January 2000 Report

Dear everyone,

I hope you are having a good year. God continues to bless us with good health.

Finally I have finished writing my correspondence courses, Beginners, Intermediate, Advanced. Since I opened my web page, I began to write this course. I did not expect this would be a big project, but it turned out to be a big one. Since the beginning of this project, 37 people have taken this course. Many of them do not continue taking it, but some of them persistently seek truth and positively respond to the idea of Christianity. One of them is Miho Wilson, who is married to an American Air Force man. She lives on Misawa Air Base which is in the northern part of Japan and a 8-10 hours drive from Tokyo. Needless to say, I have not met her, but communicate with her through email. She found my web page in May 99. Since then she has been taking a course. Recently she wrote me Christianity was the kind of life she has been looking for. She wants to become a Christian. Her question is, if she had to attend one church, which one should she attend? Although I deal with the problem of denominations which she has been taking, she has still been confused about the problem. There is a congregation on Misawa base. She attended there as well as Baptist and Chapel on Base several times. In June she and her husband will move to Ireland for another duty. Anyway she wants to continue to take my correspondence courses.

Here in Japan many people have become Christians after the World War II, but have not continued in faith. This still tends to be true in the present time. I have seen in other congregations several people baptized every year, but the number of attendance has not never increased. It looks like that you pour out water on a net. You cannot keep water in the net. It is evident that many of new Christians from the grace. This reminds me of the parable of soil on which Jesus speaks in Mark 4. Since they do not have a firm root, they fall away when affliction, persecution, the worries of world, the deceitfulness of riches and the desires for other things enter in.

I do not question the validity of their baptism, but I wonder if I can help them grow in Christ and the word of God rather than falling away. Therefore, I have decided to write a book concerning Christian Growth. This will consists of the following topics: To study the Bible, To pray to God, To encourage one another, To serve God with spiritual gifts given by Him, To be married or to be single, To work in the world as a Christian, To share the love of God with non-Christians, To deal with other religions and pagan religions.

I hope I will finish this project by the end of this year. My correspondence courses discuss the basic teachings of Christianity as a whole, by which I plant the seed of the Gospel. I also need to have the course, by which I can give water and sunshine to the seed. This Christian Growth Course will be such a course, I hope.

The Bible tells me not to be anxious about anything. But I must confess that sometimes I get anxious about the building project. Rather I need to pray to God and rely on his strength and guidance. In the process of making a deal with real state agencies, the Yokota congregation and I will be shrewd as serpents and innocent as doves.

May God richly continue blessing you and your work in Christ. Once again we express your support and prayers.

In His service,
Masa and Mari

Christ4u@tky.3web.ne.jp
http://www2.tky.3web.ne.jp/~christ4u
Masa Nonogaki