In Community:
August 2016 Newsletter
The Greatest of These…
By Pastor Craig
One of the great things about summer is the delicious fruit in season. It’s hard to beat fresh berries, watermelon or peaches. For me, that’s something to look forward to during the dreary days of winter. The Bible talks about the appeal of fresh fruit as well; but not the kind that grows on trees or bushes. The Bible tells about spiritual fruit, the Fruit of the Holy Spirit in Galatians 5. For the next several editions of the Grapevine, I’d like to consider together the fruit that God brings about in our lives as we walk closely with Him.
The first fruit identified in the list is love. That’s only fitting because the Word tells us that God is love. As we walk with Him we become more and more like Him and love – the choice to put others and their needs ahead of ourselves – overflows in our lives. 1 Corinthians 13 is a chapter dedicated entirely to the description and application of love and it closes with the comparison of love to faith and hope. Hebrews 11 says that without faith we cannot please God. Romans 5 tells us that hope does not disappoint. But 1 Corinthians 13 says the greatest of the three is love. I think that’s because it lasts the longest. In Heaven, faith will be replaced by sight and no longer needed. In Heaven, hope will be realized and no longer necessary. But love will continue for all of eternity.
Jesus said that love will be the identifying mark of His followers. John 13:35 says “By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” So how might people see our love for one another in action? One way is to encourage those who volunteer in their service of the Lord. Another is to help those who are serving to lighten their loads. Keeping an eye out for visitors on Sunday and making them feel welcome is a display of love. A phone call to bless someone or asking how we can be praying for them are things we can be doing regularly. Any act that reveals a genuine concern for the well-being of another at some expense to us is love in action. Since 1 John 4:19 tells us that “we love because He first loved us” it’s only fitting that our church, as well as every church, should be a place overflowing with love.
Prayer Letter for Summer Mission’s Team to Yakama Nation
By Roney Rustia
We have a great FBC team going to White Swan this summer (July 30 – Aug. 6), to minister with Sacred Road Ministries to the Yakama Nation. Once again, we will help with Kids‘ Club (similar to VBS), and help with painting, roofing, and repair on homes of families in need. Our team is made up of a number of Sacred Road veterans who are excited to return to White Swan, plus a number of first- timers stepping up to serve. For the first-timers, there can be anxiety in not knowing what to expect. Even for the veterans there is some anxiety, because every year is different and can bring surprises.
As a co-leader of the team (alongside Sho Kato), I remind myself that this is not a project managed by traditional methods, in which success is determined by the assignment of tasks, schedules, metrics and meetings. This is God’s endeavor, and we are simply His workmen, tools for His use. We surrender our will and plans to Him.
Our team desires your prayers, and we fully depend on them.
Please pray for us about the following:
- Praise God for the team He has called to go to White Swan. Praise Him that they desire to make a difference for Him.
- Pray for each individual’s relationship with the Lord, that they will see Him as they serve.
- Pray for unity within our own team, as well as with the team from another church serving alongside us.
- Pray for safety as we travel and at the work sites (which can be hazardous). Pray for protection in the heat, which often reaches dangerous levels. (Please follow the weather forecast for Eastern Washington while we are there, and pray for us.)
- Pray that we can make personal connections with the children during Kids’ Club. Pray for the teachers presenting the Good News. Pray that the Good News will fall on good soil, receptive hearts.
- Pray for our impact on the family who owns the house we will be working on. Pray that they will see a beautiful people due to the God whom we serve. Pray that they will be drawn to Him.
Team Roster
- Roney Rustia
- Sho Kato
- Alisa Williamson
- Christie Fukuda
- Drew Fukuda
- Preston Mar
- Brenda Uechi
- Emily Uechi
- Justin Kumai
- Hanna Nakamura
- Kaleo Chan
- Jennifer Tsuji
- Reeghan Crawford
Thank you so much for your financial and prayer support. We look forward to sharing with you when we return.
Roney Rustia
(Co-leader of Summer Mission Team )
Prayer Requests from Team Members:
- My prayer requests are for safety throughout our trip, that God’s transforming love would be reflected in our words, actions, and attitudes, and for unity in all the teams so that we can serve to the best of our abilities. – Kaleo
- My prayer requests are for the health and safety of the group. This trip is very physically, emotionally and spiritually demanding. God must be the center and focus which begins with prayer. Prayer by family and friends is crucial as is continuous prayer by the team. – Alisa
- Please pray for Brenda‘s job search.
Prayer Requests from Sacred Road Ministries:
- Please pray for Chris Granberry and his family (Chris serves as Team Leader and Pastor for the team and church plant) as they are in Alabama grieving for the loss of a family member (Chris‘s brother); and also for Chris‘s 12 year old nephew who has been going through cancer treatment since last December.
Japanese Language Ministries
By Mina Chen
One of the characteristics of Japanese Language Ministries (JLM) is having international students. They come to the States to study and most of them eventually have to go back to Japan. We had a farewell party for Shun Horiguchi in February and Ruriko Morito in June. It is always sad to say good-bye but we continue to pray for their next steps and we are thankful for these relationships. We also celebrated with Ruriko and Shion Ogawa for finishing their community college programs and prayed for God’s guidance on their continuous education in 4 year college. We had a graduation celebration for Yuka Tomioka after church on July 3rd. It is touching to hear from Yuka that she started to understand why Christians say we are brothers and sisters and she feels people at FBC are like her family.
As a family, we get together and share meals. JLM has “Aisankai” lunch after church once a quarter and “Majiwarikai” potluck dinner at someone’s house on Saturday three times a year.
We have had two Aisankais so far this year. We sometimes have no agenda, sometimes play games, and sometimes hear testimonies. At our May Aisankai, we had the Chase family as guests. We had the privilege of hearing about their missionary work in Cambodia and future plans and had a time to pray for them. Since a few years ago, we made our menu simple (curry, rice, and salad) and focus on fellowshipping with others. Our next Aisankai will be August 14th. We try to have it bilingual, so anyone is welcome to join us.
We had Majiwarikai in July at Alan and Shigeko Williamson’s household. It was a nice sunny day and we ate, chatted and had a relaxing time together. Many of us are away from our extended family, but these gatherings are true family times.
Vacation Bible School
By Rene Nova
Rene Nova was gracious enough to lead our VBS team with snacks and lunch every day during the week. Her resourcefulness, love, and gifts were a blessing to all! Our VBS report features the behind-the-scenes work in the kitchen:
My daughter looks forward to VBS all year long. She says, “First comes Christmas, then Valentine’s Day, then Easter, then VBS.” When I was asked to cook snacks and lunch for VBS this year I was excited to participate in something she loves while doing something I love. As the time approached and people found out I was in charge of food they said “Wow!”, giggle and said “Oh my, good luck!”, or sometimes just laughed! I thought, “What have I got myself into?!”. I spent the weeks prior creating recipes for 75-100 people, making shopping lists, and considering food allergies, all while trying to not spend too much money. The Saturday before VBS as I could barely push my heavy, overflowing cart through Costco, I was nervous what the week ahead of me would hold.
It could have turned out to be an extremely stressful week if it weren’t for all the helpers! There were 6-10 people every day helping prepare, serve and clean. We had Lois making sure the kitchen was stocked and made runs for any last minute ingredients I had forgot, and a few moms (including my own) who had helped years prior and knew the drill. We were so lucky to have Vu, a young man who had just joined the church two weeks prior to VBS and wanted to serve using the skills he had obtained working in professional kitchens. We had helpers from the Japanese ministry and helpers from outside FBC. Last but not even close to least, the Seniors (I am now in love with the seniors at FBC). I was warned prior to not make them work too hard and give them breaks often, but they turned out to be tougher than me! Everyone in the kitchen was so competent and able to take charge of the task given, but completely open to instruction. I did not have to worry or micromanage. They were all so kind and giving of their time. People kept commenting on the fact that I didn’t seem stressed, I did-n’t have a chance to be stressed with so much help! Despite a few unforeseen setbacks, everything went smoothly. We had the food out (mostly) on time and the kitchen was spotless every day before they left. Most importantly we enjoyed our time together, talked and laughed.
When I took on this task, I just thought of it as a week where I could use my skills to serve others and be with my family. I never thought I would be so blessed by the people I got to serve next to and get to know. Our VBS is very biblically centered compared to other VBS programs I have observed which appear to be more about just providing entertainment for the kids with a little bit of Jesus thrown in. I know the thought and prayer that goes into our week. This is evident by the attitudes of the volunteers around me and the way God blessed our week. Thanks again to all my awesome kitchen helpers, I couldn’t have done it without you!
VBS Recap Video by Daniel Mayeda
Missionary Update: Mako
(Adapted from Mako’s newsletters.)
It has been wonderful to see so many of you even during a very short stay this summer. So thankful for your prayers! – Mako
Peter asked me, “Howmany people have you led to Christ this year?”
“Just you, I think,” I said.
“I’m lucky,” he said.
I do believe Peter understands God’s grace. He knows that there is something much more amazing going on than “luck,” and he also knows that he doesn’t deserve the gift that has been given to him.
It was encouraging just hearing Peter’s heart in wanting to have good conversations in which he could tell others about Jesus. He admitted that it is easier to share his faith with someone who has no religious convictions, and so we discussed some more how and why the Buddhist or the Muslim needs to know Jesus just as much as the Atheist.
As his roommate moved out, he shared with me in disappointment that he hadn’t been able to lead his roommate to Christ yet. He told me he had shared some with his roommate and I simply encouraged him to continue praying and maybe he will have more opportunities in the future. It was encouraging to see his heart though.
Peter wanted to have a farewell dinner with some of my friends from this past year, so the photo above is a picture of the dinner that Peter organized. There are several guys there who I spent a lot of time with this past year. Kent is on the left, a believer who was very welcoming to me even from the beginning of the year, with another believing friend. A couple of the girls from the college fellowship came as well. TJ was there, who I had been doing Bible study with for almost the whole year. This past semester TJ has been more honest with his doubts and believes the truthfulness of much of Scripture, but hasn’t put his faith in Christ. Another guy pictured also came to know the Lord this year, in large part through one of my teammate’s continued faithfulness in studying the Bible with him.
Next year, day-to-day will look very similar. I will still be doing campus ministry. I will still be taking language classes. My campus leader will be the same, and a couple national team members will also be the same, but we will be at a different school.
The organization will be different. I have left CRU and will be under the umbrella of the IMB (Southern Baptist’s organization.)
The reason for the change is the vision of the overall work in the area we will go. Instead of starting by focusing on having a healthy college fellowship at a school, we are starting with a local church. The local church we are partnering with will take more ownership over the college ministry to the campus where we will be serving and we hope to in this way be partnering with a church that will be planting other churches as well.
For the next 6 months I will be partially funded through going through Hands On with the IMB. I am continuing to raise support in order to have additional funds during the 6 month term and in order to prepare for continuing to serve at least a couple more years.
Thank you to all of you for your prayers! Please do pray for this transition to a new school and for faithful gospel proclamation as we start a new work.
Thanks and God Bless! – Mako
Bill’s Book Blurbs
By Bill Hamasaki
FBC Library – Reference Books
If you are involved in personal Bible study, reference books can be of great value in determining the intended meaning and purpose of a verse, passage, or book. In our FBC library, we have many excellent resource books that will greatly enhance your study of the Bible.
Bible dictionaries and encyclopedias provide valuable information on people, places, customs, important words, doctrine, and geography. We have Merrill Unger’s New Bible Dictionary and the New Bible Dictionary edited by J.D. Douglas. Editor Walter Elwell’s 2- volume Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible is an excellent reference. Also in our library is the classic 5- volume International Standard Bible Encyclopedia edited by James Orr. If you are looking for the meanings of specific words in their context, we have Larry Richards’ Expository Dictionary of Bible Words and Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words by W.E. Vine.
Bible handbooks provide a brief commentary and overview of each book of the Bible as well as interesting background material. They also have photographs throughout the text to help you visualize what you read in the Bible. We have the New Unger’s Bible Handbook by Merrill Unger as well the Eerdmans’ Handbook to the Bible edited by David and Patricia Alexander.
An exhaustive concordance lists words of the Bible in alphabetical order along with each verse in which the word appears. This reference allows you to do your own word studies. We have two classics that have stood the test of time: Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible and Young’s Analytical Concordance to the Bible. Cruden’s Concordance (not exhaustive) was a reference book that John G. Mitchell of Multnomah School of the Bible used profitably as a young believer.
Bible atlases can be a great aid in understanding what is going on in a book and how geography played a role what took place. We have two atlases that are considered among the best: Barry Beitzel’s Moody Atlas of the Bible Lands and Carl Rasmussen’s NIV Atlas of the Bible. Bible study becomes more meaningful to Western readers when the times and customs in which the biblical writers lived are explained and placed in their proper context. Ralph Gower’s The New Manners and Customs of the Bible is a great resource.
Other excellent reference books in our library include Explore the Book by J. Sidlow Baxter, Evangelical Dictionary of Theology and Baker Topical Guide to the Bible both edited by Walter Elwell, Nave’s Topical Bible, and Bible Archaeology by Alfred Hoerth and John McRay. Hope to see you in the library!
Save the Date! FBC Fall Conference
Fall Conference will be held on October 8-9 at Black Diamond Camp (formerly Camp Berachah). Our English speaker this year will be Lane Sanford, transitioning from working with the Siar people to pastoring in PA. Our Japanese speaker will be Roger Olson, Rock of Ages Lutheran Brethren Church. There will be Youth and Children’s programs as well.
