What a year! As we reflect back on 2022, one thing comes to mind: “God is in control!” There have been so many challenges but in the midst of them all, God has continued to work in and through Faith Bible Church. We of course remember that Pastor Craig and Lois retired after faithfully serving at Faith Bible for 20 years. They were true examples of servant leaders, and we miss them very much. And while we know they can’t be fully replaced, Pastors Mike and Kohei have really stepped up to fill much of the void, and Mina Chen and Marty Dong have taken on additional roles and have been a huge help, as well. And thanks to so many of you who continue to faithfully serve and pray and carry on God’s work in the church. So while we continue to search for Pastor Craig’s replacement, what stands out is not the fact that we have not hired his replacement yet but the fact that God continues to provide as we wait on His timing. With God, the people and situations may change, but God and His work does not. God’s command to love Him and to love others does not change. The Great Commission to make more and better disciples throughout the world does not change. Sure, finding another pastor to complement Mike and Kohei and their gifts is currently a big part of our prayers and efforts as a leadership team but at the same time, God’s work continues. We see new people attending, we see people growing and serving, and we see the Gospel being spread.

Of course, we’re not there yet, and we continue to seek God’s wisdom in areas where we need to grow. This year, as a leadership team, we hope to grow in our focus on discipleship and on communicating and connecting better with ministries and ministry leaders. We will be making efforts to see the different gifts God has blessed each one of us with and try to encourage the use of those gifts to further His kingdom. This will also be a year of putting faith into action and continuing to trust that God will provide all of our needs and in His perfect time. Thank you for your patience, your grace, and your continued commitment to God and His work. We are excited to see what He will do in and through us as a church body in 2023!

– John, on behalf of the Elder Board

2022 was the first year since Covid in 2020 when we had a full year of in-person worship services. The return was gradual as more and more restrictions were lifted. Online services continued (and will continue) particularly for those who are unable to attend for other reasons. The challenges of the past year – staffing our ministries as they opened up, encouraging those who have been away, reaching out to newcomers – they will always be there, but we are thankful that God provided for those needs as the year progressed. Feeling the need to include more people in our worship services, we added more people to our worship chair responsibilities. Marty Dong was added to the staff to help with preaching. The Music Ministry grew with new additions (see below). We have been encouraged by the growth In our ministry with the young careers and the JLM leading the way. They bring new energy, new ideas, and an inspiring passion to our church family.

As we move ever forward, we hope to continue this trend of inclusiveness in our worship services with more personal sharing from members and ministries, greater involvement in music and behind-the-scenes work. Worship is not just gathering; it also requires work, and in and through that work God is present and blesses us.

– Pastor Mike Kurtz

The Japanese worship service started as online via zoom in 2022 due to the Omicron surge, then in person/online as a hybrid service in March. Japanese worship took place basically every other Sunday at 9:30 AM, twice a month. As a person involved in serving for and participating in the FBC Japanese worship, I have been blessed in many ways. A prayer meeting prior to the service unites the team to focus on the service. Every role such as the praise music team, worship chair, coordinator, greeter in addition to the speaker are important. Paul and Daniel Mayeda are much appreciated for their dedicated audio-visual service.  

As a participant in corporate worship, I was blessed with music and words. Often songs are directly related to scripture and the message, which is the work of the Holy Spirit. God’s words, the Bible, are powerful. The passages in Japanese are synchronized with the English service. Messages are inspiring. Pastor Kohei preached every week except for a rare occasion when the Bauson’s preached during their furlough in the summer. People gather downstairs after the service and enjoy fellowship. Time to spend together deepens relations with each other.

A ‘Sunday school letter’ in the middle of week helps remind me of the passage and message. The ‘FBC update (Japanese version)’ on Friday makes me look forward to coming on Sunday and beyond. Continuing participation in the corporate worship in person or online is vital. To participate in service weekly empowers us to serve Christ together. The worship service in the Japanese language means a lot for Japanese speaking members.                                                              

– Ichiro Otsu, Elder

Paul Alota

I am so grateful and happy that I was baptized on Easter Sunday, April 17, 2022. It took a long time to get to that point especially considering I was born in 1959. Also in 1959, I was “baptized’ into the Roman Catholic Church but that was a parental commitment, not a baptism. I was raised as a Roman Catholic, was an altar boy, graduated from a Jesuit University (Santa Clara) and a Jesuit Dental School (Creighton University) and was an Army Dentist for 29 years. I also had my own practice for 20 years. I now work for another dentist in Belltown.
In the summer between undergraduate and dental school, I started to secretly have sex with other military men. For 36 years I not only committed that sin but I broke all Ten Commandments.

After a series of illnesses beginning in the summer of 2018, I had prayed some Catholic prayers to get well. My illnesses were such that I couldn’t work, use my cell, laptop nor TV. Then on Oct 4, 2019, the Holy Spirit restored me to health and told me to read the Bible every morning. Before coming to faith and coming to FBC, my relationship with Jesus was distant, superficial and doubtful. The Holy Spirit led me to start reading the Bible and to pray genuinely. My relationship now with Jesus after coming to faith and being baptized is close, deep, full of joy, truth and happiness. I share my testimony to demonstrate to others how miraculous God, the Father, God, the Son and God, the Holy Spirit truly are in my life.

The word “music” is found 128 times in the Bible. The word “sing” is found 158 times. The word “song” appears 110 times. In total, that is 396 references to music in some form in the Bible. Right alongside is “praise”. It appears 363 times. Music and praise are an integral part of our lives with God. That’s why churches all around the world sing at their worship gatherings because they are a means of communicating not only from our heads, but from our hearts. At FBC we have much to praise God for. All throughout this annual report are signs of God’s working, reasons to praise Him. As such, we strive as a ministry of worship-through-music to provide opportunities for our church family to praise Him through singing every Sunday morning.

In 2022, our Music Ministry experienced many changes. With several key leaders of the ministry stepping away last year, we had to fill those large shoes. And of course as is God’s nature, He was faithful to provide. Steven Ma moved into a worship leader role. Justin Kumai has been given more opportunities as well. A number of new musicians have joined the team including several CYC people – Edwin Ew Jong, Joshua Kwok, Yusuke Maruo, and Rachel Shin. We are thankful for these individuals and equally thankful for those who continue to serve in this ministry from years past in both our English and Japanese worship services.

Media Team

The Media Team continues to provide support for in-person and online worship services. Audio, video, and streaming can be complicated. We are thankful for those like Daniel & Paul Mayeda who served so faithfully nearly every week to keep things running smoothly. Looking ahead, we are currently training new people to serve in this area to take some of the load off the Mayedas. This is an important behind-the-scenes ministry that often goes unnoticed. We are grateful beyond words.

Prayer is an essential part of our faith as well as for the church. It connects us with God and with one another in a deeper way.

In 2022, we had all-church prayer meetings on zoom every other month. We had about 25-30 participants each time and prayed for the world, country, church ministries, missionaries, and individual needs. It is more than praying through the list of requests. We had a privilege to hear devotionals from several elders at the beginning of the meeting. Their sharing and testimonies helped us to focus on our faithful and sovereign God. As we look back at the prayer requests that are shared in the past, we see God’s answers and His unique ways to “work for the good of those who love him, who has been called according to his purpose. (Romans 8:28)” It has been blessings to pray with those we don’t usually get to talk to as much on Sundays.

We would like to thank the elders who faithfully pray for everyone in our congregation on our directory. I personally feel so blessed to get to know some of you more through exchanging emails and sharing prayer requests. When you have prayer requests, please share via an email to mina@fbcseattle.org or through the form: http://fbcseattle.org/prayer-requests/ The elders and we would love to pray for you.

In 2023, we would like to continue having regular prayer meetings and other in-person prayer options. We are seeking the direction of the prayer ministry and are willing to implement changes as God directs. It is our prayer that you all will be encouraged from the fellowship with God in your daily prayers.

– Sherwin & Mina Chen

Although in previous years the Children’s Ministry consisted of two fully staffed periods – Sundays at 9:30 & 11am – this year we were unable to fully staff both sets of classes. The decline in the number of families returning after Covid made it difficult to provide all classes as in the past. We are hopeful that this is a temporary situation that will be resolved in time. For most of 2022, formal classes were offered at 9:30am for our Japanese families (though not exclusively) during the Japanese worship service and at 11am during our English worship services. For the 11am ministry, the kids are being taught through a curriculum that will take them through the entire Bible in a year.

Teachers and helpers this year were incredibly faithful to the kids and to God’s Word week after week. In all, there were nearly 50 different people that ministered to the kids in 2022 on Sunday mornings. A special thanks to Dawn Hamasaki and Patty Mayeda for their leadership, ideas, and suggestions for this current school year at 11am. Thanks also to Akiko Takeda for organizing and leading the 9:30am classes (see below for details).

– Pastor Mike Kurtz

In the beginning, FBC Kids! at 9:30 was just a childcare program. However, as we reopened the church, God brought more and more families to our in-person worship service. It was then I strongly felt God’s call to care for the souls of the children and provide them with Christian education at the church. God led me to realize his unfailing love for them as well as their spiritual needs. I was not confident, so I prayed to God. Over time I felt a strong sense of calling to serve our children.

As I was leading other ministries such as the SoulFood Ministry and House Church Ministry, it was a challenge. But having advice from Pastor Kohei, I eventually decided to step up to start children’s worship during the 9:30 worship service. But, with parents and other volunteers, God opened the door to start this ministry in September with the goals of helping children  grow up to become Jesus’ disciples, who experience love from God and His people, and love God and our neighbors, grounded in the Word of God.

Due to the prolonged period of covid, the children were not used to the worship service, sitting in the classroom patiently. But they are gradually learning the order and the attitudes of worship through praise songs, Bible messages, handouts, crafts and snacks. We’ve first started to conduct the children’s worship service in Japanese, but God provided us with volunteers who could support English-speaking children by offering translation. So, we are now leading the worship service bilingually, which reflects God’s Kingdom.

In January 2023, we purchased a program, set up a shared curriculum, and also implemented a training system for volunteers so that they can get on the same page and teach the children coherently. The volunteers, of course, do not feel comfortable or confident that they can teach children well, but they are wholeheartedly trying their best to prepare and courageously facilitate the ministry for the sake of God’s glory and the souls of the children. The English-speaking volunteers also stepped up to serve with the same heart and mind. After a 30-minute worship service, the children are divided into two classrooms according to their age, namely, under age 6 and pre-K to 5^th grade. This is where the volunteers care for the children according to their needs whether by tending nursery children or helping English-speaking children understand the Bible. Without the volunteers, this ministry would not be possible and could not sustainably continue. I thank each and every one of them from the bottom of my heart.

Our next goal is to support Christian education at home, which will mean communicating and collaborating with the parents well. We are praying so that we can support the parents as they raise their children at home and that the church and family can work together to help our children grow in faith because God loves them so much.

– Akiko Takeda

The Yea-Chen (Yeager-Chen) house church group is led by Maki Yeager and Sherwin and Mina Chen. This group was started in February 2020. After the first in-person meeting, covid hit and we moved to meeting on zoom. Thanks to the technology, we were able to meet weekly on zoom and share life together during the pandemic. We started meeting in-person again in September. It is such a blessing to be able to share meals and life together like a family. At each meeting, we share what we are thankful for. When we first started meeting, it took some time to come up with things we are thankful for but now this is helping us to pay attention and remember how God is working in our day-to-day life. More than half of our group are non-believers, but they share their thankfulness and struggles with us and we “rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. (Romans 12:15)” Sometimes the struggle they are going through are so big and we do not know how to pray for them but we feel that the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans (Romans 8:26-27). It takes sacrifice of time to develop relationships, prepare a meal, and host weekly meetings, but as it says in Hebrews 13:16, we would like “to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.” It is our hope and desire that one day each one of them will be able to come to know the Lord as their personal Savior.

– Mina Chen

The Joshikai with Guys (lit. “Girls only club with Guys”) house-church group, which is co-led by the Coquincos, and Fishers had a great year in 2022. Our group is mainly Japanese speaking, connecting up several Christian and non-Christian families with small children. We regularly met via Zoom on a biweekly basis thoughout 2022, typically late on Saturday nights when the kids have gone to bed, and we were fortunate to be able to meet in person at least once a month (except during a short summer break period) several times. Although we’re experiencing great times of growth together via Zoom, we continued to build relationships and “share life together” at several in-person gatherings including a family playdate at Jefferson Park following a church service; a church service followed by lunch at Pastor Kohei’s house; a similar event at the Otsu’s house; and the Christmas-party for our house-churches hosted at FBC. Through our regular Zoom meetings, our non-Christian friends are able to share prayer requests with us and share their experiences and circumstances in a deeper way. We have also seen a willingness by the non-Christians to learn more about the family of Christ and many of them felt comfortable enough to come to FBC for the Christmas-kai party. During 2022 one couple welcomed a new baby into the world and another couple moved to Okinawa. We also welcomed several new members and are continuing to expand. For 2023, we pray that our relationships with continue to deepen and that the non-Christian couples will be interested in learning more about Jesus!

– Ben Fisher

The post grads (young adults) of FBC had a great year in 2022! With such a large influx of new people over the last couple of years, it has been such a huge blessing to build a strong community that can grow in faith, support one another, and share fun experiences together. Our unofficial group now includes well over 50 people and the majority of them attend one of three ongoing small groups.

All three groups have been doing some form of Bible study this past year. Steven and Kristy lead a group that dives deep into specific passages, discussing the text and related life application questions through study sheets prepared by Steven. They have gone through Ephesians, Haggai, and are partway through Nehemiah. Amy and Will lead an inductive Bible study group that has been going through 1 Corinthians, one chapter at a time (almost finished…). The third group rotates through hosts and facilitators and is finishing up a year-long (plus some…) journey of reading through the entire Bible. In between mid-week small groups, people get together outside of church for meals, hangouts, park days, sports, runs, skiing/snowboarding, and craft nights.

Going into the new year, there is a feeling of genuine camaraderie amongst the groups as many navigate cross-country moves, new jobs and relationships, career transitions, growing interests and hobbies, and other life events. God has truly blessed the group with a community to lean on and learn with.

As we look back on the year, we recognize God as the giver and grower of this community. We saw answered prayers for more leaders who stepped up at the end of 2021, and also, more young adults serving within and integrating into the larger church body. Thank you, church family, for welcoming us young adults with open arms. Please continue to pray for us, as there are certain challenges (in addition to all the blessings) that come with having such a large group size. We look to God to give us wisdom and guidance on how to build up a true community, that points people to Christ, helps each person to faithfully walk with Him, and fosters deep relationships that bring glory to God.

– Amy Li & Brian Vergara

In the spring of 2022 when the situation with covid was getting better, God called us to offer lunch after the worship so that the church can fellowship and build up a community. After more than 2 years of separation, God gave us a vision to reunite and rebuild a community of faith through a time of fellowship. The fellowship started organically, but thankfully, God brought many people not only to fellowship but also to serve, in total 70 different volunteers. Then, as many requested to continue this fellowship after the summer, we prayed and asked God how to keep building up community at church. God called us again to serve the church but to organize a ministry so that we can sustainably offer an opportunity to fellowship and serve on a regular basis.

In September 2022, God led us to start SoulFood Ministry with 30 volunteers who showed commitment to the ministry. God blessed us to prepare 120 meals every other Sunday September through January. This ministry is based on Acts 2 when the Early Church started a church where believers got together to break bread, pray, fellowship, and teach God’s Word. And God added people to the church day by day. We are convinced that by the power of the Holy Spirit, SoulFood can become a place to invite newcomers, cultivate friendships spiritually, and make more and better disciples. This was witnessed by the volunteers at the volunteers’ appreciation lunch held in January 2023.  It has been also a great opportunity for those who serve to get to know each other better as we spend time and serve together.

In order to continue our fellowship, we need your help. If you would like to serve and commit to the unity of the church, we invite you to join this ministry. All is welcome. And please join us also in prayer. We pray that we continue to offer food and a safe space to welcome and connect in order to seek unity in diversity in the church. We pray that God blesses each volunteer who prepare meal and each participant who join the fellowship to be united in building up a church. We thank God that many are joining to advance His Kingdom.

– Akiko Takeda

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.” Matthew 22:37-39

If we look at 2022 as our transition year from quarantine and online Sunday service, to cautiously gathering to worship, to greater comfort about worshipping together in person, we will see that our FBC Ohana has found a way to worship that feels safe, comfortable, and convenient for our families.

This has made our Ohana Care ministry especially more personal as we have made home visits perhaps more frequently than in 2020 and 2021, and we found ourselves praying one-on-one together with each other during these visits. I can think of very few ways that we can be in the presence of the Lord than when two or more are gathered together in prayer, fellowship, lifting each other up to our Lord for help, healing, thanksgiving, and for unabashed praise!

Jesus prayed with and for the people He encountered in His earthly ministry and our Ohana Care team’s foundation is prayer. Honestly, we can say that we’ve prayed on the phone, via email and text messages, Zoom, and face-to-face. We have shared fellowship in laughter, tears, sharing meals, coming alongside each other, and praying together.

Loving our neighbors is the identifying characteristic of God’s children and I like to think that our FBC Ohana is such a beautiful reflection the most beautiful and powerful attributes of Jesus: Love! God’s Word is His love letter to His people. “LOVE” is an action verb! And, it’s an action that starts in the heart, touches the heart, and reflects the heart of a follower of Jesus Christ.

– Theone Tollefson, for our Ohana Care Ministry

It’s hard to believe the Gospel Journey SS class is in its 4th year, but it’s a good example of God’s faithfulness. The spiritual discipline of regular time in studying God’s Word is hard but vital and so is Biblical community and support. With the Gospel Journey SS class, you get both! During the week, we read and study a passage of Scripture and on Sundays, we spend time discussing it and learning from what God has been teaching not only ourselves but others, as well. We also commit a good amount of time to sharing petitions and praises and to supporting each other in prayer. We have a multi-generational and some would even say eclectic group, but we share the common desire to study and learn the Good News of the Gospel and to meet together and to support and encourage one another using the different gifts God has given each of us. It’s been a rich blessing to journey together with one another.

We just recently finished Path Nine in the Gospel Journey and this past year has been such an encouragement to see the faithful dedication to reading and studying God’s Word. Learning His truth. We have seen God at work and how He’s been answering prayer. Thank you to those who are getting up on Sunday mornings to join us at 9:30 either in person (in the English library) or via Zoom. It has been a blessing to study, meet, pray and encourage each other in this way. If you are not already meeting at this time, please prayerfully consider joining us on this Gospel Journey. We would love to have you!

– John & Lisa Tsuji

The SSBTK had a great 2022 year. In the spring we finished up our church history course, working our way from the church’s activities in Acts through the early 1900’s. In the fall we studied postmodernism and now we continue that theme as we study the book “A Practical Guide to Culture.” Our class goal is to be people of vim and vigor regarding the Word of God and we desire to apply the promises of the gospel to an increasingly challenging postmodern world. Our class participants are English speaking and multi-generational. We are also a community group that shares lives and prays for each other. All are welcome.

– Marty Dong

If you ask many Christians how they study the Bible, many will tell you that it is taught to them by someone. That is not a bad thing at all, but how does one know if that teaching is really right? The Bereans in the book of Acts show us that it is good to look into the Scriptures ourselves to verify teaching. Going to the internet for instruction might be extremely profitable, but also extremely dangerous if we aren’t studying the Bible for ourselves.

To help aid in our understanding of the Bible, mid-week seminary-style courses were taught to help students understand how to read and study the Bible. The class was provided by the BibleProject organization in a video format and shared together with the class via Zoom. Three classes were offered in 2021-22:  Introduction to the Hebrew Bible, The Art of Biblical Words, and Ancient Cosmology. These classes introduced background content that is helpful when reading, in particular, Old Testament material. Ultimately the class helped students know how to properly interpret the Scriptures in light of Christ who was foreseen millennia earlier.

We plan to continue these mid-week FBC courses in 2023 with the purpose of equipping our people how to properly understand the Bible.

“But be sure you live out the message and do not merely listen to it and so deceive yourselves.” (James 1:22)

Thank you, FBC Ohana for supporting Sacred Road Ministries.

In 2022, we were able to send our first summer mission team to Yakama since Covid. Amy Li, Brian Watanabe, and Nathan Fukuda made up the FBC team. Our Ohana put love into action. This year we sent out the team, donated cereal and provided daily snacks for the Yakama children. As an Ohana we commissioned Amy, Brian and Nathan As a congregation we prayed over them, the ministry and the children they would serve.

Our annual Christmas Shoe Box and Youth Hoodie donations blessed many with Christ’s love. The Shoeboxes were also used to reach out to other Reservations in a three-state region. Knowing we are investing in His kingdom and blessing fellow believers at Hope Fellowship is a source of Joy. We disciple through our partnership with Sacred Road by placing their needs first and expecting nothing in return. I hope many of our Ohana resonated with this verse as they gave from their heart. “And the king will answer them, ‘I tell you the truth, just as you did it for one of the least of these brothers or sisters of mine, you did it for me.’”-Matthew 25:40 NET

One thing I learned through collecting shoe-boxes was from a couple who were on Yakama teams in the past. They dropped gifts at our home. Although they were going through very tough times, they spent time buying personalized and meaningful gifts. Seeing each item, I could feel their love and care for children in Yakama. The intense pain they were suffering could not stop the love of Christ. Their genuine compassion did not cease. With each gift, I am reminded of God’s abundant love and it beckons me to thank God for our sweet Ohana.

– Rieko Kato

What a blessing that we can be a part of what God is doing at the School of Promise! Partnership with the School is one way that our Faith Bible Ohana can help bring the Good News to the ends of the earth and provide a path of hope to the powerless and oppressed. We have the opportunity to be more personally involved by praying for, financially supporting, and sending words of encouragement to children who are at risk of human trafficking. After a visit in June from the founders of the school, Joel and Marvel Vander Kooi, eleven more children were sponsored! But, our relationship with the School is not only about us giving to them. They give so much more to us by their friendship and example of sacrificial love and faith. Some of the staff live far from their spouses and children to serve at the school. Others readily open their homes to students in trouble. One staff member only sleeps a few hours a night as her love for the Lord compels her to take on many projects. Students display their courage by trusting the Lord, even when their families may not support and may even oppose that choice. One such student, Bree, even endured abuse at the hands of her father. She found refuge at her teacher’s home; however, a teacher’s salary is not enough to care for another household member. FBC established an Emergency Fund to meet this and any other dire needs of students and staff. Thanks to the generosity of our Ohana, there are ample funds to meet these needs for many months to come!

– Dawn Hogan

2022 was a big year for the Homeless Ministry. Lots of moving pieces and lots of perspective changes. Going into 2022, the ministry was riding a wave of enthusiasm and momentum as the ministry saw many volunteers come out and serve, as well as getting to know other ministries in the Seattle area that had the same vision. Although the year started off hot, by the end of summer, I started to see my joy, mental clarity, my organization, and heart for this ministry start to diminish. I was burnt out and needed help. After speaking with close friends, mentors, and Pastor Kohei, I decided that it was best for not only myself, but the ministry, if I took a sabbatical for a couple months… God convicted me that my stubbornness to surrender and pride limited this ministry… I was not surrendering this ministry to Him and that I was trying to do everything on my own… In my efforts to do God’s work well, I idolize the “work” and lost my heart of worship. Sometimes as leaders, we get caught up in the busy work, when in reality all God wants is a sincere posture.

God called us back to ministry in October and we had a luncheon to provide more information to new volunteers and cast the vision God gave us for this next season. God provided so many new volunteers and it warmed my heart to see God mobilizing individuals to serve… We even had some of the youths come out to the luncheon and distributions! In December 2022, God opened a door for FBC to serve the True Hope Village across the street. This was different from what we were used to doing, but it was exciting!

I look forward to seeing how God continues to grow and call people to step out of their comfort zones to share the love of God through meals and intentionality.

-Justin Kumai

The Nikkei Manor ministry is an outreach to the residents and staff of an assisted living facility in the International District. This past year the ministry provided a monthly worship service on Sunday afternoons to proclaim the Gospel, to “…visit orphans and widows in their distress…,” and encourage the residents and the staff in their faith.

We were blessed as a team in being able to visit for nine of the 12 months in 2022 despite continuing limitations due to COVID restrictions, such as limiting the team to five people at a time and requiring the wearing of masks. The Lord opened the doors for us, though, and we made use of the opportunity. We have been encouraged as a team in knowing two residents who attended the service frequently, and who were strong in the Lord, who have now gone to be with Him in eternity. The residents who regularly attend include both those with a faith in Christ, as well as those who are searching.

The delivery of encouragement, the Gospel, and group worship and fellowship is not unique, but it has caused us to grow in our faith because we can see that in God’s time He touches the hearts of people, drawing those He has chosen since the beginning to Him. We can see His Holy Spirit working, even if it takes time. We praise Him for His grace, and the opportunity he has given us.

We covet your prayers for the ministry, and we are always looking for additional volunteers to join the team so that we might be able to visit more often even if there is still a limit on visitors.

– Tom Gerety

In 1792 the modern missions movement began with a declaration from William Carey, “Expect great things from God; attempt great things from God.”
Missions is all about that, sharing the Gospel, bringing hope and healing to a broken world.

Listed alphabetically below are our member and associate missionaries.

Dave and Akiko Bauson minister in Chiang Mai, Thailand, at the School of Promise. The school’s goal is to rescue, train and provide a Christian education for children that are at risk of being forced into the trafficking industry. Akiko is working in communication with sponsors of the children of the school. Dave is involved in a project to launch the first Christian College in the area. He serves as a preaching Elder in Promise Church, a church plant meeting at the school. They also manage two funds set up by FBC: one to serve the health care needs of the teachers and dependents, and the second launched this year, a fund to help students who are in desperate financial situations. Recent highlights include the Secondary Student’s English Camp and 400 people attending the Community Christmas Party

John and Joy were sent out by FBC to minister in Central Asia with Compassion and Mercy Associates. They recently spoke 7 times at Beautiful Gate church network training conference for local church leaders. They have helped fund and support multiple ministries, a sampling of what they have done include:
Grants for five pastor/leaders to start income producing small businesses.
They helped a church that was swept away in monsoons buy safer land to relocate.
Provide food relief for 15 disabled families.
Provide giant cooking pots for a remote village fellowship.
Support a medical treatment camp and sewing training for lower caste women in a remote village.
Assist in livelihood training for formerly trafficked women.
Provide musical instruments to assist in worship.
Camaserves.org/project/Himalayan-horizons/

Steve and Miku Inouye were sent out by FBC to minister in Northern Japan. Their highlights for 2022 include:
Entering the third year of the Hope Cafeteria Ministry.
Starting a Children’s ministry at Hope Sapporo Church.
More families joining their Christian Foster Families online fellowship and prayer time.
In person fellowship of the Christian Foster Families fellowship

Mako and Ting Ting were sent out by FBC to minister in East Asia working with college campus outreach. With the Covid situation leading to the inability to minister on campus, they had a shift in their ministry focus. They moved back into the central city and Mako will pastor an International Church. They continue to shepherd students remotely and in person.

Bob and Noby Kennell were sent out by FBC to reach the previously unreached Bisorio and Malaumanda people in Papua New Guinea. They were able to make their second trip back to the Bisorio. They provided much needed teaching and counsel and Bob continued the translation work of the Old Testament. Noby wrote a devotional on Colossians for the Bisorio women. From Papua New Guinea they flew to Chiang Mai, Thailand. There they spoke at three conferences in Thailand. They also support the Ethnos 360 work in South East Asia and Papua New Guinea remotely from their Pennsylvania location.

Charleen Kiyabu continued her ministry with the Jesus Film Project, located at CRU headquarters. She works with many contacts in Central Asia, many who are in precarious situations. She asks for prayer for balancing her busy ministry with local international in Orlando, and with believers in the Middle East, Africa and Central Asia.

Weymann and Helen Lee serve with Teaching Leaders International, a ministry dedicated to training National ministry leaders. Weymann was able to resume training pastors and leaders in person in Serbia (March), Liberia (April and August) and Liberia in August. He was also able to visit a future new training site in Ghana. He also taught two online courses. In 2023 he hopes to train pastors in a new location in the Philippines, travel to Serbia (March), Liberia (April), and India in May and November.

Richard and Keri Nakamura serve with SEND, reaching out to the Japanese Diaspora in Fort Worth, Texas. They moved there in 2022 to continue the work with SEND. Richard is making connections with the Japanese Baptist Church of North Texas and the Toyota Christian Fellowship

Scott and Terri Sasaki were sent out by FBC to serve with Ethnos 360 at the Lapilo Centre in Papua New Guinea. Ethnos has planted over 200 churches in PNG and currently support 43 church plants. Scott works as the Lapilo Centre Manager and Terri is the coordinator for the Educational Special Services team. They are part of a team of 56 support staff out of 357 missionaries serving in PNG.

Paul and Carol Suzuki serve with SEND International in Japan. Because of Covid-19, Paul has had to serve as both Japan and Asia director for SEND. One can imagine the tremendous burden of overseeing hundreds of missionaries across Asia. Carol has been busy with mentoring missionaries and supporting group ministries. They will be on home service for a year with Paul’s folks in Hawaii beginning in Spring of 2023.

Chris and Missy Takano serve in Germany, teaching MK’s at the Black Forest Academy. The Black Forest Academy has students from 62 countries. They minister as Middle School teachers and disciple high school students. Chris is also the Head JV basketball coach and Missy teaches Bible and mentors one on one. They will be returning to the United States in June for a year of home service.

Naomi Y was sent out by FBC to serve in the Middle East. The Livelihood Farm Project was established and has been providing crops as well as involving the community in raising sheep, goats, chicken rabbit and bees. Between that, training language teachers and a macrame project, many local jobs were provided. A school voucher program allowed students to receive an education. A Relief Initiative has served families with food and medical supplies as well as helping widows in refugee camps. FBC helped with educational efforts and the livelihood project. Naomi plans to transition in ministry this coming year.

Harriet and George Walker work with InterAct Ministry, serving as missionary trainers. They spent time in 2022 with Eagles of Peace Ministry in Central America. They also spent time training missionaries with Interact in Alaska. They also continue to partner with Bob and Noby Kennell, working on translating the Bisorio Old Testament.

Thank you to all of you in the FBC Ohana who are lifting up our missionaries. Our missionaries need our support and prayers. It can be said, “Missionaries have a bull’s eye on their backs and footprints up their chest”. Since many serve in closed countries, much can not be disclosed.

Please pray for at least one missionary a day and consider making an effort to reach out and get to know them, even from afar. Together, as an Ohana we can support our extended family who sit and serve on the edge of the world.

Thank you.

– Gary Kato for the mission’s ministry

• Senior Pastor:   Craig Swanson (- March 2022)
• Associate Pastor:   Mike Kurtz
• Associate Pastor:   Kohei Takeda
• Pastoral Assistant:   Marty Dong
• Office Manager:   Lois Swanson (- March 2022)
• Office Manager:   Mina Chen
• Giving Records/Reimbursements:   Jeanne Kumai
• Media Technician:   Daniel Mayeda
• Custodians:   Kent, Claude & Atsuko Colson (- April 2022)
• Custodians:   Jeff, Maki & Natalie Yeager (May 2022 -)

• Chairman:   John Tsuji
• Vice Chairman:   Kenji Kumai
• Secretary/Treasurer:   Mike Kurtz
• Members:
  Yoshiyuki Aoyagi
  Alan Fukuda (Emeritus)
  Gary Kato
  Hiroo Kuge
  Ken Kumasaka
  Ichiro Otsu
  Craig Swanson (- March 2022)
  Kohei Takeda

• Ohana Care:   Theone Tollefson
• Prayer:   Sherwin & Mina Chen
• Sacred Road Ministries:   Rieko Kato
• Seniors:   Kevin Chan