12/04/2023
Thank you for all of your prayers for the Japanese Mission Society (JMS) outreach event yesterday in Columbus, IN! There were more than 70 people (the number is not important). The reason I mention it is because there were many Japanese families from all around our area, from as far as Carmel, Indy, Seymour, Bloomington, and Richmond. It was a nice mix of acquaintances who don’t have opportunities to get to know each other well: their kids go to the same school, or husbands work in similar companies – or they had met once before, at Ethnic Expo for example, and now have a face to put with a name or realize that they live close enough to be friends. “Oh, you are the Japanese translator for the school district? I’ve gotten many e-mails from you. It’s nice to finally meet you.” Many Japanese ladies brought husbands, kids, and friends – all of whom could find things in common with other attendees.
The spoken language was Japanese, with Roman letters allowing all to sing Christmas carols in Japanese if they wanted (English hymnals available for those who didn’t). Tom’s message about the True Meaning of Christmas was in the form of a quiz that involved adults & kids, Americans & Japanese, ESL teachers & students. I think everyone walked away with learning at least one new thing about Christmas traditions or trivia. He pivoted into the meaning of names, and several Japanese friends stood to share what their first name means and why their parents chose it for them. Tom then talked about the meaning of Jesus’ name and why He came. Everyone heard of God’s miraculous Plan of salvation that needed His Son to be born as a baby for us. The lunch provided by Grace Lutheran staff and friends was huge and delicious, providing everyone to sit around and get to know each other. It was so fun to see them all mix and share the Christmas spirit.
This morning, two Japanese ladies asked if we could do that every week! It will be exciting to see how the Lord will lead this ministry! Thanks for praying!!!