Devil

'Jesus became one of us. He died to destroy the devil, who had power over death.' Hebrews 2:14

Evil cannot ultimately win, thank God!

Angels

'When God speaks about the angels, he says:

"I change my angels into wind
and my servants
into flaming fire." ' Hebrews 1:7

Happy Halloween everyone. Don`t forget that although being a little scared is sometimes fun, there are also mysterious and very powerful forces of good walking the earth.

Lightning

'He sends the lightening...' Jeremiah 51:16

A fraction of a second of sparks and the TV is fried.

Temper

'It`s important that a church leader, responsible for the affairs in God`s house, be looked up to- not pushy, not short-tempered, not a drunk...' Titus 1:7

This is why I am never going to get to be a priest or a pastor.

Sodom

'Sodom and Gomorrah' Jeremiah 49:18

The rush hour train, as always, was unpleasantly crowded.

Thousand

'a thousand years mean nothing to you' Psalm 90:4

At the end of time, when the world and everything in it is at the feet of Jesus, Buddhism will be like that nightmare you had after eating that dodgy sushi- meaningless and totally irrelevant.

Old

'old before his time' Psalm 89:45

Failed to warm up before my run yesterday and boy do I feel it today...

Sweets

'It's not smart to stuff yourself with sweets.' Proverbs 25:27

My name is Andrew and I'm a chocoholic...

Flabby

'..No spiritual flabbiness please!' 1 Tim 4:6-10 (The Message)

If you are catholic, confession or a spiritual director is part of your soul fitness regime. Protestants have Bible study in small groups or accountability partners.

I currently do none of those, and my soul seems extremely out of shape.

Restoration

'someday I will restore prosperity to them.' Jeremiah 32:44

'Lucky' cats and gods won`t do the business. When Japan is humble enough to ask Jesus for help it will no longer fear the future. Until then, expect more articles like the one in the New York Times today.

Blessings

'blessings even in the barren land' Jeremiah 31:2

Even seemingly run down industrial estates are teeming with life: butterflies, crickets, cats, pigeons, and a wonderful variety of wild plants whose names are totally unknown to me.

Idle

'some of you are living idle lives' 2 Thessalonians 3:11

'In many countries Christians suffer discrimination in employment. Some careers are closed to them, and they may struggle to find work at all, or have to accept only the most menial and low-paid jobs.'

The Barnabas Fund

Terrible

'terrible sins' Jeremiah 14:7

Please

'Correct me LORD, but please be gentle.
Do not correct me in anger, for I would die.' Jeremiah 10:24

Lie

'they pile lie upon lie' Jeremiah 9:6

Don`t talk to me about Japanese politeness. I have lived here for a decade. I know what goes on. A weekend or so back, I was walking in Kasuga, minding my own business, when two teen lads passed me. One looked at me and said to his friend loudly: 'nani kore?' which I translate as 'What (the fuck) is that?'. The fact that he used 'nani' (what) instead of 'donata' or 'dare' (who) seems to imply he feels foreigners are a lower species of lifeform. Yet many Japanese absolutely refuse to admit racism exists here.

Some teens are of course rude in most countries, but this kind of behaviour is not restricted to teenagers. Many foreigners living here have similar stories to tell. But some prefer to avoid mentioning such things to their clients so as not to harm their business.

Metal

'a tester of metals' Jeremiah 6:27

Impressive work by Nobel prize winning Japanese scientists in chemistry. But who is the most impressive- the people who find the reaction or the God who put it there?

Harvest

'Let us live in awe of the Lord our God,
for he gives us rain each spring and fall
assuring us of a harvest when the time is right.' Jeremiah 5:24

I pass a rice paddy on the way to the supermarket. Looks like it's almost done growing.

gods

'you have more gods than a prostitute has lovers' Jeremiah 3:1

So many Japanese act as if Shinto is something to be proud of.

Fire

'...They will see
the dead bodies of those who have rebelled against me.
For the worms that devour them will never die
and the fire that burns them will never go out.
All who pass by
will view them with utter horror.' Isaiah 66:24

Hell exists.

Autumn

'Like autumn leaves we wither and fall...' Isaiah 64:6

I'm almost 41.