Grace and peace to you all in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ!

And Happy New Year! We hope that 2022 has started off well for you. May the Lord be near to you each day no matter what the year may hold.

We start this newsletter off with joyful news of a new brother in Christ. On Sunday, January 16, Matthieu Toyama was baptized into Christ at the Matsudo church.

We are so grateful to God for this blessing! We mentioned Matthieu in our previous newsletter, so you may remember some of his story. However, this has been such a display of God’s provision and grace that we want to share that again in more detail.

Matthieu is what the Japanese call “half,” which would probably be very offensive in the U.S., but is simply the word used here to refer to someone who has one Japanese parent and one foreign parent. In Matthieu’s case, he is Japanese-American but has spent the majority of his life here in Japan.

Matthieu called the church building in the middle of worship in early December while Leslie was preaching. Normally, no one would have answered the phone, but by God’s grace, our sister Nao went to the office and answered. Although Matthieu knew he wouldn’t arrive until after worship was over, God had been pulling on him enough that he decided to come anyway. Thankfully, also by God’s grace, the day he called was the day we were having the Christmas party for the Kids’ English Bible Class that Sara has been leading, so everyone was still at the building. When Leslie answered the door, to his surprise, Matthieu switched to natural English. We invited him in and began talking and building a relationship.

We learned that Matthieu had attended a Catholic international school here in Japan growing up, so he had been exposed to scripture and the basic elements of Christianity. He had been vicariously sprinkled, and during his college years in the United States, had also received a pouring-style baptism at an apparently cultish Korean church which he only attended that one time. A long series of events led him to begin searching again, and through his girlfriend who lives in Lithuania, it was recommended that he search for a Church of Christ, which led him to Matsudo. After several weeks of time together at our house and at the church building, we could see a genuine faith and grasp of the basic elements of the gospel. We had a final study discussing the gospel, the meaning of baptism, and what it means to be a disciple this past Saturday night, and Matthieu was baptized into Christ on Sunday after worship.

As you can see from the story, this was completely God’s provision and is completely to his glory. It is also a literal answer to our prayers as a church. We are thankful that God allowed us to play a small part in Matthieu’s story.

Of course, as important and joyous as this is, this new chapter of Matthieu’s life has only just begun. We want to continue discipling Matthieu and see his faith increase and deepen. We request your prayers both for Matthieu and for us as we seek to grow together in Christ and make more disciples together.

A group photo with Matthieu after his baptism.

Matthieu has been the main story here recently for us, but there are several other things going on as well this month.

We mentioned in a previous letter that Leslie has joined the Japan School of Evangelism as a teacher, and will probably be teaching a few short courses this year at some point. The yearly opening meeting for JSE was held this month, and Leslie was invited to speak about our family’s experience coming to Japan during the covid pandemic. It was a joy to share how God has provided for us during all of this—opening doors that we could never open, preparing support and help that we could never produce, and so much more beyond what we ask or imagine! We look forward to continuing this relationship with JSE and hopefully being a blessing to this valuable work.

Unfortunately, this month, as we have seen across the globe, the omicron variant has been spreading rapidly after several quiet months. Although the numbers here are still much lower than other locations, we have seen a big increase, which will likely lead to more speed bumps in the coming weeks. Our sister Sanpei has already been dealing with the impact, as a number of people have tested positive at her kindergarten. As of yet, she has not tested positive herself, but the stress and burden on her during this time is significant, so we ask for your prayers for her as she strives to lead her school in the light of Christ during this.

We also ask for your prayers that our congregation will continue to be able to meet as we have. We are grateful that the Kids’ English Bible Class is going to continue after we asked the parents for their thoughts. Please pray that will be able to continue. Most of all, we ask for prayers of protection over our members, and prayers that the Matsudo church is able to be bold in our work while being protected from anything that would have a negative impact on our influence in the community.

The January JSE meeting was held on Zoom. We look forward to when in-person gatherings are once again possible.

On a personal note, we’ve had a busy several weeks to start the new year. On New Year’s Day, we partook in a tradition called “hatsuhinode” (pronounced: ha-tsu-he-no-deh), which is simply the first sunrise of the new year. Many places where you can see the sunrise are busy that morning with crowds coming out to watch together. We find it is a wonderful way to start the new year and enjoy getting to do that together as a family.

On January 5th, Leslie and Sara celebrated their 15th wedding anniversary. We were able to take the afternoon to go out to the Chiba coast, see some lighthouses, and eat at Outback Steakhouse for dinner (there are just a few in the big cities here, and one is just about an hour away by car). God has been so gracious and good to us, and we are thankful for each year together he has given us. We pray that our marriage would glorify him and serve his kingdom for many years to come.

On January 6th, we celebrated Madeleine’s 11th birthday. She had several friends over, and our family friends the Kobayashis came to celebrate together as well. We are so thankful for all the friendships the Lord has poured into our children’s lives here. Madeleine was especially thankful that we got a big snow on her birthday. It usually snows once or twice a year here, but the accumulation of more than an inch is relatively rare. What a great birthday gift for Madeleine, and what a wonderful Father we have!

• Prayers of gratitude for Matthieu’s baptism, and prayers for continued growth
• Prayers for continued success and fruitfulness with the Kids’ English Bible Class
• Prayers for Leslie as he participates in JSE
• That God will continue to work at Matsudo regardless of the COVID situation
• That God will allow the pandemic to come to an end soon so things can open and get back to some kind of normalcy
• The various ministers around Japan
• Sister Sanpei and her kindergarten
• Some specific names you can pray for: Matthieu, Tomoko, Kawakami family, Kobayashi family, Mr. Gotou, Fujita family, Ebata family, Shirouzu family, friends of our children, coaches, and staff at the tennis club

Men’s Retreat – January 14-15, 2022 with Colton Shannon

Twenty-two plus men came together to encourage each other and learn. Colton Shannon (fourth from the left front row) was the special facilitator for our time together. He spoke three times from Jeremiah. We broke out into small groups twice plus a group discussion after his final lesson.

Here are some of the points Colton made during our time together.

• Willingness to be in pain for something that matters more than the pain – Jeremiah complained to the Lord (12:1-4) and the Lord replied (12:5ff); Jeremiah was in pain for something that mattered more than the pain.
• God invites us, like he did Jeremiah, to be in pain for a mission that matters more than our pain.
• How leaders deal with their pain is inevitably contagious to the flock/family. We can’t give what we don’t have – Israel’s sins were engraved on their hearts and on the altar (Jeremiah 17:1-4); trusting in man (relying on ourselves) is like a shrub in the desert while trusting in the Lord and the help He gives through spiritual relationships is like a tree planted by water (Jeremiah 17:8ff); we need to be in relationship with other godly men to obtain the help we need; we are a group project.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year everyone!

We are so thankful for each of you – for your support, your prayers, and your interest in the work here in Japan. 2021 has been a better year for us because of you, and we are grateful.

A family Christmas image was taken while enjoying some illuminations in a neighboring town here in Chiba Prefecture.

We were able to enjoy a wonderful Christmas season as a family this year. Japan does celebrate Christmas, but it is quite different from celebrations in the United States. Christmas in Japan is celebrated similarly to how we celebrate Valentine’s Day in the U.S. Many people do enjoy it, but no one gets off work – it’s a normal day for the most part, with a few simple traditions scattered about. One interesting tradition is eating KFC, of all things (yes, there is KFC in Japan!). We actually tried that this year, which was fun! It can be a bit of a challenge to enjoy Christmas here as we do at home. We miss seeing friends and family who are all in the spirit of the season, among other things. But we’re grateful to be able to celebrate it here as we do.

Although there is some magic missing from the Christmas season, the fact that the day is known here provides wonderful opportunities to reach out to our community in the name of Jesus, and we want to take those opportunities as much as possible.

The Christmas party for the Kids’ English Bible Class. Everyone had a blast!

This year, we held several events to hopefully plant seeds through the season. We’ve mentioned before the Kids’ English Bible Class that Sara and other ladies at Matsudo have been holding each Sunday. That continues to go well, and the Christmas event was very well attended. The kids and their parents got to hear the story of Jesus’ birth, and for some, it may have well been the first time ever hearing that story. What a joy to be the first to share it!

In addition to the kids’ Christmas event, we also had our church Christmas worship this year, along with a small party afterward. While we didn’t have a lot of visitors, the visitors we had were special.

The first was our friend Tomoko, who also brought her two teenage children with her. Tomoko is part of a fairly zealous Buddhist sect here, and so we were unsure if she would be willing to come. What a joy that she did! Leslie preached on how Jesus’ birth shows that God is willing to experience our suffering with us, and we think it was probably a good lesson for her to hear. This was Tomoko’s first time ever attending a Christian worship service. We pray (and ask for your prayers) that it won’t be her last.

Another visitor was completely unexpected. In the middle of worship the week prior, we got a phone call from someone wanting to visit. Our sister Nao thankfully answered the phone and told him we were in the middle of services, but he said he wanted to come even if he was late. We weren’t sure if he would really show up, but sure enough, after services, someone came to the door. Leslie greeted him, honestly expecting someone just looking for money or something of that nature. Instead, he met Matthieu, who asked if Leslie spoke English and then proceeded to switch himself to completely natural English. What a surprise!

It turns out Matthieu has one American parent and one Japanese. He was raised in Japan, attended a Catholic international school, and had lived in the U.S. for 7 years until the pandemic started when he returned to Japan to be with his family. Recently, he has been feeling the need to be connected with God more, and a friend recommended he find a Church of Christ, which is what led him to Matsudo. He stayed for the kids’ Christmas party, and since that time he has been coming to worship every Sunday. We are hoping to start talking to Matthieu about some deeper spiritual topics in the new year, so we would request your prayers for us and for him as we engage moving forward. It has been encouraging to have his presence, and we think the church can clearly see God at work.

From our church Christmas party after our Christmas worship. We had some small snacks and a fun Christmas gift bingo game.

We also held our annual Christmas Eve worship at Matsudo, and we had one more visitor that evening, who had been unable to make it for our main Christmas worship. Leslie taught briefly on Jesus as the “Word become flesh” and what that means for us. The visitor who attended has visited many times over the years but has not yet decided to follow Christ. We pray that this will be the year when they decide to finally do so.

While we were very excited about these new connections, we were disappointed with a response from a friendly family here in our neighborhood. We invited them to the Christmas worship, but they declined, saying they were not interested in religion of any kind. They were very polite and gentle, and we still remain friends, but it was sad to have that outright rejection. Of course, this isn’t the first time we’ve heard something like this. Our sister Nao, as we have mentioned in the past, originally said she had no interest in religion either, but now is a faithful sister in Christ! Our relationships are never predicated on people following Jesus. We invite people to Jesus because we love him and love our friends. We will continue to love them no matter what the future holds. But we don’t consider this the end of the story, because we know the power of the gospel, both personally and in the lives of others.

It’s worth pointing out that our neighborhood friends and our friend Tomoko represent the challenging spectrum of evangelism here in Japan. On one hand, you have Buddhism and Shinto, which form the religious landscape of Japan. The traditions and religious background can present an enormous barrier to the gospel. On the other hand, you have modern secularism which causes people to lump all religion into one basket and cast aside any need for the supernatural or divine. Modern Japan is not quite the West, nor purely the East. There are elements of both. But we know that the God who casts our sin as far as the east is from the west loves all in between. His gospel speaks powerfully to every culture and age and breaks down every barrier. We will continue to preach that gospel and do our best to live it out and trust his power to reach the hearts of those we love.

Our Christmas tree on Christmas Eve. We purchased this tree last year after we got out of our immigration quarantine from IKEA. It has served us well for another year!

As we head into the New Year, many Japanese will be celebrating their most important holiday time. While we gather together with family and friends at Christmas in the U.S., most Japanese people return to their hometowns and visit family at the New Year. It’s one of the few times people actually have off from work. For many, this time will include New Year’s visits to the local shrine and temple. It can present a difficulty, especially for Japanese Christians, as there can be great pressure to participate in literal idolatry. We are all the more thankful for the Christmas season right before, which allows us to shine the light of Jesus in a way that is not as easily available during the rest of the year. Please be praying for the Christians here to be strong and faithful to Jesus, and for the New Year to draw people closer to the true dawning light of Christ.

“Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.” (Eph. 5:14)

That is our call at this time of year and for the rest of the year. We call people to join us in the light of Christ.
May your new year be filled with the light of Christ as well. May that light fill your heart and soul and mind and shine through you into the lives of those around you.

As you remember our work in prayer in the coming year, here are some things we would love for you to remember:

• Prayers of thanks for all that God has given us in 2021
• Prayers for continued success and fruitfulness with the Kids’ English Bible Class
• Prayers for Tomoko, as she reflects on the gospel message
• Prayers of gratitude for sending Matthieu our way, and prayers that we will be able to help him as he seeks to know the Lord
• That God will help the COVID situation stabilize and for more things to become possible in the new year
• That our return to our Sermon On The Mount series will be fruitful in the new year, and the DBS studies will return smoothly and also be fruitful
• That God will help Japan to open its borders soon
• Some specific names you can pray for: Matthieu, Tomoko, Kawakami family, Kobayashi family, Mr. Gotou, Fujita family, Saeki family, tennis coaches/staff/new friends

Grace and peace to each of you in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ!

It’s hard to believe, but as of today (November 29), our family has officially been in Japan for one full year. Before we get into our monthly news, we’d like to share with you a reflection on this past year.

We had originally intended to return to Japan in the spring of 2020, but the onset of the pandemic shut that down. Japan completely shut its borders, not only to new entries but even to foreign residents of Japan. Only Japanese citizens were allowed to enter for a time. As the months crept on, we became unsure if we would be able to return. We continued in prayer, as did many of you and certainly many of those here in Japan as well. On the cusp of thinking the door was certainly closed, God opened it in November 2020. We got our papers in order, packed up, and by God’s grace, we were able to make the journey (that’s absurdly oversimplified but accurate).

At the time we didn’t really understand why God had chosen that path, but as is often the case, in retrospect we have seen at least a glimpse of his guiding hand.

Let’s back up to the spring again. Some of you may remember, but we had actually put down a deposit on an apartment near the church building. It seemed perfect to us – a good size, amazing location, and a healthy price range. Our sister Sanpei had helped us enormously with what little free time she has to secure that unit for us. When the borders shut, although we were grateful the company willingly returned our deposit, we were disappointed to have lost what seemed to be a perfect living arrangement. On top of that, we likely would have been able to make the journey in time had it not been for a minor but significant paperwork mistake for our visas that everyone had missed. Confusion and some anxiety weighed on our hearts.

All of that frustration and confusion led ultimately to where we are today. As most of you probably know, we were able to secure not just an apartment, but a house. This house has been absolutely perfect for our family, but most importantly it has opened doors we could never have imagined. Our children have made numerous friends, as have Sara and I (Leslie). There have been so many connections made and seeds planted, and this is not our doing but the Lord’s. We’ve gotten to know: the Kobayashi family, the Fujita family, the Saeki family, Mr. Gotou, the Sugiyama family, the Ebata family, the Hamano family, the Kimura family, and the Shirouzu family. This is all just within our small neighborhood and does not include other relationships that we have continued to build with people like the Kawakami family or the Kameda family. Our prayer from before we left to this day has been that if God is sending us, he will make us fruitful. We firmly believe the timing and location are part of his answer to that prayer. We truly believe some of these people will end up following Jesus. Please pray for each of these individually, that this is the case.

Amidst the many blessings, there are of course challenges as well. While most churches we see in the States have returned to normal, we continue to wear masks throughout worship, have not had a fellowship meal the entire time we’ve been here, and have repeatedly had people turn down invitations of various kinds because of the pandemic. If we are honest, it is frustrating and discouraging at times. But we have seen God work too much to believe the pandemic or even individual decisions will prevent his work from being accomplished. Indeed, it may well be by these same challenges that the fruit is produced. If his name is glorified and many come to know him, then we rejoice no matter the path.

Flying out from Florida on our first flight towards Japan last year. What a journey and God has walked with us in each step.

We are so thankful to each and every one of you reading this. Your financial support, words of encouragement, and prayers of intercession are incredible blessings for which we are constantly grateful. Thank you for your support in this past year. We pray this next year will see growth and blessings here in Japan and wherever you are.

Thinking specifically about the month of November, things have certainly gotten busier and we are so excited to see things moving forward.

One of our first Kids’ English Bible Class events. The kids and parents seem to really enjoy and appreciate it. Praise the Lord!

Perhaps the biggest addition to our schedule this month was that we began the children’s English Bible class on Sunday mornings. This has been largely Sara’s project, along with the help of several ladies from church. We are so excited about how well it has been attended! There have been at least a handful of small children from non-Christian homes attending each week, most from within our neighborhood. Not only have the children been attending, but their parents have come with them. What a blessing it is to see this seed growing and we ask for your prayers that this continues to be an effective tool for the Matsudo church.

We would also request prayers for our upcoming Christmas event. We’re not totally sure what shape it will take this year, but it’s a rare opportunity to invite people to worship for something that connects with their lives, so we’re excited to see how God may use it. The topic this year will be on how, in his birth, Jesus entered into our suffering and gives us joy through that. We believe this will be a useful topic especially given the challenges of the last couple of years. Please pray that this will open doors to meaningful discussions with our friends that culminate in Jesus discipleship.

Speaking of which, our discovery Bible study (DBS) time continues to go well. In fact, we have one older couple, who had left Matsudo and attended another church in Matsudo after we left, who have returned and seem committed to coming regularly and participating, and the DBS time after worship is largely to thank for that. This couple specifically said this has been a big blessing to them. We pray it will continue to bless them and that this will grow into a blessing to many others as they seek Jesus, even if they don’t yet know for whom they are seeking.

Meeting with people from around Japan via Zoom. We certainly pray next year we’ll be able to meet in person!

Also in November, we took part in the Japan-wide worship, which was held online via Zoom. We have seen almost no other Christians outside of Matsudo since we came to Japan, so it was a blessing to see so many even if it was only through a computer. The event consisted of a lesson given by brother Tomura, followed by a breakout group discussion and prayer time, which Leslie unexpectedly ended up leading. There was going to be an English group, but due to almost no foreigners aside from us attending, the plan changed. We were grateful to be able to participate and help in some small way!

Somewhat connected to this, Leslie was invited to be a teacher with the Japan School of Evangelism, which is an organization held through the Churches of Christ in Japan. He has participated in this before and is excited to serve here again. There usually aren’t many students, but any fruit that can be produced is welcomed with joy. In fact, Leslie will be speaking at the teachers’ gathering in January. We request your prayers for his talk then and for his forthcoming classes over the coming year.

From our Thanksgiving meal this month. Sara worked hard all day and made an incredible meal. And don’t worry – the bottle on the table is sparkling juice! 😅

Of course, we also celebrated Thanksgiving this month. It is was our first Thanksgiving away from home, so of course, there is some sadness being away from family, but we were thrilled with how blessed this Thanksgiving was. Although it took a bit of an adventure, Sara was able to find a turkey at Costco, and we had several neighborhood friends over to enjoy the meal with us. For everyone, it was their first Thanksgiving meal, and we think everyone really enjoyed it. In fact, we felt it was probably the best Thanksgiving we have had in Japan. What a blessing and joy!

What better way to end this newsletter than with gratitude? We have so much to be thankful for: for making it through our first year, for all the blessings God has provided throughout this year, for the many connections we have made, and for how we are starting to see seeds being planted and (we hope in prayer) germinated. And of course, we are thankful for all of you. For each prayer, for each encouraging word, for every financial sacrifice made to make this work possible – we are so grateful.

As you remember our work in prayer, here are some things we would love for you to remember:

• Prayers of thanks for all that God has given us in this last year
• Prayers for continued success and fruitfulness with the Kids’ English Bible Class
• Our planning and preparation for Christmas events
• That God will connect us with those seeking and open hearts of those around us already
• That God will grant us the wisdom of when to say things and what to say
• That God will help Covid numbers remain low so things can remain open
• That our DBS (Discovery Bible Study) sessions will continue to go smoothly and be fruitful for the church, and ultimately reach to non-Christians
• That God will help Japan to open its borders soon
• Some specific names you can pray for: Kawakami family, Kobayashi family, Mr. Gotou, Fujita family, Saeki family, tennis coaches/staff/new friends

Extra Photos:

Left: children dressed up for our neighborhood Trick or Treat event
Right: Sara’s friend Tomoko and her son. The daughter, who is Cambria’s friend from kindergarten, was also present but not pictured

Grace and peace to each of you in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ! We pray this newsletter finds you blessed and fruitful in the Lord. We are so grateful for each of you who take the time to read this newsletter and all who pray for us and our work here in Japan.

This has been a very eventful month in a lot of ways, and we’re excited to share with you the various things we have been involved with recently.

As we mentioned in our previous newsletter, the state of emergency in Japan has finally come to an end, and case numbers have plummeted over the last several weeks. In our town of Matsudo, there have been repeated days with zero new cases, and even Tokyo has been in the 20s and 30s. This has allowed people to be more comfortable getting together and opened the door to planning for some big activities over the coming weeks and months.

We’ll talk more about those plans in a minute, but first, we are excited (and a bit amazed) to share that we officially have a teenager in the family! Cambria turned 13 this month, and we’re very glad the state of emergency ended in time for that, as it allowed us to get together with friends and celebrate her birthday as a family with a baseball game at the Tokyo Dome. It’s bittersweet of course to see her growing up, but what a blessing to watch all the ways she is growing and learning. She’ll actually be helping us out with some events in the future, and it’s so wonderful to have an extra helping hand who we can trust.

Enjoying Cambria’s birthday game together at Tokyo Dome. We rooted for the Hiroshima Carp and they won! Maybe they should invite us to every game!

Along with being able to celebrate Cambria’s birthday more freely, we’ve also been able together with a number of people. We’ve had the Kobayashi family over several times this month, and were finally able to get together with our longtime friends, the Kawakami family. We are so grateful for these friendships. Every time we get together we can’t help but think of how much we long to see these people we love become followers of Jesus. As much as possible we try to plant kingdom seeds in these times together, talking about how God blesses and shapes our lives. We pray that God will give an increase that leads to saving faith and obedient discipleship. We would ask that you be praying for these two families especially as well.

In addition to interpersonal relationships, the “re-opening” of society has also allowed us to start planning for some big events over the coming months. First and foremost, starting on November 14, we will be launching a kids English Bible class on Sunday mornings. Especially because we know so many children who speak English in our community or who have an interest in English, we think this could be a great opportunity. This project is especially on Sara’s shoulders, with the other ladies of the congregation helping out a lot. Please be praying for this event as we launch. We would love to see it become something meaningful to the community, but as with all plans, the blessing must come from God’s hands.

In addition to the kids English Bible class, we’re also beginning to make plans for Christmas events. Specifically, we are hoping to have a true Christmas-week Sunday event this year. In the past, this has been our most well-attended worship service, and we would love to see that happen again. This will require virus numbers to stay low, so please be praying that they will. The theme for this year’s series will be on the joy Jesus brings, and why it is that his birth was met with joy. Especially after several years of a pandemic, joy is something everyone needs. Please be praying that God will be putting it on the hearts of people to come and hear these messages and that it will become a catalyst for gospel-centered discipleship. We don’t just want to see good attendance – we want to see that attendance leading to people who follow Jesus. Your prayers specifically for that would be greatly appreciated.

If things go well into the winter, we are hoping to start our English worship service early next year. It really depends on the virus situation though, as we don’t want to get stuck in a stop-and-start cycle that discourages continued attendance. So again we would appreciate prayers that Japan’s numbers will remain low.

Boston in his costume at the park for the Halloween event. Leslie got to chat with some of the dads, and Sara was able to hand out many flyers for the kids’ Bible class to moms. And the kids had a blast!

We sometimes get discouraged with how much of a barrier the virus presents us here, but it is neither our right nor of any benefit to complaining. We entrust the timing to the Lord. We intended to come to Japan in March of 2019. Instead, it was almost December and that was after months of not being sure we would be able to go at all. But God used that timing to put us in this perfect location – better than anything we asked for or imagined! Will he not use the timing now to produce further fruit? We believe he will.

On the plus side of numbers being low at the moment, we were able to participate in a fun community event in our neighborhood on Halloween day. Although Halloween was virtually unknown in Japan just a decade or two ago, it has become a somewhat big event here, so the neighborhood decided to have a fun event for the kids. We dressed up, gave out candy, and were able to pass out some fliers for the upcoming kids English Bible class. This wasn’t a church event, but any event we participate in is an opportunity to be salt and light, and we’re thankful for each one the Lord provides.

Brother Yukusue is seated in the middle in the blue shirt. This was taken on the day of his baptism.

We do have one final bit of news that is very sad to share. Our dear brother Yukusue passed away this weekend. We will deeply miss his voice and presence at Matsudo, but we rejoice with him in that he is now dwelling surrounded in the presence of the Lord awaiting his glorious resurrection. What is a loss for us is a gain for him, and there is yet more to come. The church is going to try to reach out to his daughter to offer comfort and love. Please pray for us and for her and any other family members, that even in his death, Brother Yukusue may plant seeds of faith through the church in which we so faithfully participated for the final years of his life.

Thank you, as always, for each one of you who prays for our family and our work. We are so grateful for your prayers! As you remember our work in prayer, here are some things we would love for you to remember:

• Prayers of thanks for all that God has given us – our house, our community, a loving church with people willing to work, etc.
• Our upcoming maiden Kid’s English Bible Class on November 14th.
• Our planning and preparation for the Christmas series and related events
• That God will connect us with those seeking and open hearts of those around us already
• That God will grant us wisdom of when to say things and what to say
• That God will help numbers remain low so things can remain open
• That our DBS (Discovery Bible Study) sessions will continue to go smoothly and be fruitful for the church
• That God will help Japan to open its borders soon
• Some specific names you can pray for: Kawakami family, Kobayashi family, Mr. Gotou, Fujita family, Saeki family, tennis coaches/staff/new friends