A POTENTIAL HARVEST IN THE U.S.
During this home assignment we’ve had the joy of seeing a group of Japanese Christians living in the Blacksburg area begin coming together for fellowship. On April 2nd we worshipped together for the first time with eight Japanese. A non-christian young Japanese family that was introduced to us by Brian’s father, also met with them. Already these Japanese believers are seeking to lead this young family and a young couple, Shogo and Akiko Takamuku, to faith in Jesus Christ. We also have had the opportunity to meet some young Japanese ladies at an international outreach led by one of our partnering churches. These ladies are attending Randolph Macon Women’s College in Lynchburg, Virginia. We’ve introduced these ladies to other Japanese Christians in the area, so that more Japanese can testify of Christ to them. We have been so encouraged to see many churches responding to the movement of God in bringing the peoples of the world into the very neighborhoods of our American churches.
TWO MORE BAPTIZED IN SHIMONOSEKI
On March 5th in the Japan sea Keiko Uchida (29) and Masako Yoshimura (30) were baptized. You can read the powerful testimonies of these two ladies at the recently updated PIONEERS Japan team website: www.pioneersjapan.org. Enter the Shimonoseki City team site and find the “Testimonies” link at the top of the page. Continue to pray for the ongoing ministry of our English-teaching missionaries, Lena and Jennifer, whom God used to lead them closer to Christ.
As our flight date, May 15th, approaches quickly, once again we are eager to see how God is going to provide the final 11% we need in monthly commitments. We are so thankful that many of our churches and friends on our sending team actually increased their giving for this next term. At the same time many hours have been spent on the phone and on the road talking with pastors and their churches. God has continued to open door after door. We thank God for four church families that have already made a commitment to support us this term: Asbury United Methodist (Newark), Radford Baptist (Moneta), Family Bible Fellowship (Roanoke), and Christ Commission Church (Hickory). As we look to God’s provision over the next two weeks of $700 in monthly commitments, we ask you to specifically pray for the following churches whom are praying about partnering with us: Calvary Church (Charlotte), Parkway House of Prayer (Roanoke), Eastlake Community Church (Moneta) Grace Church (Roanoke), Chestnut Hill Baptist (Lynchburg), Brandywine Valley Baptist (Wilmington, DE), The Tabernacle (Danville), Twin Oaks Baptist (Ferrum), and Word of Life Evangelical (Bedford).
INTEREST GROWS IN CHRISTIANITY
A poll conducted by the Gallup Organization has yielded some surprising statistics on Japanese attitudes toward religion, morality and spirituality. Among the findings from one of the most extensive surveys of the country ever taken was a Christian population of 6 percent "Most Japanese, judging by their responses to scales on happiness, are neither 'very happy,' nor 'very unhappy,' noted Gallup. "A note of hopelessness is found in the responses to a number of questions. And there is little evidence of eternal hope, although a considerable number do believe in some form of life afterlife."
Researchers were also surprised by teen attitudes which reflected an especially pessimistic outlook on life. While 22 percent of U.S. teens in previous Gallup surveys often wondered why they existed, the number for Japanese teens was 85 percent. Similarly, while 76 percent of U.S. teens always see a reason for their being on Earth, only 13 percent of Japanese teens agreed with the statement. A surprisingly high 11 percent of Japanese teens wished they had never been born. —Abridged article from Assist News Service (ANS)
More: http://www.hsengine.com/s_united+methodist+church.html
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