Friday, April 12, 2013

Jan-Mar 2013 Newsletter

Here it is, a preview of our latest newsletter. :)


Monday, April 1, 2013

Sweet or Sour Pickles?

I don't usually do this, but this one was special.  The below is most of a newsletter from our Pioneers teammates down in Shimonoseki, a couple of hours south from where we are.  Tony and Marcia Haug have been here the longest (out of the Pioneers missionaries in Japan) and are on their THIRD church plant.  Amazing, right?  Their ministry is slightly different from most of the other Pioneers teams in that they plant churches themselves instead of helping Japanese pastors to plant churches.  Marcia is actually a 2nd generation Japan MK so grew up speaking Japanese and Tony is fluent in it now too.  He has absolutely no problems preaching or giving talks in public forums in Japanese - unlike the rest of us! ;P  The story below is from one of Tony's most recent opportunities to be bold for Jesus in Japan.  It's awesome...  My jaw just dropped lower and lower as I was reading this...  I really pray that someday, I will be able to have the language, the Biblical knowledge, the ability to be able to have the Holy Spirit guide my speech, and the boldness and courage to be able to do what Tony did this day.  It's absolutely awesome!  I'm so grateful for and encouraged by the Haug's.  They have the most awesome stories. :)  Here's one of them...

Sweet or Sour Pickles?
Several years ago, the city of Shimonoseki began a yearly symposium called Rakuuza (translated Fun Seminar). Special speakers that have some type of relationship to Shimonoseki--politicians, musicians, artists, novelists etc. are invited to come and speak on their area of specialty. For the first time, I was invited to join the 60 guest speakers as a representative of Christianity. Along with a Buddhist priest, Mr. Koubun Nishijima and Shinto priest, Michio Naruse, I sat on a stage at Shimonoseki City College and shared some foundational principles of Christianity to over 100 people in a casual debate format.

I met the MC for our discussion and the two priests, the night before at a local hotel where we shared a buffet along with all of the other participants in the symposium. The conversation which took place at our table was  revealing of the core attitude of religion in Japan. There is a saying in Japan that says, "Minna chigatte, Minna ee."This basically means, "We are all different, but all good in our own way." This philosophy transfers over into the religious realm.  
Tony and priests
Mr. Itou, Tony 
Mr. Nishijima, Mr. Naruse 
During the meal, Mr.Naruse, the Shinto priest, expressed to me, "Japanese are like sponges, they absorb religions from various places and tweek them a little to become their own." The Buddhist priest, Mr. Nishijima echoed a similar sentiment during the discussion the following day when he said, "I think Buddhism is like a recipe book, you play around with a recipe and create something. You decide what your soul wants to make. It is your own responsibility what you do with the ingredients."

The session I participated in was one of the most well attended of the symposium. Around 100 people filled every available chair in the college classroom to hear what we had to say. The stark contrast between the concrete Truth and direction which Scripture gives in living a fulfilled life and the empty, meaningless banter promoted as religion by the two priests was evident to all of those who were listening.  

Part of the way through the discussion, Mr. Nishijima, the Buddhist priest said, "I am afraid that about 80% of you are probably leaning his (Tony's) way! Uh Oh!" The Shinto priest, Mr. Naruse added, "I also thought he (Tony) was convincing. It could be because I had had a lot to drink last night, but I also thought, 'Maybe I will become a believer too!' I need to learn from him." I felt the prayers of God's people and a special enabling power from God as point after point, I respectfully brought the discussion back to the teachings of Scripture.

Mr. Naruse opened the discussion with his view of the importance of religion in life. He explained, "I don't think it is necessary to think too deeply about religion. For instance when you sit down to eat a meal, the main course is the rice. You have the side dishes. If you have pickles to go with the meal, it makes everything taste even better, doesn't it? I think you should think of religion like the pickles. It makes life a little better. If you think of religion as more than that, it will become a burden to you. Just as pickles make a meal a little more delicious, religion makes life a little more pleasant and enriches you a little more."

In response, I shared the reason why I came to Japan as a missionary--to share the Good News of a Message that changed my life. Salvation through faith in Christ and the forgiveness of sins is the most delicious message of all, I explained. Christianity is not a religion, but a daily relationship with a Living Being, I clarified. Coming back to this point time and time again in various forms throughout the hour, I was able to speak on topics of marriage, death and bullying.  

Tony speaking at Shimonoseki CollegeAt one point, Mr. Ito, the MC, laughingly said, "Tony is so convincing in his speech that I thought at one point last night around the dinner table, that Mr. Nishijima was going to become a Christian!" The Buddhist priest did seem to have a piqued interest in the Truth I was sharing. He frequently nodded his head in agreement! During the panel discussion, Mr. Nishijima turned to the Shinto priest and said, "As I was listening to you speak, I wondered... We put our hands together to pray, but are our prayers answered? Is there a god or Hotoke*? Have any of you (speaking to the audience) ever said such a thing at least once in your life? Shinto worship nature, but can nature forgive you? Nature can't forgive your selfishness. Shinto teaches that nature is your mother and father. That is what you are worshiping."

I nodded my head in agreement at this astute observation and followed with three questions which everyone wants answered: "Where did I come from? Why am I here? Where do I go after I die?" I quoted John 14:6 for them:
I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

In response to Mr. Ito's final question of the morning, "What is important for the children of this generation to remember?" I was able to repeat again that what was important was the same now as in every generation before- salvation . Christ was put upon cross to resolve the problem of sin. "It is not enough just to believe in something, "I explained. "A point of reference is important. It is not enough to just believe, but the object of belief is important."

Pray that the seeds of Truth that were planted in this Buddhist/Shinto audience will take root and grow into faith in the Creator God.

Our Savior is the main course, not just the pickles!


*Hotoke can refer to a person who has become enlightened and therefore has become a buddha. It can also refer to Buddhism as a whole. The word "god" is probably referred to as the shinto gods and Hotoke as the Shinto gods in this reference. 

(From the Haug's prayer requests section...)
7.**URGENT** Beginning August 2013, we will be in need of another Conversational English teacher to take Hilary's place. Are you or anyone you know interested in coming to Japan to help introduce people to Christ through teaching English? Teachers would receive 1350 dollars per month. The remaining 500 dollars per month and cost of the plane ticket would need to be raised before arrival. You can use a skill you already have--speaking English to help reach Japanese for Christ!  Please contact us immediately if you are interested!

Monday, March 11, 2013

3.11 2nd Anniversary

Today is the 2nd anniversary of the 3.11 Triple Disaster that devastated so much of Northeastern Japan.

I'm going to provide links again for you to read...  I think you'll find plenty of prayer topics from reading them, even if I don't give you a separate list myself.  There's so much to pray for and so much that needs to be done!  If you ever want to come help with relief work in the area or want to bring out a whole team, please get in touch.  We can connect you with missionaries up there who I know would love to have you there.  From everything that I've heard too, the people there really love having volunteers up there too for a variety of reasons, and there's a fear that volunteers will stop coming.  So if you're interested and can come, please do!!!
  • Japan Evangelical Association's Disaster Relief page 
  • See the physical difference in before and after pictures here
  • An article here about survivors turning to exorcists for help 
  • An article here about Fukushima First Bible Church, planted in 1947 by WorldVenture missionaries 
  • Crash Japan's site also always has good prayer points / updates
  • Here's Hideo Araki's short video on how his life was touched by volunteers, and his heart moved by the Holy Spirit.  He's one of many!  You can find more awesome testimonies on the Hope for Living site.
Pray for the survivors.  Pray for the Christian workers there.  Pray for those in Northeast Japan.  Pray for those in Japan.

Many Christian leaders in Japan believe that if a revival happens in Japan, it'll start in the area devastated by the Triple Disaster.  Pray for it!!!  Pray for a revival in Japan!!!

Grateful for you prayers...

Saturday, March 2, 2013

March Focus

Firstly, PRAISE GOD for the exchange rate becoming more favorable!!! It's helping, immensely. Missionaries all over Japan are rejoicing. Thank you God!!! :) :) :)

March is a month of transition...
1) Our current kids' English programs will be ending this month. So no more monthly Saturday Kids' English Club at Koyo and Kabe Chapels for me and no more weekly Thursday kids' English classes at Asaminami Chapel for Peter.
2) We're preparing to teach English classes to kids using a new program called Kids Brown. The chapels that we work with will be franchise branches and the PI Hiroshima Team missionaries will be the teachers/facilitators.
3) We're packing! We're moving to a house about 15 minutes away from our currently location. It's a bigger, newer, and better house, closer to the kids' preschool, and get this, it's cheaper!!! It was originally more expensive than our current house, but they drastically lowered the price and God, just so happened to tug at Peter's heart one day right after the rent got lowered to "randomly" check the rentals in our area... God is great! :)
4) Juhee will be finishing up her 2nd year and starting to her 3rd, Sungjae will be finishing up his 1st year and starting his 2nd soon.
5) I will be transitioning from a too-much-ministry slightly crazy life to (hopefully) a just-the-right-amount of ministry, more well-balanced life that includes working towards completing my mandatory Bible units.

We're also welcoming friends and family to our home this month! Kevin & Chris will be with us for a weekend and Jon will be with us for a week. We're super excited!!! :)

We still have a lot of ministry left this month... Weekly ladies' and kids' English classes, last ever Kids' English Club (well, for the foreseeable future anyway), an end-of-term English party, English Cafe on the 30th, Peter's presenting at the big year end General Meeting on the 24th and is preaching for the Youth's Spring Camp on the 31st (Easter Sunday). He's got a very full plate right now so extra prayers for Peter would be awesome! :)

Last, but not least, definitely keep those in Northeast Japan in your prayers, the area that was devastated by the Triple Disaster two years ago. Hundreds of thousands are still in temporary housing and many still have no means of earning a living. Pray that they will be able to experience hope everlasting and joy overflowing. Pray for the many Christian volunteers, missionaries, pastors, who work there under difficult circumstances, that they will lovingly proclaim the Word and serve the community that God has placed them in. Pray also that God will send them friends as many of the missionaries there left their homes in other areas of Japan and moved up there during the past two years since the disaster.

Thank you so much for your constant prayer and encouragement. :)

Thursday, February 28, 2013

Pray for the depressed- PLEASE!

Pray for the depressed. Depression is very real to me. A close friend of mine has been suffering with depression for almost ten years now. We lost contact after High School, but we found each other on Facebook a few years ago and have been in contact since. Lately, she has been contemplating committing suicide frequently. I'm High School friends with both her and her husband their kids are friends with our kids.

When Peter was a youth pastor, we had students who were anorexic, cutting themselves, depressed, and one who later committed suicide.

In Japan, some Christians become suicidal because of the rejection that they experience after becoming Christian. Many fear this harsh societal rejection and don't tell their friends and family.

One of the friends of one of our pastors' wives, who herself was a pastor's wife and went to Seminary with our pastor wife, committed suicide a couple of years ago...

Japan has the highest suicide rate in the world (occasionally Korea outranks them... :/).

Suicide prevention in Japan is a real, very important ministry and there are Christian organizations that focus just on this.

Many people with depression in Japan know that the meds aren't working. They need something more. They need love. They need people who really care. They need to feel valued.

They need their spiritual oppression lifted.

If you've already been praying for those that are depressed in Japan, then now is the time to multiply your prayers! March has historically been the month with the highest number of suicides. Ever since the tsunami, many fear that suicides might increase even more in March because of the memories / trauma from that day.


Pray for me and many others like me who have a friend and / or family member living with depression. Pray that the Holy Spirit will guide our words and our actions. Pray for the organizations that seek to help those with depression.

Pray for those that are depressed. Oh LORD, may their depression be GONE!!! May their spiritual oppression be lifted and their eyes opened, their hearts renewed, their life given new meaning. Lord, give us strength and courage. Help us to not feel helpless. Remind us to be constantly praying for them, for it is not us, but YOU who are the ultimate HEALER. Lord, dear Lord, help them..........

Friday, February 22, 2013

11월-1월 소식지

한글판 소식지 드디어 보냈습니다... 혹시 못 받으셨으면 연락주세요~ ^^



Saturday, February 16, 2013

Home

Sigh...  A good sigh...  A content sigh...

I didn't think I'd say this, but it's nice to be back.  Nice to be home.  Our house in Hiroshima, Japan, is definitely no longer just a "house".  It's now our "home".  At least for now anyway.

They say "home is where the heart is".  I guess this is where my heart is.  At least for now anyway.

Something interesting I read off a Japan church planter's facebook today:
'Sumeba miyako' 住めば都 literally means if you live there, that makes it your capital city. In other words, it can mean 'home is where the heart is' or 'you'll get so adjusted and used to it that you'll soon call it home'.

While we were in Seoul and Chiang Mai, a part of me was dreading coming back, coming back to a cold, old house and all the difficulties that come with living in Japan.

BUT.  It's nice to be here.  It took me by surprise, how nice it is to be back.  It's nice to be just us again.  It's nice to know where to go, when to go, have our own car to drive around, be able to get there on our own, have a regular, more normal schedule...  I think it's been especially nice for the kids to be back.  They're so much more relaxed, happier, and carefree compared to when they were in Korea.  I guess we're adjusted and used to life here and we now call it our home...

The kids had awesome receptions when they went back to school.  Juhee arrived during lunch time the day after we arrived and the kids all excitedly said her name as she walked in and gave her a huge happy welcome.  She came back beaming that day! :)  When I went to pick her up, her teacher ran down to greet me and told me how much they'd missed her and how the kids had constantly been asking when she would be back 「まだ?」("아직?" "not yet?") they'd ask.  Even the girl who's usually not so nice to Juhee has been super nice to her since her return.  Juhee says the girl said that she missed Juhee and is happy that she's back. :)  A few other moms of Juhee's friends texted to say welcome back and that their kids had seen Juhee at kindergarten.

Sungjae was surrounded by lots of little 2 and 3 year olds when he went back to nursery and he apparently acted all embarrassed (Peter dropped them off). =D  The teacher told Peter how one of the kids in particular kept on asking when he would be back.  I talked to the mom of one of his other classmates later that day and she said how her son excitedly told her that Sungjae was back when she picked him up.  I think he had more fun that day than he'd had during the past nearly two months while we were traveling.

I think our time in Korea and Chiang Mai was hard on them.  There were good times, of course, but I think overall, it wasn't easy for them.  Actually, it was pretty hard on us too.  I guess it was the least hard on me.

I'm so glad we don't have any travel plans for the foreseeable future.  On our way back to Hiroshima, Juhee told me that she doesn't want to ride airplanes anymore.  Poor thing.  There probably aren't many just-turned-five year olds that have been on over 25 flights.  Sungjae, on the other hand, is completely in love with airplanes.

At the moment, our next big trip will be when we go back to San Jose, CA, USA in early 2015.

We're looking forward to a hopefully, relatively calm two years. :)

Friday, February 15, 2013

February Focus


We're back in Hiroshima and it's good to be back. :) Our bags are not yet completely unpacked and we have some backlog to clear as well as a lot of ministry and other work ahead of us so it's full steam ahead!

Peter turned a year older this month. Happy birthday hubby! :)

Peter's weekly English classes resume on Tuesdays (adult ladies) and Thursdays (kids) from Feb. 19th and on the 23rd, we have Kids' English Club in the morning and English Cafe in the evening.

Much of our ministry for the upcoming academic year from April 2013-March 2014 will be decided during the next couple of weeks in conjunction with the local Japanese pastors that we work with. Please pray for wisdom as we seek to support their ministries and create more opportunities for the Christians here to reach those around them.

Pray also for us, that God will continue to use our shortcomings and sinfulness to humble us, teach us, and to use us to show His grace, mercy, and love to those around us. Pray that our focus will always be on Him.

Thursday, February 14, 2013

Fun with Friends

A link to a blogpost written by a friend about some of our time together in Chiang Mai, Thailand.  Hopefully I'll get to write something about our time there sometime soon too! :)

The guys with their new "friend". :P

Monday, January 14, 2013

Nov-Dec Newsletter

Here's a preview... Let us know if you would like the full version. :)