Final Leg of My Sabbatical Leave

Hey everyone! I am packing my belongings getting ready to make the hour-and-a-half drive to LAX airport. It is 4:30AM California time and I have about an hour before I leave for the airport. It has been an incredible experience to dialogue and "do life together" with Tim and Carolyn for the past two weeks; God has given them a vital relationship as they work with the pastors and churches of the Gold Coast Association to become a biblical community affecting and impacting the Ventura/Camarillo/Simi Valley area of Los Angeles for the Lord and I have seen firsthand the struggle and dilligence of this couple whom I call dear friends. Friendship takes work but it is so very sweet when God joins hearts together in unity and love! This has been an eye-opener to walk with them to see that the ministry of any church goes far beyond the physical borders of their community; it really has the great potential to impact the world if we are willing to trust God and do His will. However the words of the Apostle Paul in Ephesians 6:10-20 ring true here in California as it does in Hilo, Hawaii: "Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after your have done everything, to stand. . . . And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints. Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should." We are in a spiritual battle for the souls of many and with God's help, we will overcome! Thank you again for all your prayers and your support for me, my family, Gail, Ken and for each other at Kinoole! We are indeed so blessed to have the Lord and each other! I am halfway through my spiritual pilgrimage and I miss you all! Keep on Loving God, Loving People and Serve! I love you more than words can express! See you in September! Daniel

Counting down the days here in Southern California!

Hey everyone! I have enjoyed my visit with Tim & Carolyn Logerquist immensely! It is like our special summer of 1983 in Yuma Arizona has continued magically, although we are all 26 years older. They are such a special encouragement to me in a timely way as I am halfway through my sabbatical leave; the wisdom of their years here in Southern California come as a breath of fresh air! As I see the impact of their ministry here, I believe God is showing me what He desires of me as pastor not just of the Kinoole Baptist Church but also as pastor of our city for the next ten years. When we talk about vision, God wants us as His people to flesh out His eternal love, redemption and forgiveness; sometimes we think so narrowly of our Christian influence and the impact for kingdom living we have. What did the Apostle Paul say in Galatians 2:20? "I am crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me." thank you so much for praying for me and Karen and Hannah and Jacob; it means a lot to be loved and remembered before the Father! God bless you! Looking forward to my being back Sept. 1st. Daniel

Simi Valley California

Hi, everyone! Reporting from Centerpoint Church in Simi Valley, California, also from the office of the Gold Coast Baptist Association where Tim & Carolyn Logerquist minister. These are wonderful friends from the past, when Karen & I were church planters in Yuma, Arizona in the summer of 1983. We were the only married couple on the team of 8, four went to Phoenix that summer and four went to Yuma, Arizona. Tim was the Director of Missions and our supervisor there. It has been great to renew friendships and I have enjoyed my visit here totally. This past Monday, we got to visit with Matt, Dean of Students at Eternity Bible College where Alden Arakaki and Jason Peterson(Ronald & Lei's grandson) will be second-year ministerial students. He was very gracious to show us the property and we talked for about 30 minutes as to the founder Francis Chan's vision of establishing a solid bible foundation for the students there, preparing them to minister wherever God will lead, whether in vocational ministry or otherwise. It was not fancy but very practical, pouring the money into quality teaching rather than building. I must admit I was very impressed with what I saw--I know that both Alden and Jason are blessed to be here! Simi Valley is quite beautiful, the mountains and valleys are so incredibly a declaration of God's creative hand. If time permits, I will get to see the Ronald Reagan's library here in Simi Valley later this afternoon. The weather has been hot but it has been nice to enjoy air conditioning and staying indoors; however, the weatherman promises cooler temperatures for the next several days. I have enjoyed dialogue with Tim as to how churches in his association address church health, growth and mission and it has been wonderful to listen and share our journey at Kinoole the past seven and fourteen years since Karen and I first came to Kinoole. I have received much affirmation that we are on the right path and need to continue seeking God to fulfill His good work in us. Yesterday I got to talk on the cellphone with our new interim Associational Director of Missions Bill Abbott who came on the field July 1st; I welcomed him to the Big Island where he is busy trying to reconnect with the pastors and churches of the Big Island Baptist Association; I will look forward to spending some time in dialogue with him after I return Sept 1st. I have heard that the three services are going well, and our interns are working hard preaching, teaching, leading, and serving. Thank you for the support you give to Pastor Ken and Gail in my absence; I am blessed to know that you are continuing in faith and service this summer! May God bless each of you richly! I miss you all and are praying that what God is showing me this summer will benefit our church for years to come. Thank you for keeping me and my family in your prayers! I love you! Daniel

Last Leg of the Southern California portion of my sabbatical leave

Hi, everyone! I am in the City of Camarillo public library typing this afternoon's blog; I arrived in Ventura County early yesterday afternoon in ample time for my 2PM scheduled appointment with Pastor Tracy Cook of Grace Baptist Church. I did not realize until today that he is "Dr. Tracy Cook" having earned a Doctor of Ministry degree; in talking with him yesterday, he introduced me to several of his church members as spending this summer "working on my DMin degree" and I quickly corrected him because I have determined that the rigorous discipline of earning a DMin degree is beyond what I believe God desires of me. However, I called him earlier today to ask if I had inadvertingly offended him; I am not in any way diminishing the hard work of many others who have earned their DMin degree, mindful of Pastor Alan Tamashiro of Puna Baptist Church who is presently working on that degree. After the interview, he invited me to join his family and invited guests for dinner and what a treat after earting a week of frozen dinners, pizzas, ramen, ham sandwiches, etc: the dinner consisted of smoked chicken, tri-tip steak, ranch-style beans, garlic toast AND blackberry pie ala mode---Wonderful! Then I drove to the Logerquists, visited with them for the rest of the evening and slept well in their daughter's former bedroom(she got married last summer and now make her home w/her husband in Florida). Today I have enjoyed spending the day with Tim at his office in Simi Valley and will enjoy a quiet dinner with him and his wife Carolyn later this evening. I am a bit tired from my drive from Canyon Lake yesterday and have enjoyed just relaxing; I will resume my studies tomorrow through the weekend and enjoy attending church w/the Logerquists on Sunday. Praying for you all! Thanks again for your many prayers! Daniel

Hi, everyone! Well, this is my last day in Canyon Lake; I have certainly enjoyed my stay, had lunch with Ken and his mother Jane yesterday. I have been so blessed with their great hospitality, staying at their home here, just 20-30 minutes south of Riverside. I'll be making the long drive to Ventura County for my last leg of my Southern California portion of the sabbatical. I've been advised to leave early to make the 140 miles to Ventura, so I plan to leave by 9AM to make my 2PM appointment with Pastor Tracy Cook of Grace Church and then make connections with Tim Logerquist later that afternoon. Karen has gone back to work this week and I appreciate your prayers for her, Hannah & Jacob as they make the adjustments being back in Hilo. Jacob is at camp this week and next week and Hannah is continuing her intership with Ken and Gail; I am encouraged by the numbers of our third service, trusting that God will guide us beyond the summer trial period. It appears that God has placed our "Love God, Love People and Serve" process heavy on my heart and one of the keys that he is showing me that the intimacy or depth of our relationship with God and with one another is essential for our mission to make disciples. I have felt and been encouraged by your prayers! thank you again for this time away! I love and miss you all! Daniel

Hi, everyone! Since my family returned to Hilo on July 2, I've been enjoying the quiet(almost too quiet!) here in Canyon Lake. I am grateful to Ken Harada and his parents for allowing us to enjoy their wonderful vacation cottage here(it is just about 30 minutes past riverside) and although there were 600-700 people on July 4th for the fireworks display on the lake, here it is Monday morning(almost 12NOON already) and it seems like life is back to normal here. I've been catching up on emails, facebook entries(it appears that one of my best buddies Calvin Miyahira is now a grandpa, his son and daughter-in-law giving birth to their first child recently. Imagine, a Fourth of July baby! What a blessing! Karen has gone back to work today, Hannah is interning at the church and Jacob is enjoying summer camp for his alma mater at Christian Liberty for the next two weeks. I'll be leaving for Ventura county to meet with Tim Logerquist and the several appointments that he has helped to set up. It has been restful, I've been trying to eat healthy for the past week, swimming in the pool every morning and reading, praying & reflecting on what God wants to do through my life, especially when I return to Kinoole on Sept. 1st. I've been told the Sunday services are going well with Pastor Ken and Gail's leadership, along with the summer interns. Again, thanks for your prayers! Talk to you soon! Daniel

Hi everyone! Well, I just got my family off to the airport, got word from Karen that they are on the plane leaving and so 5 1/2 hours today, they will be back in Honolulu, then to Hilo and back to the Tomita homestead. Alden and Jamie have commented that our cat Daisy has not warmed up to them while we have been away(realistically, we have had Daisy for almost eight years and she still has not warmed up to us either so we tell everyone who housesits for us that they should not expect much when it comes to being friends with Daisy--of course, everyone except Layne because for some strange reason, Daisy loves Layne and sits on his lap, comes to him day and night, etc.) Although we haven't talked much with Alden and Jamie, Karen has talked to them several times and each time, they have not mentioned Mie, our rabbit. Maybe we will find that he passed on to that Rabbit haven in the sky or because he is so gutsy, he will outlive us all! Last night, we drove in to Los Angeles and stayed at the Marriott Courtyard for the night(actually only seven hours until my family had to catch their flight). We were reminded that if we drove the 2 hours to Los Angeles from Canyon Lake, we may take anywhere from 3 1/2 to 4 hours, barring any traffic accidents. so we took their advice and decided to drive in and stay overnight one block from the airport and got an incredible rate from Priceline.com. This hotel is quite nice and offered the Tomitas everything that we needed for the night. Praise the Lord for His provision! Since the hotel offers complimentary internet service, I decided to return and spend the two hours to catch up on blogging, email, mapquest for my visit next week to Tim Logerquist, Steve Pope, Tracy Cook and others that I will interview with: my quest is to discover what theses pastors know to develop their congregations into spiritually and relationally healthy churches, the same purpose to which Gail and I have committed ourselves here at Kinoole. It has been wonderfully challenging the past several weeks but now the hard work begins, to utilize the time alone(beginning today) to hear from God. The scripture that comes to mind today is from Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you.13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.14 I will be found by you," declares the LORD. . ." It is my heart's desire to find out for myself God's plans for Kinoole because this is still His church and we are and will always be His people. Amen? Amen and Amen! thanks again for all your prayers, especially my driving here in California, people are crazy or perhaps I am slow, used to Hilo driving. Take care, everyone! I love you all! Daniel