So this is goodbye…

It's been a dazed past 30 days in my preparation for departure, since my farewell events. Apologies to those who saw me again after coming to my farewell event. Awks. From the bottom of my heart, though, a big thanks to those who came all the way to Asquith to say goodbye in person. It meant a lot to me, seeing how much I meant to you. A special, public expression of thanks to those who went to great lengths to make it to my farewell event - driving one and a half hours, public transport for one and a half hours, and coming straight from work, so that they could say goodbye in person.

Special mention goes to my pastor at ALLC for the care he showed, which went well beyond merely his duty as a pastor, to supporting me as a friend and a fellow brother in Christ.

Special thanks to my mum for doing what she does best, which is look after me whilst I was under her care. You've cooked for me, cleaned for me, and taken care of me when I got sick, and you only ever increased the attention you gave to me as our time together physically grew short.

Last but not least, thanks and praise be to God who has shown His love for me, both for His single act of redemption for all Christians by sending Jesus, and for His ongoing work personally in my life to shape my thinking, speech, and actions through the gospel. I thank Him for how smoothly my farewell parties went, and opportunities to farewell well. I thank God also for the privilege of doing ministry in my remaining time in Australia, at university and in my neighbourhood. I also thank Him for answering former prayer points on my blog already - connecting me with fellow Christians to meet with regularly in Japan! More on that in a future post. It also means my prayer answered regarding finding a church, as I will be able to join the church that these Christians currently attend.

In my pre-departure, pray first of all that I might maintain a regular quiet time that I can spend on my own in prayer and in God's word. I also pray God would lead me to a faithful Bible-teaching church, because biblical resources and teaching are far more scarce than Australia. Pray for time management also, as I juggle meeting new people, staying on top of homework, keeping in touch with family as well as friends back home, and my personal devotional time. And pray I would be able to keep up with sending monthly prayer newsletters for those who are praying for me! If you would like to support me in prayer during my time in Australia, you can sign up at http://eepurl.com/u0Q8b.

Sydney, Australia, goodbye! Tokyo, Japan, here I come :)