Our God, Eager to Save

Posted January 10, 2010

Tomohisa had reached a coveted status in Japan’s vertically-ordered society: medical doctor. Along with the status came wealth, which he used to buy the affection of women…and lots of booze. His selfishness blinded... [Read More]

The Humbled Tsunami

Posted December 2, 2011

When the warning sirens went off, residents in a south Sendai neighborhood fled to the local school. Together with panicked children still in class they climbed to the rooftop. Some 600 altogether... [Read More]

Japanese Get "Bach" Hope

Posted September 21, 2011

Who would have thought Bach would be involved in 21st century mission work in Japan? I have frequently read with interest of the strong connection between classical music (particularly J.S. Bach) and Japanese interest... [Read More]

Tsunami Ground Zero

Posted April 7, 2011

I still haven't returned from tsunami ground zero. That is to say, although I've been back several days already, the reality of the scene is still with me. The incredible amounts of mud in once beautiful homes... [Read More]

"Nice Try, Kevin" File

Posted February 9, 2011

This one goes into the "Nice try, Kevin" file. I just thought it was a nice-looking bunch of flowers in the storefront and, on the spur of the moment, decided Kaori deserved to enjoy them. Chrysanthemums, however, are... [Read More]

The Gulliver Complex

Posted November 9, 2007

I'm a giant again. Well, not really. But it sure feels like it again since returning from the States. The first sign was bumping my head in the shuttle bus from the airport. By habit, I normally duck my head through any... [Read More]

Foreigners Don't Get the Point

Posted January 31, 2010

I'm standing in line at a drugstore with other shoppers. The woman in front of me has just pulled out a business card file. Hurriedly she flips through at least a hundred or more cards searching for the right one. It's a... [Read More]

More Powerful than Bombs

Posted July 5, 2008

Fuchida grew up loving his native Japan and hating the United States, which treated Asian immigrants harshly in the first half of the twentieth century. Fuchida attended a military academy, joined Japan's... [Read More]

Ready?

Posted September 14, 2010

I'd been putting it off. Although I knew it was important, taking inventory of our earthquake and disaster gear just wasn't getting done. Japan rests along the "ring of fire" in the Pacific ocean, a stretch of area that is... [Read More]

150 Years Later

Posted March 17, 2009

This spring marks the 150th anniversary of Protestant Christianity in Japan. The first protestant missionaries set foot in the port of Yokohama back in 1859. Now they were real church planters -- overcoming all... [Read More]

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I for Japan. Japan for the World. The World for Christ. And All for the Glory of God.

— Kanzo Uchimura, Japanese Evangelist

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Rambling Notes from Japan

Here are some blog posts that we hope will make you feel a part of things, and help you understand how to pray better for us and Japan. Please see our external blog in Blogger, if this page does not display correctly.

Tiny Chapel Designs

The tiny house craze may be the new thing in the States, but it is a common thing in urban Japan. Everyone's house is already a tiny house. With MuKo, we've been reminded of this once again.

With the land purchase completed, and builder contracted, the last few months has involved us working on the design aspects of the church facility for MuKo. We've learned a bit over the last few decades in Japan, and are applying it to the function of this multipurpose house/church facility. But the process has taken more time and energy than expected.
We're getting closer! We still have 4 meetings to go with the architect. Each one is an exhaustive day of details and considerations. By evening, decision fatigue has pretty much set in and Kaori and I are ready to head home. Once home, we process the information, sleep on it, and think through the best way forward. I might draw a sketch of what we are thinking, then emails follow to the architect. And more adjustments to review.

The challenge is how to fit everything into the tiny footprint of 60sq. meters of land. After  perimeter setback, we have 430sq. feet for the building on the ground floor. Upper floors need to be even smaller. That's a good amount of space for Japan. But it's a design challenge if people need to gather in that space.

Still, we've committed to the original concept of 1st floor ministry space, and 2nd & 3rd floor living space. After many attempts and changes, and a little creativity, I am happy to say that it all fits into a cozy package!

It will be SMALL, but it will pack a BIG gospel punch in MuKo.
The unreached 120,000 of MuKo (99% without Christ) will finally have a cozy evangelical church witness in 2019.


The first floor church space will have a large open room for worship and outreach, galley kitchen, office area, shower stall, and toilet. This will serve as the new church incubation area. 25 people can easily sit for worship. When we grow beyond that (remember this is hard-to-reach Japan and it takes decades), we'll add service times to accommodate.

A staircase from the front entryway will lead up to our private living area: kitchen, bath, tiny living room and two small bedrooms. There is no sprawling basement, spare ensuite bedroom, man cave, screen porch, walk-in pantry, or two-car garage. In fact, our car will need to be parked offsite to maximize the land space for the facility. Bicycle parking only!

We're on track for late spring completion of all structure and design matters, and early summer start of construction, with completion this year. When done, we will move and begin ministry in Muko. Our vision for the MuKo church: A New People...in Japan...Worshipping God

Our goal is to raise all funds by March 31, 2019. Then we can confidently start the April fiscal year completely funded in this project, and set an early summer date for construction to begin. For the cause of Christ in Japan, can you join with us at this time? We're getting closer!

See our website here for more information on this project, and for online or mail-in giving: www.lavermansinjapan.org/muko



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We serve with WorldVenture, an evangelical faith mission. Our sending/home church is Cornerstone Church of Lansing, Illinois.
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