Genie in Japan

Tomorrow is D-Day.

As two thousand freshmen roll out of Osaka University’s auditorium tomorrow, hundreds of other students (such as myself) will be dumping sheet after sheet of fliers and pamphlets advertising our respective clubs.

Our club (or “circle,” more correctly) is called Get-Life.  It comes from John 10:10 which says “I came that they might have life, and might have it abundantly.” We offer English Lunch Time, Korean Lunch Time, weekly hang-outs, monthly parties, even homestay programs to the States.  But more importantly, we offer friendship.

I didn’t realize how critical friendship is for Japanese students entering college.  I think for most American students, it’s easy to make friends in your first year because most of us live in dorms and are generally not very shy in meeting new people.  But most Japanese students are commuters or live alone in little tiny apartments, never speaking to their neighbors or even the same person who sits next to them day after day on the train.  Every student is seeking a place to belong, a safety and comfort zone–because their home, their family may not necessarily be so warm and welcoming.

So what I want to say to people who freak out when I say I’m a missionary is that I’m not here to convert people.  I don’t look down on their culture or think their religion is barbaric, I’m not here to change their way of life or separate them from normal society by “exposing them to Christianity.”  I’m here to be a friend to someone in need–not monetary or material, but emotional, social, and perhaps even spiritual.

And in the case that someone I meet is really seeking out a meaningful, refreshing, deep, and satisfying relationship, there’s nothing more or less I can offer than an introduction to Jesus Christ.