For Thursday June 25th,
Last night we were able to meet Victor, director of digital media Japan for dinner. He is our local on-site coordinator. He is a blessing for giving us activities to work on. He also brought along Michelle, who teaches at a nearby university and leads an ESL Bible study at the Quakers affiliated Woman’s College. She invited Erika and Jordan to her class the next day to help students during discussion time, and with the Bible study.
Today was exploration day. Erika and Jordan went to Michelle’s class while Steve and Rochelle and I headed to the Mitaka train station. As we walked by a church, a woman walked out from a side street and said, “Hey, are you with Team’s Ministry?” Well no, but we are staying at their guest house. In turned out that Kay attends the church we were standing in front off, the church was planted by TEAMS ministry, she has been going there for 45 years, and was heading to the Woman’s Bible study this morning. Her heritage was Italian-Japanese and spoke perfect English from attending school in the States. This obviously was a God-timing meeting. Pray she continues to have impact with women living in Mitaka.
Later in the afternoon we went to check out the Delta Cross Church meeting place for Sunday evening at the Over Coffee Hub co-working space. Erika and Jordan rejoined us there for a drink in the cafe on the first floor. Rochelle was able to take the initiative and introduce herself to a young mom with an 8-month old child, encouraging her and giving her a children’s gospel track for the future. And Jordan was able to meet a woman her age and exchange LINE app QR codes to meet up later for coffee and discuss cultural differences of Japan and America. Steve and I were able to meet 2 of the 3 owners, and encourage them in this ministry endeavor. While not overtly Christian in decor, the barristas Timothy and Hunter are, and a Church meets there on Sunday evening. Pray for continued spiritual discussion opportunities to keep flowing as much as the coffee.
For June 26th
Today in the morning we split up into 3 groups. My group was me to solo prayer walk around a circle of 8 churches in the Mitaka City. I stood in front of the church and prayed for it, the pastor, the members, the neighborhood, the harvest potential. Then I wrote down my impressions of what was happening around the church. Here are some of those prayer notes:
Mitaka Baptist church
blessings, outreach, community building most important.
3 high rises a block away.
Japan ccc
staff, student impact, digital media production, distribution, Victor’s leadership, office comradirie, nationwide reach.
Christ Kyodaidan Mitaka Church
living water, draw those who thirst, under construction. A block before this church, I said a japanese hello to a woman coming out of a shop with flowers and was putting them in her bike’s basket. She said hello, good morning and something else in Japanese. I stood there not knowing what else to say, so she said “how are you.” So I said I was with a group on a cultural exchange mission. She said Oh, and pulled out a flyer and gave to me. It was for her Nepalese Restaurant a block from the Sunday Night Bible Study. So now I have a dinner appointment.
Mitaka evangelical church
picking up trash, refreshing rain early and late to produce a harvest, art or architect, met pastor’s wife with young daughter, pastor Ben says those on the street are in a hurry to get to the next place, don’t make eye contact, if you pass someone they know may feel a wince but then say a quick hello and move on, we need an event in order to meet new people.
Musashino Midoro Church
out of brochures, pacifist sign, building reinforcement.
The rain from the typhoon was so heavy, I had to head back to the Team Center. Pray for God to work in these Churches to bring about the topics I have mentioned.
In the evening we went to a Student Impact Friday Night Meeting. There were about 20 of SI American Missions Team the 5 of us and about 5 University students.
We sang some worship songs played a couple of games, read the story of the prodigal son, and broke into small groups to discuss what the story meant to us. In the group I was in was Musa. He read the story in English, then in Japanese. In the discussion he said it was the first time he had read it and had some questions. There was 5 others in the group so we each gave our view to help his understanding. He began to understand. Fernando had given him a Bible 3 weeks ago and said to read the book of John. Last Sunday Fernando took him to church for the first time.
For June 27
In the morning, we met over coffee with Pastor Shige Nakazawa- pastor of Tokyo Small Church Network. Steve and Rochelle knew him from their time in Japan working with Cru and were catching up with him. He explained his church ministry which is articulated on this website: https://www.tokyosmallchurchnetwork.com/
Shige also has lead a prayer walking ministry for the last 12 years focused on central Tokyo neighborhoods. Every Tuesday they meet at one train station, then pray while riding the train on a loop track around Tokyo. I will be joining them this Tuesday. The website explains further details of the ministry: https://prayyamanote.com/en/
In the afternoon, Jordan had a coffee time with a lady she met at the Over Coffee Hub on Thursday. This is growing into a friendship and Jordan has invited her to our two church services we will be attending tomorrow. We are saying Jordan has a WOO personality, or winning others over. It is an example for all of us follow. Pray that she will be able to attend the evening service.
In the evening we planned our program for the DeltaCross church Bible Study tomorrow evening. We have 15 minutes for a worship song, a skit to act out the parable of the sower in Matt. 13:1-9, and a testimony. Then there will be a discussion about the parable. Pray for good soil during the discussion time. Pray also for several other students that we have met the last 2 days could also attend the Delta Cross service, and be open to the prompting of the Holy Spirit in their lives.
Today was Church day. The morning service was at Double ‘O’ Cross Church in Kichijoji, the next train stop east. It is an Int’l community-based congregation and staff of about 40% Japanese and 60% foreigner. The norm for growing churches. They had their 13th anniversary on June 7th and there were about 50 in attendance. Their whole service is bi-lingual in both Japanese and English. The worship team is a mix but they start the songs, which are more contemporary Christian, in Japanese. The sermon depends on which pastor or elder is speaking.
This church is planting the Delta Cross Church
After the service we ate lunch with Pastor Lucas and 2 interns from ABWE in New Cumberland, PA. He said they started the church 13 years ago in a room on the 2nd floor. For the first 2 years they gave an altar call every week. After a while they realized the same people were raising their hand.
They moved to the basement to have more space. Then they started a 2nd service in the afternoon, but the 1st service is now full. Instead of looking for a bigger space, a member, who started a coffee café and co-work space, offered to host a church group, which they have now used for the last year.
They are now thinking of changing the Bible Study format, which has been going for a year, into a church planting effort, called Delta Cross Church. Our 15 minute program was the initiation of the transition.
There were the 5 of us, about 10 Double Cross Church members, and about 5 newer attendees. At my table was a family of three, a gentleman with 2 toddlers (his wife was at the table in the front), and a college student. The student and teenage daughter were young Christians. Their Bible knowledge was very limited in the sense that they had New Testaments but did not know where the book of Matthew was. The woman to the right in the picture had to show them. This is my understanding that Japanese people have little opportunity to hear any Bible stories. I was told there was one Christian radio station in Tokyo, a metro area of 37 million.
Pray for the Chuches in Mitaka and Kichijoji, for fruitfulness, community, perseverance, unity, and resourcefulness.
Pray for our planning this week to distribute a Manga track on several campuses and invite students to our 4th of July event.
