-
Worship.jpg
-
mrs.matsuda.jpg
Dear Journal,
We have just returned from three days at our Baptist annual meeting. This year is the 130th anniversary of
American Baptist mission work in Japan and what a celebration we had at the First Baptist Church of Yokohama. It was a joyous occasion with more than 200 people attending, praising God with thankful hearts for those early missionaries who first brought the gospel to Japan.
Nathan Brown, Jonathan Goble and their wives sacrificed much to bear witness in those early days of the Meiji Restoration. Jonathan Goble came as a ship hand on Admiral Perry's black ships that arrived in 1853 very near where we live today. Japan had been closed to the outside world for many years, so even seeing these ships from afar was a frightening experience. But, through it all Japan opened the country and Goble was able to share the gospel with the common people in a very meaningful way that has lasted until this day.
In 1872 Nathan Brown and his wife arrived in Japan on their way back to the US from Burma at the age of 60. After they arrived, they fell in love with the people and the culture and stayed on as missionaries starting the First Baptist Church in Yokohama. It is the second oldest protestant church in Japan (the Roman Catholics had come in the 1400s but after several years all the Christians were massacred and Christianity was outlawed until the opening of the country in the late 1800s). Nathan Brown was the first person to translate the New Testament into Japanese and to put the Japanese writing system into the Romanized alphabet.
Now 130 years later, the Japan Baptist Union has developed into a self-supporting body serving Christ in this land with great fervor and dedication. There are five Baptist schools serving more than 30,000 students, more than 70 churches and preaching places, and many church nursery schools. The number of Christians is still small but with the Christian education children receive in our Christian schools and churches, the Christian values and beliefs are being taught and will not be forgotten.
We have much to celebrate yet much more to do in
witnessing the gospel to people in this great country. Please pray for the churches, schools, church leaders, and the missionaries who are all striving to serve God here.
We will be in the States from July 10th until October 7th and hope to see many of you on deputation or at Green Lake. There will be two Japanese women attending the Women's Conference and the World Mission Conference along with us, so please be sure to welcome them and make them feel at home.
Thank you for your prayers and support for our ministry. God is working in the hearts of the Japanese and will continue to reveal Himself to all of us as we depend on Him for guidance and direction in our lives.
In Christ's Name,
Judy
We have just returned from three days at our Baptist annual meeting. This year is the 130th anniversary of
American Baptist mission work in Japan and what a celebration we had at the First Baptist Church of Yokohama. It was a joyous occasion with more than 200 people attending, praising God with thankful hearts for those early missionaries who first brought the gospel to Japan.Nathan Brown, Jonathan Goble and their wives sacrificed much to bear witness in those early days of the Meiji Restoration. Jonathan Goble came as a ship hand on Admiral Perry's black ships that arrived in 1853 very near where we live today. Japan had been closed to the outside world for many years, so even seeing these ships from afar was a frightening experience. But, through it all Japan opened the country and Goble was able to share the gospel with the common people in a very meaningful way that has lasted until this day.
In 1872 Nathan Brown and his wife arrived in Japan on their way back to the US from Burma at the age of 60. After they arrived, they fell in love with the people and the culture and stayed on as missionaries starting the First Baptist Church in Yokohama. It is the second oldest protestant church in Japan (the Roman Catholics had come in the 1400s but after several years all the Christians were massacred and Christianity was outlawed until the opening of the country in the late 1800s). Nathan Brown was the first person to translate the New Testament into Japanese and to put the Japanese writing system into the Romanized alphabet.
Now 130 years later, the Japan Baptist Union has developed into a self-supporting body serving Christ in this land with great fervor and dedication. There are five Baptist schools serving more than 30,000 students, more than 70 churches and preaching places, and many church nursery schools. The number of Christians is still small but with the Christian education children receive in our Christian schools and churches, the Christian values and beliefs are being taught and will not be forgotten.
We have much to celebrate yet much more to do in
witnessing the gospel to people in this great country. Please pray for the churches, schools, church leaders, and the missionaries who are all striving to serve God here. We will be in the States from July 10th until October 7th and hope to see many of you on deputation or at Green Lake. There will be two Japanese women attending the Women's Conference and the World Mission Conference along with us, so please be sure to welcome them and make them feel at home.
Thank you for your prayers and support for our ministry. God is working in the hearts of the Japanese and will continue to reveal Himself to all of us as we depend on Him for guidance and direction in our lives.
In Christ's Name,
Judy