Baptism, Change, Growth

We’re on the move!

After lots of interesting situations, prayer and fasting, we are moving the location of the Fuse from Machida to Noborito!  It’s going to be awesome with more space, no more need to set up and tear down, and so many more benefits!  And I believe this will strengthen all the Christians in our church, getting us better prepared for the large harvest here in Japan!  Please keep us in your prayers during this transition.  We will be moving officially June 30th!

We had 2 short-term American teams come by and had a blast with them, making lots of new contacts. Please pray that we will see permanent fruit from their time here.

Yu-kun got baptized!! Joe and I are discipling him “one-on-one” (Joe being the translator, but also learning to disciple in our church model) Believe with us for Yu’s strengthening in the Lord every day!

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Growing in strength and numbers!

Fuse Zoo trip!

Wow, almost 6 months now in Japan and it’s still awesome to see how God moves in powerful ways! Since the last time I blogged, we had a Brazil team come here and help us put on a powerful Encounter with God weekend! Whenever someone has a face-to-face encounter with God, they are never the same, and we are still seeing the fruit of that in the lives of so many Japanese people! Check out these links to see more about how that weekend went: www.projectamazon.org.

Just last week we had a strong multiplication of one of our cell groups! The first of many this year! We are really focusing on discipleship and training up new disciplers so that as God continues to bring new people to our cell groups and church service, we will have new disciplers to take care of each and every one. Soon we will see all of Tokyo full of homes where people gather to worship the Lord and have Godly fellowship happening throughout the week! Please continue to pray for strong growth in the discipleships and cell groups.

Andy & Rosie

This month Andy and Rosie will be leaving for several months, and they have really been some of my “right hands” here, so we are really going to feel their absence. We have been sharing a house as well, so after they leave I have 4 guys planning on coming to live with me, so there will be a lot of changes =) I believe God is in control and everything will go well, but I appreciate prayers for this transition as well.

I probably have grown more in these last 6 months than ever before, and I know I’m not near finished being stretched. I don’t even know how to put it in words most of the time, but constantly being faced with challenges and situations that I’ve never experienced before is a big part of it :) I love it! Never a dull moment with God, and we constantly get to see how He is awesome and works miraculously over and over! Thank you so much for being a part, there are no words to express my thanks for your prayers and generous giving and investment in this ministry!

Much love to you all!
Paul

A Powerful New Year!

our house is quickly becoming a Fuse hangout place :) Love it!

Going into the new year in Japan is very different from Brazil, but still kinda the same, because again I was able to spend it with brothers and sisters in Christ, encouraging each other to higher standards and higher goals in the Lord! And as I prayed and fasted for goals for the year of 2013, the Lord put on my heart some big goals for our church, and I believe through prayer and hard work, we’ll be able to reach them! So the big numbers are, by the end of 2013, to have 12 strong cell groups and 120 people in attendance at our church. By ourselves with all that we know how to do, I know this is impossible, but with God, I have no doubt we will see those numbers become a reality in the physical realm, as I already see them a reality in the spiritual.

Baptism celebration!

My level of faith has grown through the years in Brazil, and I’ve invited those who think it’s impossible to go ahead and piggyback on my faith and let’s see this become a physical reality!

January already started off exciting with 2 new Christians being baptized in water and in the Holy Spirit! Like I said in the last post, the excitement just keeps growing, and people who maybe were away from the church are coming back and new people are being won! We believe in not losing a single one, and we are committed to taking care of every single person God puts in our care, so that after we are faithful with the few, He will be able to trust us with many more, and all the more we win, the more the devil loses! I continue to feel powerfully your prayers and support, and I constantly thank God for each of you who are involved in this ministry…really really!!

Kenneth is fully in love with God and it’s a pleasure to disciple him

These next couple of weeks we will have a Brazil team of 20 people here to help us with our 1st Encounter with God Retreat, so please be praying for all that involves. In this Brazil team are some couples who are prayerfully considering becoming full-time missionaries in Japan as well. It’s going to be a special time! And the weeks after the Brazil team leaves, we will be doing a series on relationships at the Fuse :) Those are always fun, but this time I’m a lot more nervous being my first time in a new culture to share about it…I need wisdom!

You are awesome and thanks again for everything!!
Paul ポール

Cell groups, discipleships, and so much more!

Karioke Christmas Afterparty

So we’re coming to the end of the year, but this is just the beginning of a lot of what God is doing here. We’ve started our first cell groups and have most of the church in one-on-one discipleship, that already has made such a difference in the lives of so many people. The excitement level keeps rising as new people continue to come and get integrated in the life of the church, and as the new believers get ready to be baptized and are excited about sharing their new faith with their friends. Of course, since we work with a lot of college students, with the end of the year break, a lot of them will go to their hometowns and we won’t be doing so many church events…a great time to relax in the Lord and do some planning for next year.

Christmas party on Christmas day @ U. Tim’s house

But just to let you know of a couple amazing things that have happened so far. We had several Christmas parties that were so much fun and packed with people! We had non-Christian parents, sisters, and friends come for the “special” occasions, and since then they’ve been in contact with us for the next events :) And while a couple of us guys were hanging out, we asked a Yu-kun what was the best thing that happened to him in 2012. His answer, “I found Jesus.” Needless to say, we couldn’t beat that one, and an overwhelming joy filled my heart to know that he himself realized that. Another Chinese exchange student kept commenting excitedly how it was her first time to celebrate Christmas as a Christian and how it was so special for her!

A huge answer to prayer is that we were able to rent that big house nearby for the “low” price we asked!!! So I’ll be moving Jan 7th Lord willing. I don’t have many pictures yet of our cell groups or our new house, but I’ll try to post them when I do.

I love parties!

And again a huge thanks for all the prayers and support. It’s definitely felt and I’m constantly encouraged by the generosity and sacrifice everyone is making to be a part of the revival that is starting in Japan! And this is just the beginning!!!

Much love!
Paul
New cell number: +81 80 9456 1237

1st time making beans

So a couple days ago marked 1 month being in Japan, this time actually doing Japanese classes, making my own food, and doing the job of a pastor. But God continues to surprise me! As I have really gotten to know the team I am working with, I am so humbled and thankful! The team is amazing, with so many strengths in so many areas that I have to grow in. So it’s not only how to cook for myself and Japanese classes that are new, but organizational and communication skills, etiquette and time management are a few of so many things I’m learning so much more.

Since I’ve arrived, I’ve been sharing a lot of vision and direction for the transition of the FUSE as we move to the cell groups and 1-on-1 discipleship model of church planting. I’ve started discipleship with a couple guys and have done mock discipleship and cell group meetings in our leadership training meeting (LTM) that we have every Tuesday. For now we still meet near an ideal train station (Sagamiono) but not in an ideal place (McDonalds). But it is fun have a big group of people at McDonalds for an hour and a half :)

I have just been asked to start helping out the Brazilian Paz church as well, and for 2 months actually lead their LTM and cell group. That will be interesting with the majority of the members being married and with kids, but I’m excited to be able to help, and the language won’t be such a barrier, maybe just a tiny bit with the 2 families that speak Spanish :) With all these new responsibilities that I’ve never really had before, it has really pushed me to seek God more and learn more and more to throw my worries upon Him, and He has been faithful in answering and giving direction. And can I just say that I can truly feel your prayers and support! I’ve seen God working here in my life like never before, and I still believe this is just the very tiny beginning for what He is going to do here!

I want to just finish leaving some prayer requests:
1. My American bank card hasn’t arrived yet, and my Brazilian bank card hasn’t worked, and with the time zones, it’s been really hard to get help. Please pray for my American bank card to come through soon.
2. We are praying that the Lord would open up a specific house for us to rent for me and a couple to share. It’s the old building where the church used to meet and it would be ideal for it’s location and size for us. Please pray that the owner will rent it to us and for the price we are offering.
3. I feel like Solomon, asking for wisdom to lead the people God has placed in my spiritual responsibility. Sometimes I feel way over my head and not sure what direction to take, so I really need sensitivity to the Holy Spirit and wisdom with decisions and how to work with each person.

Thanks again! All my love!
Paul