Japan (MNN) — The 2020 Tokyo Olympics are officially underway following today’s Opening Ceremony. Delayed by the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, the Games will run through August 8th. See a full schedule here. The Tokyo Paralympics begin August 24th.

"We can make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps."
— Proverbs 16:9 (NLT)

In our hearts, we were confident that God was calling us to serve him in Japan. But we couldn’t do it without a significant team of supporters behind us with faithful prayers and financial gifts. It was hard to imagine how he would do it. It was 2016. Josh and I hoped to be in Japan within a year, but God had other plans.

Hello Friends,

What a year you and I have been through and our entire planet. This COVID-19 has just slammed us, as the world has faced this crisis. And for those of us in the U.S., it's getting a little easier and we praise God for that.

Japan (MNN) — Will there be any fans in the stands at next month’s Tokyo Olympics? Event organizers could announce their decision as early as today.

He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.” — Matthew 13:31-32

Dear go2japan readers, 

Just a quick blog post to let you know of an upcoming change. As a result of Feedburner's email delivery service shutting down, go2japan is switching our email digest service to follow.it effective immediately.

You should not get emails of go2japan posts from Feedburner anymore, but starting with this message, you will receive them from follow.it...

Asia (MNN) — An “explosion” of COVID-19 cases is pushing hospitals across Asia to the edge of collapse, the International Federation of the Red Cross warns. Asian nations reported over 5.9 million new infections in the past two weeks – more than the combined totals of all other regions.

Japan (MNN) — Playbooks released yesterday introduce new COVID-19 restrictions and requirements ahead of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. The guidelines limit participants’ movement and require more testing.

Japan (MNN) — As cherry blossoms bloom across Japan, the country has barred international spectators from the rescheduled 2021 Summer Olympics due to concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic. 600,000 people bought tickets to watch the games in-person.

Reflecting on the Ten Years since Japan's Triple Disaster

By Sue Plumb Takamoto

PART 2

In Part 1: "Looking Back on Ten Years: Finding Beauty in Brokenness", I highlighted the unimaginable damage and challenging aftermath from Japan’s March 11, 2011 Triple Disaster—a 9.0 earthquake that triggered a tsunami and caused a nuclear power plant meltdown.