Japan Day 10 - Final Sunday Services

Hello, Chris here!

I hope that all that has been shared has really opened your eyes to what ministry is like in an unreached nation such as Japan. Yet, it’s so clear that God is moving and it’s evident in churches like Shin Urayasu Grace Church and Alive International which we were able to attend Sunday Services in our last full week in Japan.

We woke up in the early morning to travel to Tokyo to visit Shin Urayasu Grace Church, a church plant in Tokyo. There we were able to join in an amazing service, with songs of praise and a message from Pastor Craig of the church. I was reassured and encouraged to see the congregation and to hear the Gospel preached so fervently.

After service, I was able to talk to one of the congregants, a grandma who was sitting in the back. She shared that she was in her late 70’s or her early 80’s. So when I asked her how she came to faith, I was surprised to hear her story. She shared that she grew up in the faith, as a 4th/5th generation Christian in her family. This is pretty unheard of in Japan and even in my two months there, I’d only met Christians who came to faith recently or were 2nd gen Christians.

All that to say, I realize how hard that must’ve been for her - at the same time, it was clear how strong she and the family’s faith must’ve been to persevere in such a place where the Church has barely existed, and the culture so against being a Christian. It’s only in God’s grace and through the power of the Holy Spirit that this could happen. And in that, I had joy and was encouraged. And likewise, as I shared about myself and the team, she shared how encouraged she was by our team’s heart for the unreached and of us younglings as evidence of the next generation of believers wanting the Gospel to be known in Japan.

In my own heart, this understanding of the importance of the next generation of believers and hope for them was further affirmed in Alive International. We attended the church service and here, a lot of young folk of many mixed marriage couples, internationals, and students from CCSI were present. The thing that stuck out at this church was their heart and love for worship.

I always hear the phrase, “Missions exist because Worship does not”. And here, I see the work of the missionaries has brought forth a ministry such as Alive International, where God is being further worshipped. How beautiful that truly is and how much more I pray and hope for more worship to come to the unreached nation of Japan, to all the nations of the world.

Chris