We want to take this time to say THANK YOU to those who have donated children’s clothes for Japanese children. If you are new to our blog, you may not know what we are talking about. Our sending church, First Baptist Church Arlington, has sent many children’s clothes to us, and we delivered them to people in the temporary housings and churches. A special thanks to Cheryl Turner and Linda Templin who sorted all the clothes and packed them! Every time we received more boxes, we felt so much love from our church family! We are sure that the people who received those clothes felt loved, too.
Here are some photos!
We also sent several boxes to children in Fukushima.
These snacks were given to Luke but he wanted to share these with babies in Fukushima. We sent these snacks along with all the clothes. We pray these made other babies smile!
Last week, we went to Iwate prefecture for the Tohoku Ministers’ Retreat. The ministers in Tohoku area have been having this retreat every spring, but they were not able to meet last year due to the earthquake. When we had a disaster relief meeting back in January, we realized that the earthquake and tsunami had affected many of the ministers emotionally, physically, spiritually, and financially. They have been working so hard to meet the needs of the people in the disaster areas and also their church members. They haven’t had any time to get away and rest. But we also knew that it would be difficult for many of them to pay for the retreat. This retreat is not only for the ministers but also for their families. It means they would have to pay for the whole family.
Then, we remembered the sweet faces of the BGCT (Baptist General Convention of Texas) leaders that we had met back in November. They were concerned about the ministers who were working in the disaster areas and shared their desire to help them. We wrote them and asked if they would be able to help by covering some of the cost of the retreat. They wrote back immediately saying “YES”.
Thanks to their huge help, we were able to host the ministers’ retreat and everyone had a blessed time together. We had plenty of time to worship, to pray, to share, and to rest. As one of the newest families in the area, it was great getting to know all the ministers and their families. We were encouraged to feel their love for God and for people in Tohoku area. Everyone shared about his/her experiences with disaster relief work, and it was evident that God has been using each one of them in many ways. Even though it has not been an easy journey, we all agreed that we want to continue loving and helping those in need.
We took the kids to the nearby snow mountain and we all had a blast! One of the kids was from Fukushima and it was good to see him have fun outside. Please pray for him and all the other kids in Fukushima. Even though they live outside of the evacuation zone, the radiation level is still high and they can’t play outside. Many moms have left Fukushima with their kids, but there are still many more that cannot leave due to different reasons. Please pray for God’s protection and guidance. Also, pray for parents as they make important decisions for their families. We are in the process of planning a new program for the kids that go to churches in Fukushima. We want to invite them to places outside of Fukushima for a week or two during their breaks and give them a chance to be away from high radiation level. It will require lots of planing and money. Please pray for God’s wisdom for us and also for His provision as we work on this.
Here are some pictures from the retreat!
Opening worship service.
Prayer time.
Dinner time!
Getting ready to ski!
Little kids enjoyed sledding.
Don’t you love his smile?
BINGO time!
Please pray for this family from Fukushima.
Luke loved playing with him!
Snowball fight! All the adults had fun, too!
Group photo. There were more people who came after this photo was taken. We all had such a great time together.
Thank you, BGCT, for making this retreat possible! We are so thankful that we were able to be a part of this time of fellowship. Thank you for touching our lives in such a special way! Please continue to pray for the ministers and their families in Tohoku area as we keep ministering to those in the disaster areas.
A few weeks ago, some of our church members and our family went to Misawa in Aomori prefecture. It’s about 4 hours north of Sendai and Misawa is famous for the US Air Force base. I remember going there to see the air show with my family when I was little and I always felt like I was in another country since there were so many Americans.
This time, we went there for the Tohoku (northern Japan is called “Tohoku area”) Baptist Union’s annual meeting. We thought it would be a great chance to get to know people from other churches and to find ways to partner with other Christians to reach out to the lost.
When we got there, we were welcomed by the members of Misawa Calvary Church. This church was established to minister to the people in the Air Force and their families but they also have some Japanese believers. It was such a blessing to meet all of them!
During the opening worship service, I had a chance to play the piano which gave me so much joy. The pastor shared how important it is to work together for the Kingdom of God. During the Tohoku Baptist Men/Women meeting, we all shared how each church had been helping with disaster relief efforts. It was encouraging to know that they are all working so hard to help those in need, but it was heartbreaking to hear about what the kids in Fukushima had been going through after the power plant’s explosion in March. Since radiation levels are still high in many areas, they can’t play outside. Many kids are wearing a mask to cover their mouth. Teachers and parents have been cleaning the schools and parks so that the radiation level would go down. Everyone is tired emotionally and physically. We asked them how we can pray and the first thing they said was to pray for people who live there. Pray for their physical and emotional health. Also, pray that the Japanese government would make the right decisions to help and protect those who are suffering.
They also asked for toys, games, DVDs, and books for the kids. Since they can’t play outside, these items will make the kids smile and help their parents. We will be spending some of the money many of you have donated to send some of these items to one of the churches in Fukushima. We have already sent them some children’s clothes that were sent by our sending church, and they really appreciated them. Thank you all for your prayers and support!!! You are touching so many lives!
Throughout the day, we met many wonderful believers and it was encouraging to see them being excited about partnering together. We have been building a relationship with the pastor and his family in Sakata city and we will be visiting them and leading the children’s program on Saturday. Michael was also asked to preach this coming Sunday. Please pray for a blessed time of fellowship.
Here are some pictures from our trip to Misawa:
The sanctuary was full of people!
These ladies cooked a delicious American meal. Michael said it felt like being in American to see the American sized oven and fridge!
Loved getting to know so many people!
I helped the children’s program. One of the American girls taught them how to decorate a cupcake!
They all look happy!!! The cupcakes were yummy! One of the kids said his cupcake tasted like “America”. We all laughed!
Kids (and one of the moms) from the church in Fukushima. They are so precious! They were super excited to be able to play outside.
Another blessing for me was meeting these ladies. After the opening worship service, one of these ladies asked if I was my mom’s daughter since I looked like her. When I said yes, they all started telling me all the special memories of my grandmother and my mom and how much they had meant to them. I found out that my grandmother was a member of their church over 30 years ago and they all enjoyed the Christian fellowship together. One of the ladies said when she lost her son, my grandmother just sat and cried with her. She said that meant more than any other encouraging words that she had received. Another lady told me that my mom had written her so many letters when their church was going through a difficult time. They all had tears in their eyes. This was truly a gift from God and I thank God for faithful Christians like my grandma and my mom.
The youth worship band led music during the closing worship service. We had missed singing English praise songs so it was awesome to worship with them in English. It seemed like many of the older Japanese Christians enjoyed singing (and listening) together! What a blessing it is to worship together no matter what our race, language, and backgrounds are!
Overall, it was such an amazing day. We enjoyed the fellowship with other believers and we came home being encouraged to go out and reach out to others in our community. It was also a special time for our family to experience a “little America” since we had been missing our friends and family back home! We love you and miss you lots!
Please pray for us as we go to Sakata this weekend. Pray many kids will come to the program on Saturday and God will speak to many hearts through Michael’s message on Sunday. Thank you!!!
I want to ask you all to pray for these precious kids who have been affected by the earthquake, tsunami, and radiation treat in Japan. As a mother, my heart hurts so much to know what they are going through. Even though they are having such a difficult time, they always smile when I take pictures of them. Their beautiful smiles make me happy but at the same time, I know each of them has so many unspoken feelings/concerns. Please pray the day will come soon when they can all laugh, smile, and have tons of fun without being worried about the aftershocks, nightmare of the tsunami, radiation, destroyed homes, and all the other traumas that they may have.
All the pastors’ kids got together for the special meeting. Playing cards while the adults had a meeting.
Some of these kids are from Fukushima where the nuclear plant exploded. They hadn’t been able to play outside because of the radiation threat. They were so happy to come to Sendai where they could play outside. They were so thankful to receive rain jackets that your generous donation helped us buy. THANK YOU!!!
Guess what they are making? Their OWN movie theater! These kids live in a tsunami-hit town and almost everything was destroyed. They decided to “make” a movie theater so that they could watch movies (DVDs) together. What a brilliant idea!
Aren’t they precious? We were able to give them lots of cookies for their opening day. Hope they enjoyed them! As these kids painted the cardboard boxes, one of the moms told her daughter to be careful since she was wearing one of a few shirts she had left. It broke my heart. Since many of these kids lost everything, we are going to deliver clothes that have been donated by our FBCA family (our sending church). If you want to know how to donate, please e-mail us (michaelandyu@gmail.com). Thanks!
We hosted a special event for kids at our church. A volunteer team from Colorado joined us and we all had such a great time!
Singing praise songs! Our friend, Yuta, did a great job! Michael did a wonderful job sharing a children’s message.
They all got a gift that was bought with the Aid for Japan donation money. As you can imagine, they were SO excited!
Playing games!
Having lots of fun together.
Dinner time!
What an awesome fellowship we had! In this picture, there is a girl who lost her grandparents in the tsunami. They have yet to found her grandmother’s body. Please pray for her and her family. Also, some of these kids’ (they are siblings) dad works for the Japanese army and he has been super busy since March 11th. They don’t have much time to see their dad. Pray for them as they miss their daddy!
Thank you for keeping these children in your prayers. We know your prayers will make a difference!
Thank you so much for your continued prayers for Japanese people. After we shared our last update, we heard from some of our friends who read this blog and were encouraged to know that our blog updates help them to know how to pray for Japan. Sorry we can’t update as much as we want to (we have been busy sharing our stories at different churches and companies. Praise God for these opportunities!), but we hope our blog will help you understand how great our God is and how much Japanese people need Him!
Praises:
-We are still talking with the leaders of our sending church and organization to decide when to go back to Japan. They have spent lots of time researching the situations in Japan and they approved us to go back! This is an answer to our prayers! Please continue to pray for God’s guidance and wisdom as we decide when and where to return.
-Our missionary friends and one of our friends from DBU (he came all the way from Osaka!) went to Oshika Peninsula to visit temporary shelters. They delivered food and clothes, and people were so thankful. They also handed out the Bible tracts. Please pray they will take time to read them and feel God’s love for them.
(Our friend, Yuta, sorting items to be delivered.)
-We were encouraged to read an article about our Christian friend, Mr. Yamaki (http://www.baptistpress.org/BPnews.asp?ID=35105). We are thankful for believers like him who are working hard every day to share hope with the hopeless. Yu’s dad told him that so many people from all over the world are praying for him, and he was so grateful. Please keep remembering him and his team in your prayers.
-Our church members, Mrs. Kimura (her husband is in Japanese army) and Mrs. Yonezawa (her in-laws died in tsunami), are doing better. They told Yu’s dad that coming to church on Sundays gives them peace and strength. Praise God for His comfort.
(The lady on the left is Mrs. Kimura and the one on the right is Mrs. Yonezawa.)
-Thanks to your prayers and donations, we were able to get MORE rain jackets for kids in Japan. Our friend, April (she graciously offered to let us stay with her), gave us 50 of them as well! Yu’s dad is taking them to Japan and giving them to kids in Sendai and Fukushima. Thank you for helping them to feel safe and protected.
-Yu’s dad visited us for a week. We had a great time together and Luke was happy to see his grandpa! Since he has been helping with disaster relief effort ever since the earthquake hit Sendai, he was asked to share his experiences at the Christian radio station in Seoul and the church in Suwon. God truly blessed his time in South Korea.
(Photo with Dr. Billy Kim, who is a wonderful pastor and founder of Far East Broadcasting Company.)
(Proud grandpa!)
Prayers:
-Some people are staying in a crematorium shelter, but they have been told that they would have to leave by the end of this month. Please pray that they can find a place to live.
(This picture was taken by our missionary friend. They visited this place and gave them food and clothes. They also spent time with them as these people shared their stories.)
-Sendai city government is trying to build many temporary houses for those who lost homes. Please pray for a speedy process.
(Temporary housing in Sendai where we will be visiting when we go back.)
Thanks again for keeping up with us! Please write us at michaelandyu@gmail.com and let us know how you are doing and how we can be praying for you all! We also love hearing from those we have never met. We are looking forward to getting to know you! Thank you for keeping us in your prayers.
