Newsletter, Volume 40 No 3
Winter 2009-2010

Dear Friends,

I was surprised to learn recently that every two minutes a couple in Japan gets divorced. Something else that was troubling is the fact that some parents in Japan can never see their children after divorcing. This is because the Japanese Civil Code grants parental prerogatives to only one parent. The parent without that authority has almost no rights concerning their children.

Only half of those parents who turn to court mediation have won permission to see their children. Even with court mediation, the parent with custody rights can ignore the court’s decision to grant their former spouse visiting rights, and there is almost no legal recourse to implement such visits.

This breakdown of the family in Japan reminds us of the necessity to speak to family issues from the Bible and share with the people here how a relationship with their Creator can strengthen and bless their marriages and families. The Yoshino church has decided to center its spring evangelistic outreach around the theme of “The Family.”

We have been especially encouraged and blessed in a couple of ways during the past few weeks. One of the young men at the Yoshino church, Keishi Yoshimura, stood up after church and told everyone he was seriously thinking about entering Osaka Bible Seminary next spring to prepare for the ministry. During the past few months, God has really turned around the life of Keishi, who had been an inactive Christian for quite a while. With so few young men entering the ministry in Japan, this is a true answer to prayer.

Another blessing has been the addition of a fine Christian couple, Mr. & Mrs. Mizuta, to our small group of Christians at Kokubu, where I preach for an early 8:00 service on Sunday morning. I baptized Masanori Mizuta thirty-five years ago at the Kagoshima church. Since then, he has been transferred to various places because of his work, but now has returned with his wife to retire in the Kagoshima area. We are thrilled that the Lord has brought the Mizutas to bless us and assist in the Lord’s work in Kokubu.

Let me switch gears here and share with you some of the highlights of our activities during the past few months. November 25th, I conducted the funeral services for the father of Brother Yamaji of the Yoshino church. Brother Yamaji is the only Christian in his family, so I used the opportunity to share the gospel message with them.

Saturday, December 5th, I assisted the two other Christian chaplains at the Kagoshima prison in holding our annual Christmas service for the inmates. Mary and five ladies from the Yoshino church went with me to assist in the music part of the program. It was a real privilege to be able to speak to the 160 inmates in attendance about the “Unchanging Joy” which Jesus can bring into our lives.

Saturday, December 12th, the Yoshino church held a special Christmas program for preschool and elementary children in the area. Flyers were passed out, and 29 children and four parents attended the program filled with games, singing, refreshments, and most importantly, the Christmas story through a video and my short message. Most of the kids heard about the true meaning of Christmas for the first time.

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Children’s Christmas Program

Sunday, December 13th, Mary and I were at the Tarumizu church, where I led them in their Christmas worship service. December 20th, I preached for the Christmas worship services at Kokubu and Yoshino. The service at Yoshino was followed by a fellowship dinner and Christmas program in which all age groups took part.

December 21st, the last day of classes before winter break, I took English-Japanese New Testaments to all three of my classes at Kagoshima University. After I encouraged them to take one home and read about the first Christmas for themselves, the majority of them (72) did so.

The morning of December 23rd was spent visiting church members confined to their homes or hospital beds and leaving some of Mary’s home-baked cookies. That evening, Mary and I went caroling in the Yoshino area with members of the Yoshino church. Our Christmas activities concluded with our Christmas Eve candlelight service on the 24th.

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Yoshino Church Caroling

January 1st, the Christians in Kagoshima City welcomed in the New Year with an interdenominational worship service at one of the larger evangelical churches in the city. Members of the Yoshino church always attend this service.

January 23rd-24th, we enjoyed having Mike & Sheri Coyle visit us from Ohio. Sheri’s mother, Nelda Faust, faithfully served as our forwarding secretary for over twenty years. It was great to have them worship with us and join in our fellowship time which followed.

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With Mike & Sheri Coyle

February 11th, Brother Karakawa and I hosted the sixth, and final, Sermon Preparation Seminar at the Yoshino church for the men of our churches in Kagoshima Prefecture. Six men, four of them from Yoshino, took part in this two-year training program. This program was led by Brother Kishimoto from Osaka Bible Seminary. A special service was held on February 13th at the Kagoshima church to present each of the men with a certificate of completion from Osaka Bible Seminary. Mr. Nakano, president of the seminary, brought a challenging message, and Mr. Shibata, head trustee of the seminary, presented the certificates. We are very proud of the men and all the hard work they put in to improve as preachers of the gospel.
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Final Training Seminar

February 22nd-23rd, I, along with Mr. Kuboki and Mr. Kubo, the other two Christian prison chaplains at the Kagoshima prison, hosted the 35th Annual Meeting of Christian Prison Chaplains in Southern Japan here in Kagoshima. Fifteen chaplains attended this two-day meeting, which included a guest speaker, a research report, reports from each prison ministry, and a visit to see the Kagoshima Prison (the third largest prison in Japan). Christian chaplains are in the minority in Japan, so these times of sharing and interaction are vital for us.

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Prison Chaplain Meeting

In closing, we want to thank you for continuing to faithfully support our ministry here in the midst of difficult economic times in the States. We are encouraged and blessed to have supporters like you. We are planning to return to the States this summer for about a two-month furlough. We hope we will be able to visit many of our supporting churches then.

In Him,
 Walter & Mary