing I'm sure of, whatever it entails, it'll be done at a slower pace than the first half... the spirit is willing but I don't move as fast as I used to! Hopefully the slower pace will mean I'll make half as many mistakes!

I did some more adventuring the other day! I read that Godzilla was in town so even though temperatures were in the 90 degree range with about the same amount of humidity I took off for Roppongi!  I wandered around and finally spotted my quarry!  
                                                                   

                                                         Gary made this little montage!
                                                                           

After playing with Godzilla I found a neat and peaceful little park in the middle of all the city bustle!

This is the "resting house",there were folks enjoying their lunch break and one guy taking a nap! It was very peaceful to sit in the shade and enjoy the scenery! 

                                                        This was the pigeon hang out.

I walked all around the park crossing the streams on stepping stones and listening to the cicadas singing their chirpy song!

After the park I was quite hot and thirsty so I headed back to the air conditioned shopping mall. I was VERY excited to find this in a 50's style diner!

Root beer is not a Japanese favorite and is almost never served in restaurants. Apparently, there is a Japanese medicine that tastes like root beer so folks don't like it. (Hope if I get sick I get the root beer medicine!) This is the first A&W root beer I have found!

Here's the restaurant, space is at a premium in Japanese restaurants and the seating is Much closer together!

People are quite expert at ignoring their neighbors.

There was a publicity stunt going on for what I think was a tv show or a movie?  Not sure, but it was fun to watch! It involved a lot of yelling and katana swinging!

Then it was time to go. Here's a couple of random pictures from near the train station in the Roppongi area.

I got back on the subway, which took me to Shinjuku train station where I got off and made a side trip to the Christian book store and then to Krispi Kreme to pick up a treat to take home!  Then it was back to the train station and finally home where I promptly took a shower and some ibuprophen! 

Signing off for the last time in my Forties, it was a good decade!