Community in Hiroshima Japan
May 19, 2009
After returning to America for nearly a year, Matt and Misty are finally back in Hiroshima to share the gospel with the Japanese there. They’ll be starting out in language study, but will also be spending a lot of time ministering to the new families they’re meeting. Although they’ve returned to the same city, they now live in a neighborhood instead of in a high-rise apartment building. Life in a Japanese neighborhood is very different from many neighborhoods in America. There is a much stronger sense of community. They organize to keep the parks clean, to make sure the right trash is thrown out on the right day (we have 8 categories of trash to keep track of here), to keep each other informed of news in the area and a large variety of other issues of community life.
All of this is counter to our individualistic inclinations, and can be a little stressful at times. There are many positives as well. All the children gather together to play in the evenings. Older children look after the younger ones. Parents bond as they watch the children play. Aside from being a wonderful opportunity to watch their daughter, Joanna, grow, play and make great new friends, this is also a chance to share the love of Christ with their new neighbors. As they get to know their new neighbors, they remember what Paul said in 1 Thess. 2:8 “we were well-pleased to impart to you not only the gospel of God but also our own lives, because you had become so very dear to us.”
Please ask God to open the hearts of their neighbors to hear the truth and trust Jesus as their Savior. Ask that He enable Matt and Misty to communicate the story of Jesus’ great works to them in their heart language.
Written my Matt Sargent
Comments
One Response to “Community in Hiroshima Japan”
Thanks for the glimpse into life in Japan. 8 kinds of garbage each with it’s own day is very different indeed.