Outreach Japan

“An Appetite for Autumn” and a Hunger for God

Lana — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 11:25:31 +0000

For the kingdom of God is not food and drink, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, for he who serves Christ in these things is acceptable to God andapproved by men.” (Romans 14:17,18 NKJV)

The Japanese have a saying, “shokuyoku no aki,” which roughly translates into “Autumn’s Appetite” or perhaps, “An Appetite for Autumn”. Sendai, the largest city in the northern-most part (Tohoku) of Japan’s main island (Honshu), has a relatively cool climate. In the winter we see snow and in the summer the we only need to run the air conditioning for about three-four weeks. Autumn days, like spring, are crisp at times–quite the right weather for a hot cup of tea or a steaming bowl of soup. As the temperature drops the people of Sendai tend to think of food to help warm them in the cooler weather. On top of savoring the flavors of the season, residents of Sendai also relish in the warmth of sharing this “good food” alongside their “good friends”.

Thus is born the “imonikai”–a gathering held throughout Sendai in October and even a bit perhaps into November. At this gathering, folks sharing ”a common ground” (the same neighborhood, leisure spot, kids’ kindergarten, even a common shopping mall) meet together for food and fellowship. The main dish is boiled sweet potato in a soup broth. While some other cities boast of a savory soy sauce, beef-based “imoni”, Sendai’s speciality is a fermented soy bean paste (miso), pork base “imoni”. The warm soup, often prepared alongside skewered meats,fried noodles, and a cup of tea, juice or beer, is usually served out-of-doors with participants sitting on tarps on the ground. Get-togethers such as the “imonikai” offer Japanese yet another opportunity to ask those in their ”inner circle” or “group” to continue to treat them favorably and look out for them.

Please pray that the Japanese of Sendai, more than leaning on their fellow man, will turn their trust first to God. Jesus said, “No one is good but One, that is God.” (Luke 18:19b NKJV) Please pray for their hearts to hunger first and foremost for Him.

By Donna Qualls

For a Thousand Tongues to Sing

Lana — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 15:38:03 +0000

Recently we headed downtown to Sendai’s annual Jozenji Street Jazz Festival, which hosting over 600 bands from Japan and overseas, boasts of being “the biggest” music festival in Japan. Before it started raining, we were able to buy a light lunch from one of the many street vendors and talk with some folks around us. We enjoyed listening to a variety of music as we walked Jozenji’s picturesque Zelkova tree-lined street and pic-nicked at a nearby park. Besides jazz music, the festival also featured the sounds of “Big Band” and ’50’s & ’60’s American Rock.

One group that drew a particularly large crowd performed only Beatles’ tunes. We learned later that some groups along the route were playing only ”gospel” music. Gospel music has become a bit of a hit among Japanese these days. It doesn’t seem to matter that they don’t really know what is being sung. They just like the sound/mood of the music. Some Japanese even pay money to take lessons on ”how to sing gospel”. Please pray that the lost Japanese of Sendai will come to understand the true meaning of the word “gospel”. As it is written in Romans, the gospel of Christ “is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes.” And “in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith.”

As we serve in Sendai and ask volunteers to come join us for prayerwalking and literature distribution at the 2010 Jazz Festival we take the words of Charles Wesley’s hymn as our prayer:

“O for a thousand tongues to sing, My great Redeemer’s praise, The glories of my God and King, The triumphs of His grace.”

“My gracious Master and my God, Assist me to proclaim, To spread thro’ all the earth abroad

The honors of Thy name.”

(For more info on serving on a short-term volunteer team at the 2010 Jazz Fest, please write to us at Kevin@outreachjapan.org or donna@outreachjapan.org. )

by Donna Qualls

Sharing the gospel in Fukuoka

Lana — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 15:18:45 +0000

Fall has brought with it new opportunities for sharing the gospel. We want to invite you to join us in prayer for these, so as you read of the individuals below, please pray that God will work in their hearts to turn them toward faith in Jesus Christ.

H and N are now studying the Bible! Nancy met H on the train platform outside the campus during the summer. After getting together for lunch one day, the two girls agreed to read the Bible, and the most convenient place for us to meet is on campus. Pray they will remain open as they learn about God, his creation of the world, the fall of man and woman into sin, and God’s plan for salvation. Their sincerity is evident as they attempt to engage the questions about what they learn from the scripture when we meet. We are grateful for God giving us these two freshmen. Pray that they will be saved soon.
L and M began their married life in the USA, because as soon as they got married they moved for him to do research. While there L (Mrs.) went to a church to study English, and joined a Bible class, too. Sometimes M (Mr.) also went. Now they come to our home because it reminds them of their time in the USA. We have opened our Bibles to try to read together, but the baby sometimes makes it difficult to focus on the scripture. Pray that Nancy will be able to go to their house to have Bible study with L on a regular basis.
Tomo works at a fast-food store, and received a card when we ordered food one day. Before the day was over she had texted a message. The first time she got together with Nancy she was offered a manga (cartoon) Bible, which she refused. But she had also heard the salvation story from a bracelet, which she did accept. Pray that Tomo will find time to meet more often with Nancy, and that she will have a desire to know God, and seek Him until she finds him.
We were introduced to a young college senior guy who lived in another country for a while. John is trying to meet with him to build a relationship. Pray that the young man will make time to meet, and be open to John’s testimony, and to learning from the Bible.

by Nancy Norton

Kitakyushu-Fukuoka (KFC) Summer News

Lana — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 13:22:40 +0000

In July we participated with local house-church believers in what is called a “Spiritual Conference.” It was new to all of us. In a large room with tables, people who claim to have the “spiritual” answers to life’s problems offer help, for a fee of anywhere from $10 to $30 for a one-time session. Most of them are witches, spiritual healers, diviners, and all are in the New Age type of spirituality.

They allowed us to participate because of one spiritual healer, CM, who was saved and baptized. She is trying to stay in the New Age world and be a witness. We called ourselves “Christian Mediators” and offered people God’s Word through showing them scripture related to their life situation. We also invited them to pray at that moment. Most of them did, and some heard God’s voice. However, none of them was earnestly seeking to know God himself. One lady prayed saying she believed in Jesus, but a week later when a member met with her, she declared that she was not going to become a Christian because of her Buddhist background.

Our group was told before the end of the day that we would not be allowed to participate in the next conference. This shocked CM, who is now struggling with her faith

Here is how you can pray. Pray for the 20 people who came to our table, that they will read the Bible they received. Pray that God’s Word will not return to Him void, as He promised. Pray that God will work among the New Agers through CM. Pray that CM will trust God and bring glory to Him through all of her activities.

Written by Nancy Norton

Under Cover of Night

Lana — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 03:58:39 +0000

August 6th-8th Japanese from all over the country flock to the city of Sendai in celebration of the annual “Tanabata” Festival. While this “Star” Festival is celebrated throughout Japan, Sendai’s version is the most famous one. The festival itself involves making “requests”(praying) to stars for help with various life issues. Japanese write their requests on slips of paper which they then place alongside folded paper (”origami”) decorations on tree boughs. Later the tree boughs with all the paper decorations are burned as an offering. Shortly following the Star Festival is another major festival known as “O-Bon” or “All Souls’ Day” August 13th-16th.

The photo accompanying this article was taken on the playground of a local school during an annual neighborhood summertime festival. In the photo, as is the common practice in preparation for the Buddhist “O-bon” holiday, people are dancing a special dance in the evening to invite the return of deceased souls back to the earth. During the Star Festival Japanese people petition the stars for protection, sucess, health etc., whereas during the All Souls’ Day holiday Japanese people put their trust in the spirits of their ancestors to help them. Please pray for Japanes people to turn away from trusting in idolatorous practices and turn to faith in a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, Our Very Present Help in Time of Need, or in any other time for that matter.

By Donna Qualls

Pray for an artist

Lana — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 04:25:42 +0000

Another update by Rachel who visited a town outside Niigata City with Lana in July.

We drove to a small town outside of Niigata to visit a Korean mom and her two children and to meet a new Japanese believer. We had Bible Study, ate lunch together, and as the adults worked on the computer S-chan introduced me to the world of Japanese anime youtube.

On our second day I went for a walk around the city. I met a local artist who showed me pictures of her latest show. When her friend arrived we took pictures together and then I continued on my journey. I found a local open air market and walked around taking in all of the sites. People were selling flowers, vegetables, fruit, raw meat, clothes…people of all ages were shopping. Please pray for the Korean family and Japanese believer that they would continue to grow in their relationship with the Lord. Pray that the people in this city-the artist, the vendors, and others- would hear and accept the Good News.

Getting closer

Lana — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 13:38:53 +0000

Here is a note from Dana and Amy Shadburne who will be arriving in Japan in the fall to work in Okayama.

It is nice to be writing our first blog on the team website. It has been a long process getting to this point, but we can officially say we are now part of the team. Nothing makes us happier than to be serving the Lord through this team and to be His shining light in Okayama City. We still have orientation (eight weeks of training) to go through, but we should be in Japan on October 17th.

Thank you all for your prayers and letters as our family has gone through the preliminary process of becoming part of the JCTV team. We are all so excited to now focus on the task at hand. As it says in Psalms 108, let’s wake up making a joyous sound to the Lord that He would be glorified above the heavens and to all nations. Please join us in prayer as we make the physical move and learn how God is going to use us to reach His Japanese people.

Pray for the many travels we are about to embark on. We fly to Virginia, then back to Portland, then to Tokyo and have a drive down to Okayama. Please pray that we would be in good health and spirits and that God would be able to use us as we travel.

Pray for the cultural transition. Please join us in prayer, especially for our children as we enter a new culture. Pray we would adapt quickly, not resist change, and that we would thrive in Japan.

Pray for language acquisition. We are going to enter into language study soon after arriving in Okayama. Please be praying that we would learn quickly and that God would again use this special time of learning to bring glory to Him.

Bread Shop

Lana — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 06:36:37 +0000

I love small out of the way places that only locals know about. On our trip out to the country we visited a small bread shop run by a mother and her three daughters. The shop consisted of a section for homemade breads and about 4-5 mis-shaped tables. On the top of one table was a book for customers to write in and on the other tables were books with pictures of flowers with diary entries beside them. Old country music songs played in the background, and at one time a gospel song came on, but of course it was in English and they didn’t know what it was.

For lunch we told the daughters to fix us whatever they wanted. We ate rice, miso soup, vegetables, boiled egg, and Japanese style pickles. It was oishikatta! In case you don’t know that is Japanese for “delicious”! After lunch and a yummy desert two of the daughters performed for us. One of the girls writes songs and plays the guitar. It was a treat to hear the original Japanese music. Please lift up the owners of this bread shop, that they would come to know Christ!

By Rachel Routt, summer intern missionary

Teacher Feature

Lana — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 15:32:51 +0000

“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name? And then I will declare to them I never knew you; depart from Me … (Matt. 7:21-23)

We have often been reminded of this Bible passage while living here in Japan, particularly as we interact with our children’s pre-K/Kindergarten Staff. The school was founded by Christians and though none of the current staff are Christian, still various Christian practices remain part of the school’s regular curriculum. On the surface the school appears quite “Christian” but various national religious rituals are also incorporated in the curriculum during the year. We often choose to keep our kids home from school on days such as “Casting out the devils” Day, “Making requests for protection of the spirits of the ancients” Day, and so on. Through our non-participation in these events, God has granted us various opportunities to share our faith.

Recently while composing her monthly newsletter, our youngest son’s teacher was writing what each child in the class was requesting of the stars for ”Praying to the Constellations” Day. Miss Wa phoned us and asked what she write for on behalf of our son. We told her that the Bible teaches us to depend not on stars but on the God who created the stars. She asked if she could make a note by our son’s name which would clarify that his prayer is being offered to God not the constellations. We said this would be fine. When she asked what he is praying to God, our son said he is praying for his friends to believe in Jesus.This is our prayer too, for all our children’s classmates, their families and for all the schools’ teachers/staff as well.

Please join us in praying for the teachers in these photos. In the white suit jacket is our youngest son’s teacher, Miss Wa, who’ll celebrate her 22nd birthday in August. This job is her first teaching position.

Kneeling beside Mrs. Wa, is our daughter’s teacher, Mrs. Ku, who taught our daughter our first two years in Japan. Mrs. Ku is newlywed. For her wedding we gave her a book by a Japanese Christian author. The book which instructs newlyweds on how to be happy cites faith in Christ as a prerequisite.

Lastly, the teacher riding on the mini-play bullet train is Miss Mi. When Miss Mi heard a Christian’s testimony in February, she admitted she was a sinner. She has since been transferred to a new school but we will meet again at a class reunion on July 25th. Please pray for God to move in her and each teacher so that they will put their faith in Jesus alone and trust Him as their Lord and Savior.

Biggest shock of the day???

Lana — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 07:29:42 +0000

We are blessed to have Rachel Routt, a former journeyman, with us for a few weeks. Here she shares about her trip to a small city in Chiba on her first day back in Japan.

Driving through the towns and villages of Japan is like night and day compared to the busy subways of Tokyo. My first day back to Japan was spent in such a town. We covered much ground on that day…. prayerwalking/prayerriding, distributing literature, meeting with Japanese (Christians and nonChristians). I had my first Japanese meal in a quaint little bread store run by a lady and her three daughters.

Besides the Japanese shrines and temples that were prevalent throughout the city, the most sobering part of the day was the view of a towering Mormon “church.” The building looked out of place next to the smaller Japanees homes in the area. As we prayed around the building I thanked God that He is so much bigger than the Mormon cult. A verse from John came to mind, “And they will know the truth and the truth will set them free.” Pray for the Japanese in this area that they would know the truth and that the truth would set them free.