Fukuoka- Land of Blessed Hills

Fukuoka 福岡- Land of Blessed Hills

The mountain range surrounding the city of Fukuoka- image taken from Fullthangka

We are now living in Fukuoka City, literally meaning "Blessed Hills" in Japanese.  Here we have a place to call home and though it still feels foreign in many ways we are becoming acquainted with it daily.  Fukuoka city was shown to me as I sought the Lord in prayer last year. God's Divine Wind- Call to Fukuoka

We have fought our way to get here and through many trials and sufferings that seemed to hold us back we have come. I cannot fully detail all of them in a single post, so I will leave it for a later time.  What is important is that we have arrived and we are grateful to God and the many who helped us along the way.

Fukuoka City is one of the oldest cities in Japan. It has a rich history and has been ranked as one of the most livable in the World according to Wikipedia.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fukuoka

However, I have yet to come such a conclusion seeing I have been here less than two months.  There are certainly a lot of things to explore.  With time I hope I am able to see and understand the reason we are here.

Reasons and purpose give us hope.  If we only exist in space and time merely for the purpose of existence hope begins to slip away.  Hope is an enduring virtue that the apostle Paul writes about saying,

"Three things will last forever--faith, hope, and love--and the greatest of these is love."

I Corinthians 13:13

Hope keeps us going in the midst of our sufferings and difficulties, being bonded with faith and love.  It is a bond not easily broken, nor a bond that will fade away.

Looking into the future,

There are many challenges ahead of us and we are challenged daily as we settle in this land.
We look forward to the blessings to come as we labor and work for the Kingdom of God.

Two women wearing kimono stroll down a street in Daimyo, downtown Fukuoka City.

It is clear to see that in Fukuoka there is great attention and resources spent of fashion and aesthetic pleasure but something is missing.  In the midst of all the glamour and decor there seems to be a loneliness, a hollow vanity.  So many people dressed up in their best but the look of searching is still on their faces.  There is a wanting that is hard to describe.  I admire the many wonderful and interesting things I see in Fukuoka, but I hope that these searching souls may find rest and peace in the Gospel of Christ.

Of course like any metropolitan city there are urban characteristics that leave the heart longing for the beauty of nature, which is only a half hour drive away.  It is a city that seems to have sprung up in middle of the wild.  Surrounded by mountains and accompanied by a beautiful bay area it makes for quite a unique place in Japan.

Fukuoka City night skyline-image taken from wikipedia

This is the place of the Divine Call and we marvel that we are here today. I cannot pretend that I knew it would work out this way, I merely believed in the One who can make such things possible.


Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”


Matthew 19:26

When I am tired and confused, lost and hurt He reaches down in the way only He can to revive me and put me back on the path He has made for me.


For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

Jeremiah 29:11


It is an amazing experience when you actual experience the Word of God through living by faith and seeing events come to pass that mirror the experience of those in the Bible rather than study them as academia or as a root study.

Be blessed as you live your life, May you see the and experience God in great ways.