May 27, 2011--News from BMM missionaries affected by Japan earthquake.
Japan World Relief
Baptist Mid-Missions has opened a World Relief account to offer assistance through our missionaries and through pastors of affiliated Baptist churches. All World Relief funds are distributed hand-in-hand with the gospel message to meet both physical and spiritual needs. We stand ready to join hands with our Japanese brothers and sisters in Christ during this devastating time as they:
· Provide food and other necessities to minister to their congregations and to those in their communities.
· Rebuild their camping facilities.
· Repair damages to their churches.
For information on how to give to World Relief, click here. Gifts for this purpose should be designated “World Relief.” Checks may be sent to Baptist Mid-Missions, PO Box 308011, Cleveland, OH 44130, designated "World Relief." In Canada, checks may be sent to Baptist Mid-Missions, 187 McLaughlin Dr., Moncton, NB E1A 4P4.
May 27, 2011
Three more villages were evacuated from the areas surrounding the damaged Fukushima nuclear plants. Nobumasa and Beverly Tajima report that three areas will be set aside in their city of Koriyama to build temporary housing for the displaced people. The buildings are scheduled to be finished at the end of June.
These people may not be able to return to their original homes because of radiation contamination. Nobumasa is encouraging other pastors to visit the people and bring the hope of Christ to them in their loneliness and despair.
The Tajimas continue to hourly monitor radiation reports. The possibility still exists that their family could be evacuated because of their proximity to the nuclear plants. Nobumasa has located some temporary housing for church people if this situation materializes, although they pray it doesn’t.
To view photos of earthquake and tsunami damage, visit Baptist Mid-Missions’ April 26 Facebook posting at http://www.facebook.com/BaptistMidMissions
How to Pray
· Missionaries—opportunities to share the gospel of grace. Pray for resources so they can minister to others.
· National pastors—strength as they minister to their congregations while simultaneously cleaning up their own homes and meeting their families’ needs.
· Japanese believers—to be strengthened in their faith.
· Those working at the nuclear power plant, for their safety and ability to control radiation leaks soon. Pray also for those living in this region.
· Those involved in assisting the homeless and grieving.
· The physical/emotional/spiritual needs of those in Japan’s affected areas.
· More Japanese people to come to know the certainty of our totally trustworthy Lord.
April 26, 2011
On April 21 and 22, missionaries Nobumasa Tajima and Joe Mita surveyed seven disaster areas and delivered relief funds and supplies.
The men visited the northern region and Sendai, where the tsunami hit hardest. The trip was Joe’s first since the earthquake, and he was deeply moved by the devastation’s scope. The pair viewed several towns that had washed away. They met a man who lost his house and family farther north but came to Sendai to help clean up the area and earn money. Joe remarked that the sights greatly changed his perspective and prayer for the situation.
Nobumasa and Joe initially could not reach Iwaki because of unsafe radiation levels. The radiation later decreased that day, and they could drive to Satogaoka Baptist Church, the BMM church closest to the damaged nuclear reactors. The people there received the relief gifts of food, portable radios, Bibles, and tracts. Church members are giving out tracts and anticipate a volunteer group’s help with clean up. Nobumasa initiated this project, and pastors are visiting affected churches to help them physically and spiritually.
At BMM’s Adatara Bible camp, the caretaker estimated damages at more than $63,000, and the figure will likely increase. Our survey team shot photos of leaning cabins and ground fissures that opened up in the cemetery. Baptist Mid-Missions is prepared to help rebuild the damaged buildings. However, the contractors who built the facilities are advising us to wait on reconstruction until the aftershocks are over.
The team gave relief aid to pastors of five BMM-affiliated churches. Funds also helped a BMM Bible school graduate who is living in her church because her home was damaged beyond repair. Joe will send additional funds to another graduate in Fukushima prefecture to meet needs for this person’s family and for area victims. Our BMM team is praying for opportunities to share the gospel when the government builds temporary housing for evacuees. Displaced people live even in Saitama Prefecture (250 miles from the affected area), where Joe Mita and his family serve.
Radiation levels remain uncontrolled at the nuclear plant. In Nobumasa and Beverly Tajimas’ city of Koriyama, 15 schools announced it was too dangerous for children to play outside, a warning that was later rescinded. Nonetheless Nobumasa and his family monitor the radiation situation hourly. The government ordered evacuation of three towns around the nuclear plants. Local farmers will suffer economic loss because their livestock were ordered to be put to sleep: 300,000 hogs, 60,000 cows, and 100 horses. Nobumasa Tajima earnestly asks for our continuous prayer that the damaged nuclear plants will be brought under control soon.
April 18, 2011
Nobumasa and Beverly Tajima made their third visit to tsunami-damaged coastal areas. The Tajimas said the sight of the coastal areas “hurts our hearts,” but it gave them information to pray more knowledgeably. They could go only as far as Iwaki City, where Rick and Becky Enterline (on furlough) serve. This area is less than 25 miles from the damaged nuclear reactors.
The Tajimas visited an evacuee shelter on April 14. They described the residents’ situation as improved, but the residents themselves looked weary. Some of the older people were sick with colds or flu.
In Fukushima prefecture, where Iwaki and the Tajimas’ city of Koriyama lie, farmers continue to suffer loss because people fear contamination from Fukushima’s products. Two farmers from Nihonmatsu Baptist Church are prohibited from selling their vegetables and don’t know how long the ban will last.
Joe and Noney Mita in the Chiba Prefecture, south of Tokyo, gave an informative overview on Japan’s unique community networks, called Jichikai (“self-organizing group). This system dates back several centuries and has functioned well during Japan’s calamity. In each community, families take turns being group leaders for a year, and multiple groups serve under a Jichikai leader, who serves under the local government leaders. Currently, Joe is the group leader of 14 households in his neighborhood. The leader makes a rotation schedule for cleaning the garbage dump area, passing out community bulletins, and caring for other needs. The Mitas’ group is one of 35 in their Jichikai. Jichikai leaders know the families in their groups and were able to help them and keep order even before government help came.
Along with many positives of the Jichikai system, one negative is that some Jichikai groups meet on Sundays. In rural areas, where the system is stronger, some groups take up donations and clean village shrines, forcing Christians to take a courageous stand.
April 12, 2011
Yesterday marked the one-month anniversary of the earthquake that turned life upside down for the Japanese people. For those affected by radiation contamination, uncertainty persists. Today Japan upgraded the severity of the Fukushima nuclear crisis to level seven, the highest rating. Please continue to pray for the Tajima family in Koriyama, the believers in this area, and for all those affected.
Outside the nuclear evacuation zone, life has been slowly returning to normal. Aftershocks, however, continue. Two with magnitudes above 7.0 struck within the past five days, and smaller ones still shake Japan regularly.
Joyce Oshiro in Iwatsuki wrote that she and her missionary coworkers, Joe and Noney Mita, are pressing on to spread Christ’s message of hope. On Saturday five boys attended their Joy Club and heard the gospel. Next Sunday they will hold a Christian movie outreach. Church members are busily passing out fliers and praying the Lord will use this opportunity to show people that the Lord is the source of true strength and courage.
Please pray that God will increase opportunities for missionaries to share His love, and pray that Christians would be empowered to be strong witnesses for Christ. There may never be a better time for many Japanese people to open their hearts to the gospel.
April 4, 2011
Some normalcy is returning to the Tokyo area, but no one knows how long Japan’s recovery could take. Our missionaries are seizing opportunities to meet physical needs and to reach hearts with the gospel.
Joyce Oshiro in Iwatsuki (section of Saitama City), north of Tokyo, reports that food and gas supplies are adequate, although not abundant, for her area. The Tokyo area continues to experience three-hour rolling blackouts but no longer on a daily basis. Residents’ careful energy conservation prevents the need for more blackouts.
Concerned believers from four countries are sending material and financial help to Joyce, for which she is deeply grateful. Joyce is forwarding this help to BMM missionaries who use it in devastated areas and evacuee centers. The gifts are also repairing churches and camp facilities and helping those unemployed since the disaster.
Grace Baptist Bible School in Iwatsuki meets in the church that Joe and Noney Mita and Joyce serve in. The school resumed classes, although faculty from earthquake-affected areas still can’t return. Students and faculty are praying about how to finish out the semester.
As a whole, the Japanese people are banding together to pull their country back up. This cultural spirit of achievement and self-sufficiency has sustained the Japanese. Unfortunately, however, the same spirit can keep them from depending on the Lord. Pray that unsaved Japanese will feel the Holy Spirit’s tug and realize their spiritual helplessness apart from Christ.
March 30, 2011
Even as contaminated water at the Fukushima nuclear power plant prolongs tensions in Japan, ministry is building momentum.
The Lord opened an opportunity for Beverly Tajima in Koriyama to minister to public employees in her town. Each evening she takes hot meals to four or five employees at Koriyama’s water plant. They have been working tirelessly and have little time to rest or eat. The workers greatly appreciate having warm meals to eat.
With more gasoline available to them, Nobumasa and Beverly Tajima and their daughter visited Satogaoka Baptist Church in Iwaki yesterday. This town sits 30 miles from the nuclear reactor and is within the US-recommended evacuation zone. Because of his pregnant wife and small child, Pastor Koga of Satogaoka Baptist Church left Iwaki after the first reactor explosion, but he returned yesterday, despite continued radiation threats. This faithful servant of Christ came to this BMM-founded church by faith when it had only seven members, and he and his wife have been godly examples.
Pastor Koga and the Tajimas viewed the church’s damaged auditorium and parsonage. They then visited evacuee shelters and took water and other provisions to a family that has no water for drinking or even for flushing toilets. They also inspected the home of BMM missionaries Richard and Becky Enterline, who have been in the US on furlough. The Tajimas were amazed and grateful that the home suffered very little damage. Because they were close to the coast, the Tajimas saw tsunami damage for the first time. They had no words to describe the terrible destruction they saw.
Many Japanese people are suffering job losses. After their return to Koriyama, the Tajimas learned that a dairy farmer in the Fukushima prefecture committed suicide. He could no longer sell his milk because of radiation contamination. The Tajimas wrote: “We may hear more about this kind of news soon. Before hearing more, we need to share the good news of the Lord that He gives HOPE and JOY. Proverbs 29:18 teaches ‘where there is no vision, the people perish'. If we do not share the vision and hope in the Lord, the people definitely will perish. I trust this is the best opportunity to share the Gospel.”
How to Pray
· Missionaries—opportunities to share the gospel of grace and personal strength and wisdom. Pray for gasoline availability so they can minister to others.
· National pastors—strength as they minister to their congregations while simultaneously cleaning up their own homes and meeting their families’ needs.
· Japanese believers—to be strengthened in their faith.
· Those working at the nuclear power plant, for their safety and ability to control radiation leaks soon.
· Those involved in assisting the homeless and grieving.
· The physical/emotional/spiritual needs of those in Japan’s affected areas.
· More Japanese people to come to know the certainty of our totally trustworthy Lord.
March 24, 2011
We thank God for faithful believers who, through prayer and giving, are carrying the load with our Japan missionaries. Those sacrifices are making a difference, and God has opened more ministry opportunities for our missionaries to touch lives physically and spiritually.
Yesterday, Nobumasa and Beverly Tajima distributed a large amount of bread to neighbors in Koriyama. Most are older people who could not stand in line in the cold weather to purchase food each morning. They and the Tajimas are thankful for this gift, given through a BIMI missionary in Tokyo.
In Saitama (Tokyo area), Joe Mita spoke on the sovereignty of God in his Sunday message. Most church members attended and prayed for countrymen affected by this disaster. They interceded especially for the Christian man leading part of the project to restore power to the Fukushima nuclear plant.
The Tajimas strongly sense people’s prayers holding them up. They appreciate these prayers like never before. Joe and Noney Mita commented on Japan’s situation, “Most people (majority unsaved) are very cooperative and not in panic, although they are in despair, with great loss and pain. We are amazed. However, as the days go by, their grief and pain will accumulate to their limit, we imagine. They will need emotional and spiritual support as much as physical support. Please pray that we can be used to reach them with the Gospel.”
Through World Relief funds, we are supporting our missionaries with additional resources as they share the gospel with compassion. We are also helping a Tokyo-area Baptist church that is responsible for a nursing home in an earthquake-affected area. This church needs funds to provide food for the home’s 150 residents and staff in this area where food has become scarce and expensive.
March 23, 2011
Japan’s nuclear crisis broadened to include radiation-contaminated food and water in multiple prefectures, including Fukushima and the Tokyo area, where our missionaries serve. In both areas, water was deemed unsafe for children under the age of one. Milk and 11 kinds of vegetables from the Fukushima Prefecture and other areas cannot be sold. Officials are checking into seafood as well.
Nobumasa and Beverly Tajima’s son secured 20 liters of gasoline, which the Tajimas will use to visit two churches and the Adatara Bible Camp to ascertain damages. They also received 30 donated radiation protection suits, which they will share with two other Baptist churches. A missionary in Tokyo donated a large quantity of bread, which also will be shared among the churches’ pastors. The Tajimas wrote: “They will be very excited. They spent so much extra money these days since the prices went up higher than usual.” Baptist Mid-Missions’ World Relief will provide funds so pastors can continue to meet the needs of church members and people in their communities.
The Fukushima prefecture experienced three large earthquakes early this morning, local time. Multiple aftershocks have registered daily since March 11 and are not over yet.
March 21, 2011
Missionary Nobumasa Tajima in Koriyama informed us more than five Japanese Christians are on the team to restore safety to the Fukushima nuclear plant, including a project leader who is a member of a local Baptist church. Please uphold these brave believers in prayer in their difficult and dangerous mission.
Nobumasa his wife Beverly are trying to minister to people in at least three evacuee shelters near them. They praise the Lord that gasoline, electricity, heating fuel, and water are becoming more available in their region. They are also thankful for warmer weather after last week’s cold temperatures and snow.
The Tajimas assessed the needs of 10 Baptist churches in their area, along with the Adatara Bible camp and Baptist cemetery. Several church buildings sustained cracks, and some areas continue without gas or kerosene supplies. Lack of fuel and utilities has made it difficult for people to go to work or to church when services can be held. The camp has several damaged cabins, along with cracks in two large buildings. The earthquake opened some ground fissures at the camp and in a believer’s yard, bringing danger of landslides. In the cemetery some tombstones are displaced.
According to a March 18 statement issued by the US Department of State, “Strong aftershocks are likely for weeks following a massive earthquake such as this one.… Japan remains at risk for further tsunamis.”
March 18, 2011
Managing daily life remains a challenge for all our missionaries in Japan. Their attention is still fixed on the damaged nuclear power plants, with daily assessment of potential radiation exposure. This is a special concern for the Nobumasa and Beverly Tajima family, who live 65 kilometers (40 miles) from the nuclear plants [This distance is a correction from our March 16 report.].
Our missionaries are facing difficult decisions. Available options include relocation, either within or outside of Japan, until the situation stabilizes. None of the choices are easy. In addition to coping with food, gas, and power shortages, missionaries are managing extended family members and church people who are relocating to avoid radiation exposure. Please pray that the Lord will direct each of our missionaries’ steps.
In Saitama (within 150 miles of the reactors), Joyce Oshiro is limiting her time outside and wears a surgical mask when outdoors. Her gas ration on March 15 was 6.67 liters (1.76 gallons), so she is conserving gas as much as possible. She has been able to resume some ministries; however, Bible institute classes have been cancelled, mainly because faculty can’t get to the institute. No trains are functioning north of her area, and train routes are limited in Saitama to save on electricity.
In an e-mail to supporters Joyce wrote: “He is taking good care of us. We are not suffering, as many others in the worst affected areas are. We still have trains running here, even though they are fewer and not as convenient as we're used to. But at least we have them! And we can still drive, as long as our gas holds out. Hopefully, new supplies will be coming! And I'm convinced that the Lord is going to use all this to be a positive testimony of His great love. Thank you so much for your concern and prayers.”
Correction
On March 16 we reported that a Bible school board member and a teacher escaped the area of the nuclear reactor. This refers to a single person who is both a Bible school teacher and board member. He is the pastor from Iwaki, where Richard and Elizabeth Enterline serve. Additionally, the Bible School graduate and her mother whose home was damaged are living with relatives, not in their car.
March 16, 2011
Radiation remains an issue for our missionaries near the damaged Fukushima nuclear plant, but food and gas shortages are still their main concerns. Aftershocks as strong as 6.0 magnitude are still occurring, along with frequent smaller shocks.
In Koriyama, Nobumasa and Beverly Tajima live about 65 miles from the Fukishima reactor. According to the US embassy in Tokyo, only very low levels of radiation have been found outside the 30 km (18 mile) evacuation zone. The Tajimas said that many in their area are panicking and trying to leave. Travel from Koriyama is increasingly difficult. Major highways are closed; no trains are running, but a few buses operate. People wait in long lines at the few open gas stations to receive two to three gallons at a time. The Tajimas have chosen to stay in Koriyama but are staying indoors as much as possible, wearing masks and long sleeves when outside.
Food-hoarding has limited supplies, but because roads and ports are damaged, it is difficult to replenish stocks of food, water, heating fuel, and other necessities. The Tajimas have been able to share with others the vegetables and rice God has blessed them with.
News of Japanese believers and BMM property
Rick and Becky Enterline, who serve in Iwaki, are in the US on furlough. A large coastal city, Iwaki suffered both earthquake and tsunami damage, but Rick does not know the damage’s extent. He has not heard from the Iwaki believers since a day or two after the original earthquake and tsunamis, but the word at that time was that there was minimal damage to the church building and that all the church people were safe and none of their homes seriously damaged. Iwaki is approximately 30 miles (roughly 50 km) from the damaged Fukishima nuclear reactor.
In Koriyama, the Tajimas report no major destruction to their church and apartment except the concrete wall around their property, which must be knocked down. The latest word on the Adatara Bible Camp in Otama Mura (near Koriyama) is that it suffered extensive damage. The main building and chapel are unsafe to use. The camp caretaker cancelled all programs this year to make repairs. The camp staff do not have water or gasoline in their community. Without adequate gasoline, the Tajimas are unable to travel to the camp to help. Community leaders in the camp area are trying to offer assistance, but the camp staff are still having a difficult time.
Joe and Noney Mita (Saitama, near Tokyo) gave word that a board member of BMM’s Bible school, along with a teacher and his family escaped from the area of the damaged nuclear reactor right after it exploded. A Bible school graduate and her family are living with relatives or in their car because of severe damage to their home.
The Mitas spoke for all our missionaries when they wrote: “We're definitely seeing that nothing is certain except the Lord's sovereignty. But that is more than enough! … Our only hope is Jesus Christ, He is the only Solid Rock, the solid foundation!”
March 15, 2011
Nobumasa and Beverly Tajima in Koriyama (65 miles from the Fukushima nuclear reactor) continue to monitor the situation regarding radiation leaks. We also heard from Joyce Oshiro in Saitama (north of Tokyo), who is likewise assessing the veracity of news about the radiation’s effect on the Tokyo area. Joyce waited in line Tuesday to buy gas. Gas stations gave customers only 6.67 liters each—not enough to fill her tank, but she was thankful to receive some. Her grocery store was out of rice, bread, and noodles but still had frozen foods. Many stores and businesses are closing early, likely because of power blackouts or to give employees time to make the now-lengthened commutes home.
The US Geological Service upgraded the magnitude of Japan's March 11, 2011, earthquake from 8.9 to 9.0, making it tied for the world's fourth-strongest earthquake since 1900.
(source: http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/recenteqsww/Quakes/usc0001xgp.php)
March 14, 2011
Devastation from Japan’s earthquake was so enormous that the country moved by about eight feet and the earth shifted on its axis by nearly four inches, according to the US Geological Survey. With help from your prayers, our missionaries are coping with the damages and ministering to people as the Lord allows.
David and Melody Yoshida, who serve in the Tokyo area, report that people came to church yesterday, even though their homes are a mess from the earthquake. They wanted to talk about what happened and are looking for answers. According to the Yoshidas, the Tokyo-area power company is instituting three-hour blackouts rotating among five districts. The damaged nuclear reactors help supply power to the Tokyo area. The blackouts could extend longer than three hours, depending on power production. The gas company is considering similar measures.
Car and train travel have been affected. The Yoshidas could not find any gas stations open Monday night, and food shortages are increasing. Joyce Oshiro, who serves north of Tokyo with Joe and Noney Mita, indicates that she has plenty of water but is also experiencing power outages. Joyce’s parents, Roy and Kiyo Oshiro (emeritus BMM missionaries) are in Okinawa and were not affected by the earthquakes or tsunamis.
Nobumasa and Beverly Tajima, who serve in Koriyama (80 miles from Sendai), communicated this morning they are far enough away from the damaged nuclear plant that they do not feel they are in danger. Richard and Elizabeth Enterline, who serve in Iwaki (halfway between Tokyo and Sendai), are in the US on furlough. The Enterlines are praising the Lord that He has protected most of their people from serious injury or property damage.
Nobumasa Tajima, the chairman of BMM’s Japan field team is assessing the damage to BMM churches. He reports that the BMM campground and buildings were damaged. The church in which Joe and Noney Mita and Joyce Oshiro serve took a love offering for the damaged churches and campground during their worship service.
Aftershocks continue. According to the Yoshidas, larger ones registering 5.0 or greater happen three to four times daily, with smaller ones every 10 minutes, making it hard to sleep well. Throughout the area affected by the earthquakes and tsunamis, people continue to experience water shortages along with lack of electricity and heating in their homes.
Continue to pray for the physical and spiritual needs of the Japanese people, including our missionaries who are still assessing damages and trying to get their bearings after this disaster. Joyce Oshiro ended her e-mail with, “Please keep us in prayer, that more Japanese people may come to know certainty in our totally trustworthy Lord.” David and Melody Yoshida wrote, “No one knows where this will lead us to, however we KNOW we are in the Lord's hands. Praise the name of the Lord!!”
(source: http://articles.cnn.com/2011-03-12/world/japan.earthquake.tsunami.earth_1_tsunami-usgs-geophysicist-quake?_s=PM:WORLD
March 11, 2011
Japan’s 8.9-magnitude earthquake on March 11, 2011, has been described as the world’s fifth-strongest since 1900 and Japan's worst quake in recorded history. It propelled tsunamis eastward across the Pacific, prompting warnings for 53 countries, including those as far away as the US, Colombia, and Peru.
We are thankful for the Lord’s protection of all our missionaries in the affected areas of Japan, Chuuk, Guam, and Hawaii. In Japan, missionaries report extensive damage to property as dishes, bookcases, and other items fell. Clean-up will be a large undertaking. On Saturday, missionaries will focus on cleaning up their churches to prepare for Sunday services. Other areas have no electricity and are flooded because of tsunamis. Aftershocks and tsunamis continue.
Baptist Mid-Missions has one missionary family serving on the Micronesian islands of Chuuk. Through their Christian radio station, they notified people on nearby islands of the tsunami warning, enabling them to find safety on higher ground.
Pray for our missionaries’ own needs and for their ability to conduct physical and spiritual ministry in the aftermath of the March 11 earthquake, for open doors and open hearts.
We will update this information as we receive additional reports.