Well, I'm not sure what qualifies as a day but I know we did an all-nighter! Our Joyous Journey began at 3:15 am Thursday as we prepared to meet at the church at 4:00 am. Everyone arrived well and we gathered our supplies and set off for Cleveland airport via charter bus after a word of prayer. There we were all 15 of us willing to do anything for the Lord, not realizing how the next 28 hours would stretch us.

We arrived safely at Cleveland airport and check all our luggage...and can you believe it all was under weight! Yeeh!! As we were going through security, two things occured. First, I forgot that I had put a pocketknife in my pocket earlier that morning! Silly me...thankfully only did I have to throw it in the trash and no larger consequences would take place! Second, while finishing in line I receive a text that our flight from CLE to DFW was delayed from 6:30 am to 10:00 am. The problem with that delay, I knew that we were to leave DFW at 10:00 am for Tokyo-Narita.

What took place was our captain Jed passed out and fell and suffered a very bad concussion. We were to wait for a new crew to fly in from Chicago.

We saw God provide for us as we were able to all get on a latter flight from DFW to Narita. The issue now became, would we make our last flight connection at 6:00 pm (Japan time) which would run from Tokyo-Heneda to Kagoshema? We were scheduled to arrive at 3:45 pm but we had to clear customs after gather all luggage and then make a 80 minute trip from Narita to Heneda, then check all our luggage and board the plane. I found out the there was a later flight at 7:00 pm leaving Heneda for KOJ...only after much work and a hard try we would fall short of making that flight by just 10 minutes. They actual had tickets for us only we had not yet check baggage and the plane would not be delayed!

What next you say? Well, after sharing with Japan Airlines why and what took place, we were able to have American Airlines get a hotel for our crew and we would fly out the next morning...6 people at 6:30 am and 9 people at 8:00 am. After sitting in the airport until after 9:30 pm, we had our paperwork for the flights and found out that we would take a bus to our hotel. What we found out was that bus was to take is from the airport to the station...we were to trek the last mile through Tokyo, on foot, with all our luggage, to our hotel...the Tokyo Inn!

Through crowded streets and very hot/humid weather we made it with all our luggage... and team! Only by the time it was close to 11:30 pm (Japan) and we had to be up again at 3:45 am to travel across the city, back to the bus station 4:45 am and take the first bus 5:10 am to the airport to be arrive approx. At 6:00 am to get the first 6 through on the 6:30 flight!

I awoke at 2:00 am thinking I had oversleep, only to find out I had over an hour to sleep more. I was awake though...and I want to make sure I had communicated with those whose love and prayers had gone before us. We praise the Lord for His watch care and provisions. We are excited to see Chris and Donna and the girls today. We hope that Chris will be able to pick us up from KOJ by 10:00 am but we have quickly found out that God may have other plans! I'm so thankful for that...tired...but so very thankful!

Pastor Aaron at 3:20 am Saturday (Japan)...2:20 pm Friday (Akron)