Lego story

Before I came to Japan, a former missionary said every missionary is like a piece of Lego; by ourselves we cannot accomplish much. We need to be assembled and connected together to construct something meaningful.

I started learning Japanese in a small class at OMF language school in Hokkaido. Every day after school I was very tired. The first month, I had no Internet or TV. I felt very lonely. Sometimes I sat on the sofa, staring at the ceiling, tears rolling down my face. Did I make the right decision to leave everything just to end up sitting here staring at the ceiling, overwhelmed by loneliness? I doubted it. I prayed to God for friends. I was like a single Lego brick.

God did not answer my prayer until two years later. I struggled through language school but now I am very grateful for the experience. I know God was training me to rely and trust in him before I was ready to work with others. Like a Lego brick, I had to be molded by God before being used by him.

I struggled again in my first year serving in ministry with the elderly in a Tokyo church. I could not understand their formal Japanese, so conversation was like playing a guessing game. There was another missionary working in the same church, but I could do so little compared to her. Every day I battled negative thinking. But God is good. He taught me to trust in him. When I shared my struggles with other missionaries, I was encouraged that everyone faces the same challenges.

I have had to be patient and trust God has a plan for me. With help, this single Lego brick started to work with others to do things that please God. I met a fellow missionary here in Tokyo and realized many single missionaries struggle alone. They need support and fellowship of other missionaries, to not be an easy target for Satan.

Recently I’ve found great encouragement in a socializing with others—singles and families. We also need people to share and pray with in deeper relationships. As missionaries we experience spiritual warfare. We need to watch out for each other, to be willing to trust our brothers and sisters in Christ by asking for help and prayers. I used to think missionaries were spiritual heroes, but now I know missionaries are only human!

While we all come from different mission agencies, we are serving the same God. Let us work together, mutually caring for each other’s ministries by supporting and listening. Let’s build our Lego bricks together for the purpose of building the kingdom of God.