He makes me lie down in green pastures (May 28)

Dear support team!
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Know that I and my team are keeping you in our prayers as well! We are so grateful to be here in Tokyo!
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It has been an interesting couple of days. Please pray for me as I'm sick today. I think its just a bad cold and all the stuff going on. Last night I "passed out" in bed at 10pm and woke up at 8 thinking I felt better, but as we prayed and worshiped as a team, I was feeling worse. As soon as I could I crawled into bed and slept for another couple of hours. My friends took such good care of me, especially my teammate Emily. She got me hot tea and medicine and other things and left me a note telling me not to fret about resting, to enjoy it! She wrote me to read psalms 23:
The Lord is my shepherd;I shall not want.
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He makes me lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside still waters.
He restores my soul;
He leads me in the paths of righteousness
For His name's sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley
of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil;
For You are with me;
Your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me
in the presenceof my enemies;
You annoint my head with oil;
My cup runs over.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord Forever.
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As a team leader this is totally humbling for me. I wanted so badly to be on campus today. I asked God to make me feel better so I could go, but I just felt worse. I had no choice but to surrender. He was making me rest. This made me frustrated beyond all things and when I read psalm 23, the line, "he makes me lie down in green pastures" hit me like a rock. As I let God's words wash over me I was overwhelmed with the knowledge of how much God cares for His sheep. Here is what my bible footnotes say about this psalm: "The imagery of shepherd and sheep in this poem reflects our total dependance on God. A shepherd's chief concern is to do everything to insure the well-being of his flock. The emphasis of this psalm is to trust in God to meet our needs. As the Good Shepherd, God provides for our physical, mental, and spiritual well-being. He provides refreshment in the difficult experiences of life. His rod and staff lovingly guide, protect, and discipline His sheep. God's mercy describes His steadfast love." Today I am at the beginning of being broken of my independence, being broken of taking on too much at once, and being broken of my own stubborn self-will. I had to learn the lesson the hard way that I need God and I need other people and that I am not alone, that God is taking care of everything. Needless to say, I am in need of you! I hope that you know that your role in this mission in Tokyo is so vital! Not any more or less vital than my part. We are all experiencing the privalege, the heartaches, and the joys of being God's colaborers. I rejoice in that and I thank God for you!
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This past week has presented some challenges and encouragements! For the rest of project, my normal week will look like this: Sundays, sleep in, team meeting, church, rest, team meeting. Mondays quiet time, Gakaugei campus, dinner, date with Jesus. Tuesdays team prayer, quiet time, Suido all girls campus, dinner, project women's time. Wednesdays, quiet time, Hitosubashi campus, dinner, team family time. Thursdays, team prayer/praise, quiet time, Hitosubashi campus, Japan CCC student impact meeting. Fridays, quiet time, Gakaugei campus, free night. Saturdays free days (next weekend is a big festival on Hitosubashi campus we hope to join friends at!).
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It is discouraging that on Hitosubashi campus there are only a handful of christians and there are signs in the cafeteria with strong language about outsiders approaching you to talk with them. There has been a history of strange and dangerous cults in Japan in the past decade or so. But it is very encouraging that on Gakaugei campus there is a momentum of movement with the christians who hold what they call "joyful cafe" on fridays that they invite their non christian friends to to hang out. Also at Hitosubashi we know of one girl, Oku who became a christian 1 year ago. She is student leader of the combined girls Hitosubashi and Suido track team. As she was running a 5k with her friend from Suido, she told her testimony. By the time they were done running, this girl had prayed to recieve Christ. That girl in turn shared christ with her friend from Suido and she became a christian! Oku has been discipling/mentoring them both. God has really laid Oku on my heart. Please pray for her and her ministry and that God would raise up Japanese laborers for her campus. She is leaving Hitosubashi in just a few months and as one of the very few christians with heavy social pressure, God is strong in her. I pray that he would surround her with encouragement!
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Thank you again for everything! I'll keep you updated as much as I can!
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with love,
Jess