Hello everybody!
Monday is our fourth day here in Japan! I can confidently say that our Japanese is improving. Here is a glimpse of how our time here has been so far.
It has been a joy and a blessing to be able to serve the Japanese church; though it is hard to communicate with the church members, their willingness to sacrifice time and resources demonstrates their love for us. Most of us have only been at Hamadera Bible Church for a few days, and do not know very much about the members. However, our bond is not forged in the time we’ve spent together, but rather the joy of knowing and running alongside saved souls from across the world. Though the Japanese believers do not have a huge church body or a full orchestra, the one thing that does not feel any different is their love and devotion to Christ. You can see it in their eyes. You can see it in the way they live their lives! Truly how great is our God! His saving power reaches the ends of the earth! He is faithful to grow His people in the image of Christ. It is because of Him that the Japanese church, though small in number, bears the same fruit as you!
The team went to Nara All-Girls University today. We visited the school’s English club, and were able to talk and eat with some of the students. There were only girls. It was interesting. However, they still had men’s restrooms on the campus, so that was a huge blessing! Run through of the visit:
It was a good day overall. The team would love it if you could pray for the students to be softened to the gospel. In conversation, Christianity was brought up a few times. However, when we start talking about church and what Christ has done for us, we do not get many favorable reactions. The students seem to either withdraw themselves from the conversation or try to move on because they do not understand the gospel. There are many things we as a team could be doing better, but overall, pray that these students become receptive. We were all once lost, and know how impossible it is for our hearts to be changed by persuasion alone. Please pray hard that it would be God’s will for these students to understand the gospel, and also that the team may remember and preach the gospel all the time. We know that the gospel, if faithfully preached, will surly bear fruit!
Other things that we would appreciate your prayer for:
-Michael
Monday is our fourth day here in Japan! I can confidently say that our Japanese is improving. Here is a glimpse of how our time here has been so far.
It has been a joy and a blessing to be able to serve the Japanese church; though it is hard to communicate with the church members, their willingness to sacrifice time and resources demonstrates their love for us. Most of us have only been at Hamadera Bible Church for a few days, and do not know very much about the members. However, our bond is not forged in the time we’ve spent together, but rather the joy of knowing and running alongside saved souls from across the world. Though the Japanese believers do not have a huge church body or a full orchestra, the one thing that does not feel any different is their love and devotion to Christ. You can see it in their eyes. You can see it in the way they live their lives! Truly how great is our God! His saving power reaches the ends of the earth! He is faithful to grow His people in the image of Christ. It is because of Him that the Japanese church, though small in number, bears the same fruit as you!
The team went to Nara All-Girls University today. We visited the school’s English club, and were able to talk and eat with some of the students. There were only girls. It was interesting. However, they still had men’s restrooms on the campus, so that was a huge blessing! Run through of the visit:
- Arrived at 4pm, talked and played games (Jenga, Apples to Apples, UNO). Students asked many questions about what life is like in America. They find America very interesting.
- Ate dinner at 6pm, went to a restraunt where they served rice/seafood with a green-tea broth. The food was interesting but delicious! Talked a lot at dinner.
- Parted ways with the students at 8pm, made our way back to HBC.
It was a good day overall. The team would love it if you could pray for the students to be softened to the gospel. In conversation, Christianity was brought up a few times. However, when we start talking about church and what Christ has done for us, we do not get many favorable reactions. The students seem to either withdraw themselves from the conversation or try to move on because they do not understand the gospel. There are many things we as a team could be doing better, but overall, pray that these students become receptive. We were all once lost, and know how impossible it is for our hearts to be changed by persuasion alone. Please pray hard that it would be God’s will for these students to understand the gospel, and also that the team may remember and preach the gospel all the time. We know that the gospel, if faithfully preached, will surly bear fruit!
Other things that we would appreciate your prayer for:
- A member of the church, Oumi-San, is getting bypass surgery on the 30th of June. Please pray that it would be God’s will that the surgery goes well, and that Oumi-San’s wife would be comforted during the 3 week recovery period
- The days have been long and tiring. Please pray that the team find rest in the work of Christ, and that we are willing to forsake our bodies so that the Kingdom may be advanced
- Please pray for the church to continue to grow and bear fruit, and that it would continue to be well fed despite the departure of Okada-Sensei in a few weeks.
- Please pray for God to work through the team despite our sinfulness and weakness
-Michael