“Instead of asking why did it happen? Think of where it can lead you from here...”
Those are the lyrics I left written on the walls of my cell: room J-7 in Shinagawa Detention Centre. In a lethargic haze I prepared myself to leave this morning, as I’ve written before, in a strange way I will miss Shinagawa. For all its stressful business and long days, that aside, I have happy memories of that place I inhabited for 90 days.
The men held a small going away party for me last night, offering up the small provisions of snack foods and chocolate for the occasion, and in the morning after I’d warmly embraced all of my new friends I stepped out of the room and felt a strange fluttering halt in my chest as I looked at their smiling faces pressed against the glass windows as they waved and shouted their goodbyes.
I couldn’t help but fall in love with each of them, life is strange and intriguing, I cannot look at my time in immigration with regret, I treasure that short turbulent time and I thank God that when I look back on my time there I’ll look back and smile.
“....Think of where it can lead you from here...”
The above was the entry from my journal that I’d written the day I left Shinagawa detention centre to be moved to Narita airport.
I’ve been home for a few days now and to tell the truth I don’t think there is a word that can describe the murky mixture of emotions I’m feeling at this point in time.
But I do want to take this time to clear up a few misconceptions that have arisen regarding my time in detention.
Towards the end of April I had just finished work and was heading to Shibuya for street band, at the train station I was stopped by two Police officers who were doing random checks of peoples I.D cards, unfortunately they informed me that I was overstayed on my visa by three months, I hadn’t realised and that night they arrested me and the next day I was moved into Shinagawa Detention Centre where I stayed for three months.
I was able to come home sooner, and from the very beginning the immigration inspectors made it clear that the initial process would take two months, and during that time I was not allowed to leave the centre. I chose to appeal my deportation order even though I was told I had basically a zero percentage chance of success.
I felt God say to me
“How long will you wait for me? How long will you wait for your vision to be out worked”
But little did I know, that the Lord was about change my life in a powerful way, the miracle I was praying for was going to be bigger than what I had first expected.
I was praying for action, for deliverance, for change, a change in the immigration system, a change in my situation.....but the Lord had different intentions for me, the change was to happen within me, the Lord was going to change my heart...
14th 5th 2010
“Last night I had a bit of a hard realization. I was admittedly confused and I was praying to the Lord that he’d guide me to the right scriptures to read, earlier today I’d finished reading the gospels and on a whim decided to go back and start reading Genesis. However I didn’t want to simply be reading for entertainment purposes so I was really asking the Lord to show me where to read. Then as clear as day I heard the Lord say to me
“I already have...”
All at once he brought to my memory the story of Jacob and Rachel and how Jacob had to work seven years before he could marry her. The word said “...and the years passed like days because Jacob loved Rachel so much..” and at the same time the Lord made me think about my possible five year exclusion from Japan should I be deported. It was like the Lord was saying
“if you’re true love lies here, then the years will pass like days.”
With horror this revelation hit me square in the chest, I was lying in bed at the time and my eyes shot open. In the dark silence I began to cry and pray furiously yet quietly that the Lord not do this to me. The Lord said...
“Tyson, giving over Japan is not the same as giving up Japan. I’m simply asking you to give this dream over to me. You know I know what’s best for you”
I just kept saying “Lord, I don’t want to do this, don’t make me give up my vision, I can’t I won’t”
The Lord spoke to me again...
”every weekend you stand in that church singing “my whole life is yours I give it all, surrendered to your name, and forever I will pray, have your way...” are you going to act on this and truly give it over or is your worship hollow?”
And so I released Japan...
It broke my heart and the pain was tangible, it went beyond the spiritual.
Then the Lord came to me again and said
“where I lead, you will follow. Would I ever lead you into pain? Would I take you from happiness into misery? No, and you know that. I would only take you from happiness to happiness, trust me, I love you so much Tyson, I don’t want to see you hurt”
Now I have peace, Australia or Japan I know God has me in his hand, I will follow him with joy and peace in my heart.”
I realized that it’s great and all to have peace and faith that God would set me free in Japan, but it wasn’t enough. I had to have peace to follow him everywhere and anywhere into anything. Having travelled to the few countries that I have over my life, the one constant that does not get lost amongst the wash of culture and language is God.
He is the most consistent thing that could ever happen in our lives, the one thing that will never change no matter where we find ourselves.
And where do I find myself?
Yes I may have been deported, but my time in Japan, even the time spent in detention has not been for nothing. I grew and I was challenged, and the Lord showed me that even time spent cloistered within the walls of a detention centre can hold the unthinkable, in a place like that, all one might expect is monotony, but with the Lord every day was an adventure. Within Shinagawa I met amazing people who I will never forget, I found strength within me I didn’t know I had, and I really lived the motto that Ps Rod had taught me...
“As Christians we don’t always have reason to be happy, but we always have reason to rejoice”
As long as I remember that above all things, no matter what happens I have the grace of God in my life, I have reason to rejoice in my heart.
I don’t know what life could possibly hold for me now, but the Lord does.
I have made this a separate blog, and its predecessor “Memoirs of Another Kind” will remain untouched until I return to Japan (when ever that might be). It will remain special to Japan.
I want to finish this post with one last excerpt from my journal. Not only will it tell of my new outlook on life, but also of the inspiration for the title of this blog......
4th 5th 2010
“Reading the book of acts at the moment.
Paul is such an inspiring character as I read the story doesn’t stop with Jesus, it only continues without pause.
The story continues in all of us.
The story is the story of God, a story where each of us co- stars in our own chapter. I want to live my chapter to the fullest.
I want to live an elaborate life for Jesus.
So many of the men and women in the bible led such “elaborate lives”. I am so overjoyed to know that even though they played important roles in history, they aren’t really that different from me. They are an example, a promise of how “elaborate” my own life has the ability to be.
I want to lead and elaborate life...”
And that Life......starts now...
this was a really inspiring entry!
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing your story, thoughts and development with us =)
I keep thinking of you and thanking the Lord for turning this incident in something so powerful...♥