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January 27, 2006

Soaring Higher

   I spent New Years' Day of 2006 aboard a boat on the Sea of Galilee. There's nothing quite so blessed as leaving Japan's end-of-year clamor behind and touring around the Holy Land. This, of course, made my return home all the more melancholy. I say melancholy because of the truly distressing times this country is facing simply because we can't seem to find direction for the future.

   It's now evident that last September's general election was not merely about privitizing the Postal Service. For all practical purposes, what we actually did was hand over to the ruling party the responsibility for creating a future for us. It's absolutely necessary that we be clearly aware of this. Serious discussions about ammending the Constitution will go on this year. The influence of the current ruling party is sufficiently strong that by means of whatever legislation they may pass into law, they now have the ability to turn their ideas into reality. With zero discussion about what kind of future we want for our country going on, it seems likely that talks about repealing Article 9 of the Constitution (the so-called "Peace Clause" that renounces this country's right to wage war) and strengthening the Emperor system will go forward. Where in the world is this country headed?

   The Japanese people first became aware of their identity as a distinct ethnic group in the world during the last days of the shogunate, when the monarchies of Western Europe began "knocking at the door" for Japan to end its isolationist policies. With the Meiji Restoration, Japan was able to avoid becoming another Western colony and successfully established its own national identity. The national goal of the Japanese people at that time was basically this: "Catch up with the West and outdo them!" This attitude persisted until the end of the Pacific War.

On the Road to Emmaus
"Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him." (Luke 24:31, NIV)
   After the war, the Japanese people determined to be "good losers," as it were, and made it their goal to run in hot pursuit of American ideals. For the most part, we've now reached those goals. While that's partly cause for celebration, it's also given birth to a new problem: "Where do we go from here?"

   In the absence of a goal for the future, people tend to look to the past for answers. The recent interest here in re-evaluating Japan's history is an outgrowth of this idea. This effort is motivated, however, by an attempt to justify past behavior and say, "Hey, we weren't all that bad after all!" China and South Korea are also re-evaluating their histories, but their motivation for doing so is to take a hard look at unresolved problems in the past and use those conclusions to build the country that they'd like to have in the future. It's little wonder, then, that other Asian voices expressing harsh criticism of Japan's approach are now being heard.

   Japan's move to "re-evaluate" history, in fact, is something that's the complete opposite of what our Asian neighbors are thinking when they undertake the same task. In an era when economic and human resource interchanges are being carried out on a global scale, it seems the height of folly for Japan to be closing in upon itself in the political sphere.

   The ill effects of Japan having lost its way are now beginning to show themselves in various places. In the past, the Japanese people have greatly valued the concept of kyōji -- self-accomplishment and pride in one's work. Now, the word has all but become obsolete. And what's worse, the value which we assign to one another's lives seems now to rest upon only the most superficial and simplistic of standards -- your options are to either be in the "winners" category or be a "loser" in life. This is so incredibly sad.

   So, how should we live our lives in 2006? Here are a couple of thoughts.
  1. To influence society in the broadest way possible, we need to look for "narrow fellowship" opportunities in the places where we live and work. By "narrow fellowship," I mean that we need to spend time with people who highly value biblical concepts like love and justice. As you pursue this narrow goal, it will eventually lead to the "ultimate narrowness" of personal fellowship with Jesus Christ. This means that even if there's not a single person in agreement with you, it will still be the sole desire of your heart to seek and obey Christ. Only this kind of "narrowness" leads you to the broad impact on your world that you want.

  2. To soar higher, deepen yourself in the areas of learning and contemplative thinking. Television and Internet-related media technology continues to advance rapidly in its development. However, it's a huge mistake to think that just by the mere application of some effective media forms, you'll be enabled to do something great. One of my goals for this year is to bring to completion my novel, The Bible Story for the Japanese, with the fourth and last volume in the series. However, before that can happen, it's the "meditation time" that I'm really looking foward to. To soar higher, you need to set your heart to go deep "underground" first.
   Jesus said this:
"Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it." (Matthew 7:13, NIV)
   I offer you my sincerest prayers and encouragement for this New Year as we all seek to walk that narrow path of fellowship with the Lord Jesus and with each other. Have a blessed week in Y'shua's precious name. Shalom!

Kenichi Nakagawa
   Kenichi Nakagawa

Posted by HarvestTV at 12:12 AM | Comments (0)