Kindervater Kapsule

January 10 , 2006

Kindervater Kapsules are periodic e-mail updates from the Kindervaters, serving with the Christian & Missionary Alliance in Japan
 

 

 

 

                                             Let it snow | kapsule                                                      

 

Western Japan is getting pounded. You may have heard on the news – over 13 feet of snow already this year. And yet, just 50 miles away, we have none. All the snow falls on the western mountains, and on the east we get sunshine (not so bad!). But it’s going to snow here, as well!

 

One snowflake falls. The children yell, “It’s snowing.”  We reply, “it’s only a flake.” Another flake falls. The children yell, “It’s snowing!” We reply, “it won’t stick.” “It’s snowing,” they persist. “But it will melt soon,” the skeptical adults persist. “The radio said it wouldn’t snow.”

 

But snow doesn’t listen to the radio!*

 

Only one percent of Japanese believe in Christ. Only 2 out of 1000  actually attend church. “My parents are elderly.” “It’s too hard.” “They won’t believe.” “It won’t snow.”

 

But, thankfully, God doesn’t listen to statistics. His power is not limited by statistics or the past. He is the God who is able to do “more than we ask or imagine”(Ephesians 3:20).

 

This is the theme verse for Sengendai Church for this year. So many of our people are the only believer in their family. Everyone they know in this world – apart from the others in our church – are lost. It can be discouraging. But, this year we are choosing to believe and ask God for the impossible. The humanly impossible, that is. It’s going to snow!

 

We saw the first flakes at Christmas. Two husbands that the wives have prayed for for 40+ years came to church at Christmas. Four adult children of our members came, and many other people who had never come before; some who had never been to a church of any kind before. Mr. Tanaka and Mrs. Mizuochi have continued to seek. It’s going to snow.

 

Get your mittens ready!

 

 

Thanks always,

 

 

 

*Based on a great children’s book, “Snow,” by Uri Shulevitz.