A Japanese pastor living close to the Fukushima plant wrote:
“My message the Sunday before the earthquake was titled "Hezekiah, an urgent prayer." When about to be destroyed by Assyria, Hezekiah put on sackcloth, prayed, & requested Isaiah to pray as they faced the life or death crisis of the nation. Before Hezekiah knew it, the crisis had passed... We were reminded that God of the history works in a wondrous way. I never thought I would have to request an urgent prayer just like Hezekiah, that we would be scattered, & read the Word at wherever we were placed. I humbly request your fervent, urgent prayers that our church would survive this crisis & the work of mission would not be stopped, that we would rise again, & that the radiation leak would be stopped. I covet your prayer.... About a third of our church members live close to the Fukushima power plant. They had to go through radiation checks, so we all gathered in the afternoon for a time of worship. I could hear people sobbing & saw that they had been through hardship. In the evening I went to a nearby hot spring. What a relief to have a soak after five days! People are so glad to find each other, which again led me to tears. Our nomad life has started. When I asked people whether they had any laundry, their reply was that there were no clothes to wash. All they have is what they are wearing."
OMF has a large team of over 130 people working in Japan, including areas badly affected by the earthquake. All are now accounted for but some of our members have been through difficult experiences. One wrote movingly of his work in the devastated areas, seeing how radically life had changed for so many. The missing are unlikely to return home. Many communities were so devastated & people so traumatized that they will never return – & must cope with creating a new life in a new area without anything remaining of the past. He wrote, “Mountains of every kind of debris representing the lives of the town’s inhabitants lay exposed for all to see but one particular item caught my eye… an old 45 rpm record. I wiped off
the mud revealing the title of the song, “I Want to Return to Those Days”
There will be many millions of Japanese who will be longing to return to those days before this massive disaster wrecked their lives. Yet there is no going back. They need not only physical help but spiritual & emotional hope, that there is a future & that broken lives can be repaired. Ultimately only the living, Creator God can give such hope.
Prayer requests:
- Pray for spiritual openness & awakening throughout Japan.
- Pray for the uncertain situation at the Fukushima power plant. Many are fearful. Pray for Christians to know how to deal with such fears, to grow strong in God & to reach out quietly & confidently to those around them.
- Pray for all who are involved in planning the next stages of relief -for good co-operation between local councils & wise leadership from central government.
- Pray for those who are staying in their own damaged homes, often in very spartan conditions.
- Pray for little groups of Christians in devastated areas as they meet together for worship & pray for leaders to be strengthened by God for ministry at this time.
- Praise for the opportunities the OMF Hokkaido, Aomori, Sendai & Tokyo teams had to help local communities.
- Pray for OMF as they plan for short-term & long-term involvement in these areas.
- Thank you for prayer for Josh’s broken hand. It appears to be healing well. Repeat x-ray on 28 April.
- Pray for Aimée on an Outward Bound week on an island off Singapore 11 to 16 April – for safety and fun.
- Anna starts teaching ESL to struggling 4th years part-time at the children’s school on Friday 8 April.
