Eric has had a chance to download more photos that he took during his two weeks up in Sendai in addition to those already posted.  Here they are, with some of his reflections.

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On the way up, we took a back route to Tokyo and had a great view of Mt. Fuji. It provided hope to some of the people I met to know that in spite of everything Fujisan was still standing. Yet I told them that even if it were to crumble, God’s love would always remain.

Here is the CRASH headquarters, with some of the supplies we brought up from Sanda.

On the way to Sendai. We were issued a special emergency vehicle badge that allowed vehicles like ours to be on the highways during the first week.  It turned out to be a great blessing because with the long lines of vehicles waiting for gas, we would often get waved to the front of the line.

When we were driving closer to the nuclear plant, we rolled up our windows and wore our masks… just in case.

Our second day in Sendai we went to wait for the amazing shipment coming in from Samaritan’s Purse – 94 tons of supplies.  Here is the group of volunteers waiting, and the trucks coming in.

I loved working with Samaritan’s Purse – they continue to be an amazing blessing to the communities in Tohoku.  Here are some new supplies that were purchased by SP at Costco – they bought out entire inventories of much-needed supplies.

Geared up….

We are realizing the immensity of the problem of the hundreds of thousands in Japan who have been displaced by the tsunami or nuclear problems.  Even though we are a 14 hour drive from Sendai, we continue to find people around us who have come as a result of the disasters.  Last week while I was at a weekend clinic (our week of flu!), a woman sitting next to me in the waiting room with two small children suddenly leaned over and said, “Are you Takamoto-san?”  I was rather surprised- I had never met her before.  She said she had just come down from their home above Tokyo to stay with her parents in Sanda because of concerns of radiation for their children.  She had had tea at a neighbor’s home, who had mentioned  her new American friend (me) who had adopted four children.  I guess we sort of stood out and it was obvious…

Today one of our church member’s mother came to worship for the first time.  She is staying indefinitely with the Yamane family because another family who lives one prefecture (state) over from Fukushima is staying at her home.  There is a government hotline that anyone can call to find out about possible housing openings in various parts of the country.

This is an update that was sent out by a pastor who has worked for many years with Asian Access at Fukushima First Bible Baptist Church (located just 5 km from the troubled nuclear reactor). I worked with Pastor Sato many years ago when I was summer advisor. His whole community is needed to relocate indefinitely because of their close proximity to the reactor.

Pastor Akira Sato: Evacuation Report, March 18

Every day we are supported by so many people’s prayers.  It already feels like much time has passed.  I feel as if several years’ worth of drama has been packed into the last week.  After reuniting with my Christian brothers and sisters at the evacuation site, I often will mistakenly refer to it in conversation as the concentration camp.  It feels like we’re living in a war zone.

Whenever I hear people’s stories of their evacuation, I feel as if they have escaped through their fire or slipped through the middle of the tsunami.
Yesterday I got word from a church member I had been worried about, “I was truly saved by God” he testified.  As I listened, he explained that immediately after the earthquake, he had suffered a heart-attack, and half of his heart had stopped.  If the emergency surgery had have been delayed by just 30 minutes, he would have died.  “I can see the hand of God in the leading me in a path to life” he testified.

Another woman in our church was at work and had switched seats just before the earthquake hit and as a result was spared death and was able to escape by car.  The roads were terribly damaged, but as she was escaping she gave a ride to several people and they were able to show her how to avoid the broken roads, and make her way through the mess of cars disabled by flat tires and other damage, and arrive safely at the evacuation site.  From there she was able to move to another evacuation site and miraculously find her relatives.

But the most miraculous thing is that I haven’t heard anyone say, “How could God allow this?” or “There is no God.  I don’t believe anymore.”  Having confirmed the whereabouts of 160 Christian brothers and sisters now, what I am regularly hearing is “The Lord is wonderful,” and “I want to trust God more fully from now on.”  I wonder to myself, “When did they get such strong faith?”

Yesterday, three of the people travelling with us, shed tears as they put their faith in Jesus and testified to their new faith.  Hallelujah!  What joy there must be in heaven.  There’s nothing like seeing fruit first-hand like this, in the midst of such a gloomy disaster.

By the way, yesterday before we moved from Fukushima to Yamagata, some of our people were able to move to the homes of family and relatives.  While we know that life is a series of encounters and farewells, there’s something special about time spent with people who have come through the same trial and shared meals together.  While I wondered, “When will I see them again?” I struggled to hold back feelings of loss.  I get tired of keep shedding tears like this.  I try to tell myself that life is about hellos and goodbyes but it’s not so easy.

Yesterday we loaded into 12 cars, and headed to our next refuge, which required crossing over snowy paths with walls of snow a metre high on either side of us.  But it wasn’t as if after we reached that tunnel of snow we were in snow country, but even before, it felt like we were in a world of silver and white.  Yonezawa Chapel is in the midst of completely white snowy surroundings.

We stepped out of the shivering cold and were welcomed by our church hosts with bowls of hot udon and soba noodles.   I had the experience of holding back tears while I ate the food made for us.  If this is I feel now, I hate to think what will happen in the future.  Lord, like the silvery white snow we see all around us, renew my delicate heart.

We are now living life as “diaspora” (scattered peoples).  In the end, “Where will we lay down roots?  Where we will settle?” I wonder.  What is clear is that through these unusual times, the Lord has stirred up everything.  Some have been freed from their excuses and received the Saviour, others have repented that their faith had been sleeping.  Still others have expressed their realization of how little is really necessary for life.  In each of these souls the Lord has been powerfully present, rousing their very being, and over-turning the foundation of their lives.

Perhaps the Lord is inviting us to a new work.  Perhaps the curtain is rising on a great drama like the exodus from Egypt.

(For those who have asked how to help our friend Kazue and her family in Sendai- we will get details to you very soon.)

Eric is home and doing well.  We’ve had a busy but very sweet day as a family.  We are all so happy to have him back!  Tonight we went and satisfied Eric’s craving:  all-you-can-eat yakiniku (thin-sliced beef that you grill at your table).  It was great fun.  We continue to spend time debriefing, and we both appreciated the chance to talk and debrief with Jack A.,  our mission’s psychologist on the phone.

We just got a call from our friend Kazue.  They are staying temporarily in a friend’s home that is up for sale;  they are searching for a 3 bedroom apartment but so far it has been impossible to find.

They were finally able to go back to Arahama and the location of their home.  They found nothing there, except some of the foundation cinderblocks and part of one tree.  I guess I had hoped that they would find some of their personal things…

This neighborhood had nothing left – it was completely demolished by the tsunami.  They are starting over with absolutely nothing, but still optimistic.  We are working on helping them financially with furniture and clothes needs — if you are interested please contact us.

We wanted to thank many of you who have prayed for the friends we have shared about in our blog.  We just heard from Reiko that her parents in Fukushima are staying put and doing better- after three weeks they finally have water coming into their home.  This is a huge relief – they were needing to bring water in from an uncle’s home and go there to shower.

Last night when Kent and Eric came home, they said that most of the damage that they saw was from the tsunami much more than from the 9.0 earthquake.  But when I saw these pictures of Reiko’s parents home – a few hundred kilometers away from the epicenter – I was shocked.  She wrote that it took them over a week to clean up the inside.

Here is their tile roof that they are waiting to get repaired:

I like this picture because in the left corner you can see the Japanese writing on the front door of the  little church that is right across the street from them.  This is where I spent one summer in the early nineties while working as a summer advisor.  Reiko lived right across the street, and became a wonderful friend that summer.  God used our friendship to connect her to God and another local church, pastored by Mori Sensei and his wife.  Reiko has been a great friend ever since.  And I love it that it  is that it has been a local church that has been coming into her parent’s community when others are afraid to (because of radiation) and bringing fresh produce and daily needs.

The church where Reiko got involved in Iwaki was my “command base” that summer.  Mori Sensei and his wife were wonderful models to me then and since.  Last year, the Mori’s church burned down.  They built a larger facility and have since understood more of God’s purposes – they have been using it as a warehouse since the tsunami to bring relief to the community.  Even though they are near the nuclear reactor, they have announced that they aren’t leaving but will stay and care for the community.  Watch how they are caring!   I saw this video made by some missionaries working with the Moris and once again the tears flowed.

The kids thought Eric was coming home tomorrow (Saturday)- so when Eric called to say that he and Kent were able to get home Friday night, I didn’t tell the kids otherwise.  But we made banners in preparation, and I managed to make an apple pie and get it in the oven before we left for the train station.

They thought we were going to pick up Uncle Kent and “another guy who had been helping up at the earthquake.”  There was SUCH joy at the train station when they saw with their own eyes that the other man was Daddy!  Such awesome squeals.

It’s great to have him home.  We have a video clip from the train station – watching Ian run to his daddy is worth the watch, I think (I’m biased of course).

The last few minutes Eric has been talking to Peter on the phone.  Peter is staying up until Sunday to make a good transition to the next team coming in.  But there was an unfortunate incident today that he is handling – when Peter first called Eric about it, Eric hoped it was an April Fool’s joke, but it’s not.  A relief team brought back to the one campsite a dog that they found in the city where they were working.  The church staff agreed to let the dog stay for a few days, even providing dog food.  But today that camp director (our friend Hi-chan’s husband) got bit when the dog escaped and had to go to the hospital.  Pray for Peter especially as he finishes his time and needs to handle a lot of different teams coming and going with varied expectations and preparation.  Tomorrow is a big day for many of the agencies as Franklin Graham is planning a visit to the area.

Eric will write soon about some of his experiences.  I hope we can get a good night sleep.  Ian has been having bad coughing fits during the night.  Tomorrow we have a soccer parent’s orientation for weekend soccer that Owen is starting.

Just a few minutes ago, we sat and watched a video clip of the mayor of Minami Souma, an area about 20-30 kms. away from the Fukushima nuclear plant, making an appeal for volunteers to come in and help his city.  Because of the fear of radiation, they are not receiving help.  (Here is the link- it is a bit lengthy but does have english subtitles: