The church also ran an event for older people. We have four aged care workers in the church. The minister used to work at an aged care in the past. He gave a message and a deacon gave a seminar on dementia. Two people attended. We are thinking of the second seminar on the similar topic.
Please pray that the church will organise more and more of outreach events where non Christians will enjoy coming along.
Presbyterian Church of Japan held their General Assembly for two days in Tokyo. APWM asked Nathan to represent Presbyterian Church of Australia for greeting at the Assembly. All of us headed to Tokyo and we stayed with my youngest sister’s family in Chiba. She looked after our children and they looked after her children during the Assembly. We missed to catch up with them when they visited Osaka in August during the summer holidays because we were in Australia. Nathan gave the speech in Japanese and received a lot of very warm encouragement from a Korean minister, Japanese ministers and elders. With his little Japanese Nathan delivered his heart very well. He believed strongly that he who has already been sent to Japan should give the speech in the language.
In December our children’s outreach event theme was Christmas and fourteen children made a “Confectionary House” each. Some children neatly decorated and some others just put whatever they wanted to eat with their houses. Many different houses were made. They listened to the Christmas story of cerebrating Jesus’ birth. Please pray for these children that this Christmas they may understand the true meaning of Christmas.
Since Christmas Day is not a public holiday, Churches in Japan will hold their Christmas Service on Sunday the 24th. Therefore, our church is holding a Candlelight Service on the night before. My mother was so keen to attend the service that she contacted her two sisters to come together.
Yours in Christ Jesus,
Tomoko Stewart,
Osaka.