T -1 Day

Dear Friends and Family,
Today is our last day at the Masu house. I am both glad to be heading home and sad to be saying good-bye to Japan. I will try to write one more time tomorrow morning to let everyone know how far (if we completed) we get on the Masu house before we head back to Tokyo.
Yesterday was another intense day. We were so blessed to have help for one more day from the Brazilian Team. They chased us all day...as we ripped up the floors and pulled the nails, they were right behind us brushing everything clean, picking up the mess, and mudding out the foundation. As Josh said, we have pretty well removed all of the flooring and still need to mud out what was the hallways and the bathroom area. We also need to remove the paneling from around the toilet area (we kept that for the very end because it is the only working bathroom for both of our teams). We accomplished a tremendous amount yesterday!
Today, Dean (our supervisor) is moving the remainder of the Avocado Team to the Masu house. They are kind of disappointed because their house was further along at the beginning and could have been finished if they had been given a couple of extra hands for a day or two and now they won't see their house complete. The reason for Dean's decision is the Masu house is next on the carpenters' schedule and needs to be completed before the other house. The carpenters began to move to the house immediately next door to the Masu's yesterday and it takes 1-2 weeks to complete a house and then they will restore the Masu house. We still may not finish the Masu house, but we should get it very close so Dean can complete it next week with another Team (and then they can quickly complete the Avocado Team house).
Samaritan's Purse (the organization that we are working with) is working one more month and then leaving Japan. They have been here since 3/11 and have literally restored hundreds of houses. Dean is with Lutheran Services and is a long-term missionary, so he won't leave and will continue to team up with other organizations to help more people. Converge (our group...aka BGC) also has long-term missionaries in Japan and will continue to look for volunteer short-term missionaries, but it will be more expensive because Samaritan's Purse was providing housing, food, and many of the supplies needed. Pray that those still needing help won't be forgotten but will see the overwhelming love and grace of God through His people.
God bless. Thank you for your continued prayers and for taking the time to read these blogs.
Love you all!
Pastor Gary

Last Day of Work/Onsen

It is amazing how our little group has taken apart the Masu's house.  I hope that someone has taken pictures of it when we walked in, because the difference even today, with one day left, is astounding.  Ripping out or cleaning everything that was exposed to the 8 foot or so tsunami floods is a daunting task for one house... let alone the countless number hit by the tsunami.  However, with only 4-5 people working for 9 days, as well as a few days of help from additional groups, the house is almost completely 'mudded out'.  It hasn't all been easy work, that's for sure.  We have all been grateful that the weather has been below mid-80's for our stay, although we haven't been able to escape the humidity.  Except for the toilet room, all of the walls have been knocked out and almost all of the floors are pulled up.  The majority of the house has been mudded out, meaning that contaminated mud pushed under the house by the tsunami has been dug out.  Once all of that has been completed, we will pressure wash and bleach to clean the frame of the house (I believe... we haven't gotten that far yet!).  At that point, our job will be done and the carpenters will be able to take over!  The closer we get to that goal, the better.
As mentioned in the previous post, Molly and I went with a group to an onsen, or public bath house, especially around a hot spring.  It was a rather interesting experience that probably will never become popular in America because of the differences in cultures.  The onsen we went to had about 10 different pools/rooms, about 8 pools and two rooms.  The pools were either hot or cold, and several had massage jets in them.  There was also a steam room and a sauna, each which were so hot that it was difficult to be in for more that a few minutes.  To an American, the pretense of the onsen may seem strange: a bunch of naked guys (there were separate facilities by gender) sitting around in hot tubs.  It was a little uncomfortable first, but once you get used to it a little bit, it was incredibly relaxing.  The one that we went to had about half of the pools outdoors, which was nice to be able to get out of the stuffy air inside.  7 of our group went last night, and for the majority of us, it was our first time.  Unfortunately, we stayed up rather late because we left after dinner, getting back at around 11.  A group also went to an onsen tonight, but several people who went last night stayed behind to get some sleep.  The current plan is to go again tomorrow night, as it will be our last night at the camp and we won't have to work the next morning.  I have really enjoyed that on this trip we have had opportunities to do some crazy things, like onsens and sushi.
Please keep us in prayer today, as it is our last work day tomorrow (tomorrow for us).  We hope to completely finish the Masu's house... but we still have a fair amount of work left.  Pray for safety and energy for us.  Also, keep praying that the Masu's would continue opening up to the Word (Mrs. Masu brought home a copy of the New Testament from the concert!).  Thank you to everyone who has supported us and made this possible.