September has flown by for Yoko and I, as we returned from Canada and hit the ground running. The big event was the art exhibit I mentioned in our previous update. Please watch the above video to get a walkthrough of the exhibit and hear some greetings from our friend Peter, from Gallery Nani.
In short, the event was a great spiritual bridge-builder, and we were encouraged and inspired to think about how we can engage more with the community through the arts. Thank you for praying!
October also has some travel and special events on the calendar, including a couple of visits to Noto, where the big earthquake took place last year and Christian relief work continues. We’d appreciate your prayers for the following:
10/12 (Sun.) Worship leading Immanuel Komatsu Church
10/22 (Wed.) Noto Help volunteer work
10/26 (Sun.) Preaching at Monzen Bible Church in Noto
10/31-11/3 Visiting Nagoya for a Christian conference and promoting Drawbridge Creations.
Thank you for your prayers after the recent loss of my father. Though it has been a difficult season in many ways, Yoko and I are thankful for the time we had with Dad before his passing, and for the time with Mom and family in the weeks since.
We are scheduled to return to Japan next Wednesday, so please be praying for our travels and also for God’s wisdom and direction as we transition back to life there and get into a new season of ministry.
There are also a couple of upcoming events we’d appreciate your prayers for:
On September 15, planning to be at the Hokuriku Missions Conference, where we have the opportunity to promote Drawbridge Creations. Please pray that we can make good connections and grow our ministry here.
Meanwhile, throughout September, some of my work is on display in Seto (near Nagoya), along with work by Stephen McCranie, in an exhibit called “The Story Behind the Story.”Gallery Nani is run by a missionary couple there who use this space for community connection and outreach. The exhibit runs all month, and Yoko and I are planning to be there in person for the final weekend artist talk event. Please pray that spiritual bridges will be built through this exhibit and event!
Thank you again for your prayers and support for our life and ministry in Japan!
Hope your summer is getting off to a good start! In Ishikawa, it looks like we’re just entering the rainy season. Thank you for your prayers this past month. Here are some updates and prayer requests for June:
1. Thank you for praying for our ministries at the Immanuel churches in Fukui and Komatsu last month. God lead, protected and blessed us!
2. We are now attending Immanuel Kanazawa Church as our “home church.” This is an attempt to centre our ministry closer to where we live. There are actually two Immanuel churches in Kanazawa, and both have asked us to work with their young people (mostly university students). This Sunday we went to an adventure park with some of them! Please pray for God’s leading in our church life and local ministries.
3. In June, we are planning to host a team from The Well in Christchurch, New Zealand. This is a Wesleyan-Methodist Church with a heart for Japan and a desire to partner with our work here. This visit is a vision trip with the purpose of learning more about the needs and opportunities in Japan. Please pray for a God’s blessing on this trip.
4. Also in June, I (Robin) am scheduled to spend two weeks in the Philippines attending a Leadership Matters Course. With new workers (Lord willing) coming soon, GP has named me mission director for Japan and recommended this class to me as part of my preparation.
5. Our new missionary Mickey Veach is making good progress in his support raising. We are planning for his arrival in October. Meanwhile he continues to engage with us remotely as one of the writers for our online manga series Waypoints. The latest story is one Mickey wrote, and is scheduled to go online this Friday! Please pray for this ministry, and for Mickey’s continuing partnership development.
As our busy season begins and we have lots on our minds, we’re thankful for partners like you who hold us up in prayer and support the mission in Japan. Thank you for being on our team!
Hope you had a happy Easter! We spent Easter weekend in Nagoya again this year, doing an English outreach event that Sunday afternoon. We were grateful for a good turnout, and that several of my former English students joined the event and got to hear an Easter message.
Please PRAY that God will continue to work in the lives of my former students in Nagoya!
Meanwhile, we uploaded a new Easter-themed Waypoints manga and did some paid promo on Instagram to try and get some more views. Thankfully we had a pretty big spike in website traffic, though it’s hard to measure the impact.
Please PRAY with us that God will use this project to sow seeds of salvation and draw people to faith in Christ!
This coming Sunday (5/4) we’re at Immanuel Fukui Church again, where I’m scheduled to preach and Yoko to lead worship. The following week we’re back at Immanuel Komatsu Church for music and worship ministry. The rest of the month is fairly quiet, but we’ve got lots to keep us busy as we prepare more Waypoints content and work ahead before a very busy June.
Please PRAY for these ministries and behind-the-scenes projects, and that God will give us vision and direction to move the mission forward in Japan.
Thank you for being a part of our team through your prayers and giving!
At IGM annual conference in Yokohama, with WGM missionaries, their director Dan Schafer (who was guest speaker) and his wife, and IGM’s president Rev. Iwagami.
Hi everyone,
Thank you for your prayers for us, our ministry, and Japan!
This past weekend, we attended the annual conference of Immanuel General Mission (IGM), our partner denomination in Japan. Earlier in the month, I preached, and Yoko led worship at Immanuel Fukui Church; and we led worship together in Immanuel Komatsu Church. We’re grateful for our church connections and partnerships in Japan!
Please pray for IGM pastors, churches, and families going through transitions right now as this is pastoral change season. And pray for us, too, as we explore new church connections and partnership possibilities in the months to come.
Also in March, we released a new manga (The Pool) at Waypoints. This month, we’re posting a new Easter-themed Waypoints manga, and doing some extra online promo and outreach. Pray that God will help us connect with new readers and point them to Jesus.
And speaking of Easter, we’re scheduled to do another English ministry reunion at our former church in Nagoya on Easter Sunday, April 20. Please pray that we’ll have a good turnout, especially from people who don’t normally go to the church, and that we can effectively share with them about the hope we have in Christ.
