“Blessed are all who take refuge in him.”    Psalm 2:12

During my first taxi ride in Japan, I couldn’t help but notice an elaborate ornament swinging back and forth on the rear view mirror as the driver navigated through traffic. I later learned that this and a whole array of similar talismans or amulets are called “omamori” (お守り), which literally means “protection.” These small good luck charms are typically made from paper or wood and are usually protected inside an ornate bag along with a written prayer. They are sold at temples and shrines throughout the country with the promise that they will bring good fortune or protection to the bearer, but cynics largely view them as a clever means to raise money.

These omamori can be spotted on bags, hanging in cars, attached to various objects and are even used as cellphone straps. They come in many shapes, sizes and colors and different ones are advertised to possess different powers. Some offer businessmen success in the financial realm while others promise students a good outcome in their test scores. Other omamori guarantee general prosperity, protection from evil, happiness, traffic safety, good health, fertility, and a happy love life. The simple thought behind such charms is that the power and strength of the gods is somehow invested in these brocaded bags so they are not to be opened, as the blessing could be released and thereby lost.

It is generally understood that the shelf life of an omamori is only good for one year, which means a replacement must be purchased, conveniently bringing additional revenue to the local shrine or temple. These “expired” good luck charms must be properly disposed of, usually by burning, preferably at the place they were originally purchased. Eager to grab a share of the enormous profits in the good luck industry, it is now common for stores to sell generic omamori featuring the images of Hello Kitty, Mickey Mouse, Snoopy and other popular characters.

The search to obtain protection from harm or to procure good fortune is a natural inclination of the human heart. Such a quest can take many forms and it is often shaped by our culture, circumstances and worldview. But all such attempts to manipulate one’s personal future are doomed to failure because they are based on the false assumption that we are in control of our own fate. We all seek desired outcomes in life that avoid pain and bring pleasure, but it is arrogant to think that we are in control of such matters, or that we possess the discernment to always know what is actually good or bad for us. Our uncomfortableness with the unpredictability of life is in fact a reminder that we should seek protection and refuge in God, who is our only omamori, or real source of protection. Everything else is a mere trinket.

“Who may ascend the mountain of the Lord? The one who has clean hands and a pure heart.”                    Psalm 24:3-4a

Whoever coined the phrase “cleanliness is next to godliness” would have loved Japan. Every morning, like clockwork, one can witness innumerable home owners and shop keepers vigilantly removing every trace of offending dirt, trash or stray leaf that invaded their designated territory overnight. Venture into the nearby train station, and there you can observe an army of cleaning personnel engaged in the never-ending task of mopping floors, polishing walls and windows and wiping down escalator handrails. Outside, white gloved taxi drivers maintain spotlessly clean vehicles for their customers and inside, the Japan Rail staff scurry around tidying up bullet trains in under seven minutes . To acquire these important life skills, students are required to clean their own classrooms and scrub the hallways as a part of their school curriculum.

Neighborhoods periodically schedule an o-sōji (大掃除), or “big cleanup” using volunteers to spruce up their local parks and common areas. Local churches and many small businesses follow the same pattern by routinely putting o-sōji’s on their calendar and everyone is expected to participate. Perhaps some of this emphasis on cleanliness is derived from the Shinto religion, which places great emphasis on purity, where visitors are encouraged to wash their hands and face before entering a shrine to worship. This practice, referred to as “harae” (祓), is a form of purification that attempts to establish a pure soul and mind in the worshipper. This is done through a symbolic washing with water or by having a Shinto priest shake a carefully constructed wand of white paper streamers over a person, place or object for good fortune. The rudimentary idea is that if you want to enter the presence of the gods and seek their blessing on you or your possessions, cleanliness is a prerequisite.

As the psalmist meditated on the holiness and purity of God, he wondered how it was possible for anyone to approach the Creator of the Universe, in whom not the slightest trace of impurity or defilement existed. Such a quest seems impossible, like the scaling of a lofty, inaccessible mountaintop. Only those with clean hands and a pure heart dare to attempt such a climb, but the uniform testimony of scripture is that no one has such qualifications as no one is without sin (Romans 3:23). In addition, no religious ritual can remedy this shortcoming. Thankfully, by the grace of God, in spite of our dirty hands and impure hearts, we are able to enter into God’s presence through the death and resurrection of His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, who serves as the appointed mediator between God and man. (I Timothy 2:5) His cross testifies of the love of God to redeem us and an empty tomb provides proof of His power to make that a reality. Cleanliness is indeed next to godliness, but only God can provide the cleaning we so desperately need.

“Therefore encourage one another and build each other up.”       I Thessalonians 5:11

“Take me out to the ball game” may be the universal chorus sung during the seventh inning stretch by baseball fans across America, but no such tradition exists in Japan. Called yakyū (野球) or bēsubōru in Japanese, baseball has been a staple of the Japanese sports scene since it was first introduced to the country in 1872. However, it is interesting to observe how the same game, with essentially the same rules, has been contextualized to fit a different culture.

For example, in America, which is recognized as the birthplace of baseball, an individual player’s independence and achievements are enthusiastically recognized and celebrated, even at times to the possible detriment of the team. However, in Japan, the team comes before everything else so players are expected to dutifully align their personal goals and ambitions to the overall purposes of the team. This is probably why the annual national high school baseball championship is so wildly popular. Instead of a collection of individual all-stars, the regional champions from Japan’s 47 prefectures intensely compete against other teams over a two-week span to bring glory to their school.

When we attended our first professional baseball game in Japan, we soon learned that cheering in Japan, in contrast to America, is a finely orchestrated event. Each team had its own cheering section full of rabid fans equipped with drums, ‘thunder sticks’ and trumpets that made noise nonstop in cadence under the direction of a leader whenever their team was up to bat. The respective cheering sections for each team knew all the cheers by heart and enthusiastically chanted them at the top of their voices in an effort to exhort each player to do his best so that their team might win.

In the New Testament, the church is given a number of “one another” commands that are intended to build up the body of Christ and promote spiritual maturity among fellow believers. Among these are “love one another,” “pray for one another,” “forgive one another,” “accept one another” and in I Thessalonians 5:11 we are exhorted to “encourage one another.” Encouragement is a powerful means to spur others on to greater deeds done with nobler motives, but sadly, we fail to put this into practice as often as we should. Perhaps the prideful desire to have our own efforts or accomplishments recognized gets in the way of our extending deserved (and needed!) encouragement to others.

It’s no secret in the world of sports that the home team has an inherent advantage in a contest since it is playing in front of its own fan base who fervently exhorts their team to perform well. Seen in these terms, cheering can have a real impact on the outcome of a game. Of course, we can’t always be on the winning team in the world of sports, but it’s comforting to know that we are all members of a team that will ultimately triumph to God’s glory. As part of that worthy objective, we are commanded to cheer for one another and lay aside our fleshly desire for personal recognition. Let’s play ball!

“Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”        James 1:4

The koinobori fluttered in the spring breeze on the flag pole as a visible reminder that Kodomo no Hi (子供の日), or Children’s Day, was coming soon. Every May 5^th, Japanese celebrate this national holiday by attaching bright, colorful streamers in the shape of carp called “koi” to express their well wishes for children. “Nobori” means “climbing” or “ascending”, so juxtaposed the words “koi” and “nobori” are translated to “carp streamers”. The Japanese greatly admire koi since they are a spirited fish that fight their way upstream, demonstrating courage and determination to attain a difficult goal. This imagery is captured by the flapping carp-shaped streamers on flag poles throughout Japan.

Originally, the number of koi flown was determined by the number of males within a household. The father was typically represented by the largest, black colored carp at the top. But in modern times, all the members of the family are now included on the pole, with a pink or red flag standing for the mother.

The koinobori expresses hope that the children of that household will grow up healthy and strong like carp swimming upstream. Larger versions of koinobori are raised in school grounds or near community centers and the timing often coincides with the blooming of nearby cherry trees, adding to the festive atmosphere. Everyone desires their children to be strong and healthy, like vigorous carp swimming upstream, but such qualities are often obtained through the challenges of adversity. It is certainly much easier to swim downstream and float with the current, but this does not produce the needed life attributes of perseverance, self-control, endurance and determination.

Many well-intentioned parents, in their zeal to protect their children to the exclusion of everything else, unwittingly obstruct such needed development and stunt their children’s growth. Swimming upstream may seem counter intuitive to our natural inclination to take the easy route, but it serves to produce strong and healthy children who are better prepared to face the inevitable challenges of life.

God desires the same for His children and as a result, wisely introduces trials, obstacles and hardships into our lives to make us strong. The goal is to help us mature and reach the full potential of all that He has created us to be and do. The Apostle James (James 1:2-4) reminds us that perseverance is a means to a very worthwhile end but many times it is hard to appreciate such long term benefits as we struggle against the current. It is therefore good to recall that we do not swim alone in such efforts and that we are not without aid as we press forward in the circumstances of life. These are truths we must pass on to the next generation as they wrestle with their own challenges and move towards the worthy goal of maturity in Christ.

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth…”  Matthew 6:19

A tray full of money representing roughly half a million dollars in Japanese cash was nonchalantly placed in front of us like afternoon tea. My colleague and I stared open-mouthed at the mound of money and couldn’t resist taking pictures. We had just purchased a building and of course like everything else in Japan, cash was used to seal the transaction. The seller then proceeded to place his portion of the stack of bills in a paper bag and the bank employee routinely whisked the larger pile back to the bank vault.

We should not have been surprised. After all, cash is routinely used for everything in Japan. All our shopping is done in cash. We pay our rent in cash. Even higher priced items like cars are purchased with cash. Most people routinely carry several ¥10,000 notes (worth roughly $100 each) in their wallets. Although changes are slowly taking place, Japan is basically a cash-driven economy. Cashiers are trained to efficiently return change without mistakes and cash dispensing machines are available everywhere to facilitate this dependency on cash. While Japanese normally adapt quickly to newly emerging trends, they have been slow to wean themselves from using hard currency for daily transactions. In this matter, Japan with its low cashless rate in 2015 of only 18%, stands in marked contrast to neighboring Asian countries like China (60%) and South Korea (89%).

There are many reasons behind this propensity to use cash. Chief among these would be Japan’s antiquated banking system that encourages cash transactions, but also not to be overlooked is the general public distrust in anything other than real currency. The low crime rate in Japan also encourages people to carry around large amounts of money without fear of being robbed. However, the government is trying to change the public’s dependency on cash since it is inefficient and puts Japan at an economic disadvantage compared to other Asian countries. Signs of such changes are increasingly evident as more Japanese are using their smart phones for financial transactions and the use of prepaid cards is becoming much more common.

Jesus taught a lot about money and frequently used it as a topic to drive home important spiritual principles in the form of parables. He never discouraged the usage or accumulation of money, but rather, warned about it capturing our hearts and pushing God out. The things we treasure in this life that Jesus refers to are not limited to just money or material possessions, but include all our resources, such as our time, energy, God-given gifts, expertise and acquired skills. These are not to be hoarded just for our own benefit, but to bless others as God directs. Treasure on earth may last for a lifetime, but treasure in heaven, Jesus taught, lasts for eternity. That is the commodity that should underpin all of life’s transactions.

“No one serving as a soldier gets entangled in civilian affairs, but rather tries to please his commanding officer.”  II Timothy 2:4

In 1944, as the Japanese army faced certain defeat in the second battle for Guam, Sergeant Shoichi Yokoi and nine other Japanese soldiers escaped into the dense surrounding jungle rather than endure the disgrace of surrender. Twenty-eight years later and long after the war had ended, Yokoi san was eventually captured by some local fishermen. Shoichi Yokoi’s protracted war was finally over. Soon afterwards in a news interview where he faced a curious public, Yokoi san famously said: “It is with much embarrassment that I return.”

It was later revealed that Yokoi san had survived those many years by hunting and making his own clothing, venturing out only at night from his dug out cave hidden deep in the jungle. The last eight years of Yokoi’s elusive life were lived in solitude as he eventually lost contact with his fellow soldiers. Even though he learned in 1952 that the war had ended, Yokoi san continued to take extreme measures to avoid capture, as he later said “We Japanese soldiers were told to prefer death to the disgrace of getting captured alive.” One of the few items in Sgt. Yokoi’s possession at the time of his apprehension was a rusty and useless rifle, which he hoped to one day present in person to Emperor Hirohito.

Yokoi san was soon welcomed back to Japan as a hero as many Japanese admired his tenacity and resourcefulness that kept him alive for so many years. Despite his struggle to transition back to normal life in modern Japan, Yokoi san did his best to assume ordinary routines and even entered into an arranged marriage. Afterwards, he and his wife settled in Yokoi san’s home city of Nagoya, where he went on to become a popular television personality and an advocate for austere living before passing away in 1977 at the age of 82.

The circumstances of Yokoi san’s survival story are quite remarkable, but what is even more unusual are the motives that drove him to live such an extreme life. Sgt. Yokoi’s rationale to avoid capture was certainly complex, but one of the key factors in making that decision was his passion to please his commanding officers, and thereby avoid shame.

As the people of God, we are sometimes compared in Scripture to military conscripts who are called to serve in God’s army. Therefore, our primary duty is not to please ourselves, but rather, our Commanding Officer. Such a lifestyle of commitment to God can often be contradictory to the world’s usual pattern of living for one’s self, and in turn, may invite curiosity and even opposition from those who are guided by a very different value system. However, it is ironic that those who pursue personal freedom to the exclusion of everything else are actually captives to sin. But God in His mercy, sent Jesus to this earth to set such captives free. They in turn are used as part of God’s eternal rescue mission to free others from their self-imposed prisons.

“For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works…”                               Ephesians 2:10a

On the morning of my 16^th birthday, I was first in line to take my driver’s license test, but promptly failed my initial attempt. Eager to gain my freedom through driving, I returned the following day and this time managed to bring home the coveted prize. Obtaining a driver’s license was viewed as a major step towards adulthood, almost like a rite of passage. The Japanese, however, seem to be much more ambivalent about achieving this goal. In fact, many who have obtained their driver’s license don’t even use it. In Japan, they are called “paper drivers” (ペーパード­ライバー), indicating that although they possess the paperwork certifying their right to drive, they choose not to exercise it.

When we first heard of this phenomenon, it struck us as rather odd, particularly in light of the time, expense and effort required to obtain such a license in Japan. But as we settled more deeply into the Japanese culture, we realized there are many reasons why some people may elect not drive, despite being authorized to do so. For example, many Japanese, especially those living in urban areas, simply do not need to drive due to the availability of efficient and economical public transportation systems. In space-starved areas (of which there are many), parking is also very pricey, so this can further discourage car ownership. These are significant factors, but perhaps the main reason for becoming a paper driver is a matter of confidence, or lack of it. Venturing out on crowded, narrow roads is not for the faint of heart, especially when alternative modes of transportation are readily available.

When we gaze across the church landscape around the world, it seems that the same phenomenon, in a different form, exists in many churches. Sadly enough, many believers dutifully report at their appointed time Sunday after Sunday, but neglect to exercise their full calling and privileges as the redeemed people of God. They are what we might call “paper Christians.” They have a license to drive, but they choose not to. Although they were created to fulfill the purposes of God, they lead measured lives, refusing to venture out and trust God for whatever lies ahead. In this regard, there is a “paper driver” in all of us, but we must resist our natural inclination to live primarily for ourselves. Instead, we were created to do good works. While there may be many valid reasons for not driving a car in Japan, we are entrusted with all the authority and power we need to fully accomplish God’s purposes on earth. We walk, and drive, by faith.

“He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.”            Ecclesiastes 3:11

The normally clear, flowing stream below me was covered with a carpet of freshly fallen cherry blossoms slowly making their way downstream. While maintaining my perch on an ancient footbridge, I raised my gaze to an equally mesmerizing random cascade of petals falling from the trees lining the water’s edge. The incredibly beautiful blossoms from only a week ago were now quickly scattering like snowflakes in the wind, affirming once again the brevity and fragility of all things. Thoughts on life, death and renewal seemed to disperse to the edges of my mind like the scattered petals all around me.

The cherry blossom is the unofficial national flower of Japan; it permeates art, poetry and the national consciousness of the Japanese people on various levels. Called “sakura” (桜) in Japanese, this delicate flower explodes upon the landscape every spring throughout Japan. Its greatly anticipated arrival is celebrated as the cherry blossoms begin to bloom in the southernmost parts of Japan in mid-March and usually complete their annual cycle around early May in the northern prefecture of Hokkaido. The advent of the sakura is a major news event and thousands flock across Japan to nearby parks to picnic (called “hanami”) under these gorgeous trees. There they revel in the temporal beauty of cherry blossoms representing the renewed glories of spring.

The author of Ecclesiastes likewise marveled at the beauty of creation and in so doing his thoughts were drawn beyond himself to the Creator of all things. It is typically not easy to move from the shallow things of life to deeper, eternal thoughts, as so much seems to get in the way. Therefore, to assist us in this all important journey, God has endowed the world around us with visible reminders of His presence and benevolent care. Such displays are worth celebrating and reflecting upon as they have the power to draw us away from the mundane, or routines of this life, to the greater things of God. As God has placed eternity in our hearts, the beauty of this created world beckons us to slow down and meditate on His existence.