“あ、人間で払えますか。” I politely asked the clerk at the grocery store if I could pay.

“え?” (“Eh?”) she responded loudly and in shock. Her tone of voice and facial expression matched her verbal surprise at my request. I thought for a moment. Instead of asking if I could pay with 現金 (genkin, cash/money), I had asked her if I could pay with 人間 (ningen, humans). If only it were not the first time I had made this specific mistake.

Language learning is a marathon, not a sprint.

We were in the middle of town, trying to order food at a new restaurant. Trying to warn the worker that I didn’t speak much Japanese, I stated boldly, “すみません。英語が話せません。” (“Sorry, I can’t speak English.”) Given that I was currently trying to order from an English menu and that I very much looked like a foreigner who was speaking English to his wife a moment ago, this mishap confused the worker quite a bit.

Language learning is a marathon, not a sprint.

Caitlyn and I were sharing our testimonies at a country-wide SDA youth event. Caitlyn was in the midst of telling a very emotional part of her testimony. The emotional tension in the room was palpable, we knew the story was having an impact. In describing how Christ had lived a perfect life for her, Caitlyn said,
“大切なことはイエス様が完璧な人生を私のために歩まれたことです.” (“The important thing is that Jesus lived a perfect life for me.”) The key word in the sentence was 完璧 (kanpeki, perfect)—except what came out was パンケーキ (pankeiki)—pancake. Thankfully, despite the laughter in the room and the necessary correction, the mistake helped everyone to remember the story—and Christ’s perfect sacrifice—more distinctly.

Language learning is a marathon, not a sprint.
Sometimes the mistakes and foibles we make while trying to learn, practice and use Japanese seem endless. Sometimes we say things right, but often, it feels like we say things wrong or cannot remember the word or grammar needed to complete our ideas. Thankfully, we know that day by day, God will continue to help us, grow our strength in Japanese, and use us—imperfections and all—to be a blessing to this country and its precious people.

Please continue to pray for us and our journey here in Japan as we strive to show God’s love to those we come in contact with on a regular basis.

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