In Community:

April 2022 Newsletter

Pastor Craig and Lois Swanson on their last official Sunday at Faith Bible Church (March 27, 2022) 

The Flying Trapeze

By Pastor Craig Swanson

In my latest Friday Update, I shared a list of “final things”; things I’m doing at FBC for the last time.  But I’m also being reminded of several first-time experiences at FBC as well.  This past Sunday as I was sharing my final message, I was also remembering the first time I was invited to speak at Faith.  As we were saying goodbye to many people at the fellowship time after church, I’d be reminded of the first time I was privileged to meet these same people.  As I write this article for the Grapevine, I’m also thinking of the first time I wrote a “Pastor’s Page”.

At that time, we had just come through a season of wondering where the Lord was leading and how He was going to provide as we were seeking to follow Him.  I described the experience as being like a member of a trapeze team.  We swung out, let go of our trapeze when there was no sight of anyone else around, and waited for our partner to arrive and catch us before we fell.  God did catch us and mercifully carried us to FBC.

As I looked out over the congregation Sunday, I was reminded of times we went through trapeze moments with many of you, praying for you and walking alongside you as you waited for the Lord to catch you before it was too late.  For some it was losing a spouse, a parent of even a child.  For others it has been a devastating health diagnosis or relationship challenges or job loss or transfer.  But in so many cases, you’ve trusted the Lord, followed Him and waited on Him to catch you.  That is what living by faith means.

Hebrews 11:1 says that “faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen” (like the trapeze partner who doesn’t appear to be anywhere around when you let go, but you jump anyway).  A couple of verses later the writer of Hebrews tells us that “without faith it is impossible to please God”.  Witnessing your faith in action has been an encouragement and inspiration to me.  I guess that’s why “Faith” is this church’s first name.  And “Bible” is central in all we believe and do.  May this church continue to encourage and inspire through its faith and keep God’s Word the focal point in everything.

Treasured Memories of Serving Together

By Lois Swanson

When I came to FBC, I didn’t know anyone.  But I discovered my friends to be the people I was blessed to serve alongside of.  Greg McRae introduced us to the ministry of feeding the homeless.  Seeing each person we served as being made in the image of Christ, was transforming for me.  Howard & Betty Inouye asked us to team up with them in hosting Seattle Tour weeks to encourage staff from various Japan Kings Garden senior and disabled care facilities.  Each year, spending a little over a week together with a group of staff we had never met, resulted in deep conversations and close relationships.  One of the ladies who came accepted Christ through her time here, and is now the director of a large JKG senior care facility near Tokyo.  Gary & Rieko Kato introduced opportunities to serve at Sacred Road with the Yakama Nation, where we were blessed to help with kids’ clubs, roofing and painting projects…allowing for time to get to know the others on our team as well as to build relationships with those on the reservation.  They also introduced us to the School of Promise in Thailand, where we were blessed to get to know the teachers, and to catch the vision for what equipping the kids academically and spiritually to reach their full potential could do.  Kelly & Reiko Aramaki impressed on our hearts the need to be involved in Beacon Hill International School.  It was an honor to get to know the teachers as we helped clean their classrooms and prepare for the next school year, to get to know the parents at the BBQ dinners we were able to provide and serve.  Merrill & Jo Valberg and Roney & Sharon Rustia headed up workdays where we were able to work together to weed the flowerbeds, trim the trees and deep-clean the kitchen. It was a joy to see how much could get done when we all worked together.  Every one of these serving opportunities was an opportunity to trust Christ for wisdom and strength, and resulted in deepening relationships with those I was blessed to serve with.   I encourage you to pray about how God might use your gifts to provide opportunities to bring Him glory, enjoy His presence, and accomplish His purposes.

One of the first opportunities I had to serve at Faith Bible Church was with the Talk Time Ministry. It was special to see some of the students accept Christ as their Savior….one of them being Mina Chen!  Seeing Mina grow in faith and in her love for God and for others has been such a joy and blessing!  Her faith, even during times of deep challenges, has been inspirational to me.  It has been such a joy to work together with such a sweet sister in Christ.  I will miss our times together in the office, but I know she has surpassed me in her abilities to manage our church office as well as in her application of the Word of God in her daily life as she truly displays the fruit of the Spirit.

Homeless Feeding Ministry

As the Elder Board, we are pleased to announce that Faith Bible Church has decided to officially support the Homeless Feeding Ministry. In accordance with Ephesians 4:12 (“to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up”), FBC has always been a church that is led by lay leaders. Thus, the main roles and responsibilities of the Elder Board are to help each congregant connect with their unique purpose from God, support and bless them so that they can faithfully follow Christ to love and serve our neighbors. As FBC’s mission is to make Jesus’ disciples who make His disciples, the Homeless Feeding Ministry is also in alignment with the vision of FBC. 

The following is what the Elder Board decided to support the ministry, which is to both meet its needs and walk alongside those who are called to this ministry. 

• The church will financially support the ministry as they engage in feeding the homeless people in Seattle and sharing the Gospel.
  
• The church will help the ministry communicate with the rest of the congregation, the body of Christ, through testimonies, Sunday announcements, recruiting volunteers, or collecting donations, etc.
• The church will support the ministry spiritually and missiologically by helping the team discern the right goals and methods in light of advancing God’s Kingdom.
• The church will support the ministry relationally through the Elder Board. Pastor Kohei will be mainly in charge of the support and communication. He will personally meet, encourage, and mentor the leadership team regularly.
• The church will support the ministry, and also respect their decisions, as well as their initiatives and responsibilities.
  

We want to praise God that He touched our heart and led us to show our love to the homeless neighbors in a tangible way. It is a privilege from God, yet is his divine call. 

Please pray for and with the ministry. If you feel led to be part of the ministry beyond prayers, please consider joining the team to serve in whatever capacity you can, and/or donating to help the ministry grow. If you have any questions, you can reach out to Justin Kumai, the ministry leader. We are excited to see how God leads us to share his love with our neighbors. 

– Pastor Kohei, on behalf of the Elder Board

Justin Kumai’s Sharing

FBC Ohana,

Thank you for this opportunity to share about the homeless goodie bag ministry. It will be 1 year in May since I first went out to give out 20 sandwich bags at the waterfront in Downtown… Who would’ve thought that we’d be where we’re at now? Praise God. Looking back and reflecting on this past year, I can’t help but be in awe of God’s provision, guidance, and work in not only out on the streets, but in the hearts of those serving with me.

God’s Provision:

God’s timing is perfect, Amen? When we first started, financially, everything was out of pocket. I worried about longevity of the ministry and worried about the number of bags we would be able to make. I remember reading Matthew 7, where Jesus tells us not to worry because “Your Father knows that you need these things… Seek first His Kingdom and His Righteousness, and all these will be given to you as well”. In my quiet times, God would ask me, “do you trust me”? And being completely honest, I had a hard time. But as we continued to act out in faith and continued to go out, God began calling friends and family that wanted to help financially. And now, God has given us the opportunity to be supported by FBC. God is GOOD!!!

God’s Guidance:

Recently, the City of Seattle has be adamantly sweeping homeless encampments and hot spots. What this means is that the homeless are removed from a certain area and forced to find other places to camp out. This is an ongoing struggle for us as we do not know where they go and when the sweeps happen. A couple months ago, are most frequently visited area (Pioneer Square and Chinatown) were swept. As a ministry, we did not know where to go or what to do, so we prayed. We prayed that God leads us and that He guides us to a new spot. About 2 weeks after this prayer time, one of our team members informed us that she found a small grouping of tents near 4^th and Jefferson. We decided to go out and check it out. As we approached this camp with our wagons, a man started yelling at us to not go towards them because it was “too dangerous”. But in a turn of events, the man informed us that there was a homeless day shelter that we had passed by on our way … This shelter has no signs and did not look like one. But the man invited us in, and sure enough, there were people there in need! For the past couple months, we have been visiting this shelter and building relations. God. Is. GOOD!!!

God Changing Hearts:

As a leader, one of the biggest blessings is to see growth in individuals. In the realm of ministry, the biggest blessing as a leader is to see God transforming people’s hearts and empowering them to be bold and using them for His Kingdom. I’ve had the immense blessing to see the growth in so many team members this past year. It’s been awesome to see the shy and quiet people go out and start conversations with the homeless… The individuals who were afraid of the homeless, now enthusiastically and eagerly searching for homeless individuals to give out sandwiches… Those who felt like they didn’t know enough about the bible, now praying over and sharing the Gospel with those at the homeless shelter. GOD IS SO GOOD, AMEN?!

Thank you all for your time, prayers, encouragement, and support. I am so blessed to be a part of this church family, and I look forward to seeing more of you coming out and joining us.

Blessings,

Justin Kumai

CYC (College/Young Career) Ministry Update

CYC Gals Night

by Jennifer Tsuji

February has unofficially become a time of the year for CYC Guys/Girls fellowship nights. A few years ago before the pandemic, the girls were blessed to have a candlemaking class with Lulumière while the boys had a Super Smash Brothers tournament, and this year we thought it’d be fun to turn the tables a bit.

You can read more about the guys’ candlemaking night written by Steven, but I’m here to recap the girls’ night! And…full disclosure, we ended up pivoting a bit from that Super Smash bros tournament (maybe one day…with the whole fellowship group!). Instead, we had a classic Dumpling making night at my house, complete with some pampering self-care of facemasks (the sheet-mask, skin-care kind), followed by some very fun/spicy/deep questions courtesy of the game ‘We’re not really strangers.’

It was really fun to be able to cook together, wrap dumplings together, and then enjoy eating our yummy creations together (very proud of how well our group eats and how much we love food; there were absolutely no leftovers at the end of the night). To make the ‘We’re not really strangers’ question time a bit more lighthearted and casual, we all wore our facemasks and tried asking each other questions without laughing too much and causing our masks to slide off.  Overall, it actually was a really great way for us to get to know one another and go deeper; it felt like we were all able to be vulnerable and instantly become closer to one another. More gals-only nights have been requested in the future, and I look forward to continuing to grow alongside all these amazing women!

We finished the night just hanging out and chatting (we actually DID try to play Super Smash Bros, but it would’ve required us deleting all of Danny’s Animal Crossing data off his SD card, so we spared him and played Overcooked instead). We are so thankful to God for his blessing upon this group and this night. We’re also grateful for everyone who helped drive, brought food, cleaned, and just participated & invested in getting to know one another. Excited for what God has in store for us in the future!

CYC Mens Night – Candlemaking @ Lulumière

by Steven Ma

In February, the CYC guys got together for some candle making at Lulumière’s. It was a pleasure to meet Lulu (Linda Takano) and an even bigger privilege to hear about her own story of how God used candles in her own life during some of the hardest moments in her life. The opportunity to eat good food, try something new, and take home the results I think was great for everyone who came out, and people got to enjoy themselves. I’ve joked about it with the other CYC guys before, but as a dude growing up a lot of guys’ hangouts were overly competitive sporting events or weird food eating contests that were somehow the norm and in some ways the expectation. Getting a chance for all the guys to enjoy something more relaxing was I think good for everyone there. I think through Lulu’s sharing many of the guys were able to find a deeper appreciation for the smaller things in life, like lighting a candle after a hard day. My prayer is myself and all the guys continue to learn how to find and praise God in the little things.

The Season of Renewal is Here!

by Laurie Fukuda

Ahh, the advent of spring! The whole earth stirs with budding beauty as bright green shoots, delicate pink cherry blossoms, and cheery yellow daffodils herald its arrival. Hillsides transform into pastel pallets sprinkled with sparkles of color. This awe-inspiring display of God’s creative handiwork occurs year after year. Emerging from its winter slumber, spring signifies a season of renewal and growth.

From a spiritual perspective, the changing seasons are a sweet reminder of the Lord’s faithfulness to us. He orchestrates the seasons in nature and the seasons of our lives. Each season serves a purpose to ultimately perpetuate growth and beauty. During the past two years, we all have endured a seemingly relentless winter of trials that have rocked the core of our being. Some may have weathered the storm, but feel lonelier and more distant from God than ever before. Contrary to our feelings, the reality is that our loving, Heavenly Father has not moved. He is present. In fact, He is drawing us to Himself to be our deep comfort, our strength, our all. God allows the dreary winters of life to prepare us for a season of new beginnings, renewal, and hope.

So, how do we prepare the soil of our hearts for the coming spring of spiritual renewal and growth? Jesus says in John 15:5, “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” Abiding in Christ Jesus means spending consistent time in His Word, cultivating seamless prayer with the Lord, and pursuing loving fellowship with His people. This is not only for our own spiritual growth; it is for the overall strength and health of the body of Christ. This interconnectivity by God’s design highlights my personal responsibility to continue growing in faith so that I am prepared to encourage others. It is a call to be transparent about my shortcomings, allowing others to graciously support me to grow in weak areas. It reminds me that I am called to utilize my spiritual giftedness and not deprive fellow believers of what good God has purposed in their use for His glory. I am encouraged that God’s “divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence.” (2 Peter 1:3)

2 Timothy 1:7 reminds us that “…God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.” As we open up to a new season of sorts at Faith Bible Church, may it be a vibrant time of new beginnings, spiritual growth and commitment to what God has called us to. May we grow in our love for God and others, readily share the Good News, and make more and better disciples of Christ. When Christ returns in glory, may we be found faithful.

Sharing Life with a Small Group

By Yasuko Aoyagi

(This testimony was shared at the annual meeting on January 30th, 2022.)

Thank you for giving me this opportunity to share with you about my lovely groups – prayer group, online chat group and ‘The path to Life’ Bible Study.

First of all, I’d like to introduce my prayer group. It was formed by Emiko and Walter Fukuyama, who went home about a year ago. We have a prayer meeting every Thursday and once a month on Saturday. I don’t know exactly how long this group has been going. I first joined this group about 7 or 8 years ago, so this group has been meeting at least for 8 years. We had Thursday and Saturday prayer meetings in fellowship hall of FBC about 8 years ago. Because the church was the right place for us to get together from different part of area, Edmonds, Shoreline, West Seattle, UW district and East side and so on. I don’t know why we didn’t take a picture of it then, but when we changed the location of prayer meeting to Fukuyama’s house in UW district, we sometimes took pictures.

Fukuyama’s house is our memorable place. We saw many miracles in the prayer meeting of this house. I have given this testimony in some places. One of the members had been in a trial period, she had a difficult time. We knew we couldn’t do anything except God, so we prayed for her all together. We were also given some Bible verses through one of our members.
Mark 11:23 “If anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in their heart but believes that what they say will happen,”
Psalm 91:15 “He will call on me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble,”

God immediately answered our prayer. It happened at night of the same day when we prayed together. He showed His power to us not only one time but 5 times so that we could not misunderstand them just as accidents. We realized we really couldn’t do anything, but only God solved the problems. My husband, Yoshi, often tells me when we experience His power, we grow closer to God. Another miracle was that my mom visited from Japan and saw these miracles. She didn’t believe in Jesus at that time, but I had prayed for her salvation for over 30 years. And she finally said ‘God exists’ because she witnessed God’s wonders. How marvelous to see God’s existence.

We sometimes had tea parties just for fun and outreach. During the pandemic, we could not have tea parties and often talked about how we miss ‘in person’ tea party. We used to invite our friends and tried showing God’s love and prayed for them to join our prayer group regularly. Some friends are current members and some are in Japan and some moved to other states. One of them accepted Jesus as her Savior just before the pandemic and we still pray for her to be baptized in God’s timing.

Instead of tea party in person, God provided another group for outreach. We call it ‘online chat’. Because of this pandemic, it’s difficult for us to have tea parties in person, so I believed that God wanted us to make this online chat group. We had 8 believers and 3 seekers. And this year, God blessed this online chat group and added another lady. So total of 12 members are in our online chat group. Currently, 4 seekers and 8 believers. In online chat meetings, we share thankful things, and if we have a problem or concern, we share and pray for each other.

We still can’t have in-person tea party, but last month, God gave us a gift. One of the members came to Seattle from NJ for a short time, so we were blessed to have a lunch meeting. She visits Seattle 3 or 4 times a year, so God gives us a joyful time with her.

Another member visited Seattle area last summer. She had moved from Shoreline, WA to Lancaster, PA one and a half year ago. We had a farewell zoom party for them in 2020, but God gave us the time of reunion and we had a blessed time with her. Her daughter took her to Seattle because she really missed Seattle and us. We were glad to see each other again. I missed this opportunity to see her and this meeting because of my family circumstance, but I am very glad they had a good time. Online chat is a good way for us to communicate with distant friends but in person is the best way of our relationship.

Some of our online chat members recently joined ‘The path to Life’, Bible study course, hosted by Pastor Kohei.  The purpose of this course is to get a confidence in salvation, to read Bible by ourselves and develop the ability to understand Bible, and to establish a system of faith and get answers to your faith questions. This course is good for Bible beginners and also for long life believers. For Bible beginners, this course covers basic topics, like ‘what is the most important thing for Christian?’ or ‘what is sin?’ or ‘what is salvation?’ 2 seekers from our online chat group joined this time, so it’s good to know the basic and core part of facts. And 5 believers from our online chat group joined, too. It was also good for us to review if we have confidence in our salvation. I personally had wondered if I was really saved. But it was a good opportunity to see God promises our salvation. We thank Pastor Kohei for providing both seekers and believers this Bible Study ‘The Path to Life’.  We are excited about the next step ‘baptism course’ soon.  Almost same members from this study will participate in the baptism course with 2 seekers.

Ash Wednesday Prayer Meeting

By Mina Chen

Since prayer plays an important part on Ash Wednesday as a time for reflection, repentance, and preparation for Lent, we had an all-church prayer meeting on March 2nd to kick off the Lenten season. It was a wonderful time to pray with our brothers and sisters in Christ, confess our sins individually and corporately, thank God for what He has done, seek God’s will together, and lift up church’s and each other’s needs. Thank you for those who came to the prayer meeting as well as those who prayed with us in spirit.

“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18) As a believer, I know that prayer is a significant part of our daily walk with God. But often times, I struggle to “pray without ceasing.” It is easy to look at my situation from my own perspective and to get overwhelmed or worry. It is natural to come up with my own solutions before asking God in prayers. There are many things, such as fear, uncomfortableness, discouragement, and tiredness, which prevent us from praying. Satan tries his best to prevent us from praying because he knows prayer is powerful. One person who came to the prayer meeting was experiencing all sorts of pain on the day and she thought she would not be able to attend the prayer meeting, but God reminded her of a message her friend shared with her before – when we are in pain, it is important to pray for others who may be suffering in similar kind of pain. So, she decided to attend the prayer meeting and to pray for those who may have been experiencing the spiritual attack like her. After the prayer meeting, she realized that all of the pains she was experiencing were gone. That’s a power of prayer. When she shifted her thoughts to God’s, God took care of her needs as well. It reminded me of James 5:15-16 “And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.”  and 1 Peter 5:7 “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.”

There are many positive things about corporate prayers. Sometimes, I don’t know how to pray about certain things, but I am encouraged by other’s interceding prayers. Praying with others helps us to unite in our faith and dependence on God. When we share our needs and pray together, we can also praise together when God answers those prayers. It’s been about a month since we had a prayer meeting, but we already see many answers to our prayers. Sometimes God answers in the way we prayed for, and other times He answers in different ways, but we have peace that His ways are higher than our ways and He answers in His best way. Prayers help us align our thoughts to His. We would like to have all-church prayer meeting at least every other month this year. We are planning on the next prayer meeting on National Day of Prayer, May 5th at 7:30pm via zoom, so please save the date! We look forward to praying and seeking God’s will together.

FBC Calendar (link)

Sunday Services

1st and 3rd Sundays:
11:00am Joint Service

2nd, 4th, and 5th Sundays:
9:30am Japanese Service/11:00am English Service