Burnt Office Coffee

There are a lot of days and nights when I wish I were somewhere else.

And many mornings like today when it's -18C, my humidifier ran out of water, and my heater sucked all the moisture out of the air and made my throat feel like I swallowed the Sahara desert in my sleep.

I never asked God to come to the coldest village in Japan. That was not on my wishlist. I asked God for Japan--not here, not a frozen dairy farming village an hour away from the closest drive-thru.

I asked God for Tokyo--the bright lights and big city and crowded subways and 4'x4' apartments.

I asked God for Kyoto--the old and new, the tourist spot, and always packed with tourists.

I asked God for Hiroshima--the new city with history, the city where my family came from.

I often roll over in bed and wish I could stop by Starbucks on my way to the office instead of drinking burnt office coffee. I wish I could ride the subway to my schools (instead of shoveling the office driveway to get my car out) and stopping at McDonald's would be on my way home. I wish things were...convenient.

But God knew better. I think I often forget that. Last night I spent 2 hours playing hockey with the villagers. Tomorrow I'm having dinner at my boss's house. I sat at home 2 nights this week working on my book and reading a book on my couch.

I wouldn't have asked for that. Never. Never in a million years would I have asked to be sent here--to the middle of frozen nowhere. But this is where I needed to be. For my own sake. All the convenience had to become inconvenient for me to see God--everywhere.

I've actually had time to sit...and be still. To rest. To wrestle. To write. To read. To watch and witness. To wait and see. To listen. To learn. To thank. To be. To be healed. Be loved. Be forgiven. Be redeemed. Be restored. Be renewed. Be refreshed. Be grateful.

While I drink my burnt office coffee, I'll remember why God brought me here--because this is exactly where He needed me to be.