February Newsletter

Click on the newsletter for a better view. Enjoy!

(Korean version on top, English version below)

The Bathtub

Oops! In my excitement, I forgot to explain the bathtub picture below. Sorry!

The Japanese must be the world's leaders when it comes to bathroom technology. Bidets are such luxuries and technologically so awesome! Having said that, 99% of the toilets that we used while we were traveling in Japan were not bidets. Actually, about 75% were probably of the old-fashioned squatting variety! But the ones in the new shopping mall in Hiroshima were bidets! After using one, I half-jokingly said, "I think God's leading us to Hiroshima!" ;P

But their baths... Wow... I knew they liked their onsen but I didn't know their bathtubs at home were all like mini-onsens too! I also had no idea they have traditions associated with bathing at home and not just at onsens...

Japanese bathtubs are shorter and deeper than those we use in the West, and even countries elsewhere in Asia like Korea. They have developed an amazing way of keeping their bathtub water warm! Baths in Japan are traditionally taken in the evening after a quick shower. One member of the family soaks in the water, and then puts the lid on when s/he is finished to help conserve the water temperature. Then the next person takes a quick shower, removes the lid, soaks, puts the lid back on, etc etc. There's a heating system within the "walls" (?) of the bathtub which keeps the water at a constant temperature as well so the water remains the same temperature until the last person is done.

The bathwater is then used the following morning to wash laundry. Japanese washing machines don't seem to have different temperature settings and dryers are not commonly used (if at all?). Once the laundry is done, it's hung up to dry a~ll day.

We found out about this bathtub cover when we visited the Murrays the 1st time around. I had bells ringing, lights flashing, goosebumps all over my arms when Susan showed me their bathtub during the tour of their lovely home because of the vision that our friend B had had prior to our vision trip. For me, personally, that was the first time I felt that God might be leading us to Hiroshima, not Osaka.

It also helped me when we were praying for wisdom in whether or not to return to Hiroshima for a 2nd trip. My heart was all for it as I'd completely fallen in love with the Murrays but I needed to discern whether or not it was His will. I'm so glad that it was and that He used the 2nd trip to open up the doors for a more longer-term 3rd "trip"! :)

Peter's dreading it, but I can't wait for my first trip to an onsen. :D A NON-mixed one please. ;P

Journey to Hiroshima

 


(1. At the Thanksgiving outreach, Asaminame community center.)

(2. Read on to find out more about the bathtub. :D)

(3. Photo with the Murrays - Susan, Scott, and twins Taylor & Sydney.)

*****

We’re going to Hiroshima!!! It was confirmed via Skype during our nearly 2-hour long FREE call with the Murrays in Japan on Mon, Feb. 16th. We’re very excited, happy, and honored to be joining them and the two local church pastors in reaching out to the people of Hiroshima.

*****

Friday, Nov 21, was the beginning of a long-weekend in Japan and the shinkansen was absolutely packed! We boarded and there were absolutely NO seats. As we were getting settled to stand for the next nearly 3 hours, the family in the seats right in front of us got up and asked us to sit in their spot! Thank You God!!! =)

Thankfully, Juhee fell asleep so we were able to get some much needed rest too. We were greeted at the massive Hiroshima train station by Scott who drove us home, through lots of tolls. Juhee started crying when we were nearly there and then threw up just as we arrived. Poor thing… =(

After a quick and very delicious dinner of tacos (including shredded cheese and chips, both special treats as they're hard to buy and expensive too) with the whole Murray clan, we had a good time of fellowship with the pastors of Koyo and Kabe chapel who came to share their testimonies and vision with us. The Murrays had shared with the two pastors that they were interested in working with us and a bit about us so they wanted to meet us. We were really excited about meeting them too, even more so after Scott Murray told us about the head pastors vision of God's hand on Hiroshima, and five churches in five areas of Hiroshima spread out but all connected like a hand...

This is where the picture of the bathtub, but more importantly, its cover comes in. Prior to us departing for our vision trip, a close friend of ours had had a vision while praying for us of God’s handprint on something that looked like tarp covering a swimming pool/water. Rather than paraphrase, I’m going to copy and paste directly from an email I received shortly after the prayer meeting:

You need to look for God's hand..... if you see a direction that isn't clear and may even look unsafe, if you see God's hand then you need to take a step in faith even if it is to step out onto the water or tarp or whatever.....

Sometimes the path seems blocked or even impossible, but it will be opened when you take that step. You may get your foot wet. But, God parted the red sea. And they first needed to step into the river Jordan before it parted. Peter needed just to hear Jesus tell him to come and keeping his eyes on him stepped out of the boat..... Not sure that he'll part a swimming pool.... but that may be where the tarp comes in.... you will have God's support even if it seems like God is asking you to walk on the water...

I remembered.... this was our interpretation as a group..... B had the vision while M prayed. After praying, we pondered the meaning... M had several revelations for you regarding taking steps in faith and this was confirmation to her that this message was for you.

The next morning, after a quick shopping trip for ministry supplies at the biggest store we’d seen during our time in Japan and a sushi meal which can only be described as beautifully scrumptiously delicious (refer to blog post of Dec 21st), we went to Asaminame chapel, their new church plant which is a rented room inside a community center one Saturday every other month, and participated in sharing about Thanksgiving. Attendees included church members, their friends, people who dropped by because of the church newsletter & fliers sent out with the local newspaper and because Susan and the twins were standing outside the door (curious to see what the big tall white American woman and her cute twin girls were going to do :D).

This is an extract from their email regarding the outreach:

The community center has 42 chairs in the room that we rented. So we planned for 40 people, and Susan baked 5 pumpkin pies for refreshments. The event was advertised as "An American Thanksgiving." Soon the room was overflowing. Sixty people attended-some stood in the back and kids sat on laps or the floor. The afternoon was full of laughter and excitement as the participants created Indian headdresses and acted out the New Testament story of the 1 thankful leper. To fully illustrate the story, Scott had ten "lepers" who covered their faces and hands with green sticky dots!!! After Jesus healed them (dots were removed), only one of them had a thankful heart. We praise God that we were able to share the Good News to 21 unbelievers that day.

The pumpkin pie was yummy. =)

After the outreach at the community center, Scott dropped us girls off at home and then he and Peter went to Kabe chapel together for a Youth event. They both had fun and Peter was asked to come back again by the Youth kids! We had to catch the shinkansen back to Osaka that evening so after a quick chat and meeting Mak, Scott whisked us back to the station. We arrived back at our small apartment in Osaka around 1:30am physically exhausted but spiritually very excited.

There was a special moment when we were all sitting around the Murray’s dining table together and Scott asked us to “consider us [the Murrays]” as part of our future in Japan. The wording, as he mentioned, was very deliberate, referring to how Peter proposed to me by asking me to “consider me [Peter]” as part of my future. We were very surprised and extremely touched that they remembered that small detail which we shared with them during our first trip to Hiroshima (while enjoying lunch in a yummy Okonomi-yaki restaurant :D). Not only were they honoring us by asking us to join their team, they personalized it using the words that Peter used to bind us in marriage. This played a very important part in later confirming to us that we were to join the Murrays.

*****

Wow, I think this is my longest blog posting so far and I’m not done yet! Sorry, bear with me… I don’t ever want to forget how God brought all this together and lead us to Hiroshima…

Fast forward to our return home and New Year’s Day. We were at a prayer meeting and our friend B had a few more visions for us. One was a vision of three doors leading to a forest-like area, the other was one of three bridges leading to what looked like fireworks. My first comment when I saw his drawing of the one with the forest was that it looked like the mountains of Hiroshima. The other one also reminded me of Hiroshima, or rather, the atomic bomb. B was amazed at my comments and I was very excited! Peter, of course, had to calm me down and tell me that I shouldn’t jump to conclusions. I’m very easily excited and he’s definitely more even keeled. We make a good match. =)

And now… We have a team and a team leader who is supporting us in so many ways! We feel so much better equipped and so encouraged. Makes us want to be there even more!!!

This is the story of how we knew that God is leading us to Hiroshima, Japan. We’re so excited and can’t wait to be there, serving God in whatever way He’ll use us, working together with the Murrays and the local pastors.

Thank you for taking the time to read this super long blog. =)

Happy Valentine's Day! <3

Sorry about the layout... :(

Happy Valentine's Day!

Juhee attended her first ever Valentine's Day party on Tuesday, Feb 10th during the playgroup at Santa Clara Valley Japanese Christian Church, where we attended our first ever Japanese conversation class last Thursday. She received a whole basket full of Valentine's cards and candy (of which she'll be eating none!) and I was busy the night before making 20 Valentine cards, having just found out that it was a Valentine's Day party! Juhee wearing my green scarf was a big hit too. :)

We attended another Japanese playgroup on Thursday at San Lorenzo Japanese Christian Church and had fun there too!

We're hoping to attend the playgroups regularly now to brush up on our Japanese and also so that Juhee can have fun playing with friends. She gets easily bored now with just us at home. :P

Thank you God for allowing us to make new friends,
to share Your love with more and more friends.

Update Email: Happy New Year!

* This is the update email that was sent out to our Google group on Jan 23rd.
** If you would like to receive our update emails, please send us an email and let us know if you would like to receive it in English or Korean.
*** The Korean version's always sent out a few days after the English one - the translation for this one was sent out in the early hours of Jan 26th (our time) in time for Lunar New Year in Asia! :)

Dear friends and family,

Happy New Year! We hope that your 2009 will be full of His blessings upon you and your family.

Here's a little recap and update from us.

Nov '08. Our four-week vision trip to Japan was filled with d*vine appointments. We met some awesome people, and they shared so much knowledge and experience with us that we'll be much better prepared when we get to Japan sometime in 2009. Did you know that the Japanese have a very high view of X-ianity? We learned they have such a high view of X-ianity that they feel like they can never measure up, and feel like they can't join a community of X-tians because they'll never be good enough. We pr@y they may experience a community of bel*evers who will shower them with the grace of G0d.

Dec '08. After returning back to the States in early December, Sara Juhee was sick with vomiting and diarrhea, so adjusting to jet lag took a bit longer than we thought. We were so grateful that she became sick after we arrived in the States and not while we were still traveling – thank G0d! We had a great time celebrating her first birthday, and spending Christmas and New Year's Day with family too.

Pioneers. We have some exciting news! After enjoying our holidays with family and friends, we attended Pioneers' (m*ss*ons agency) Candidate Orientation Program in Orlando, Florida at the beginning of January. We had a great time meeting other m*ss*onaries who were excited about their calling and the opportunity to work with like-minded, passionate people. After vigorous screening including psychological and personality testing, a very interesting and helpful counseling session, and an in-depth interview, we were officially accepted as Appointees on Friday, January 9th. Thank you, thank you. =)

Preparation. During our orientation, we learned that there is so much we need to do before we can depart for Japan! We definitely thought that we'd be in Japan by now, but we're at least a few months away from going, and even that would be a miracle! Just to give you an idea, both Peter and Jenny have required reading (by Pioneers) to complete prior to our departure, we need to create a display table, brochures, newsletters, pr@yer cards, etc. to be able to better communicate our involvement of what G0d is doing in Japan. We also need to invite more people to participate as part of our pr@yer and financial support team, complete medical examinations, as well as attend Pre-Field Connection (another week of training at Pioneers headquarters in Orlando, Florida). Jenny also needs to complete 15 units of formal Bible training within the next 5 years, preferably prior to departure as life will only become more hectic once we're in Japan. You might ask, "Is all this really necessary?". Well, we could just go without Pioneers, without building relationships, pr@yer and financial partners. But we would be severely handicapped if we did decide to go it alone because we wouldn't have a team of people journeying with us, and a family back home rooting us on. There's a lot we need to do, but it's well worth it because we know that everything is to help us be better prepared for a long-term journey in making a difference in Japan.

Partnership. We would like to ask that you pr@yerfully consider partnering with us through prayer and/or financial gifts. More information to follow, but if you would like to know more in the meantime, please let us know.

When, Where, and What. The questions we've been hearing the most these days is "So, when are you guys going back to Japan?", "Will you guys be going to Osaka?", "Do you know what you'll be doing out there?". The short answer is, it all depends... In terms of timing, we have several criteria to meet (like those mentioned above) including raising up to 90% of our monthly support schedule and 100% of our departure expenses required by Pioneers. We were hoping to be able to return to Japan in March, but it looks like it will take a miracle for that to happen. As for the "where" and "what" questions, G0d is continuing to open up doors for us so we don't know that yet either. But we know that in His time, He will guide us as we continue to seek His will in trying to answer those three questions.

OHayo OHsaka Blog. Remember to keep checking our blog for pictures and updates!

Thank you. To you, as always, and also to our G0d for blessing us with you, your pr@yers, and for providing for us in every way. He is good, all the time. =)

Pr@yrfully yours,

Peter, Yeonsook Jenny, and Sara Juhee Oh

PS: If you do not understand any of the terms used within this email, please email us and we will explain in a separate email. Thank you for not forwarding this email on to anyone.

Fresh Fruit

Fruit doesn't get much fresher than this! Juhee loves being outside and one of her favorite places to be is her maternal grandmother's backyard with lots of flowers, vegetables, and fruits. She really really enjoyed the persimmons and little tiny Asian pears that she picked together with grandma that day - can you tell? ;P

It's great that she's able to spend so much quality time with her grandmother while we're still here. She probably won't remember these good times, but I know my mom will. :)

Happy New Year!

Happy (belated) New Year! :D

We spent New Year's Day with Peter's side of the family, starting with the traditional dduk-kuk 떡국 (rice cake soup), bowing to grandparents, and lots of pictures! Peter's brother's kids (1 son, 3 daughters) and our Juhee all dressed up in their Korean hanboks 한복 and did the traditional Korean New Year's bow for the first time. The hanboks that our nephew and the older two neices wore were the ones from our wedding, so they're a bit short now. I taught the girls how to bow and say "Please receive lots of luck this new year" 새해 복 많이 받으세요 while Peter's brother taught his son how to do it as the way boys and girls bow are different. They all got gifts for their efforts too, including our little Juhee. :)

It was great to be able to spend time with extended family at the start of the new year, especially as we probably won't be here for next year's. It's going to be a new year's day to remember!

Looking forward to everything God has in store for us and you in 2009! :D

Christmas 2008

 
(Our "Christmas Tree" this year was a poinsettia we received as a gift.)

Christmas this year was small, we were so busy with Juhee's birthday and other family events that we didn't have time to put up a Christmas tree and we didn't spend as much as we used to on gifts this year, but it was one of the best, 'cause it's not about the gifts and how sparkly our decorations are. It was about us being together as a family, being able to celebrate the birth of Jesus as a family, being able to attend Christmas Eve service together, and be able to eat, share, live, smile, and laugh together - as a family.

On the Monday of Christmas week, Ina flew back to Dallas, on Tuesday, Dennis came down from SF to stay with us for a couple of days, on Wednesday (after a rushed family portraitsession), Jonathan flew back to Dallas, and then we attended Christmas Eve Candlelight service together where mum and John performed. On Thursday, Christmas Day, we spent the day chillaxing and then in the afternoon opened up our presents. Then us Ohs went to Peter's parents house to have dinner and open up presents there too. We bought presents for my siblings from Japan and they all seemed to like them so we were very happy. :D On Friday, Jade flew back to Dallas :( and then on Saturday, dad flew back to Korea. :( It was so great to have the whole family around for the holidays and it's going to be a while before we'll all be together again so this Christmas was especially meaningful.

Pictures and video are a great way of remembering the precious moments our minds forget and of sharing these experiences too.

Hope you had a wonderful Christmas filled with lots of love, laughter, and joy too!

About Korean 1st Birthday Parties “Dol” 돐

 
(This is a bit of info I put on the back of the programs I made for the birthday service. Could write a lot more, but here are the basics...)

The first birthday party is an event where blessings are prayed upon the baby. The mortality rate used to be high in South Korea due to poor medical access, four extreme seasons, and many childhood related diseases. The survival rate of children increased sharply after one year of age, so this milestone was a major achievement and a very happy occasion for the family.

The food and items placed on the small round birthday table signify different blessings for the baby. Traditionally, the table used is either round or one with 12 angles and is either red in color or a red tablecloth is put over it if not red. Flowers and rice cakes of Korea’s five basic colors (black – north, red – south, green – east, white – west, brown – middle) adorn the table to bless the baby’s future and to pour in “ki/chi” energy. The foods placed are plain white rice cake, red bean rice cake, rice cake with sesame seeds & honey inside in five different colors, noodles, (uncooked) rice, fruit, Asian parsley, etc in small portions in a small stack (not piled high). We also place items like arrow & bow (for boys only), needles & ruler (for girls only), string, money, calligraphy brush, etc for the baby to choose to “predict” her future. Usually, the baby’s “helped” by the parents who strategically place certain times. :P

Rice – rich and eat well
String, noodles – long life
White rice cake – purity
Money – wealth
Bow & arrow – become brave and strong
Book, pencil, calligraphy brush – scholastic
Ruler, needle, scissors – talented with her hands
5-colored small round rice cake – north, south, east, west, middle, heaven and earth are all in peace with each other during her life
Asian parsley (or other long green vegetable) – lively, many descendants, long life

And as we’re in Silicon Valley… Mouse – IT engineer :D

Juhee's Future

We celebrated Juhee's 1st birthday on Sat, Dec 20th, a couple of days early. We've been so blessed this year with her smiles, her laughter, her exuberance, even her screams and cries! :) We're just so grateful that God's given us such a precious gift.

She received many gifts on her birthday, one of which was a short, sweet, very meaningful sermon from our head pastor, Pastor Peter Chin. The message that he had for her was Hebrews 11:23 "By faith Moses' parents hid him for three months after he was born, because they saw he was no ordinary child, and they were not afraid of the king's edict". He spoke about how when his family went on missions to Kenya, their youngest, Sarah, was about 1 and a half years old, the age our Sara Juhee will be when we're hoping to head out to Japan. He said that Juhee was no ordinary child, and that God has a great purpose for her, will keep her, will guide her, and will use her to do great works for His kingdom. It was such an encouraging message and I'm glad we got most of it on tape. Hopefully we'll be able to show it to her someday when she's older.

Well, we don't know what she's going to become when she's older but during the Dol Jae Bi 돌잽이 part of her birthday, she picked up money (symbolizing wealth) and the calligraphy brushes (scholastic / academic). Then with the brushes, she started to "write" on the money! People joked and said that she would become an accountant and then her Uncle Jonathan said that she would become a counterfeiter / money launderer! :D She also grabbed for the coins in the rice later on too.

Well, we don't know if she's going to be wealthy, academic, or what profession she's going to end up in and I don't think we have a particular preference, but one thing we do know for sure is that we want her to be a woman of God. One who has a close relationship with her Savior and a passion to share His grace, love, and mercy with all that she meets.

She loves reading, she loves people, loves socializing, loves laughing and making those around her laugh, she's very determined and when she's really into something (like walking, playing, going out, reading...) she won't eat or sleep! We love the way her eyes disappear and her nose crinkles when she smiles and laughs, the way she throws her head back or hits the floor with her head dropped low when she's doing one of her dramatic cries, the way she puts her head to one side when she's trying to be cute, the way her barrettes always flip over or start to slip down 'cause she doesn't have a whole lot of hair, the way she kicks her legs as you're lifting her up when she's really excited, the way she'll look at you so seriously when she's signing to you, how she loves to eat so many things, her love for animals, and so so many other things! :D

We love very very much the beautiful daughter that God has blessed us with and we thank each and everyone of you for being such a blessing to her and loving her so. We feel your love for her through your smiles, your hugs, your concern, and most of all, your prayers.

For more about her dol: http://peterandjennyoh.blogspot.com/