Christmas on the Mission Field

In 2006 I did a thread about a very difficult Christmas we had many years ago, and then also talked about Christmas that year. I thought I'd do a thread about our Christmas this year and invite others to respond or add comments about Christmas on the mission field.

This year was a little difficult, since my wife went back to the homeland for a two week trip to see our son and her family. Her lost friend Junko went with her, and it was a wonderful opportunity for Junko to see true Christianity in action. We've given Junko the Gospel numerous times, but she's not been interested in the Lord. They attended church several times, including a cantata where our son had the lead role. At one point Junko asked why Patty read her Bible every day. Junko also learned to pray with Patty before meals and at bed time.

Unfortunately, Patty came back with a cold that turned into flu, and with injured ribs from carrying those heavy suitcases. So she was not able to even go to our Christmas service on the 21st, much less help. It was all up to me! Wow, she does so much for me and the Lord that everything is so much harder without her.

Anyway, our first Christmas activity was getting out a Christmas tract I had written, and we've gotten out a couple of thousand of those I suppose. Unfortunately it was not printed very well, but since the homeland printing ministry did it for free we can't complain.

As I said, we had our Christmas celebration at the church on Sunday, and had a good attendance. I worked hard on a special, colorful Christmas bulletin with my Japanese software and a little help from PrintMaster too. The service went well. We sang some Christmas songs and a couple of choruses. We worked on this month's memory verse, 1 John 3:5, which gives the main reason Christ came: "And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin." Then I preached on the people who met the baby Jesus.

The closing hymn was "Silent Night," which we sang by candlelight and guitar (after all, it was written for guitar). This has become a tradition with us, and it's so precious to hear these Japanese believers sing about Christ.

 

Continued:

After the service we had our potluck meal. Patty's contribution was her famous Christmas cookies. She left off the icing on some so even Mr. U. (who doesn't like sweets) ate some. Mrs. T. brought a cheese & rice casserole, Mr. U. brought chicken, Mrs. S made cute little sandwiches, Shiho W. brought omuraisu, which is an omelet wrapped around rice (very good!), etc.

The dessert was a chocolate Christmas cake, ordered specially. This is a custom in Japan, and why not, since it is our Lord's birthday? The children were delighted, of course!

After the meal I had a game planned for the children. I put up a bare paper Christmas tree, no decorations. I had printed and cut out clipart decorations, then put tape on the back. We spun the kid around then let them try to put the decoration on the tree. (Kind of a Christmas version of Pin the Tail, you know.) They had a blast! Little Mai (7) kept saying how fun it was. Of course everyone got a kick when the pastor tried his hand at it.

Our greatest blessing was that Shiho, now 20 years old, is back. She and her mother (divorced many years ago) hadn't been in five years! She and her older sister (a bar girl nowadays) had been our first Japanese to come to this church when we started it years ago. We had been there for the mother when Mai was born out of wedlock--took her to the hospital and broke the news to her totally clueless high school son that his Mom was about to be a Mom again. Mrs. W. couldn't come today due to a migraine, but we praise the Lord for how He is working in their lives.

After the meal, we gathered up the leftovers, and everyone agreed they should go to Mr. U#2. He has Hepatitis C and suffers greatly from the effects of the chemo, so he couldn't make it today. He was so grateful for the food. He's a former company president whose life fell apart--the disease, closing his business, his wife divorcing him. So he found the Lord when he looked for something to lean on as his life disintegrated.

That's Christmas this year on the mission field. How'd it go for you?

 

Thanks much for sharing, Spinach. We know all of those feelings. We've lived in other missionaries' homes, and missed the loved ones and sounds and scents and traditions of the family in the homeland.

It can be very hard being uprooted like that, and no one who has not experienced it can understand it well. But Jesus can! He left Glory to come and be born in a manger. That is an incredibe cross-cultural gap! So He understands us when we miss our loved ones and traditions of the homeland. It's sweet that He's helped you in some little ways get ready for Christmas.

This Christmas my mother in America is very old and may go to Heaven soon. I got to see her on a quick trip back last year, so that's okay with me. God knows exactly what He is doing. Mom and Dad were going to be missionaries to Tibet before the Communists took over, so they told me, "You are fulfilling our debt to the Far East." God has it all figured out, amen?

 

Thanks for your good post, Roger. Praise the Lord for Caroline and Birdie coming to your services. May the Lord save them. I'm praying.

Have a great Christmas with your family!

John

 

Thanks for your good post, 4His_glory.

Hey, I like that idea of a Christmas asado! I'm afraid it wouldn't work over here though. We will have a very white and very cold Christmas Day.

 

Have a great Christmas with your family, brother.

Merii Kurisumasu