FAQ: What am I eating here in Japan?

It's been close to two years living in Japan. As a student studying full time and active in various activities throughout the week but with limited funds, what do I eat? The answer in Japan, is variety. Let me introduce a sample of what I eat on a day to day basis.

I 'd eaten all my meat at the time I took this photo, but with a couple hundred grams of chicken or pork and the above ingredients, I can whip up a stew for 2.5 meals (for every two servings advertised, I usually finish it in one). The whole process from preparation to serving takes about 20 minutes; very reasonable I think for a hot nutritious and economic meal in winter.

On the left is what is called a retort pouch or a sealed plastic pouch containing ready made sauce. It's not just sauce though, with vegetables and meat and all sorts of other things combined. The packaging says this one pack feeds 2-3 people, but I eat one packet per meal along with rice. Total preparation and cooking time, less than 5 minutes, total cost, around $2AUD.

There are many varieties of retort pouch meals, which often require you to buy and prepare one to three ingredients, to which you add the contents of the pouch, stir and serve. It's all very easy, quick, healthy, and economic. I eat anywhere from one to five of these meals each week.

My classic Japanese style breakfast. There are some days when I get lazy and just go for cereal and milk, but where I can, I make a bowl of miso soup, eat a container of natto beans, include some fish usually the particular flavour of canned mackerel pictured (there are many flavours but this is the only one I really like), Japanese seaweed (tbh Korean seaweed tastes better), along with rice. Japanese breakfast is so easy to make and so healthy, and so cheap! All up one meal would cost me aruond $2AUD.

Another impressive range of retort pouch meals. Unlike the previous showcase, these come ready to eat with no preparation required. Generally they taste better heated, but for example in the middle of the heat of summer I eat them without heating them, and they taste fine. There is an almost infinite variety of these premade ready to eat meals. The great part, is that they can be as cheap as less than a dollar a serve.

This is also another great meal option - good old Western style spaghetti. I learned a neat little trick from one of the cooking shows here to save time, and to optimise the texture of the spaghetti. It's to soak the pasta in water for over two hours (three in winter) before cooking. You can soak it up to 24 hours. If you strain the water and store it in the fridge, it can keep for a week. Surely you'd feel like eating pasta at least once a week.

There are three major advantages of preparing it like this. One, you need a fraction of the water required to boil non-presoaked pasta, because it's already soft so it easily fits even into a mug-sized pot. Two, once the water starts boiling, it only takes one minute to cook. Rather, you don't want to keep it in for more than a minute, for the third major advantage, which is that the pasta cooks al dente all the way through. This is because the water particles have already permeated right into the core of the pasta strand, and all they need is to be heated up by the boiling water, causing the spaghetti strand to cook evenly from outside to inside, thus maintaining maximal springiness. This is super tasty, and pasta + sauce is even cheaper than rice + toppings. But I still love my rice.

You were probably wondering, "where's the instant noodle?" Yep, here it is. But as you can see from the photo, I only ever keep a maximum of two in stock. Because I know they're not a healthy meal option, and it's just too easy to prepare better alternatives to cup noodles. Having said that though, I love Japanese cup noodles. There are so many more interesting flavours than Australia, and for so much cheaper. I bought both of these for less than a buck apiece.

Next, a look at what my cooking apparatuses are like. Top right is a hot water boiler, which I use for heating up the retort pouches, boiling eggs and boiling water for the miso soup and cup noodles, as well as cooking my spaghetti when I'm too lazy to whip out a pot. To left is my trusty rice cooker. It can cook up to three cups at a time, one cup per meal, perfect size. Very space and energy efficient.

On the bottom is my fridge. You may notice I don't own a freezer. I haven't used one for almost a year now, and I've had no problems. It means I have to make a couple more trips to the supermarket, but for the cost saved on electricity on an appliance I can live without, I am more than willing to make the sacrifice. This bar fridge has been more than sufficient to keep the ingredients I need to keep the ingredients I need to make all my meals for a week.

You may also notice that there is no microwave. Most Japanese people place it above their fridge, and stack their rice cooker on top of the microwave. I would too, if I had one. But the microwave, I have also not owned for the past year. And I managed to survive - quite comfortably too. Living in an already cramped dormitory room, I'm glad there was no microwave to further reduce my moving and breathing space.

To top it all off, this is a sneak backstage view of my "stash" for when I'm feeling peckish. As much as I try to be healthy, I still have a sweet tooth to satiate, particularly after a meal. You'll notice, however, that I keep a variety of snacks, ranging from chocolates to sweets to biscuits, and keeping both sweet and savoury (and sour) in store. I like to maintain some variety, even in my in-between mealtimes :)

Hope you found this segment on food culture in Japan as a bachelor insightful. Until next time :)

Apologetics seminar in Japan

Yesterday, I was invited by a Thai friend from the same program as me, to attend an apologetics seminar held at Fuchu Calvary Chapel. It was delivered by a special guest from Hawaii with an Okinawan name and lineage called Pat (sorry, I forgot his last name >.<). He was apparently well versed in the area of apologetics, and the title he earned was proved true by what he taught today. Coming from Australia, it wasn't the first time I'd heard or read these things, but since coming to Japan, it has been my first time. Having already been 9 months, it was a welcome refresher for my faith also, being reminded that it's by faith we are saved, and that the faith we have in Christ is sure faith. I thought I would share here what I learned, for everyone's edification.

Historical reliability of the gospels

Jesus' ministry is commonly held to have taken place between 30-33AD. Some skeptics assert that the gospels do not represent the oldest record of Jesus Christ, but that they were written after the lifetime of the eyewitnesses. The implications are that they are not eyewitness accounts, but mostly legends and mythology.

According to historians, it takes 120 years after a major event for legends and myths to develop. That is because all the eyewitnesses must die first. However, if the accounts were written in the lifetime of the eyewitnesses, they are not legend or myth, but actual records of what happened. That's because the eyewitnesses can affirm or deny the things that have been written down. Made up accounts of what happened wouldn't last very long once the eyewitnesses found them.

The earliest biography of Siddhārtha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha, comes 400 years after his life. That means much of what is written about Buddha is actually based on legends and mythology. And many people think the same way about the gospels.

What is worth noting, is that we have strong evidence that the gospels were in fact written by eyewitnesses. That means these accounts are not legends or myths; they are true stories.

Dating of the gospels

• William F Albright, a Jewish non-Christian dean of archaeology, concluded that every book of the New Testament was written by a baptized Jew between AD40-80.
• Bishop John Robinson, a liberal critic and founder of the "Death of God" movement, changed his position on the date of the gospels at the end of his life, newly asserting that the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John were likely all written between 40-65AD.
• Traditionally, the gospels are dated as follows:
• Mark, 60AD
• Matthew & Luke, 70AD
• John, 70/90AD

Date of the gospels: internal evidence

• In all four gospels, Jesus predicts the destruction of the temple (occurred 70AD) but its fulfilment is not mentioned once. This was the most important building in the history of Israel, and its absence in the accounts suggests the books' completion prior to the event.
• We know Paul was killed by Emperor Nero in 64AD, so his letters have all been written prior to that time.
• Paul quotes the gospel of Luke (1Ti 5:18), meaning the gospel of Luke was completed before Paul died.
• Acts never mentions the Jewish War (66AD), when the nation of Israel was completely dismantled.
• Acts never mentions the death of the three most important early church leaders, showing that Luke completed the book of Acts before 62AD

Date of the gospels: external evidence

• There have been over 5000 Ancient Greek manuscripts discovered to date
• The Rylands papyri found in Egypt, dated 120AD, contains a fragment of John. To reach Egypt by that time, it must have been written much earlier.
• Clement of Rome 90AD and Ignatius 107AD quote many of the books of the New Testament as Scripture
• Polycarp 120AD, disciple of John, informs us by his writings that the canon we have today had already been confirmed in his time

Archaeology and the gospels

• Luke names 34 countries, 54 cities and 9 islands very accurately
• He also mentions the names of government officials, whose names sounded very strange for people of that time, but recent archaeological evidence affirms all of their existence
• William Ramsey spent many years in Israel trying to prove Acts was unhistorical, but at the end of his studies, he highly appraised the calibre of Luke's writing, and became a Christian
• John mentions the pool of Bethesda in his gospel, and we have discovered this pool recently in israel

The historicity of Jesus

His existence is recorded in secular history records, both Jewish and Roman. The notable thing is, these people were enemies of Christianity historically. By their acknowledgement that such things took place, the enemies of Christianity affirmed the accuracy of the gospels.

The Jewish Talmud (completed 300AD) speaks of a historical Jesus and tries to explain Jesus' miracles by attributing them to sorcery and magic. What is interesting, is that by not denying these phenomenon, it affirms that they really took place. Also recorded is Jesus' crucifixion, and the death of five apostles. Thallus mentions in his third book that the earth covered by darkness when Jesus was crucified. Tacitus (115AD) through calling Christians evil by documenting all that they were doing, affirms that the events and the people of the NT were real.

In court today, if your enemy affirms your story, that is the most powerful evidence.

Q&A Session

Using the conclusion we established in the first session, namely the historical reliability of the gospels, we proceeded to answer mostly prepared, and some impromptu, questions on the topic of apologetics.

1. Why do Christians do wars?

The use of force is necessary to keep the peace. In the book of Revelation, it is written that Jesus will one day return and wage war against evil. If the Son of God must use force to defeat evil and bring peace, so must we.

At the same time, the Bible gives guidelines on when and how to use force. Violence must be as a last resort, and even then, only proportional means to win, and not to decimate the country, and the civilians must be spared.

Some people use Matthew 5:38-42 to argue that Jesus preached pacifism, by insisting that one must not lash back against a wicked man. However, this teaching does not prohibit the use of violence. In Jewish times, a slap on the right cheek means "I despise you", in this case, for being a Christian. So the passage actually says that if you are despised for being a Christian, don't fight back, turn the other cheek instead. It does not prohibit the use of force to stop someone who is defenseless from being harmed.

However, the Bible does not endorse murdering people who are not Christians. Sadly, this has happened in history. That is man's fault, it is directly in contrary to God's commands, and it should never have happened.

2. Doesn't a monotheistic belief cause people to be narrow minded and intolerant?

This question strikes close to the heart of the Japanese people, who believe a polytheistic belief is more welcoming and less exclusive.

Firstly, it is correct to say that a monotheistic belief is narrow and exclusive - because that is the nature of truth. Truth by its very nature is narrow and exclusive. It excludes all other possibilities, by calling them fallacy. So it can be said that anyone who believes the truth is narrow minded and intolerant of what is not truth.

Accordingly, when the Bible teaches that Jesus is the Son of God, any religion that denies that is wrong. And if Jesus is the Son of God, and he taught that he is the only way to life, then every other way to God is wrong.

3. I can believe in God, but I can't accept why I need to believe in Jesus.

The bible teaches that God has given us the perfect law, and put it in our hearts. Romans 2 says that Christians and non-Christians alike have the moral law within them. Everyone knows we have not lived perfectly according to God's law, and that makes us all sinners.

Someone needs to die for sin, but no one except God is perfect enough to be able to. However, God cannot die. So Jesus came to earth as a man, in order to become the perfect sacrifice for sin, and to die the death we deserve in our place to pay the price. No other religion can offer that, and that is why we need to believe in Jesus.

4. Why do people suffer if there is a just and loving God?

If God doesn't exist, life is ultimately without meaning and without purpose, and your suffering means nothing. But because God exists, our life has meaning and purpose.

James 1:2 tells us to endure trials of various kinds with joy, because it builds our character to be more like Christ. In the Hebrews 5:8, it says Christ learned obedience through suffering, so we should expect to go through the same thing.

Some skeptics ask question of why children who are born crippled have to suffer and live meaningless lives. But how do you know they live meaningless lives? Some of the greatest lessons we have ever learned come from people who have suffered tremendously. Nagai Takashi from Nagasaki who suffered radiation position from the bomb and was paralysed for much of his life, but through his suffering he wrote several inspirational books that are read all over the world. Furthermore, Christians look forward to that day when Jesus comes back, because there will be no more suffering.

On the other hand, what message does an atheist have to give to these crippled people? They offer no substance, no hope, and no meaning, not just for cripples, but for anyone. Just suffer in a meaningless life, die and disappear.

How do we know the Christian gospel is truth, and not just a fairy tale? Because our faith is based on a real Jesus who really rose from the dead. Only Christianity can offer any message of hope for those who suffer.

5. What will happen to someone who dies without ever hearing the gospel?

This is possibly the most difficult answer for Japanese people to hear. It is not an easy answer to stomach, but sometimes truth is just that.

Romans 1:19-23 says every passing day points to a creator, from the telescope to the microscope. How much more complex is the human brain than a computer, which no one would ever believe came about sponaneously or accidentally?

Romans 2:12-16 says that everyone has the witness of God through their conscience, and we all know right from wrong. For example, murder, adultery, and stealing are universal sins unanimously considered to be damaging to society. The biggest sin of all, is denying the creator God who made us and gives us purpose in life. And for those who don't believe in Jesus and accept his death on the cross for their sin, they will be condemned to hell.

Having said that, Acts 10 mentions a God fearing Roman soldier named Cornelius who didn't know Jesus but wanted to know God. In the end, God used Peter to share the gospel with him, and he believed. Whoever wants to know God, God will somehow get the message to them.

Hebrews 9:27 tells us that there are no more chances to repent and believe in Jesus after you die.

6. I have mounting doubts even after say I believe. Does my faith need to be reevaluated?

Doubts are actually a good thing!

"The unexamined life is not worth living." - Socrates

For us Christians, the unexamined faith is not worth living.

God is big enough to answer any questions we have concerning him. Other religions say don't ask, just believe, but Jesus and the apostles invited others to ask questions and seek answers. So when you have questions, it should motivate you to seek answers! Many Christians who do not ask questions about their faith, are those who fall away when their faith is challenged.

7. Why are there so many divisions within Christianity like Catholicism and Protestantism? Which one is right?

Truth is measured by the Bible, not by man-made parameters. We measure whether a church or a denomination is consistent by the Bible. The Bible, God's truth, is never wrong, but human interpretation is not perfect (1Corinthians 13:12, this world is like seeing through a mirror unclearly).

We do not have perfect interpretations so we do not have perfect understanding. But we should agree on the essentials such as there is one God, the Trinity, and the Son of God Jesus Christ. On the non essentials, denominations are allowed to disagree like how to conduct baptism.

As for Protestantism and Catholicism, the former initially came about as a result of the latter drifting away from Biblical teaching. If you read up on Martin Luther (not Martin Luther King) in the 16th century, you will learn why. I didn't bother writing down what's already on Wikipedia.

8. How do people who lived and died before Jesus came to earth get saved?

Just believing in God through our knowledge of the creation and our conscience (Q5) is not enough. We need special revelation to know God, and that special revelation came through the nation of Israel.

Israel had the system of offering sacrifices for sin. That sacrifice was an unblemished lamb that would shed its blood for the sins of the people. The lamb itself did not save people from sin, but it was a prophetic symbol of the Saviour whom people would put their faith in.

Foreigners outside of Israel still had a chance to hear the gospel. Many came to Israel to learn about God. In other cases such as Jonah, God sent a prophet from Israel to reveal himself to the foreign countries.

9. What age of children are saved?

The Bible talks about an "age of accountability". After a certain age, children are able to understand and respond to God's expectations. In Israel, the Bar Mitzvah ritual takes place at 12 years of age, but that is more tradition and not something taught in the Bible. The bible doesn't specify when exactly the "age of accountability" is. The actual timing may depend person to person.

10. Will a spiritual revival come to Japan?

400 years ago, Christianity thrived in Japan (Edo period). As we study the lives of the Christians back then, they were faithful to Christ, enduring persecution and even dying in his name.

An age of revival may not have yet come, but before one will come, God's people must be faithful to God's call in the Bible. Revival begins in God's household. Let's pray for revival to sweep Japan, and pray that it would begin within.

FAQ#3: "How did you get the scholarship?"

I promised that I would share in a later post what I had to do in order to get the Monbukagakusho scholarship (文部科学省奨学金). A lot of people have already expressed interest in learning more about what's involved, so I decided to lay out the application process for anyone who might be applying for it in future.

Disclaimer: I have merely documented my procedure of acceptance, along with helpful advice to the best of my knowledge. I don't guarantee that following this procedure will ensure your acceptance into the scholarship. That will come down to whether what you're offering the Japanese government is what they are looking for. The category I chose was undergraduate entry, so this process may not necessarily reflect graduate entry, or the research category.

Base camp: Do your homework. Find out not only what this scholarship is about, but also what other scholarships are available. Maybe there's a better option for you. For someone looking for scholarship entry into Japan, the Japaneseembassy and the JASSO(Japan Student Services Organisation) are two must-go websites. What I like to do is to read through all the information available to me concerning the scholarship, even if it might not be relevant to me until a later stage, so that I have a general idea of the bigger picture. One of the most important things to check, is to make sure you qualify. It would suck if you completed the entire application form only to find out you don't fulfil the age criteria, for example. Also note that the Monbukagakusho undergraduate scholarship is offered for a minimum five year period. Be sure you've thought through whether you're willing to commit to five years of study in Japan.

Something else that might be good to do if you're looking to go to a coutnry you have little personal experience with, is to look into what living there will be like. JASSO has set up a nice little information website for you to see what student life inJapan will be like.

Checkpoint 1: Show them that you know what you're signing up for. The Japanese government is spending a considerable sum of money on every student they accept, and they want to make sure you have direction in life, and a purpose in studying your chosen subjects. The documentation found on the Japan embassy website has detailed instructions, so I won't repeat it. I will highlight, however, that you are required to state whether you wish to undertake studies in the natural sciences or social sciences, not both. Within it, you're allowed to propose virtually any degree you'd like to study in Japan. That means you could potentially request to study anything from botany to economics to medicine to law (to Japanese). You get to propose three preferences as to the degree you'd like to study in Japan, and you are required to give brief reasons as to what motivates you to study it. Note that you are not required to, nor do you have a say in, which university you will ultimately be doing your degree at. This could be viewed as good or bad news

- the good news is that it saves you a whole lot of effort and stress figuring out university application procedures; the bad news is that you might get posted to a place you might not like. Having said that, the Japanese government is paying top dollar to keep you in Japan, so it's in their best interest to offer you the chance to study in the best tertiary institution that offers your chosen degree. That all depends upon whether you do well enough academically while you're there, of course.

My top three preferences were education (教育学), sociology (社会学), and Japanese language studies (日本語学). Education was a clear first for me, because I want to learn skills to improve the way I teach and interact with people. I've been tutoring both privately and classes in tutoring colleges for the past 8 years, and over that time I've gained not just insight and interest in teaching, but a desire to to instil in the next generation a passion for learning as a means to personal development. Sociology has become my second preference after completing an arts subject in univeristy looking at the concept of "Asia". The prospect of studying sociology in a Japanese institution as a foreigner to Japan's culture and traditions fascinates me. And if that didn't work out, I'd be open to settle for studying the Japanese language. How many written languages do you know that can be interchangeably expressed in four different character scripts like Japanese does? (Hiragana, Katakana, Kanji, and finally the character set used by me here to name the four sets, Romaji.) Not only that, but the Japanese spoken language has more politeness levels than an onion has layers. Speak too casually to a given audience, and you run the risk of sounding rude. Speak too politely to a given audience, and you come off as patronising. There is a wealth of information to be uncovered in the rich history of the development of the Japanese language as we know it today.

Checkpoint 2: Collect 'em all. That is, all the necessary paperwork. Here's a checklist of all the documents I had to bring together for my application process. Make sure you arrange it quickly, because the window of opportunity between application open and close is around four weeks. Japanese people do things very efficiently, which is something I've always admired.

1. Completed application form.
2. Two recent passport-sized photos.
3. Academic transcript for the past three years.
4. Reference. They say "recommendation from the principal or the adviser of last school attended" so you have the choice of any teacher from high school or your Japanese lecturer in university (if applicable). I also don't know if they were looking for a character reference or an academic reference, so common sense told me to submit both.
5. Graduation certificate, or certificate of expected graduation if not yet graduated.
6. Certificate of enrolment into university (since I was already in uni - this may not apply to you).
7. Medical certificate (print off the website and ask the doctor to complete).

Just a note that if you make any photocopies of the original documents, you must either send the original copy with the photocopies, or get a JP (Justice of the Peace) to certify each photocopy as being authentic, or do both.

Checkpoint 3: Tell us in one page or less why you want to study what you want to study. This was something we were asked to do approximately one week before the date of the barrier exam, when we were required to submit it. It was a challenging task to write such a concise, compelling piece, but on hindsight it was a worthwhile task that helped me colect my abstract motivations floating around my head, and present it as a coherent concrete reason. After all, if you can't give a clear motivation, how can they be sure whether you can commit to your chosen degree?

Checkpoint 4: Ace the barrier examination. For those applying for a degree in the social sciences, you will need to take an English, a (relatively easier compared to the Natural Sciences people) Maths, and a Japanese test. If you wish to do a degree in the natural sciences, you will be required to take the same English and Japanese tests, but a slightly harder Maths test and an additional two tests out of Physics, Chemistry and Biology. They have never revealed, nor impy there even is, a cutoff mark in each section. So a good rule of thumb is to get as close to 100% as possible. The website provides past exam papers for practice, but you have to individually click on each paper to download them all.
Alternatively, click here to download the complete set of undergraduate past papers for 2007-2010 together.

Here, I'll outline the level of knowledge required to be able to answer all questions in each respective test.

Firstly, English. If you can read this blog post without any problems, you can complete the English test with no problems. For a native speaker, it is VERY easy as it is designed to merely ensure all applicants have a basic proficiency of grammar and vocabulary. The test structure is based on content required for the IELTS and TOEFL language tests, if you know what they are (if you're not an international student, don't worry).

The maths test assumes knowledge of roughly the complete two unit mathematics course. Theoretically, you are able to complete the entire paper without needing to know any formulae. But really, formulae are there to make your life easier - for example, would you rather work out how to measure the distance of a line on a number plane manually, or apply the distance formula? What I recommend is three things you can do to prepare. Firstly, make a list of all topics and formulae covered in the two unit HSC mathematics course and learn them. Secondly, download and complete as many two uni HSC mathematics past papers as you can to get better at thinking mathematically. Thirdly, complete the Monbukagakusho mathematics past papers to get a feel of the difficulty of the actual test you'll be taking. My experience was that knowledge of the two unit course was more than sufficient to do every question, but the questions were of a higher order of thinking, often requiring unconventional ways of applying the formulae which required high flexibility and familiarity with basic mathematical concepts. Realistically, that depends on a mix of time invested and natural talent.

The Japanese test is divided into three sections, roughly corresponding to the different JLPT levels. Based on the current five-tier JLPT grading system, I would place my Japanese level at the time of taking the test to be just below the standard required to pass level 2 of JLPT (i.e. I wouldn't have got 60% at level 2). For me, section A of the Japanese barrier test was really easy, and I think I got close to 100%, while I got about half of section B correct, and I could barely understand a single question in section C. If you want to improve in your Japanese proficiency, there are numerous ways you can go about it. I have some resources that have personally helped me revise JLPT related content. Anki is a freeware software compatible with most computer and smartphone platforms, with a sync functionality that means you can revise your list on any device and after syncing over the net, your progress is updated on all your other devices with Anki installed. It can be used to revise almost any subject. Just locate the JLPT vocab decks you want (they're all free) via the in-built search engine. For Windows Phone users, I can recommend the Tango Master app which does a lot of things, amongst which is enabling you to revise the pre-loaded JLPT vocab lists for all levels and tracks your progress. Best of all, it's free!

At the Sydney consulate where the exam that I sat was held, I counted about fifteen applicants in total for the undergraduate entry program. That would mean there would have been not more than 100 applicants Australiawide. I was slightly surprised; for a scholarship offering five years all expenses paid tertiary tuition in the degree of your choice, I expected a lot more competition! A possible explanation could be that this was only the social sciences cohort; since we don't have to sit the science barrier tests, the natural sciences applicants may have sat the test at a different time.

Checkpoint 5: Be interviewed. If there was ever a more sought after topic to learn about, it would be interview secrets. Everyone knows that if you make it to the interview stage, the selectors are serious about considering you. With the Monbukagakusho scholarship, you have greater affirmation than that - if you make it on their interview shortlist, it means they are prepared to fully fund you for five years of tuition. I know people say it all the time, but I mean it when I say it. They already know what they are paying for from your school marks, external references, barrier exam mark, and your one page submission. The interview is an opportunity for them to get to know you as a person, so show them the real you, just in a professional way.

I was interviewed by a Caucasian lady and a Japanese man, who seemed to have commuted from the Japanese Embassy in Canberra. The interview was conducted mostly in English, and I was asked some questions which I hadn't written about in my application paperwork, and some which I had. One particular question that stood out to me, was why I think I should be awarded this scholarship when there are others who come from lower socioeconomic backgrounds who need the scholarship more than I do. It is a good question, something to think about.

I would like to point out that the Japanese embassy is under no compulsion to fill a quota of students each year; they're not even required to send any students at all, if they don't think any of the applicants are worth funding for a five year scholarship. In the test facility where I sat the barrier exam (the Sydney cohort), I think I was the only one who was asked back for an interview. As for who was actually awarded the scholarship, they awarded only one scholarship this year, only one scholarship last year, and no scholarships were awarded to Australian applicants the previous year. They are serious about making sure that the students they take in are capable and willing to complete an entire degree overseas before paying for them. The declining state of the Japanese economy as a whole would no doubt play a contributing factor to the benchmark set in more recent years in the calibre of students.

And that's it! All the best for those trying out in future years.

My thoughts on Christians who want to do medicine

So at my farewell party, I was asked, "What do I think about Christians who want to do medicine?", and I gave an answer, of sorts, in the limited time. The context behind the question is that I had been studying medical science for the past three years with the intention of transferring into medicine, as I mentioned in my first vlog. I've been meaning to re-answer the question better for a while, but I haven't gotten around to it till now. Well, from now on, my answer will be published here for all to read.

For those who are still wondering why anyone would care about my answer to such a question, let me affirm that it is a very appropriate question to ask me for a number of reasons. For those who aren't wondering, feel free to skip my this paragraph and get to my answer to the question in the next paragraph.

Firstly, the people who asked me that question are aware of how long I've wanted to get into medicine. The first conscious decision to pursue medicine I recall was in year 9, but my mum insists that I've been telling her I wanted to become a doctor ever since primary school.

Secondly, many of my friends are also aware how much preparation I'd done until two years ago, when I dropped my pursuit. I've gotten to know and speak with a paediatric cardiologist from church and my pastor who was formerly a practicing GP, not to mention various friends currently studying medicine at various universities across Australia. Needless to say, in my pursuit of medicine I was under no illusion as to the challenges that await anyone who embarks on the journey to become a medical practitioner. I'll spare the details here; they're not the main reason I wrote this post.

Thirdly, my friends and family can attest to the motivations I had for doing medicine. Med is one of those occupations that has the propensity to not just make you a living, but to go so far as to consume you and become your living. This is known more commonly around Christian circles as idolatry: taking any part of creation which is inherently good, and making it the meaning of your life. There are admittedly unavoidable elements in medical practice that result in such a lifestyle, namely work load, work hours, and being on call, but the arguably stronger influencing factors are all too commonly riches, respect, and renown. Of course, scarce few will ever admit any of these to contribute to their motivation for medicine, but the experience of myself and others who've hung around the medial field long enough would say otherwise. Would you expect medical-practitioners-in-training to approach their studies with an attitude of "What do I need to pass this course?" or instead one of "How can I best equip myself now for the people I will be treating in the future?"? The answer may (or may not) surprise you. Don't get me wrong; I'm glad for the existence of the minority who do study their subject content to the best of their ability for the sake of their future patients. But all too sadly, the majority of the med cohort still look for shortcuts in their studies where they can get away with it, seemingly unconcerned about how that will affect their medical competency in the future. Having said all that, I am all too aware that the elevated social status simply comes with being in a profession responsible for handling human lives, and that the seemingly high income is not worth the stress and hardship endured to earn it - I may as well pursue investment banking if it were for the money. What drove me personally toward medicine from the beginning was a combination of my love of learning, love of challenges, love of the medical sciences, and love of helping people. If I were currently studying medicine, and I explained my motivations as such, you could be forgiven for doubting my truthfulness, but since I'm no longer pursuing medicine, nothing stops me from sharing my actual, truthful motivation for doing medicine.

So having explained my background, I hope you see why I want to answer the question well. I can speak on a profession fraught with men (and women probably) of impure conscious and subconscious motives, intermingling the desires and expectations for oneself with the desires and expectations from others (*coughasianparentscough*), as an informed former pursuant of the same profession, responding with the (Christian) insight of one simultaneously looking inward, and looking outward at the issue.

So I arrive at my answer to the question, "What do I think about Christians who want to do medicine?". If you are a Christian who is not yet a practicing doctor nor already studying a medical degree, my answer to you would be a short, simple "Don't do it*." My reasoning is simple: it's not worth the time and energy sacrifice. Keep in mind that this post is not targeted at people who were already practicing doctors or doctors-in-training before they became a Christian*. Medicine easily takes the cake for the longest process in becoming a qualified professional. If you don't seek graduate entry, where not only have you just completed three or four years in an unrelated degree but you still need to sit the gruelling six hour barrier exam (GAMSAT), the undergraduate medical degree is commonly five or six years. After you complete your university degree, you're still only a doctor-in-training until you can pass a barrier exam into medical school for - *shock horror* - further education. That's a grand total of around 10 years of training in order to become a GP, and even longer for a specialist. Embarking on the path to being a doctor is giving away the prime of your life, to gain a job that will occupy what is left of it. It's not a career path for the faint hearted, and in my opinion, not for the Christian either, because of both what you must do and what you can't do as a consequence, as I outlined above. And to reinforce my point, I'll present the objections I've heard in the past and explain my view of those objections.

• Objection #1: "I can serve God by serving people as a doctor." I acknowledge that not everyone uses this as a mere excuse; some Christians genuinely believe this. Even if that's the case, I think that this way of thinking betrays a limited understaing of Christian service. It's good that they want to serve others as a doctor out of a love for God, but I think Christians can serve in better ways. Just think about what the best thing about being a Christian is: resurrection from the dead! Eternal life, forever! (Tautology intended.) The field of medicine might have power to restore people's physical and mental health, but only through the power of the gospel will people receive eternal life. If helping people and serving God is what you want to do, the best form of service as a Christian - rather, the form of service available ONLY to Christians - is the task of sharing the gospel of the Lord Jesus. As a doctor, your duty and your obligation is to treat people's diseases, and your greatest achievement will be to restore, rehabilitate, and maybe resuscitate someone. If you were to instead choose a path in life that gave you more time and reason for gospel ministry, you will be performing the greatest service of all found only in the gospel - the power that can resurrect.

• Objection #2: "I will have many opportunities to spread the gospel, because I meet many people as a doctor." There is a common misconception that the high volume of patient contact a doctor gets equates to many opportunities to share the gospel. In reality, the more patients you have, the less likely you will be sharing the gospel with your patients. It won't be long before you have so many patients, that it will be a challenge to give each and every patient the required medical attention, let alone develop relationships with each of them where you can share the gospel. Most people don't seek nor expect religious conversations with their doctor. The reason they visit you is most probably because they want you to address their health issue, and they either aren't in the mood, or in the right mindset to talk about Jesus. The medical profession is first and foremost a job and not a ministry, so a Christian considering  medicine who don't understand that is either misled, or making a bad excuse.

• Objection #3: "There aren't enough Christians in medicine." or "We need more Christians in medicine." This argument betrays a narrow-mindedness. The statement in itself, is true. I also agree that medicine would be better off if there were more God-fearing people in it. However, it fails to acknowledge that a Christian's first concern should be God's concerns, and God is concerned not just with how many Christians there are in medicine but Christians everywhere. So the main question isn't whether you think there are enough Christians in medicine; the real question is whether God wants or expects you to fill that need. There will always be a need for Christian doctors, but I think that the greatest need will always be for gospel workers - something that hasn't changed since Jesus first said it 2000 years ago (Matthew 9:37). The reality is that Jesus will return soon, and the only thing that matters on that day will be whether you accept the Lord Jesus as your Saviour, or whether you didn't. On that day, those who have repented of their sins will be of far greater importance than those who were treated well medically. Practicing doctors do become Christian, and God is able to use them to tell other doctors about Jesus. If you're concerned about the need for Christian witness but you're not doing medicine yet, use your freedom to find out where the need is greatest, and pray that God might use you to fill it.

• Objection #4: "If there are no Christians in medicine, who will share the gospel with non-Christians in medicine?" This is very similar to the previous objection, but I'm going to approach the question from a different angle. Theoretically, this question makes sense. If I'm advising Christians to not go into medicine, then I'm implying I don't want any Christians to do medicine at all, which is bad advice. Realistically though, how many Christians considering medicine do you expect will read my post, or have the opportunity to be informed of the alternatives in the same way? Not nearly as many Christians who still want to get into med. So don't worry, there will always be Christians in medicine, whether they've thought through the implications or not. However, you have had the chance to read and think about the alternatives, so the bigger question is, what will you do about it?

• Objection #5: "I have a great love and passion for medicine." I assume that whoever says this has done their research into what the job description of being a doctor is, in order to be able to make such a claim. So I'll proceed to answering this objection with that assumption. If you want to do medicine because you truly love it, then I commend your honesty and genuineness. Though I'll also point out that there are also people in this world who have a great love and passion for food, photography, football, knitting, etc., but just because they derive great pleasure from it doesn't mean they make it their main occupation in life. That's why we coined the term "hobby" to talk about things we're passionate about but which we realise are unwise to make our primary purpose in life, for reasons that may vary. So if you're a Christian and you love medicine, that's great! But surely I hope you can also say, if you're a Christian, that you love God? Which out of the two should you prioritise as number one? I hope you would agree that the message of salvation that the gospel brings is much more valuable and important to us than a job in medicine, and so being a Christian should be our metaphorical "full time job", if medicine is to be the metaphorical "hobby". What I mean is that if you're a Christian, you should let your identity as a follower of Christ define and shape your course of life, which means you allow your love and passion for Jesus to help you determine how you should respond to your love and passion for medicine, not the other way around. For me, I knew that I can't help myself but want to tell the world about Jesus, because of what He has accomplished for me and for everyone by dying on the cross and being raised to life again. That has led me to change the course of my life so that I'm free to structure the next 10 years around gospel opportunities, rather than 10 years in medical training. For you, putting your love and passion for God first might well mean becoming a doctor; only you hold the correct answer to that question. My prayer is that the decision you make will be a genuine one, with God's best interest at heart and a desire to see His name be glorified in your speech and your actions.

• Objection #6: "I feel that doing medicine is God's calling in my life." I'd like to explore the idea of receiving a "calling" in life, whether it be for medicine or any other occupation in life, whether church-related or non-church related, paid or unpaid. Usually, those who use the term "calling" to talk about choosing what to do in life are people who haven't properly looked at how the term "calling" is used firstly in the Bible. If you were to read all the New Testament passages relating to the idea of receiving your "calling" from God, you'll notice that a person can only ever potentially receive one calling in life. The only calling that God refers to is our calling to Christ. In other words, calling to become a Christian. These days, there are many options at your disposal for finding every occurrence of a word in the Bible, so you can test my claim for yourself. For the moment, I'll pick 1 Corinthians 7:17-24 to give an example of how God uses the term "calling". Notice how circumcision and uncircumcision are two situations in life that apply to everyone, and neither is better or worse (or matters at all for God), the only important thing is your calling to faith in Jesus. Also, notice how being a slave and being a free man are two very different walks of life that apply to everyone, and not only are we told that both life circumstances are fine, the important thing is being called to Christ. And that all makes sense, because circumcision and being a slave are all earthly matters, which bear no eternal significance. However, whether you have faith in Jesus or not will be the difference between heaven and hell for you for all eternity, and that is the calling we all receive as Christians. So there's no such thing as a calling from God to become a doctor, as much as there is a calling to be a garbage collector, to become a missionary or to stay unmarried; they're all simply different life circumstances that God can call us in, and not a single Christian can ever be said to have a better or worse calling, we are all called to the same faith in Jesus, just under different life circumstances. So when it comes to the question of whether to pursue medicine or not, you are welcome to conclude that doing medicine is the best way you can live out your calling as a Christian, if that's honestly the case for you, but please don't use "calling" as a bad excuse now that you know the significance of the word for Christians.

• Objection #7: "If you don't think Christians should do medicine, then what about engineering, commerce, law, [insert occupation here]?" As I've established in what I'm aware of as an already lengthy blog post, there are many restrictions and temptations for anyone, let alone a Christian, in the field of medicine. I can speak on these things with personal experience, and my insider perspective. With that insight, my conclusion is that if you're a Christian and you're not already doing medicine, than don't go into it because the time and energy sacrifice is not worth it. I do have some thoughts on Christians looking into other professions, but any opinion I have about them is based on presumption and not on actual experience or knowledge of that occupation, so it's not my place to give advice. But if you really want my opinion, I think each profession has its own temptations to watch out for, but no occupation is as unwise of a time and energy investment for a Christian as medicine.

Having said all the above, I don't by any means imply that the better alternative in everyone's case is to apply for a full time paid ministry position. In the same way that it is unhelpful (and probably dangerous) to practice medicine without a genuine heart for it, it is counter-intuitive to enter full time ministry without a personal conviction of its importance. I do not think that full time paid ministry is for everyone, but I do think that not enough Christians think and pray about the prospect of serving in a full time capacity in the first place.

To be totally clear as I wrap up, I have never and I probably never will lose my interest in the field of medicine. It's an area that just naturally happens to intrigue and fascinate me, and there are many reasons for that (which I won't go into now). If for some reason I was forced to become a doctor now, I would happily oblige. (I wish that were possible.) I do respect those who are already in the medical profession, and the contributions they have made - irrespective of their motivations. However, with regards to Christians who are still deciding what they want to do with their lives, I hope I made my reasons clear as to why I would discourage them from choosing medicine, and why I walked away from it myself. What you do with this knowledge is your responsibility, but I pray for the Christians reading this that your decision might be shaped by the Lordship of Jesus. Having shared my thoughts, let me know what your thoughts are.

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*If you are a Christian and already a current medical student or a certified medical practitioner, my answer may not be the same to you. Having said that, my pastor was a doctor before he became a pastor, and I know many others like him who have given up medical practice in exchange for time dedicated to direct Christian ministry, so then again, maybe it could be. And if you're a non-Christian, I suggest you consider becoming a Christian first, then coming back and reading this post ;)

Disclaimer: this blog post was written by a Christian living in Australia, responding to the Australian perception of medicine. There is a possibility that you are from a country other than Australia, where medicine is not as prestigious, in which case my opinion may also not apply. Just replace "medicine" with the dream job in your country, and the rest of my post should make sense.

FAQ#2: "When are you leaving?"

This week, the Japanese Embassy officially confirmed my time of departure. I'm going to Japan! Here's the key information on the flight itinerary:

If I got a dollar each time someone asked me, "So when are you leaving?" I could have bought a return ticket with that money. To answer the possibly most frequently asked question I've received so far, I'll be leaving on the morning of April 1. I admit that I've been less than gracious to a select few who just happened to ask me that question over the past few days, and all they got out of me was "see my blog". I don't not like you, and I certainly did want to catch up with you; I just wanted to spend the precious few minutes we'd have conversing talking about something I hadn't explained in writing. I do apologise for conveying it the wrong way. I hope we can still be friends?

To continue where I left off, the flight takes 9 hours, but Japan is 2 hours behind Sydney during daylight saving time, so factoring in some flight delays, the plane should arrive at around 5pm Japan time. Shouldn't be too jet lagged.

There's one special reason why I'm really looking forward to arriving - I've been told someone from the campus I'll be staying and living at will be there waiting for me! I envision a Japanese guy I've never met before holding up a sign that says "LI GU, JLC". I'll try and snap a photo of it when I get there :P By the way, "JLC" stands for Japanese Language Centre (for International Students). It must be either a physical location on campus, or the name of a department.

*update: My visa has been approved as of yesterday! Thank God for the smooth preparations, allowing me to focus my attention on more important things, like how I can serve in my remaining time at Campus Bible Study, at church, and at home. Thank God for two contacts from o-week who have virtually no prior background in Christianity, but were willing to talk with me about Jesus, and who were interested in learning more. Pray that they would consent to coming to the Bible talk with me next week!

FAQ#1: "Why am I going to Japan again?" [vlog #1]

Hey guys, sorry for my temporary hiatus. It has (still) been a crazy week, since the end of my two farewell events. Some of the more notable events include promoting my university Christian group, Campus Bible Study (CBS), at UNSW O-week, from early in the morning well into the afternoon, from Monday to Thursday. O-week is one of the most conducive environments in which to do walk-up evangelism, since everyone is in their most open mindset to being approached by strangers each trying to promote their own thing. I had the privilege of experiencing the whole array of responses to Christianity, from upfront immediate rejection, to open eagerness, to the boyfriend of one girl I'm tutoring, to uninterested people who felt too awkward to say no, to intense hour-and-a-half conversations about God, Jesus, the Bible, humanity, sin, heaven, hell, resurrection, and more. What better way to spend my remaining time in Australia than to see God gather a harvest through me and fellow CBSers (Matthew 9:37-38).
Praise God for truly bringing in a harvest, with around 600 expressions of interest from people wanting to learn more about Jesus! Thank God for the hundreds of Christians who took time out to get to know the new first years, and for their desire to share the news of God's resurrected Son with them. Pray for those involved in follow up process that they would phone call, email, and meet up in person with genuine love for their contact and a desire to see them believe in Jesus as their Lord and Saviour. Also pray for those being followed up, that they might continue to attend CBS hosted events throughout the year, so that they might be taught from and transformed by God's word.

I attribute the delay in my second post to exciting interruptions like the one mentioned above, which have led to the delay in the editing and the release of this video log (or "vlog" for short). So without further ado, I present my first ever vlog, shedding a little more light on the five year adventure I'm about to embark upon. *edit: upgraded video resolution; the in-video text is now legible yay :P

I'd love to hear any comments or suggestions from you on what I can improve for my next vlog!