Lily Suzuki's Prayer and Newsletter

May 14, 2005

Dear Prayer Partners, Supporters and Friends of ”Shinsetsu Ministry” for our

Lord Jesus in Amakusa, Japan

We are finally here on the Island of Amakusa, Japan. Last Nov. when we came on a Exploratory Trip, Rev. Sam, our JEMS’ Director, gave us a verse in the Bible, Psalm 97, Vs. 1. “The LORD reigns, let the earth be glad; let the distant shores rejoice.” God is going to reign from the distant shores of U.S. and Canada, all the way to the distant shores of Amakusa. He promises to save all who believe and promises to return again. We are praying for a big revival to start in Amakusa and throughout Japan.

It’s been almost 5 years since God whispered in my heart to serve in Amakusa as a missionary; and after 4 years of training in Japan, I am here! Thank you for your faithful prayers and support in this ministry.

God has provided a missionary partner, Sue Abe, with the same ministry at heart. And we are going to serve the LORD together. It is like a dream come true. Amakusa truly is a beautiful Island with very gentle people. The ocean provides eatable seaweed, abundant fish and sea creatures that we are learning to eat. God has provided a church just 5 minutes away from the beach. We are staying at Amakusa Chiyuou Baptist Church, which the mother Church is on the Island of Kagoshima. We are currently staying in a church pastored by Rev. and Mrs. Minami. The church membership is about 16 people, but is slowly growing. We help the Pastor with home Bible studies, visits, counseling, and sometimes with Bible messages on Wednesdays when the Pastor is away. We are kept very busy. Two churches are planning to have us teach English with a chance to evangelize during sessions.

After a month of house hunting, we are overjoyed to find a house we feel God has provided. It has 4 rooms, kitchen, bathroom and just remodeled so it is very clean. Our landlord is not a Christian so this seems to be a good place to start evangelizing. The house is located near a hospital, police station and a convenient area for daily shopping. There is a jogging path and park near the river with benches, so it will be a great place for devotions in the early mornings. Maybe even a small informal group gathering. photos

Our ministry here is very different than what we have expected. At present we live only a block away from a monument commemorating the Christian martyrdom of 1,333 heads of 400 years ago. These Christians were martyred, because they refused to denounce their faith by stepping on the “fumie”. It is the first time we experience feelings of great power of spiritual warfare. We pray each moment for God’s protection, the armor of God in Ephesians 6:14 – 18. Please be prayer warriors…so we are protected from the evil one. We know the power of prayer.

We have seen Christians go in and out of the hospital with deep depression and mental illness, professing they see and talk to Satan. There are many people living with gambling addiction of “pachinko, Japanese pinball. They lose much money and have to borrow from loan sharks with very high interest. The loan shark companies are after them so they can’t get proper jobs in fear of exposing themselves. Some adults have such sad and tragic childhoods which deep-rooted hatred and un-forgiveness rule their lives. Some find it difficult to assume or face social responsibilities in society. Many with lack of education can’t keep their jobs or even desire to work. When these people profess to be Christians, it is a very poor testimony for Christians and churches. They run into churches for shelter and stay for months.

We are trying to assist the Pastor and his wife to counsel and help these young men become independent and to live as faithful Christians using the Bible verses and prayer. Building of self-esteem (we are precious in the sight of God), self-discipline, being obedient to God, even teaching common health habits and social manners take a long time. We know it can only be done in love. It is heart breaking to see so many people in these situations. It is a very new field to me. However, my partner Sue is well experienced in these areas. Sue is a retired social worker and a teacher through elementary to college so I am being trained with so much to learn and very quickly. Your prayers behind us will be so powerful. We are praying so that our English ministry will get on its way.

Celebrating and praying for You kun as he celebrates his 1st Birthday
after being born again. It reminds me of John 3 of Nicodemus.
Left to right, Sue Abe, Mrs. Minami and myself.

God has been faithful to protect us and to answer prayers. Please pray for Yu kun, who accepted Jesus not very long ago, and is trying to make every effort to please God. Mr. Okada who is dealing with his mental health who accepted Jesus as his personal Savior. After Bible study he said he has peace was able to create 2 pots and will bring them to show to us. Eriko san, a mother of two, has accepted Jesus and prayed with us, yet has an unbelieving husband. Please pray they will all grow in faith…please pray they will continue to come to be fed in the Word of God so they can apply what they learn in their daily lives as Psalm 119:105, “Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.”

We are also ministering to non-Christian families who live far away in areas without a church. We bring to them the Gospel and “katei shiyukai,” mini church. We also visit seniors who live in hospitals and senior homes. Since these places don’t have public transportation and cover a vast area, we found it necessary to acquire a car. God provided a kind Christian mechanic, Mr. Harada, who also fixes and sells used cars. We were able to purchase an 8 year old Toyota Starlet, in very nice condition and low price (as we were told by our pastor and Christian friends). However, things are very expensive here. Sue and I have to pay monthly installments of $200 USD each for 13 months. Just for your interest, the car was, 500,000 Japanese yen, $5,000 US, and car insurance is $1,219 US per year. Gas is very expensive too, but through a church friend we are able to buy it wholesale. The payments are a burden and are cutting into our monthly ministry budget. However, we are blessed that Mr. Honda has promised to maintain God’s car free of labor. We are grateful to have a reliable mechanic and car for our ministry.

Visiting Mr. Okada, a real potter,
and becoming friends so that we can evangelize.

Since Amakusa produces good clay and porcelain there are many potters. We’ve met Mr. Eura who may let us assist in teaching clay work in an elementary school during the summer. This will give us an opportunity to meet new people. Mr. Okada, above, a new Christian, is a son of a potter whose father isn’t a Christian. We visited him with the Pastor and are looking forward to visiting him in the near future. Please pray for opportunities to meet and become friends with people in the community so we can share the Gospel.

Mr. Ogawa just got baptized last Sunday. His son got baptized 3 weeks ago. We are making visits to his home to become friends with his unsaved wife and to his aged parents. Mr. Ogawa is a fisherman and we pray that he will become a fisher-of-men. Mr. Ogawa brings us fresh fish and teaches us of the ocean. We are so blessed!

As you can see, we are kept very busy. I will send more photos this time of the people we have met. Thank you so much for your faithful prayers and support. We cannot do anything without them. Since it is quite long between these newsletters, if you would like to e-mail me, my address is: Lily@praise-God.com . I will try to answer you.

God’s blessings and let’s be faithful servants of God and give out the “Good News” whenever we can. I will be praying for you and your family too. I will end with a Bible verse that has meant so much to me. Isa. 41:9-10. “I took you from the ends of the earth, from its farthest corners. I called you. I said, ‘you are my servant’; So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” Take care and God’s blessings.

Love in our living LORD, Immanuel,
His Ambassador in Japan,

Lily Suzuki

Praise :

1. Praise God! Missionaries, David and Eleanor are serving in Omochanomachi.
2. God provided a car to minister in and a house to stay in Hondo, Amakusa.
3. Sue and I are in good health and are grateful to be in Amakusa.
4. Wilmy, my daughter in law is feeling much better. Thank you.

Prayer Request :

1. Vibrant relationship with the LORD each day and God’s wisdom and discernment.
2. God’s guidance, wisdom and protection.
3. God’s right timing for me to return to Canada to receive my Canadian Citizenship and to take care of my Health Insurance.
4. Steady employment for Fumi kun, Yu kun and Mr. Kojima and that they will grow in their faith.
5. Prayer for BSF all around the word, and especially in Richmond, CA.
6. Prayer for healing of back pain for my prayer partner Deanna and health for husband T.J.
7. Please pray for all the prayer requests in the Newsletter.

   Thank you!