It's that time of year again when we look back over what has transpired in the past year, and it's been quite a year of seeing God work in His way.To start things off, we have moved into our own place (our new address is with our profile to the right). It all started on January 4th this year and came to be on November 3rd. It was a process that truly had God's hand on it. For some time we had seen that we were in need of our own place but money, location and motive were all reasons for us to move with caution.
On January 4th we visited a company that builds houses and apartments in the area of Yukarigaoka which is located in the city of Sakura. It's about 12 miles or 19 kilometers from where we were living in Narita. We learned about this company and area through a flyer we received in the mail. On that day we met with Mr. Watanabe who was very personable and over the next two months visited various properties his company owned. After considerable prayer we decided to put down some money to hold an apartment in a complex called Bio Wing. Mr. Watanabe patiently worked with us to fulfill our remodeling requests. He also found all the loan options available to us, but there was just one hang-up. Erik needed to get permanent residency in Japan for all this to happen and that would be a 6 to 8 month process. So, the beginning of March we applied for Erik's permanent residency and waited.
Waiting was a good thing for us as it taught us more about patience, seeking the Lord and trusting His timing. In this time of seeking the Lord we found that we had some ulterior motives for choosing the Bio Wing apartment and saw that we needed to let go of those things. As a result, we began to pray even more about where God wanted us and even started to look at different places to move to all with the intention that we would back out of the initial place if it was God's will.
Then in September we received notification that Erik received his permanent residency. We met with Mr. Watanabe but were still not certain that the Bio Wing apartment was for us. In fact, we were fully ready to back out if the official loan amount didn't fit our budget, and after going over the numbers, it didn't. It was more than we wanted to pay, so we told Mr. Watanabe this. Surprisingly, he wasn't deterred and told us that he would check more with the bank and his company to see what he could do. In the end, the bank agreed to waive a fee that then brought the loan amount into our range. He brought us this news, and after two more days of praying about it, we were at peace and signed papers.
November 3rd was our first night in our new place. The next few weeks were spent getting things we needed and boxes unpacked. All this was done just in time to welcome Erik's parents on the 21st of November. Looking back over this whole process we see that God was in the midst of it. Now we are looking forward to how He will use us in our new location.
Another case of the Lord having His hand is our lives is in that Yoko and Maika went to the States on November 27th, and Erik will join them on December 23rd. Then we will all travel back to Japan on January 6th. This has only been made possible through a friend that works for an airline and set us up with some discounted tickets. With ticket prices and Erik's work schedule, we weren't sure when we would be able to make the trip but with God there is a way.
Now updates about the 3 of us. Maika continues to grow and develop well. Her use of both English and Japanese is growing. She is healthy and strong. She really enjoys the outdoors, being with animals, hanging out with her grandparents and eating cheese. At times she is a great challenge, but we are daily thankful for her. We know that God has placed her in our lives for a purpose, and we pray that we are pleasing Him in how we are raising her.
Yoko continues to find joy and meaning in being a stay at home mom. She is looking forward to connecting with people in the building we are now living in.
Erik's job continues to go well. Since we have moved, he now takes the train to work. It is about a 30 to 40 minute commute, depending on the trains.
As always, we would love to hear from you. We pray the coming year finds you resting in Jesus and His great love for you.
With love,
Erik, Yoko and Maika
