ChristianVolume 93

"Goye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature" Mark 16:15

January 1994 Number 1

SIMS' NEWS

Jonathan and Verla Sims Arrive for

His Third and Her First Term As Missionaries

iV '

Jonathan. Loia and Verla in front of our house at Mejirodai.

On Nov. 5 our son, Jonathan, and his newwife, Verla,arrived at Narita airport to begin the "together" part oftheir missionary work. Nov. 7 we had our annual commemoration of the start ofthe Mejirodai church (23 yearsago) and, as always, we remember those who have alreadygone to heaven from ourmidst. With 2 added to thisgroup during 1993, there are now 10 whose pictures aredisplayed.

This year the day was also a welcome for the newmissionaiy, Verla, andJonathan returningafter 16 monthsin the U.S. After the worship service, most of the 42 adultsstayed for a reception, which Lois had prepared. Shefixed sliced turkey and ham sandwiches, jello with fruitin it and carrot cake, which was near to duplicating whatwas served at the wedding reception at North GrandeChurchinAmes, Iowa lastAugust 14. Some shortspeecheswere made by both Jon and Verla and some of the folkshere. At the evening Gospel Hour the young people wereto ask questions ofVerla in English. We were pleased athow well some of them did.

On a cold and rainy Monday, Nov. 8,1 took them downto Joel Home in Yokohama. Mr. and Mrs. Oka were

waiting there to greet them with a bunch of flowers. Theywere having trouble getting the gas heater to work, so,within a few minutes, Jon was trying to get that working.Theyfinally had to call the gas companyservice man, whocame quickly and solved the problem.

The narrow streets and closely crowded houses inthat downtown section really made culture shock real forVerla, but she seems to be coping well with many newways, things, customs, etc. Their baggage, sent from Iowaover 2 months before, arrived within a few days, and theyare settled into their new place ofwork. They quickly gotthe necessary alien registration, health insurance regis

tration and other such requirements done, including adriver's license although they don't have a car at present.

The small group of Christians at the Joel Home had awelcome dinner for them on Sunday, Nov. 14, at a ChineseRestaurant in the large Sagami Railroad Terminal Building. Verla especially likes Chinese food. During themeal, Verla suddenly realized it was exactly 3 monthssince their wedding day.

Our Tokyo area missionaries always have a get-together and, if possible, eat turkey for Thanksgiving eachyear. This year the meeting was at our place, and we hada welcome meeting for them with some gifts from different friends as well as the traditional meal on Nov. 19.

We are sorry to report that in late November Verlahad a miscarriage. They were both very happy about thepregnancy and the Japanese hospital and doctor andother things compounded the shock and sadness. Butthe God of all comfort was with them and she is back to

normal health and activity now.We don't see them often, but keep in touch by phone.

We really enjoyed 3 days of being together during theholidays after Christmas. Please remember them in yourprayers.

Christmas 1993

We have no connection with the department storebusiness, but, somewhat like them, our Christmas preparations always begin well before Thanksgiving with thewriting, printing, addressing and sending out of ourfamily news and greeting letter to over 400 addresses inthe U.S. and over 200 in Japan. That is a big job and isgoing to be more expensive the next time because of arather sharp increase in Japanese postage rates beginning this year. But, one of the real compensations isgetting all those greetings in return. Then, every Christmas ends with thanksgiving to God for the many joys wehave experienced during the best time of the year. Eachyear there is something unexpected and unusual thathappens during the season and remains in our memories. This year there are 3 special things that we want totell about: 1. The Children's Christmas Party, 2. TheCantata, and 3. The Returnees.

1. Our Sunday School attendance has been in asteady decline for the past 7 or 8 years and many ofus areconcerned about it. We have been averaging only about5 children each Sunday all Fall, and even those were notregular enough to plan and rehearse a program. So, wegathered some pine cones at camp for them to paint andmake into decorations to take to their homes after the

church services on Dec. 19. They worked on the pine

;inbed all day with a lightfever and intestinal flu.so he had to walk up fromthe station with heavysuitcase in cold rain. We

hadn't had a visit from

him in 16 months, so itwas wonderful to have

him here with us the 2

weekends of Dec. 12 and

I C i "^3 people like him and he isalwaysvrtllingtohelpandgive a good humoredword of cheer. So, Bobwas quickly drafted into

||||[|||||||||[|||||^^ playing SantaGlaus. Hedidn't know howclosewe

•MM were to getting to the bot-tomofthebarrelontreats

' until he gave the last onefrom the big bag to the

'' lastchild. SincebothMr.

^ Sims and Mr. Kishimotowere standing there, and

f> , • the children didn't know«^^ Bob, some of them really

™ became believers in

left, front. Santa (we have an old redsuit with beard and all)

and asked if he had come from Finland, etc.OnJan. 9, one little 4th g^ade girlwho came to church

for the first time that day appeared at Sunday School andpromised to come regularly. Ah, Christmas is a goodtime! Such experiences are a good way to get over the flu,by the way.

2. A missionary in Nagano Prefecture sent us anadvertisement for a 3-part Cantata she had written to beperformed by small untrained choirs in typical Japanesechurches. It was in 3 parts: Soprano, Alto and Men'svoices (they are few in Japanese churches, generally).Some ofthe music was arranged from familiar Christmashymns such as "We Three Kings." We ordered 12 booksand started talking about it, but couldn't get much interest or cooperation at first. Finally, in November, a fewinterested people began practicing around the pianoafter the morning worship services. Some thought it wastoo difficult, but, after a little practice, most thought theycould do it and began taking books to practice at home.

It ended up that 12 people (4 for each part) sang thisCantata - "Beautiful Star" - as the main event of our

Church Christmas party on the afternoon of Dec. 19 andthen again at the Candle Service on Christmas Eve night.It was much appreciated and enjoyed byall who sang and

Christmas attendance at Mejirodai. Robert Sims is at left, front.

cones after lessons for several weeks.

Then, Bro. Kishimoto planned a Christmas Party forthe children for Saturday afternoon, Dec. 11, at 3 PM.Small invitations were printed and sent to some addresses we had and distributed in the neighborhood,inviting all to come, (^eJapanese are nowin the processof moving to a 5-day school week, so the second Saturdayis sort of an experimental holiday this year.) The basicproblem is that there are very few elementary aged children in our neighborhood now. The largest class in thelocal elementary school is 6th grade, and the numberdeclines until the first grade, which is the smallest.

Bro. Kishimoto asked the young people's group toprepare a simple playabout "The Otherwise Man," whichthey performed very effectively. Also, we had one of ourmembers, who is a gifted ventriloquist, to come with hisdoll, Ken. Both children and mothers enjoyed theirconversation and even singing in their own way. Theyoung people also decorated the church, including outside lights and a small tree with flashing lights, onSunday, Dec. 5, in time for this event.

My job was preparing the treats. I bought bright redpaper bags and Lois and I prepared 30 of them with someof her home-made cookies and other candies and small

wooden toys that could also double as tree ornaments.We thought that would surely be enough in view of theaverage attendance. WE did have a few spares that didn'thave the full contents of the first 30.

At just before 3 they began coming in. Some of ourregulars brought their friends. One lady, who sends her2 children only 3 or 4 times a year, was having a reunionof her high school class members at her home, so theybrought about 6 children - 4 ofthem in church for the firsttime. (Convenient to have the free baby-sitting on thesame day!) So we ended up having 31 children, 11mothers and 9 young people present for a wonderfulparty.

Ourson, Robert, from Kentucky, had arrived inJapanon a business trip just the night before. I had been sick The Cantata in progress.

listened and had a real message. This was a first experience for our church.

3. On Jan. 31, 1992, Mrs. Hara suffered a seriousstroke, leaving her left side paralyzed. They had tooperate on her brain to stop the bleeding. After 1 year inthe emergency hospital and then in a rehabilitationhospital, and after the family made some changes in thehouse so she could live the rest of her days in a wheelchair at home, she was finally able to go back home atChristmas 1992. This Christmas she came to church for

the first time since she was stricken almost 2 years ago.Our church is not equipped with ramps, but young mencarried her up the stairs from the street in her chair. Sheshed many tears of joy at being there, but was able toparticipate to some extent in the singing and worship, asshe didn't lose the power of speech. But to me, the mostbeautiful thing was to see the surprise and joy on thefaces of our members as they saw her and greeted herwith such expressions as. This is real Christmas." Itmade the day for all of us.

Mrs. Morita was hospitalized in November for ulcers.She had several, but the doctor said it would be toodebilitating on her mid-70s body to operate to the extentneeded to take all of that part of her stomach. So, he saidthey would go with just medicine and nourishment intravenously for a month. She made a surprising recovery.Mrs. Morita was also back. Looking good!

Mrs. Aoyama spilled boiling water from a tea kettleon her left leg some months ago. Since her legs are badanyway, she doesn't get out very often. But on Christmasshe was sitting back there by the stove smiling happily.

We had 51 adults and a good number of children atboth the Christmasworship and the Christmas Eve CandleService. Both audiences included people we hadn't seenfor a long time, so we were very happy.

We have already mentioned that our son, Robert, wasthere. During the afternoon of Dec. 19, after finishingtheir service at Joel Home, Jonathan and Verla came upto visit Bob and us. It was the first time to have 2 of ourchildrenwith us at Christmas since theyleft home roughly20 years ago. I don't need to expand on how much weenjoyed the short time together. We also called all of ourchildren on Christmas day as usual.

Eighteen of our members went to visit Mrs. Okada inthe hospital on Dec. 15th. She was waiting for us and weenjoyed a good time together. It was her fifth year in thathospital. She is 92 years old now, and remembers thenames of all who go to see her and is interested in allthings about them and the church. She was bom just onemonth before the Cunninghams came to Japan in 1901.Mrs. Cunningham died on Christmas Day40years ago, bythe way.

i *

In Keiyo Hospital December 25th. Mrs. Okada is in the center.

Young XDOthers' group. Maaumi Kishlmoto 1bat the left.

Mrs. Kishimoto made friends with a number ofyoungmothers in ourneighborhood whohad their first childrenin the same 3-month period in 1992 at the local clinic.They now meet once or twice a month at the church tovisit with each other and let the children play together.Some of them came to our Chapel Concert. We hope thiswill result in some becoming Christians. They had aChristmas meeting on Dec. 14 and Lois and I were invitedand took a pumpkin pie, which was a treat for them all.

Chapel Concert

For some years now we have had a fall concert hereat Mejirodai as oneway to make new contacts. Each timewe have had different performers and programs, but mosthave been professionals and all have been Christianswho give short testimonies between songs. Planningbegins months ahead, when contacts are made withartists who might be able to come.

Thisyearwe had a well-known men's trio come to singa program of spirituals - many of them in English. Theyhad produced a number of records, and also do a concerttour throughout Japan every year. We printed 10,000handbills and many ofthe young people helped to distribute them all over the area in different places than we hadworked through before. Of course, many of our membersalso invited friends and relatives personally.

That day was rainy and cold, so we worried a littleabout the effect ofthat on attendance. At 5 minutes before

starting time, there were very few people besides ourchurch folks here. But then they started coming in. Oursmall chapel building was packed with 65 adults and 7children, who all seemed to enjoy the entire program.The thing that pleased us the most was that over 20 ofthose present were here for the very first time, or after along absence. After all, that was the main purpose of thewhole event. The singers were very happy about thenumber of tapes sold after the service.

Chapel Concert. L. to R: Mr. Suzuki. Mr. Kosaka and Mr. Iwabuchi.

News Notes

Baptlem of Naoki Akada. H. Sims preaching in Onta Church.

Also a group of freshmen classmates of his at the schoolwho were already Christians came to encourage him andthe Chaplain of the school also attended. I was impressedwith the attitude of the school in positive encouragementof those students who decide to become Christians while

students there. More of the many "Christian Schools" inJapan ought to do this.

Nakano Church Christmas

For over 30 years Lois has gone twice a month toconduct a ladles Bible class at the Nakano church. The

group has become smaller in recent years because of thedeaths of most of the original group, but they are stillkeeping on and some new ladies are coming these days.Theyhad theirChristmasmeetingonDec. 16. At that timethe preacher said they were expecting 80 or more peoplefor their special Christmas worship and program on Dec.19. He sends out his greetings early, including an invitation. They all are asked to pay a fee, which includes ameal, a small present and, of course, some gospel message for all - including those who don't attend regularly.The same would be true of most churches in Japan - thebest attendance of the year is Christmas. Well, using theopportunities for contacts and evangelism is certainlybetter than secularizing it or leaving it to the world.

Seed-Sowing Meeting at OsakaBible Seminary, Nov. 2 & 3

Three ofourTokyo preachers, plus the wife and smallson of one, two young men from Mejlrodai and Machidachurches, the motherof Shlngo Tsuda (who is now a first-year student at the Seminary and wanted to make herfirst visit to the school and her son and take his winterclothes and some other things to him) and I drove the 515kilometers (300+ miles) one way trip to Osaka in 2 carsfrom here leaving Tuesday morning, Nov. 2. The 7 or 8hour drive down the expressway with yellow and redfoliage on both sides through the mountains, a beautifulblue sky, and the constant conversation made it anenjoyable trip.

The attendance totaled 137 people, the congregational singingwas enthusiastic, and the special music bystudents, faculty and others was very good. The program,including 3 good messages, was very well planned andinspirational for all who could come.

Following the end of the program we had a regularmeeting of the 11-member Councillor board, of which Ihave been a member for some years. The following daysome of the folks came back in my car and the othersstayed on for various personal business before returningto Tokyo. The school is small, but the situation lookspromising in many ways.

Year of the Dog

At 1 PM on Jan. 1, we had our usual new year dayworship service. Over half of all Japanese people go toShrines or Temples on the first 3 days of the New Year topray for prosperity and the protection of the gods. Especially in these economic recession days, more than usualwent, the papers say. We tiy to encourage our membersto come to the quiet church to commit themselves to God.We had about 30 people here.

Baptism at Onta Church

The only son of Mr. and Mrs. Akada, who have ministered at the small Onta Church of Christ for about 25

years, is now a student in a Christian College - in fact itwas established about 90 years ago by Disciples of Christmissionaries. He expressed the desire to be baptized, soon Reformation Sunday, October31,1went to that churchand baptized him into Christ after his confession of faithand then preached to the good group assembled. Themembers were deeply happy at this, as were his family.

Thankagiving meal and fellowship.

Mr. and Mre. Stanley Buttr^ (retired), K.D. 2, Box ISO, Meadville. PA16335.

Mr. and Mrs. Andrew Patton (retired). #6 Tanglewood. Carl Junction,MO 64834.

Mr. and Mrs. Harold Sims. 3-33-7 Mejirodai, Hachioji-shi, Tol^ 193Japan. ForwardingAgent: FiratChuroliofCtiriBt.SlSE.OiangeAvenue,Eustis, FL 33726-4164.

Two year donation^—$.50Donation A Flaming Torch—$1.00

Tokyo Christian (U8PS 776-320)

Published lour times ayear in January, April, July, and November forthe missionaries of the Church of Christ, Cunningham Mission. Tokyo,Japan by Mission Services Association. 7525 Hodges Ferry Road. Kn-oxviUe.TN 37920-9731. POSTMASTER: Send address changea to TokyoChristian, c/o MISSION SERVICES ASSOCIATION, PO Box 2427, Kn-oxvllle.TN 37601-2427.

Before you move, please send the mailing label with a copy of your new address toMISSION SERVICES ASSOCIATION, PO Box 2427. Knoxville, TN 37901-2427.

Form 3679 Requested, PO Box 2427, Knoxville, TN 37901-2427.

Tokyo Christian'Go ye into aU the worid and preach the gospel to every creature' Mark 16:15

April 1994 Number 2Volume 93

SIMS' NEWS

Zushi Church Dedicates Building

In the Zushi section of Machida City ml ""(one of the 26 cities making up the west-em half of Tokyo Metropolitan Area) for K36 years there has been a Christian Nurs-ery School in which worship serviceshave been held every Lord's Day. Afterthe foimding preacher died some yearsago (his daughters still teach in theschool) Bro. Hideo Fukuda was asked tobecome their preacher, and has beenserving in this part-time capacity whilecontinuing to support himself by teach-ing English, publishing a monthly Bible-study magazine, and a number of Bible-study books. The membership has always been small, but they are fmthful.The same couldbe said ofmanyJapanesechurches.

Over a year ago the city offered tohelp the Nursery School to relocate andbuild a larger facility with larger play Tarea, etc. So the church buildingwas leftthere in a quite run-dovm condition andwithout fundsfrom the school to keep it up. Meanwhile Bro. P\ikudawas nearing retirement age. So he decided to vacatehis previous printing room and office and classroom,and to quitthe majorpart ofhis English teachingworkand concentrate on his writing and preaching at thechurch. He made a sizeable contribution of his own

funds, and the church people were encouraged bythisto give sacrificially, and they enlarged the previousbuilding to twice its size and renovated the wholeinside and out. Mr. Fukuda was able to move his off

set press and other equipment, his books, etc., to theoffice part of the new place and everyone is happy thattheycan now concentrate on the chiirch business onlyin the new building.

Since Bro. Fukuda has nowbecome free of his ties

to daily English classes, and has settled into the newplace and type ofwork, and since he has become 65, hehas decided to fulfill a life-long desire to make a briefvisit to the U.S. during the latter half of May and visit2 life-longfriends whom he has onlyknown previouslyby letter and a few phone calls. Mrs. Reba Bledsoe, ofPhoenix, Arizona, started supporting him monthly asa student of Tokyo Bible Seminaiy way back in the

•

1950s and continued corresponding with him, praying for and encouraging him and sending occasionalfinancial gifts to him through various hospitaliza-tions, struggles and changes. She is now in hereighties, and he wants to visit her. The other closefriend is a Japanese Christian lady who lives in Hilo,Hawaii and has written music for a number of the

poems he has written and published in his magazineover the years.

Fifth Sunday Rally

On Jan. 30 another Fifth Sunday Rally was held atMejirodai church, with 70 people horn 11 differentchurches or preaching places attending. The speakerwas Prof. Nakano from Osaka Bible Seminary, whosefield is Church History. We ordered sandwiches andhad Japanese tangerines, home-made cookies andgreen tea to go with the light meal. People enjoyedvisitingwith each otheras they ate invarious rooms ofthe church building and the Sims' home.

Among the special guests were our son Daniel,whowas inJapan on his companybusiness at the time,

and Mrs. Hiroko Chesterfrom Norwich, England. Sheis a former member of Nakano church who beganworking for an English Trading Company in Tokyoand married an Englishman who met her there. Theynow have 2 daughters in high school and operate adog food production and sale business there. Shewasin Japan to visit her aging and ailing motherwho nowlives with another daughter.

Spring Youth Camp in Shinshu

At 9:10 a.m., Monday, March 28,1 left here with ourlightvan loaded with 3 g^tars, an overhead projector,some speakers and amplifiers (withoutwhich modemyoung people cannot make music or even live), a

number of suitcases and 5 of our Jr. and Sr. HighSchoolers for the annual trip up to camp. It had beenquite cold during the previous week, but that day wassimny. We stopped at a small noodle shop on the waythat was reasonably priced and puts out 4 kinds ofcountiy-style pickles to go with your bowl of noodlesat no extra charge (yeal) to enjoy limch, and arrived atcamp about 2:30 p.m. We had a total of 37 at the campthis time - 13 of whom came from Mejirodai. Therewere 7 churches represented, and a good mix of agesfrom 12 to 19 or 20.

There were several things about the camp thistime that left a good Impression on me, and I willconcentrate on those severed points this time becausewe have often written about the spring vacationweather, etc.

1. The theme was "Genesis Park," which hadsome power to attract because of a recent movie,

"Jurassic Park," which some of them had seen. All themessages, classes, Bible dramas, etc.,were taken fromthat first and basic book in the Bible. For example, themorning devotions went briefly through the life ofJoseph. This ideawas suggested by some ofthe youngpreachers. The preacher for the evenings was Bro.

Evening service at camp (song service).

Kishimoto from Mejirodai, and other preachers hadthe morning classes. Tim Turner was the director.

2. All of the planning was done by the yoimgpeople and young preachers in a couple of churchesin our area during the winter, and it was very completely done. Programs were printed and songs wereput on overhead projector sheets. Most of theveteran,college-aged people were assigned a definite job, andthey cooperated and did their parts well.

3. There were college students in every roomwho had attended camps for 5 to 10 years. This campalso had lees noise and running through halls, etc.,late at night than any I have experienced so far.

4. Testimonieswere givenbyfellowyoung peopleevery evening that were listened to carefully becausethey were near the same age.

5. The music was led by 6 of our Mejirodai youngpeople. Singo Tsuda, who had just completed his firstyear at Osaka Bible Seminary, led the music and OtaniTomoo (another college student and presently heading our young people's group) operated the overhead.Three high schoolers played guitars and one girlplayed the keyboard. I didn't know she coiild play atall until that time.

6. My main part was driving the car up there andback, and part of that included being part of thecaravan that took them over to an ice-skating rink 45minutes' drive on the afternoon of the second day andagain to a nearby hot-spring bath on the afternoon ofthe third day. They all enjoyed these extra things,which, of course, cost a little extra money. But, thepresent generation seems to have an ample supply ofthat kind of paper.

7. They had a different way of deciding the seating during each meal in order to keep them fromalways sitting together as the same group like theytend to do. I have forgotten all of them, but they wereinteresting and accomplished the purpose of helpingus get to know each other (e.g., birthday months,blood types, sweater color, etc.)

8. Sometimeswe have trouble gettingenough kitchen help and getting happi-ness and cooperation in that area, but thistime Mr. Taninari, who lives there all year,was able to get young people from theneighborhood who used to come to Sim-

« day School when the Pattons still livedp., there to help as a part-time job. Oneyoimg

lady from Machida church went for thatpurpose. So, things worked out very welland we had good healthful meals on time.

Tuesday morning we had snow flur-ries, but it got steadily warmer and for thedrive back home on Thursday, March 31,wehadadelightfulspringaftemoon. Againwe stopped at the noodle place. The stu-dents were tired and slept some of the way,but they played various word games andlaughed much of the way home - anotherindication that it was a good camp.

Above; Listeningto the message.

Eight: Mejirodaiyouth leaders.Standing, 1. to r.iTsuda Shingo, OBSstudent; Kishimoto

Daiki, preacher; andMinamiTomoo, highschool student.

Seated. 1. to r.:

Akioka Yohei,

employed first yearat Fuji Electric Co.and Otani Tomoo,

University Sopho-

We are very thankful for the few churches whocontinue to send some financial support for the campand remember us in prayer. The Japanese churchesare beginning to support the camp financially a littlemore each year, but it still takes a lot ofmoney to keepit going and make necessary repairs.

Gifts from "Angels"?

On Sunday afternoon, March 27, a takyubin (UPSin the U.S.) truck stoppedinfront ofthe church and thedriver lugged a heavy cardboard box up the steps. Itwas from a bookstore unknown to me and correctly

addressed to me. But, I didn't remember orderinganything. Mr. Kishimoto helped me open it and wewere amazed to find 30 new Bibles in the newest

Japanese translation. The translation is a cooperativework ofProtestants and Catholics, and the first such in

theworld. It has a good reputation among scholars forthe smooth flow of the Japanese language. We havebeen reading from that translation of the Old Testerment at our prayer meetings for some months. Our

people say the O.T. is much easier to understand in

this translation.

Half of the Bibles enclosed were

the small size and halfwere medium,but in either case, they are more ex

pensive than the ordinary Bible Society translation that was completed in1954. The total retail cost of the 30

was somethingaround $800.00! Therewas an unsigned note saying, "Pleaseuse these." We do not knowwho gavethis most generous gift, but plan tobegin using these Bibles in our worship services some months from now.

The next Saturday afternoon,when 2 ofour ladles cameto cleanthe

church in preparation for Sundayservices, theyfound abagin the closetwhere we keep the cleaning tools,toilet paper, etc. When they openedit, they found 30 cloth book-coverathat someone had sewn for use with

thenewBibles! The generous "Anonymous" again.

f| I News Notes^9 • Some people have asked uswM about the BillyGraham [Mission 94]

I H which was held in Tokyo Dome lastJanuary 13-16. Lois and I attended

^ thefirstnightCourfirsttimetoseetheinside of the place). Our church hadsigned up as one of the 1,120 cooperating churches and we used all of the5 free "tickets" for the first 2 nights

and 10 for the weekend sessions, which were morecrowded. All of the services were broadcast at over 50

other locations inJapan by satellite. The son ofa goodfiiiend of o\u« in California was one of the cameramen

for this and talked to us twice during his limited freetime.

The figures for attendance released by the organization gave in round numbers 15,000 the first night,20,000 the second night, 43,000 the third night, and40,000 for Sunday afternoon, plus a total for the 4sessions of over 20,000 viewers by satellite. Over12,000 signed decision cards, and it was noted thatmore adult men made decisions than in the previous2 crusades. It was good to see Billy Graham stillvigorously preaching at 75 years of age. The organization and publicity were first-class, as usual.

• Paul Pratt returned to Japan for a little over 2weeks in February to look at 3 different areas wheretheymight locate and try to get a newwork started. Hewas able to come on a frequent flyer bonus ticket in theoff season.

When he and Kathleen left in March 1993, he washaving persistent headaches and she was down in theback, so it was good to see him obviously well and

enthusiastic and hopeful about continuing evangelistic efforts here for a few more years. The months inAmerica seem to have refreshed him. We enjoyedgood, butbrieffellowship withhimatone ofomr Tokyoarea missionary prayer meetings on February 28 atthe home of the David Coles.

• Mr. and Mrs. Nishiyamawho ministerwith theSannobara Church in Isehaora, where the Paul Prattsusedto be, becameparents ofa son onMarch 15. Theirfirst child was a girl.

• The Sayama Church of Christ completed arelocation and moved into a new church building atanotherlocationinthe same cilyduringMarch. Therewas a lot of trouble at the previous location aboutownership and title mid access for cars to the housesand lots behind the church, so the city gave themenough money for the move in return for their vacatingthe present location emd making a settlement andnew development possible.

• Two students graduated from Osaka BibleSeminary on March 25, and one newstudentbegan inApril, with one other prospect for September - amarried man who must find housing for his familyand work to pay his way. There are now a total of 5students, all men.

• At the yearlymeetingoftheJapan EvangelicalMissionary Association in February, a new "Mission"was admitted as a member. It has 94 missionaries,making it the third largest Mission currentlyworkingin Japan. All of these missionaries are Koreans,supported by the churches of Korea - a new sign ofhow the work is changing.

Coming EventsManila Missionary Gathering

On April 16, Harold and Lois will leave NaritaAirportviaPakistanAirLines for Manila to attend thefirst get-together of our Christian church missionaries in Asia. We and one other missionary will be theonly ones representing Japan as far as we know, butwe are looking forward to meeting some of our co-workers in some ofthese nations. We have never had

an opportunily to meet any of them except a few whohave stopped by to visit briefly in Japan on the way toor from the U.S. and some at missionary conventionsand rallies during furloughs in the U.S., so look forward to comparing e3q>eriences, problems, etc. Ma

nila is a good choice because of the central locationandthe cheap prices. We appreciate the initiatives andworkthe Philippine missionaries have done in preparation. Our last visit was a i-day stop on the way to Japanway back in 1947, so we know it is completely differentnow. We plan to give a brief report in the next issue.

Pentecost Evangelistic Meeting

In the Christian Standard ofFebruary 6, the retirement of Mr. and Mrs. Ray L. Jones, long-time ministeratHuberHeights, Ohio churchwas armoimced. Aboutthat time we received a letter from him (a friend fromstudent days at CBS many years ago) saying theywould be comingto Japan in Mayto visit their son andhis wife who are working for a business concern herein Tokyo on a 2-year contract, and, having a longtimeinterest in mission fields and work, he would like tosee ourworkandifthere was anywaythey might be ofhelp in thework ofChrist here, theywouldbe happytohave that experience also.

So, after consultingwith the local church here, wehave asked him to come for a short evangelistic meeting May 20-22 (Friday-Simday - Pentecost). I willtranslate his messages into Japanese, which will be afirst-time experience for him.

Summer Conventions in Japan

This year our 45th Annual Convention ofthe Japanese Christians will be hosted by the Minato Chmch,located inYokohama. Itwill be atAmagi Sanso whichis a well-known Baptist Camp and Conference Groundabout 70 or 80 miles south of Tokyo in the moimtainsofShizuokaPrefecture. Ithas a capacilyof350 people,with a large Chapel and dining hall famous for largeand delicious food. The 20th Convention back in 1969

was held at the same place, with the same churchhosting, and the same chairman. (Mr. Kobayashi isnow 77 years old, and they recently celebrated their40th wedding anniversary.) The dates are July 23-25(Saturday-Monday). The weekend makes it easier forlaymen to attend, and in the summer, the camp schedule is quite full.

The missionaries will stay on i floor at the sameplace and have their Convention Monday eveningthrough Wednesday morning, July 25-27. The messages will be brought by the "sons of the pioneers" - 4of our second-generation missionaries.

We would appreciate your prayers for God's blessing upon all of these events.

Mr. and Mrs. Stanl^ Buttiay (rettrmQ, RD. 2. Box 180, MoadviUo, PA16335.

Mr. and Mrs. AndrewFatten (retired), #6 Tanglewood,CartJunction, MO84834.

Mr. and Mis. Harold Sims, 3-33-7 Mejirodai, Haohlojl-ahi, Tobyo 103Japan. Forwardlnec Agent: Firet Church of Christ, 315 B. Orange Avenue,Eustis, FL 327204194.

Two year donation—$.50Donation A FlamingTorch—$1.00

Tokyo Christian (D8P8 778-3E0)

Publiehed four times ayearinJanuary,April, J uly, and Novemberfor themlseionaiies of the Church of Christ, Cunningham Mission, Tbhyo, Japanby Mission Services Association, 7525 Hodges Ferry Road, Knozvllle, TN379204731. Second Class postage paid at Knozvllle, TN 37001-2427.POSTMAHTEK; Send address changes to Tokyo Christian, c/o MISSIONSERVICES ASSOCIATION, PO Boz 2427, KnozviUe, TN 37001-2427.

Before you move, please send the mailing label with a copy ofyour new address toMISSION SERVICES ASSOCIATION, PO Boz 2427, Knozville, TN 37901-2427.

Form3579 Requested, PO Boz2427,KnozviUe, TN 37901-2427.

1313

Christian'Go ye into aU the world and preach the gospel to every creature' Mark 16:15

Volume 93 July 1994 Number 3

=^= SIMS' NEWS ===—

Our Asia Missionaries Gather in Manila

Our co-workers in the Philippines got the idea fora gathering of the missionaries representing ourchurches in the various countries ofAsia during theirannual meeting a couple of years ago. They sent outthe invitations and information, arranged for a suitable place, planned the program and worked hard tomake this first attempt at such a fellowship a realjoyful and educational experience for all who wereable to attend.

The Philippines was an ideal place for such ameeting, because it is rather central in the EastAsianworld, and the cost of hotels and meals there is

cheaper than most other places in the present economic situation. Naturally, the largest number ofpeople were from the host country, but missionariesfrom India, Australia, Singapore, Taiwan, and Japan,and a number of people from the United States alsoattended. Even within the Philippines, different languages are used in the different islands and areas, soreports sound like they work in an entirely differentculture. There were a total of 91 people registered.

The meetingswere all held at the Danarra Hotel inManila, and the dates were Mon., Apr. 18 through Fri.,Apr. 22. This is the hot season in Manila, when theBible Seminazy and other schools are having theirvacations, so more local people were able to come.These dates also immediatelyfollowed the Philippine nationalyearly convention, which washeld in Baguio for several days,ending Sun., Apr. 17, with an at- ^gjK^mtendance of over 2,000. Those P^|llmissionaries from outlyingareas |||^^ j'T*i 1of the coimtry could just remain BF''in the Manila area for both meet- Bings and save travel expenses.

Lois and I were interested in ,

theideafrom thestart,andbegan fmaking plans to attend. Our g ^travel agent suggested we mightgo by Pakistan Airlines, which .was $200 cheaper for the round kl Itrip than all of the other lineswith which we were more famil- r".,Jp 1iar. Theyonlyflybetweenthetwo ^cities on Tuesday and Saturday,but 1was true to my upbringing I

and quickly decided to take the cheapest way. Thiseliminated oiir chance to attend part ofthe PhilippineConvention, but it worked out all right in every otherway.

After arriving after dark on Saturday evening,Apr. 16, we enjoyed staying that night with JeannieMcElroy Hoffman who clearly remembered visitingour home in Nakano many years before when theystopped by on their way home for a furlough in theU.S. The next morning she took us to the well-knownCnizada St. Church for the English language worshipservice at 9 a.m. The senior minister and some

members were away at the Convention, but they stillhad an attendance of 100 or more people at thatservice, which we fully understood and enjoyed. Theywere quite shockedwhen I told themthatwe hadbeento that church one time before - during October 1947when on the way to Japan, and when we got there Icould remember the location at the end of a narrow

street off of one of the main streets of the city', eventhough the building had been rebuilt in the interven-ingyears. It is a large church with a full program, andyoung people were taking registrations for camp inthe entrance hall. We were told that the total number

of our churches in that country is now about 1000.That night we arrived at the hotel and were just

i'n

f-^orei PAVAA':

ABesslonoftheManU&MiBstonaiyMeeting. Loi88ims,Bett7TurDeraDdtbe Rostvlt Twins. Third row from front &re Mr. and Mrs. MoKinney, whoplanned the program.

Mib. Hale pitting the piano in MBS ChapeL

getting settled into our room when a bus arrived atthe front full of people who had been at BaguioConvention.

The program consisted of 8 main sessions: the 5evenings (Mon. -Fri.) and the 3 mornings (Tues., Wed.and Fri.). Duringeveiy one ofthese therewas a reportgiving information about the situation in one of themission fields represented. Each day therewas something dMerent and special planned for the after-

On Tuesday afternoon, most of us from othercountries got into some local missionaries' cars andwent out to visit Manila Bible Seminaiy. On thespacious campus, we visited with veteran Mrs. Hale,who is now91 years ofage, and sangaround one ofthepianos as she played. Her eyes are too bad to readmusic, and her fingers are bentwith arthritis, but sheknows all of the hymns in the book anyway, andenjoys playing when there is anyone to sing along. Itwas good to see various rooms named for the Restoration Movement FHoneera, and the substantial buildings and good-sized chapel and classrooms.

Tha Btatua of Oaneral Douglas MaoArthur sayicg. *1shall return,* onCorridor Island.

OnWednesdayafternoon theyhad separate meetings for the men and ladies, and we also had time toswim in the pool. Thursday we went to downtownManila rather early and took a boat out to the islandof Corregidor (90-minute ride one way) at the entrance to Manila Bay. Lois and I probably enjoyedthis more than any others, because we rememberedthat place from newspaper a half century ago. Wespent much of the day there on a guided tour. Thegovernment has the place well-kept, and even recreates the smoke, noise and total atmosphere of thehospital in the tunnel there when under attack.

Then on Friday afternoon we were part of a smallgroup who went to the American Cemeteiy and sawthe tombstone of Leslie Wolfe which is there alongwith thousands of soldiers who gave their lives fortheir countiy.

I should mention that most of the speakers werefrom churches and Bible colleges in the U.S. whohave long supported the work in the Philippines andhadbeento the Convention and holdingother specialmeetings in various places. The Rostvlt Twins ledsome ofthe singing, andwe enjoyed those parts oftheprogram also.

We had to be at the airport before daylight onSaturday morning, April 23, to get our flight back toJapan. It was a good trip for us in eveiy way. It wasalso decided to ask the missionaries in Taiwan to

planforanothersuchmeetingin 1996. Others attending from Japan were Mrs. Betty Turner (formerly amissionaxy there) and Bill Belew from Niigata (whovisited when in the U.S. Navy).

Pentecost Evangelistic Meeting

Earlier this year we were surprised to receive aletter from Ray L. Jones, who had recently "retired"(become part-time, visitation minister) in the churchat Huber Heights, Ohio. I remembered bim from wayback in the immediate postWorld War II days at CBS,when I was in graduate school and he was in thereg^ular college. He was one of the 3 young men withthe same name who were in the school at that time

and went out to do theirvarious ministries for Christ

in different places. He said that, while theyhad neverdirectly supported our work financially, they hadfollowed the news about us as they supported othersin other fields. Now their son and his wife were

working in Tokyo with two different American companies on a 2-year contract, and had invited them tocome over and visit in May when the weather wasgood and when they would have some time off fromwork on several Japanese holidays that run closetogether. They were eagerly looking forward to theirfirst trip to this part ofthe world, butwould like to seesome of the work being done bythe missionaries andto do anything that might be possible to be of somehelp. He also wrote to two others in Tokyo, and allthree of us arranged different times and ways forthem to visit us and see some of the work. Later his

son called from their apartment to confirm the plansand complete the details.

Soon after they arrived in Japan, the son and hiswife took Mr. and Mrs. Jones with them on a trip toBeijing, China, where tiiey saw the great wall andmany other unforgettable things, llien on Sunday,May 8, they were at the Machida Church, where hepreached and Tim Turner translated for him. Another day they visited Mrs. Leone Cole in her homeand the American Christian College nest doorwherehe spoke in chapel.

Here at Mejirodai we rather hastily planned a 3-day evangelistic meeting for May 20-22 (Friday-Sunday) and printed some handbills to advertise it. Hepreached three sermons on discipleship: "What is aDisciple?"; "The CostofDiscipleship,"and"TheBlessings of Discipleship." I translated for him. Some ofour people could not come because of work or otherreasons, but we had 19 on Friday night, 13 on Saturday night, and 24 on Sunday night.

Because the messages were a series, and he announced each night the title for the next, we had 8 or9 people who attended all three nights and reallyenjoyed both the content and hearing both EnglishandJapanese. In fact, one middle-aged man from ourneighborhood who had only come to church a fewtimes previously for special programs, appeared onSunday night. He has been here to church everySunday morning since then. So prayers were answered and God was at work.

We enjoyed visiting and catching up on eachothers' lives in our living-room and around the table,andwere surprisedat howmuchwe have in common.They also have 5 children - 2 girls and 3 boys, andtheiryoungest is also named Dan. Wewere delightedthat he was able to join us for the Saturday eveningservice.

After the morning worship on Pentecost Sunday,we had our traditional barbecue in the church yard,with about 30 people present. The weatherwas ideal,and it gave a good opportunity for our people and theJoneses to get personally acquainted. Many of ourfolks can carry on a simple conversation in English.

It was the first time in several years we had usedtraditional charcoal for the barbecue, and it is a lot ofwork for me to clean up the grill, etc., afterward, butit proved to be immensely popular.

NaritarSan Baptized

About April a young man suddenly appeared atchurchoneLord's Daymorning, andsaidhe hadbeenattending the Christian Students' Association meetings at the Chuo University in our city, where he is aSophomore. Asponsorofthegroup (ayoungpreacherof some denomination) had suggested he attend theservices here, which is located much nearer to hishome than the church he had been attending sometimes. The sponsor had known our Japanese minister, Bro. Kishimoto, when they both belonged to thesame Association as college students. Since then hehasbeenquite regularinattendance, exceptat examination times. And, for the past two months, he hasbeen coming to the church about one afternoon aweekwhen he has available time to studythe Bible inmore detail with the preacher. The preacher discovered he had some problems, both spiritual and personal, and asked me to pray for him. He was afraidthat he felt that beingbaptizedwould be somekind ofmagic ormedicine thatwould instantlysolveall ofhisproblems. But he eventually asked to be baptized.

So, onSunday,July3,hewas baptizedatMejirodaichurch. The sponsor ofthe Christian group who senthim here, and three members of the group came towihiess file baptism and give him encouragement.We have several people in our young peoples' groupabouthis age, and hope theywill be ofhelp to him midthat he will be able to go to our camp and youngpeoples' retreat in Aug^ust.

Fifth Sunday Rally in IseharaAfterourworship services at MejirodaionMay29,

12 people ate quick lunches and left in three cars forthe 90-minute trip down to Isehara in the next prefecture to attend the 5th Simday Rally in the churchthere. Bro. Nishiyama and the ladies there had prepared a good program and a variety of home-madesandwiches, salads and desserts for an eveningmealthat eveiyone enjoyed while visiting.

The speaker was Mr. Iguma, one of the elders ofthe Minato church. He gave a vezy practical andeditying talk on the general subject of "Ministries"with various real-life illustrations of how their local

church is coping with the semi-retirement of Bro.Stephen Ifiima, the onlypreacherin the 45-year life ofthat church. Forvarious health reasons, he has onlybeen preaching two Sundays of each month for thepast couple of years.

Mr. Iguma, who is a full-time teacher in a highschool, has been serving as an elder for some yearsand has taken over most of the week-to-week func

tions of "pastor" - calling on the sick, gathering thenews and announcements and editing and printingtheweeklybulletin and keeping in touchwith peopleand events. Another, who works at managementlevel in a company, takes care of tiie musical part ofthe churchwork, and a banker takes care offinancialmatters. They are all doing this as their service toChrist, or "Ministry," and finding joy and spiritualgrowth in dping it. This year they are carrying theheavy load ofwork in preparation to host the aimualconvention in July. It was an encouragement to allwho were there.

Mr. Fukuda was there and we enjoyed hearingabouthis recent trip toArizonaand Hawaii tovisitoldfriends, and his impressions of his first trip to theUnited States. The weather was ideal, so we had anice ride home, with happy conversation in the backseats about the people and events of the day.

News Notes

Jonathan Sims got his Master of Divinity Degreefrom Cinciimati Christian Seminary in absentia onMay 14. It was sent to him by mail later. He also wasaskedto teachanEnglishBibleClassattheYokohamaYMCA every Saturday morning. A missionary fromAustralia who had been teaching it had to return tohis home. There are about five adults in the class -

most non-Christians, but interested in knowingwhatthe Bible teaches and full of difficult questions. Healso has several English classes in their homes now.He and Verla came to Mejirodai for the weekend ofJune 26, and he was the giiest preacher here thatmorning.

Karis Pratt, daughterofMarkand Lynn, arrivedinJapan onJime 10 to help Tim and LisaTurnerin theirwork for one year as a sort of missionary internship.She is living in an efficiency apartment near theirplace in Machida,

A1 Hammond and his wife, Bev, are in Japan for alittle over 2 weeks dmdng their srunmer vacationfrom SanJose Bible College activities,visitingplaceswhere he formerly worked and other places where

friends are.

Tim and LisaTurner had a baby boy on July 1. Hewas named "Spencer William" for his two grandfathers who both managed to be presentinJapan onthegreat day. At our missionary prayer meeting at theirhouse June 17, the ladies had a shower for her.

Bob Synerand his wife, Masumi (nee Naka) are inJapan for about 75 days this summervacation, livingat and helping in the work of the camp. They weremarried December 28,1993 in the Palmyra Church ofChrist in Ohio. They had a modem-style Japanesereception at a nice restaurant in her former hometown of Tokorozawa on the afternoon of June 25, soher family, friends from her former working place(YMCA), and the churches and camp could join in thecelebration. A videotape of the Ohio wedding wasplayed, various congratulation speeches were given,some sang special songs, and all had a happy timegetting to know each other. "Modem style" meanstherewere no gifts, but each one paid a fee whichtookcare ofthe costs ofthe food, place, etc. We are hopingmissionary work in Japan on a long-term basis is intheir future.

Summer Events to Pray ForThe 45thAll-Japan Christian Convention. July23-

25, at Amagi Sanso, a Southem Baptist Conferenceg^und in the middle of mountainous Izu Peninsula,about 80 miles south ofTokyo. Expected attendance:300+.

The Missionary Convention. July 25-27, at thesame place. Expected attendance: about 30. (Thereare not as many missionaries as there used to be.)

The Middle, High School and College youngpeoples' camp,August i-5, at ourShinshuBible Campin Nagano Prefectime, about 120 miles west of Tokyoin the mountains. The 1998 Winter Olympics will beheld in the same prefectiure, but a long distance fromour campground.

A retreat for Christian yoimg people who are incollege or working for training in Discipleship andChristian living. August 14-16 in the Isehara churchbuilding.

Vacation Bible School. August 22-24, in MejirodaiChurch.

Mr. and Mn. Stanl^ Buttray (ratirBd), RD. 2, Box 180, Meadville, PA16335.

Mr. and Mrs.AndrewPatton (ratlted), #6 Tana^ewood, CailJanotton. MO64834.

Mr. and Mia. Harold Sims, 3^7 Mejirodai, Haohloji-ehi, Tbbyo 103Japan. ForwardingAgenb FirstChurohofdul^ 315E.Orange Avenue,EuBtiB.FL 32726-4104.

One year donation—82.00

Tokyo Christian (CSPS 776-320)

Publishedfburtimea ayearinJanuary,i^ril,July, and Novemberforthemiasioiurlea of the Church ofChrist, Cunningham Mission, Tokyo, Japanby Mission Services Association, 7525 Hodges Ferry Road, Knozville, 114370260731. Second Class postage paid at KnoxvUle, TN 37001-2427.POSTMASTER Send address changes to Tokyo Christian, iVo MISSIONSERVICES ASSOCIATION, PO Box 2427, KnoxvUle, TN 37001-2427.

Before you move, please send the mailing label with a copy ofyour new address tohnSSION SERVICES ASSOCIATION, PO Box 2427, KnoxvUle, TN 37001-2427.

Form3579 Requested, PO Box2427,KnoxvUle,TN 37801-2427.

Tokyo ChristianVolume 93

"Co ye into oQ the world and preach the gospel to every creature" Mark 16:15

November 1994

= SIMS' NEWS =

45th All Japan Convention

Number 4

This time it was held on the weekend of July 23-25(Sat. - Mon.) because 1) it was convenient for manyworking people to attend, and 2) itwas the onlytime whenthe entire facility would be available, and we had acapacity crowd of over 300 attending. The place wasAmagi Sanso, a well-known Southern Baptist Conference& Campground in the middle of mountainous Izu peninsula, about 60 or more miles south of Tokyo that is oftenbooked 2 years ahead.

Exactly 25 years ago the 20th Convention was held atthis place. The same Minato Church of Christ served ashost, planning the program, publicity and making all ofthe arrangements. Theyhad selected a capable banker tobe the chairman, but when his company transferred bimto Princeton, NJ, Mr. Kobayashi (77) who had been thechairman 25 years ago, veiy ably served again.

The entire congregation worked hard and together.Eveiyone who attended enjoyed the good fellowship andspiritual and physical food in their own way. The largenumber ofyounger families with small children presentwas noticeable, and special short trips and other activities were planned for the younger set. The large rtiTiingroom was packed at each mealwith over30 tables seating10 people at each one. (Under one plate at each table wasa small green plastic tag meaning that the person at thatplace was responsible for cleaning off the table after thatmeal.) During each meal all the people attending fromone geographical area of Japan were introduced, whichmade it imnecessaiy to take time forthat duringthe mainsessions.

Prof. Oda, from Osaka Bible Seminary, brought the 2

^meBsagei^

into separaterooms for Harold Sima preaching at Japanese

•classes" by the 24, i994.various professors of Osaka Bible Seminary on the subjects they teachat the school.

OurMejirodai church had the largest numberattending (28) since we hosted the 1988 Convention. We chartered a small bus for that purpose. Lois and I went in ourcar, taking the 3 members of the Hara family. Mrs. Harauses a wheelchair. The facility there is equipped fordisabled people, so she really enjoyed that first real"outing" except for recent monthly trips to church sinceher stroke almost 3 years ago.

Harold Sima preaching at JapaneseConvention, July 24,1994.

Mejirodai Church Group at 45th Convention.

Of course there was some reflection on

changes and growth that have taken placeduring the 25 years since we last met there,and there are varioiis kinds of problemsthat arise in church life and work in anytime and place. But this year^gathering ofour people has contributed greatly to ourpresent degree of unity, sense of identityand spiritual growth.

The convention nextyearwill be held inNagoya, centrally located in Japan. Theplace will be the Hilton Hotel downtown,which will cost almost twice as much for

each one as this year's and may force some-whatofacutinattendance. Thehostchurch

will be West Side Church of Christ where

Makoto Yuse is the minister. His son works

at this hotel and was able to arrange adiscoimt for our convention if we use the

time August 18-20, which is a slack seasonwhen manyJapanese go to visit theirancestralhomes andgraves andfewtourists cometo Japan. Dining Hall at Amagi Sanso

1994 Missionary Convention

TheJapanese Conventionat Amagi Sanso endedwiththe noon meal on Monday, July 15. The MissionaryConvention began with registration that afternoon andthe evening meal and continued until Wednesday noon.For some years now we have had the missionaiy convention at a different time and place from the Japanese onebecause the Japanese have tended to go to hotels inlucent years - often too expensive for the missionarieswith families to attend. The Japanese also prefer weekends when people can easily get off from work, but themissionaries often have commitments at their local

churches on the weekends and can take off week daysmore easily. Also, more and more missionaries aretaking summer furloughs. But this year we felt that, withthe cheaper prices at the Baptist Conference Ground andthe savings realized by making only one convention tripduring the year, it would be wise to go back to the earliercustom of having the missionaries stay at the same placefor their meeting immediately following the Japaneseone. So, some months ago, I went out on a limb andreserved space for 30 people with the Baptist place.

Earlier this year I wrote all ofourJapan missionariesgiving information about the plan to have our meeting at

the same place right after the Japanese Convention, butgot a very small response. A second mailing brought afew more commitments, and several definite explanations ofwhy they could not attend at the planned time. Iworried some, but to make the stoiy short, we had a totalof 29 people present, including 3 children.

The 5 messages during the 2 days were all given bythe sons ofourmissionaries. David Colewas on furloughin the U.S. at the time, but Walter Maxey spoke on"Current Trends," Jonathan Sims on "Finances," StephenFleenor on "Housing," Paul Clark on "Relations withJapanese Co-workers," and Tim Turner on "EvangelisticMethods." Each one has some practical e^erience inthese practical concerns of all missionaries, and all hadprepared very well. In January each year missionariesmeet at this Amagi Sanso for study and fellowship, andalways they have lively discussions after each address.So we followed that format for the first time, andhad someveiy valuable and lively discussion periods, spiced withsome good humor.

There was a surprising number of young people atthis meeting Trent Maxey, Mark Christianson, KarisPratt, and Jeanette Christianson were all back from col

lege studies in the U.S. for the summer. So, weI( quickly arrangedto have all ofthemtake part in theprogramwith testimonies, special music, etc., whichcontributed a great deal to the fellowship and wasalmost totally unplanned and spontaneous. Weevengot a special price on use ofthegymnasiumforsome volleyball, which was appreciated greatly bymost of those under 40.

We had a hard time deciding on plans for nextyear. Certainly no one felt like staying over at theHilton Hotel in Nagoya. So we decided to askWarren and Eileen Christianson to make the plansfor a missionary convention next August after theJapanese one is over at our Shinshu Bible Camp,which is near their home and church in NaganoPrefecture,August20-22. Itwas the first missionaiyconvention for Jonathan's wife, Verla, and another

missionary coiyyENTioNCH\LfRCHES OF CHRIST •

single lady who came to help the Lee Joneses in theirHiroshimawork some months ago. A good time was hadby all, and we went back home to August tasks encouraged.

had an operation to install a heart pacemaker (ultrarmodem U.S. made) in September, and was not expectedto be able to attend, so eveiyone was thankful to see himthere and looking so well and joking along with the rest.

Youth Camp in Shinshu, August 1-4 Vacation Bible School, August 22-24The week following the conventions we went to the

regular summer camp, taking 7 of ouryoimg people fromMejirodai. This was fewer than the number in someformeryears, but some ofthe olderones are nowworking,and the Simday School is much smaller. I had lost myvoice on Sunday, July 31, but had no speaking part on theprogram and was content to just drive the group up thereand back, read and smUe and listen.

There was a total of 48 campem from a total of 11different places, including some from the Osaka area.There were also several Japanese preachers who alsoserved on the staff. Among these were 19 non-Christians- some at camp for the first time. The main speaker wasBro. Matsushita, who preaches at our church in Akashi,which is south ofKobe and the home church of our campmanager, Bro. Taninari. I was interested in the things hetold about himself and his youth, as I had not known himwell previously. He had good soUd messages aboutimportant things in life that were listened to by thestudents. A survey was taken after the camp, and 7answered they wanted to become Christian in the future;29 indicated theywould study the Bible more; and 20 saidtheywould go to church in addition to giving opinions onthe food, music, worship, classes, and the trip we made toa resort lake on the second day.

This summer Bill and Betty Turner were back inJapan for about 10 weeks. They lived most of that time atthe camp, helping in various ways in the work. Also, Boband Masumi Snyder lived at the camp for about 8 weeks.He helped in varioim wa^ with upkeep and improvements on the grounds and she helped in the kitchen. Heis a student at Cincinnati Bible College, and this was hissecond trip to Japan. In both trips he has worked at thecamp. We hope they will come here to do that on a long-term basis in the future, but for now he still has two ormore years of study ahead of him at the Seminaiy. Thissummer with these helpers, the kitchen and other workat the camp went smoothly. We are thankful for the helpgiven, includingthe veteran camperswho served as teamleaders, musicians, room supervisors, etc., makingfor anactive, happy time.

Senior Citizens' Camp, October 9-11

The last camp of eveiy season is for the older people.This year was the 8th time for us. We had a totalattendance of 17, although some had to get back to Tokyofor work and left before the end of the program. I guessthe average age was aroimd 60. In addition to the plannedprogram, we all enjoyed sitting aroimd at night drinkingtea or coffee, eating cookies and talking and laughingabout various things.

This year Harold Sims gave 3 messages on an overview of the book of Joshua, including maps of the conquest, division of land, etc. Also, Mr. Kobayashi, an elderof the Minato church, gave us 2 "rakugo" stories - aJapanese art form of humorous stoiy-telling about oldtimes, with lessons about human life and foibles, etc. Heis very talented at that, and although I couldn't follow allof the jokes, puns, etc., the others really enjoyed it.

Stephen lijima (73), the preacher at Minato church.

This year we had only 7 children enroll for our VBS,but we had a good time with them, and they seemed toenjoy very much the stories about Elijah. Lois got outsome flannelgraphbackgrounds and fig- is, iures and those who

told the stories

seemed to enjoy us- * " ning that method. It ^got to be difficult to ^

from messingaround Jmaking cra^ combi- ^^2*nations when theyshould have been do- ||king other activities. W.Severalyoungpeople •-helped, getting expe-rience. Mrs. Fukuda telling about Elijah.

Evangelistic Meeting in Yokosuka

The second weekend in Ju^ a special evangelisticmeeting was held at Yokosuka Church. Some of ouryoung guitar-playing people from Mejirodai went downto help with music and give testimonies. I am told theyhad an attendance of 20, which is twice the usual at thatchurch, and included 7 new people who had previouslyattended onlythe English classes taught bythe preacher,Bro. Kensei Yokomizo.

Youth Retreat in Isehara,

August 14-16

About 25 young people from 4 or 5 churches gatheredduring this mid-summer holiday time for messages andBible studies on spiritual growth. The speaker was ayoung man who works with the nation-wide ChristianCollege StudentsAssociation, to which a numberofthoseattending belong or belonged when in college. The boysslept in the church and the girls in the parsonage nextdoor. Theyprepared their own meals, which made itverylowincost. Planswere made bythe local church preacher,Bro. Nishiyama.

Minato Church Annual "Heads of

Households" Meeting,September 25, 26

For twenty years or more the Minato church has badan overnight fellowship and mutual encouragementmeeting for the men of the church eveiy fall. Some yearsago they began inviting the wives also. This year was thefirst time that the minister, Bro. Stephen lijima, wasunable to attend, so they called and speciallyurged me toattend this time. I had been 3 or 4 times before, but not forseveralyears. The meetingwas held at a YMCA facility at

the foot of Mt. Fuji, and the total attendance was 10 menand 7 women. It got off to a good startwith the news thatBro. lijima had just been released from the hospital afterhis pacemaker operation. He called and talked to mostof the people from his home that night after supper. Wehad a good time talking together of many things, including the successful convention in July.

Sayama Church Dedicates Building,October 22

There have been some problems connectedwith titleand property lines of land under the former churchbuilding, so the city took a hand in helping find a newlocation and financing the construction of a new buildingfor the church in the same city. The new buildingwascompleted some weeks before and dedicated on October22. Many new people from that area have started comingto the services already. Stephen Fleenor is the missionary there.

Mikawashima Church 70th

Anniversary

Back in the fall of 1924, Mr. W.D. Cunningham andsome zealous Koreanyoung men started a Koreanchurchin theMikawashima districtofTokyo wheremanypeoplewho had come from Korea to get jobs were living. Thiswas just 1 year after the great earthquake, and there wasa lot of discrimination and even persecution againstKorean people in those difficult economic times. In a fewyears, Mr. Cunningham helped them to buy a piece ofland and erect a church building and establish a kindergarten in it to help make the work self-supporting. Duj>ing the war the building was destroyed and, for a time,services were not held. Soon after the war, servicesbegan in the home ofone ofthe former memberswho wasalso a kindergarten teacher. Harold and Lois Sims didtheir first work in this home, and lived next door to thisLee family in a small apartment they built for us for about30 months (1948-1950). During this time a simple churchbuilding was constructed, and Harold preached with aKorean interpreter in the morning service and a Japanese interpreter at night.

In the 1060s, the church affiliated with a KoreanChurch, and they changed the name to Korean JesusEvangelical Church and became interdenominational.But at these anniversary times, they always ask us tocome and give greetings, andgratefullyacknowledge thebeginnings of the church and the post-war restart. Theybuilt a new building in 1970, which is well over twice thesize of the one we built in 1948. The church seems to begrowing.

There was a weekend evangelistic meeting with avisiting preacher from Korea, but we were able to attendjust the special annivereaiy ceremony on Sunday aftei>noon, October 16. We only recognized a few of the oldermembers who can remember 40 years back, but it was areal mutual joyto see those old friends again - especially2 boys I baptized serving as elders now. There was a verygood crowd of well over 200 people present for the occa^sion, including a number of preachers from the arearepresenting different groups. Both the present ministerand the younger assistant have visited in our home, andtheyare friendly to us ajid zealous for Christ's church andits work.

Harold Sims Celebrates 70th

Birthday

In Japanese language this birthday is called "kohki,"2 Chinese ideographs which would literally translate as"old & rare." This comes from way backwhen the averagelife span was about 50 and this milestone was seldomreached. The word is now becoming obsolete, becausethe Japanese average age at death is 79 for men and 84 forwomen. But anyway, it is an occasion for celebration andreflection. My celebrationwas spread out overa period ofabout 3 wee!^, if you count from the first to last cardreceived. People always remember that I like grapes andthey are right in season at that time of year and alwaysenjoyed. Jon and Verla came up from Yokohama withsome interesting little presents a few days ahead of time,and stayedfor an overnightvisit. Mrs. Okadahadher93rdbirthday in the hospital the day before mine, so we wentto visit herand were amazed that she could read the handwritten greetings that many of the church people hadwritten on 2 cards without glasses or assistance. Thechurch had a carry-in lunch on Sunday, September 25,and each one of the 35 or so present, including smallchildren, made a small speech of congratulations. Ofcourse, there was a cake. A group of ladies took us to aJapanese restaurant for lunch on the day - the 27th. Icertainly have much to be thankful for.

Mr. and Mra. Stanley Buttray (retired}, R.D. 2, Box 180, Meadville, PA1633S.

Mr. and Mm. Andrew Patton (retired), *6 Tanglewood, Carl Junction, MO64834.

Mr. and Mm. Harold Sima, 3-3^7 Mejirodai, Haohioji-shi, Tokyo 193Japan. Forwarding A^nt: FimtChurohofCkriBt.319E. Orange Avenue,Euetis.FL 3272^4104.

One year donation—$2.00

Before you move, please eead the Tntt<iing label with a oopy of your new address toMISSION SERVICES ASSOCIATION, PO Box 2427, KnozvUle, TN 37001-2427.

Tokyo Christian (USP8 776-320)

Published four times ayear in January, April, July, and November for themissionaries of the Church of Christ, Cunningham Mission, Tokyo, Japanby Mission Services Association, 7825 Hodges Ferry Road, KnoxviUe, TN37620-9731. Second Class postage paid at KnoxviUe, TN 37901-2427.POSTMABTSH; Send address changes to Tokyo Christian, o/o MISSIONSERVICES ASSOCIATION, PO Box 2427, KnoxviUe, TN 37601^27.

Form 3679 Requested, PO Box 2427, KnoxviUe, TN 37901-2427.