Triangle

I'm the kind of person who likes to draw connections. Yesterday was fun for me in this. 
I showed up at church to find a pastor from Japan on the docket to speak at both Sunday School and the worship hour.
He opened his testimony with a self-made video of the tsunami destruction in Japan. I really can't describe the mounds of demolished garbage, the huge ships sitting rakishly 1/2 mile from the sea, the utter devastation in just one of the numerous towns affected by the terrible wave.
His stories of heroism, loss, and wonder touched me deeply.
Less than 1% of Japan knows the Lord as Savior. The pastor cried as he told of the terrible human loss----for eternity.
But he also told his own courageous story, and here is where I found my triangle. This man became a believer as a junior high school student. He was the only believer in his high school. His mother accepted Christ two years after he found the Lord, and so did his brother. Can you imagine his commitment to truth? God strengthened his faith despite great opposition to it.
He came to America to study Christianity. Here he found "christians" completely uninterested in sharing their faith. How discouraging! No real joy in the Lord, no apparent concern for the eternal destiny of others.
God called him to be a missionary, and he thought he was supposed to go to Russia, the great atheist entity of the time. Three times God showed him that he was supposed to minister to Japan. He ended up going to Guam, speaking on a Japanese radio program, working with Trans-World Radio. There he met many Japanese, including the famous Mr. "O," a baseball player from those days.
First angle: I just recommended that my TWO book clubs read a book that my sister-in-law gave me for Christmas several years ago, "The Housekeeper and the Professor." This is a Japanese novel about an amnesia suffering math professor who loved Mr. "O." I loved the book, and now both of my clubs will discuss it this summer! I am not a Japanese baseball buff, so I knew nothing about "Mr. O"  before----(and the pastor did not know anything about this book!)
Second angle: My husband's aunt and uncle were also serving as missionaries on Guam with Trans-World Radio at the same time as this man. Of course our Pastor from Japan knew them!
Third angle: Our own Pastor John met this pastor when he attended seminary in California, kept up the connection, and that was why he came to visit and encourage us here at our church.
The triangle was complete. It was drawn on a Sunday morning in Minnesota, listening to Pastor Kando from Osaka, Japan.
Being a part of the family of Christ is full of these wonderful connections. No matter where you go, you have this spiritual bond that transcends our daily lives. There are so many yet to be discovered!
I think I'll be writing more this week. My children are dispersed, and a boy scout camping trip will be taking my husband off to the Northwoods with our token Boy Scout.:)
I have applied for two more job possibilities. Last week I was busy with that.
"My God shall supply ALL your need, according to His riches in Glory"
Pastor Kando had just an amazing story to relate about how God did that for him. I was encouraged. He should write it down!
The shape of the week is "triangle!" When you see one remember that God draws the lines, connecting us to His purposes.