Ministry Updates and News from the Mehns
Thoughts Along the Way© Elaine Mehn Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. I Thessalonians 5:16-18 Over the years of camping by Lake Saiko, we have done a lot of hiking. We even tried to climb Mt. Fuji once – once was more than enough. For most of the years, we climbed a nearby mountain but lack of oxygen, abundant mud, horse…
Japan has the largest unemployment rate right now than since the end of World War II. Also those employed are not very happy. A recent global workforce study by Towers and Perrin said that Japanese workers are worldwide the least “engaged” in their work with only 28% of workers liking their jobs. Pray that the church in Japan would be engaged in bringing true hope to Japanese.
A pastor interviewed us a few weeks ago and asked, “How can we be involved with your ministry in Japan?” Just a few ideas. Please think of some more and let us know. Connect with us Surf this same website www.gospelrest.com (a well kept secret). Shoot us email. Drop us a note. Visit with us on Facebook. Subscribe to our email news updates at this website. Watch for us on video. We will be producing…
John and Elaine were awoken early Wednesday Morning (8/12) by a 6.5 point earthquake less than 30 miles away. Normally in an earthquake we head for the door jams as they are the safest place in a house. But we were camping in a tent and had little to worry about. Fortunately the earthquake caused minor damage. For more information see this page http://www.japantoday.com/category/national/view/m66-quake-jolts-shizuoka-pref-and-vicinity-disrupting-trains. Pray for Christian relief efforts in the areas affected.
Do you miss us already? We left the US for Japan on July 7th. We have been settling in and getting ministry geared up for another term in Japan. We have just completed our ’09 US tour of our partnering churches, one of the best. For six months we shared messages, hung out in small groups, met up with pastors and missions sending teams, and recruited future short-term and long-term missionaries. We also had key…
John was pleased to find out that he had a few articles published in an anthology of the Elijah Group, a think-tank of Japanese businessmen, pastors and missionaries dedicated to transforming Japan spiritually. John and three other men launched the Elijah Group about 6 years ago. Two articles that were published were “The Purpose of the Elijah Group” and “A Theology of Transformation.” John has published several magazine articles and has appeared in some acknowledgments…
If you missed our US Tour messages, well you can listen to them online (video also available). To listen or download the audio sermon “Good News for a Distressed World” at West Hills Community Church just click on this link . And back in February Elaine was on Moody Radio in Chicago. A recording of her sharing during a sermon was played as part of the show Chris Fabry Live! Here is a link to…
John was just talking with a woman who has had Japanese home stay students in her home over the past several years. She did not know how to share her experience with Christ with them. We have materials on how to share your journey with Japanese. Also there is RJC ( www.rjcnetwork.org/). The Reaching Japanese for Christ Midwest will be held in the Chicago area October 9 and 10th. More information is available at rjcmidwest.wordpress.com.…
Japan already with one of the highest suicide rates in the world has seen more since the global economic crisis. The current crisis and the resulting job losses have driven more Japanese to suicide. There is a record number of Japanese in their 30s. People from their 20s through their 50s, many of them temporary workers, have committed suicide directly because they lost their job. Continue to pray for those contemplating ending their own life.…
Reaching Japanese for Christ Academy is again offering the popular Japan 101, an on-line course which will begin April 20th. Here is what Naoko Brown, Japan 101 co-leader, says, “Do you ever wonder why your Japanese friends act in certain ways? This 8 week class will help you figure out some of the answers to your questions. Through weekly reading assignments, you will learn about the history, social structure, cultural elements and spiritual aspects of…