Postwar Reconstruction

 This morning's run took me past the newly reconstructed Tokyo Station. Of course, the station was reconstructed while still in use, which presents a considerable challenge.

The surprising thing about this work is that it is finally restoring Tokyo Station to its original form before it was bombed during World War II.

The top floors and rotundas were hastily cobbled together after the war, but now in 2012 the original glory of the building has been restored with all its ornate plaster work and copper cupolas. This might be the longest delayed reconstruction after World War II anywhere in the world, but some things are worth waiting for.

SWAG at CAWF in ROC about LRPGs

When I arrived at the conference site I knew I was in the right place, because of the logos on the banners. No, they didn't give us the banners, but they did give us many other things with the C&MA logo or the name of the conference on it. SWAG stands for either Souvenirs, Wearables and Gifts or "Stuff We All Get" depending on who you talk to.  Items we all received with the C&MA logo imprinted on them included two ties, two key chains, a lapel pin, a shaving kit and a flashlight. 

 The volunteers at this conference wore the "four fold" smocks to identify themselves. CAWF stands for Chinese Alliance World Fellowship, and over 160 gathered in Taipei, Taiwan, ROC for the fourth conference from all over Asia, North America, Europe and Africa.

The theme of the conference concerned encouraging the younger generation to get involved in world evangelization.

The conference was held in Mandarin, but fortunately translation was available. It was encouraging to hear the passion and vision of the participants, and to hear of a wider vision to look beyond reaching Chinese worldwide, to reach all LRPGs, or Least Reached People Groups.

Our colleague in Fukuoka, Pastor Shao, gave a heartfelt plea for a focus on the needs of Japan. I can't speak Mandarin, although there is some overlap with Japanese in the pronunication of some words, but even I could hear a difference in Pastor Shao's manner of speaking.

I learned later that it's the Beijing and northern China accent, and it stands out. Pastor Shao grew up in China as a loyal communist and atheist, until He met Christ in Japan. He's now introducing other Chinese to Christ in Fukuoka, where there are 40,000 Chinese living in the city.

I was thankful for the chance to represent the mission at the conference, and the swag was a bonus.

Japan or Taiwan?

When we first approached the C&MA about service in Asia, we were told that there were needs in Taiwan and Japan, and we should pray about which country we felt led to serve in. Twenty five years later, we find ourselves with a connection to Taiwan through our role as team leader overseers, coaching two teams working in that country. So, in answer to the question of twenty five years ago, the answer turned out to be "both".

We're of course serving in Japan, but our second trip to Taiwan is ongoing as we post this. As for the scene you see here, this is the Taipei Grand Hotel. While Japan has adopted many architectural aspects from China, the red pillars are distinctively Chinese.