Thursday
It’s raining
this morning. Temps have been around 49 during the day and 39 at night. It’s
really not that cold. Good brisk weather;
good for the soul. Joy mentioned that it
snowed in Machida last week, but no snow is forecasted for the remainder of our
stay. Too bad!!
Beloved, we
greet you from Machida, Japan, and remember always of your faithful love and
support of our team and the mission programs of South Bay Japanese Christian
Fellowship and Crossway. Thank you.
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| Hiromi, Hiromi, Hikari (Kyoko's Daughter), Kyoko |
After settling
in to our living quarters and doing some unpacking of our mission supplies, we were
treated to an intimate ‘Welcome’ dinner by some of the lady leaders of the
church. We had a wonderful time with
Hiromi, Kyoko and Hiromi. The special
menu item for the night was a kebob of Chicken “Oshiri” (check with your
Japanese speaking friends on the translation).
Very different and delicious.
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| Megu & Mao |
After
dinner, we spent the evening with two of Joy’s high school students who have
been in JOY CLUB since they were in elementary school – Mao and Megu. Both are 16 and know the Lord through Joy. They were a delight and are quite good in
English. We hope that we helped them
improve even more. After the class, we
were joined by Pastor Uchimura and Go who was one of the middle school boys who
came by the church to play basketball. Go
is now 26. He met Jesus on a trip to
Hawaii where he graduated from the University of Hawaii and is now a very bold
businessman in real estate looking to create his own company soon. He dropped by this evening to say hello to
Sensei who made an impact in his life. We
praise God for Go’s love of the Lord and say “Amen” to the work here at
Everygreen Chapel.
With most of
the shopping done for the JOY Club Christmas Party, we took some personal time
to catch up with the jet lag before the big push in work and preparations. Yuriko went into Machida to do some shopping
and returned to the church to do some baking.
She is the best baker ever!
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| Aico & Diane in Studio |
Diane and Stan headed off to Tokyo to meet
with an old friend, Aico, who Stan met 3 years ago through her niece, Joy
Takahashi. She’s 95. A bus ride, two trains and a short walk got us
to Aico’s little studio at a Weslyan Church in Nogata. Such a remarkable woman with endless stories
of how God directed each step of her life.
She was born in California and was sent to Japan by her parents just
before the outbreak of WWII at age 17, and she remained in Japan. During the war, she spent time as an American
English teacher in one of the mountain areas of Gifu, Japan. She taught kids 5-6 years of age. Well, 6 of those kids she taught are planning
a reunion with her this Saturday at her studio.
They remembered this special teacher and found her. They will have a great time together.
The next
several days will be busy as we work with the members of Evergreen to complete
plans for the J.O.Y. Club Christmas Party on Saturday. This is the primary reason we are here in
Machida. Through Joy, God has planted
many seeds of His gospel in the hearts of the children. The work is hard, but God’s promises are
true. Thank you for your prayers for
these children and their families.
“The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make His face to shine on you and be
gracious unto you. The Lord lift up His
countenance to you, and give you peace, this day and forever more. Amen”. Numbers 6:24-26
And we will
praise Him,
Your Machida
Team
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| Mao, Rumiko (Mao's Mom), Megu, Go We're having a great time!!! |
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| Aico & Stan in Sanctuary |
