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Dear Family and Friends,
Happy Thanksgiving to my American friends and family! Thank you for being part of what God is doing here in Japan through your support and prayers for me.
Komyo Christian Church
The ministry at Komyo Christian Church continues to grow and be strengthened by your prayers. In October we held our first ever Family Festival. For a variety of reasons, we planned and carried out the event quickly. We enjoyed seeing the church people work together in every aspect of the event. The highlight of the day was a ventriloquist act by Yuri Nakano and also by a local pastor friend. The children loved it! We also had homemade games, snacks and popcorn.
An ongoing ministry at Komyo Church is our English classes and baking class. Through these classes, our desire is to build relationships and share the love of Jesus with our students. Most of our students have been attending classes for several years which has provided us with a solid foundation for our relationships. We continue to pray and look forward to how God is going to continue working in the future.
Anointed Gospel Choir
I am so thankful for the way God led me to be part of Anointed Gospel Choir eleven years ago. This class at my local community center has been a 
source of joy and encouragement to me over the years. Because the ladies have sometimes rearranged schedules for me, I have only missed one concert because of home assignment since I joined. Each concert has its own flavor and even challenges, but each time we are able to praise God together, drawing in our guests as we sing. This year was our 15th annual concert! We invited two other local choirs that our director leads to join us as special guests this year. It was fun to have so many participate in the concert. All the choirs sang the last song together, one of our director’s original songs. What an awesome experience! Please continue to pray for these ladies. There are a few who seem to be paying attention to the Holy Spirit’s working in their hearts.
Youth
Since my last newsletter we have had youth summer camp and our fall gathering. Thank you for praying for the youth as we gather to study, praise, and play together. Small group time at our gatherings is always a highlight for me as the students share what they learned from the study time or throughout the day. I am thankful for how God is at work in each young person’s life.
At our fall gathering, after our morning together, we went to a peace museum near the church in Kyoto. There was a special photo exhibit of award winning photos from around the world over the past year. The theme of most of the photos was quite heavy. Following this with the museum about war and peace made for a dark theme in the afternoon. We were thankful the students were able to take in the exhibits and still maintain their joy and remember that their hope comes from Jesus.
More Fun
In October, Melissa, Yuri and I traveled to Nagoya, a city about two and a half hours away, to visit one of our sister churches. Melissa was invited to
share with a mom and tots group about parenting. Then, at lunch we talked with the leaders at the church about the possibility of holding ladies’ seminars in their region. We are excited about this possibility and how God is going to grow it in the future.
We also had the privilege of hosting Dan Hamil, the NAB executive director, on his first visit to Japan. He had the opportunity to meet many of the JBC pastors and learn about the work God is doing here. I appreciated his encouragement and kindness.
Thank you for continuing to partner with me as we shine the light of Jesus around the corner and around the world. Blessings as you remember God’s goodness at Thanksgiving and anticipate the celebration of Christ’s birth through the advent season.
Soli Deo Gloria, Shan in Japan