Marsha's Blog

This morning I'll tell you another story about those interesting, exciting and Spirit-filled days in the small 700-year-old town of Yoshioka. As I mentioned last time, a big part of our week was spent at a small country church built there by a true man of faith, Dr. Abe (pronounced "Ah - Beh"). By the time we arrived, the small medical centre he had built had added a preschool that attracted just about every family in the community, along with a church that offered Sunday services and weekly Bible studies.  As with all things old and traditional, Yoshioka was changing into a bedroom community for Sendai, and along with the changing nature of the population, we were seeing new convenience stores, a gas station, revitalised government offices and the beginnings of a new preschool.  Not unexpectedly, Dr. Abe’s  clinic/preschool/church was starting to slip.  But it was not going to go silently. The people were still filled with enthusiasm, and every local festival day in...

I’ve shared with many of you the wild experiences Tony and I had in the months before our son, Trevor got sick and died. Looking back, I’m convinced that it was a time of preparation, while God systematically removed any traces of doubt we may have had about His existence and His love for us. We would be needing all the faith and hope we could muster, and God was there to give it.  In particular were those 'interesting' experiences with both the Holy Spirit and with demons during those years we were living in Sendai, Japan. I remember one precious Japanese family.  He was a soldier, on assignment to a little town north of us, close to where we had a church.  Mrs and I became good friends. She came to church asking about salvation, and within a few weeks she prayed to receive Christ. Then the 'fun' began.  She had a good, loving relationship with her husband, which was sometimes rare in a country like Japan, where in the previous generation, around 90% of all marriage...

Good Morning America! If you're reading this in the land of my birth, you're probably too busy to be reading it.  I can picture you wiping off the BBQ sauce with your elbow as you scroll down the page.  How we miss America, especially this time of year! We have a little pack of cousins in North Texas and “The Fourth” (as it should be) is enjoyed to the eyeballs … or elbows, if you will.  There is red, white and blue bunting everywhere, a football game on the lawn complete with resplendent water sprinklers, or as in the case a few years back, a stock tank filled with fresh water for a baptism, followed by a quick dip by every kid in the yard for a nice cool down.  Some of my happiest memories have been there. And the reason?  Because we live in a FREE country.  We celebrate what we want, worship Who we want ......... all with the freedoms allowed us, thanks to the blood of our ancestors and their quest for freedom. (and we can say the same for our other coun...

 Heard an interesting sermon the other day.  It was based on Psalms 124, where David is recalling all the ‘incidents’ in his life that have made him feel like he's living in unresolvable chaos. But even in everything, he can still sing, “If God had not been on our side …” The pastor then shared a bit of his life story about when he was 18, was a baker's apprentice, lived at home, had a fast car ....... and a girlfriend. He was a believer, active in his church’s youth programs. He seemed to have all the things we call “good” to his credit, but …… He came home one day and his mother said, almost cheerfully, he remembers, "There's something on your bed for you." "Oh goodie! he thought, my life couldn't get better" as he rushed up to his room. There, spread out on his bedspread, were SEVEN overdue speeding tickets.  They had been held up because he'd 'forgotten' to change the address on his licence.  For an 18 yr old, that was HIS end of the ...

Dear Friends,  This morning as you’re opening this, we are in Barcelona, Spain. For most of you, you will know that this is where the famous architect Gaudi started building his famous basilica, "Sagrada Família" 144 years ago. If you’re like me and don’t know what a ‘basilica’ is, it’s kinda like a church building with no congregation.  We went inside it a few years ago, and I have to say it’s probably the most beautiful place of (not) worship I’ve ever seen. Unfortunately, we won’t be able to go inside today because Tony’s busy leading the worship service on board the ship! (in a room with no permanent congregation as well), but that’s another story, hopefully for next week!!  Please enjoy this following article I came across and remember that God is still honoured in the world:   …..Sagrada Família has almost touched the sky. In Barcelona, something happened for which the world had been waiting for 144 years.! The Basilica of the Sagrada Família — one of the ...

 I won't lie when I say I was pretty confused about God when our son died.  We'd tried everything, promised everything, threatened even more.  I even told God I wouldn't believe in Him if He let my son die.  I had to stop right there in the hospital corridor and chuckle when His immediate answer came to my mind, "Oh great, lose your son and your God at the same time”. Fortunately, I lost neither, but now my son was in Heaven and my God felt far away.  I had nothing to say. We left the States on our way back to Japan, planning to bury his ashes at the church where he had grown up. At the insistence of our mission, we had a stopover in Australia for some time of rest and reflection. We were reminded that we still had an 11-year-old son, Nathan, who had been largely ignored for the last eight months. “Don’t make him a victim, too,” we were told.  I had a book (back before the internet) and we found a 'Farm Stay’ near the airport in Brisbane.  We'd go ther...