Heading Back to Tokyo

October 21, Saturday
6:28 a.m.

I have only a few minutes to write this morning. We will be leaving the camp at 9 a.m. to head for Koriyama Station and the train back to Tokyo. We have thoroughly enjoyed staying at the camp and visiting with pastors and their families and churches in the Koriyama area. Our time here has added immeasurably to our knowledge base for designing a ministry going forward to bless the people of Japan.

Nobby and Bev talked with me yesterday about the missionaries here formulating a strategic plan for their ministries overall. I know they and the others (Enterlines, Mitas, and Yoshidas, along with Joyce Oshiro) are not sure they see the value in such planning, even though the mission administration back in the States would very much like them to do it as a part of a mission wide effort to move ahead more intentionally. Normally, I would be strongly in favor of strategic planning. The process involves a lot of vision-casting, which is one of my gifts. Nevertheless, I do not believe that a strategic plan is what is called for here at this time. What is called for here at this time more than anything else is a massive prayer movement for Japan.

There is powerful opposition to the Gospel here, with a steel door closed over the hearts of its millions of lost souls. Stanley, one of the men I shared with in detail on Sunday evening at McDonald’s after the English service told Bev later in the week about my sharing. He said that another person had been offended by someone else sharing with them on a different occasion and that she would not be returning to the church. He said, however, that he was not offended by my sharing. He just does not have any regard at all for anything that I shared. Bev Tajima explained to me that it would be better if Stanley had been offended. At least, it would indicate that some conviction is beginning to penetrate his heart. But his heart is as dead as the idol pictured in an earlier post.

Unfortunately, Stanley’s story is the story of multiplied millions here. We who know the Lord just cannot be satisfied to walk away with a shrug of the shoulders, saying, “Oh, well.” We must recognize the desperation of the situation. We must recognize that so many precious souls are lost and in the tangible grip of the devil. We must recognize the utter inappropriateness of there being a land like this with so very few who call upon the Lord to be saved. We must rise to the challenge of participating in the defeat of unbelief in Japan. There is powerful opposition to the Gospel, but it is no match for the power of our exalted Lord. If he himself could return from the dead, surely he is able to command millions of hearts here to come alive with faith in him.

My prayer for Japan is very similar to the one raised to the Lord in Acts 4:24ff. Toward the end of that prayer, the Christians prayed: “Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. Stretch out your hand to heal and perform miraculous signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus.”
The healing and the miraculous signs and wonders for which we pray are all in reference to opening the hearts of people here to faith in Jesus. Pray for Japan.