“Heal me LORD and I will be healed; save me and I will be saved, for you are the one I praise.” Jeremiah 17:14

  We are just wrapping up the first month of the new school year and there have been a few changes with some students moving to junior high, so they had to leave class. Two of the young girls, Yumeho and Akari always brought a ray of sunshine to the ESL class at Fujigaoka. We were able to celebrate Easter together which was their last class. Please pray for them as they will have so much more studying and homework and then entrance exams to enter high school in a few years. They start preparing so far in advance for these exams. Please also pray for my friend, Atsuko, who moved to Itami City in Osaka. Pray for her and her family as they settle into a new life there.

  On Easter Sunday, I attended Toyota Higashi Church where I taught for 5 years. It was wonderful to connect with many friends and to meet up with a former student, Kinue, who is one of the leaders now at Wago Church. Praise the Lord for her coming to faith after learning about Jesus through chapel times when I was teaching at Moose School (2006-2013). 

  Connecting with people was a theme for much of April. It was a blessing to have lunch with one of my former Komaki students, Misuzu.She brought her niece along, who is in university now.  On April 17^th, I went to Nosegawa Bible Camp in Osaka to meet up with the other Multiply missionaries in Japan (Doris Goertz, Cory & Masami Giesbrecht). We were encouraged by a visit with Bob, Nasser and Cecil (Multiply members) who engaged in prayer, song, encouragement and sharing of faith stories. As well, we managed to get in a good time of throwing a frisbee around in the heat! Praise the Lord for these special moments!

 The OneVoice Gospel Choir from the Nagoya area had a lunch get-together with members from Owariasahi, Tenpaku and Nagakute. There were about 70 of us enjoying barbecued meat, veggies and delicious desserts. We haven’t had a gathering of this size since before Covid so it was great to see so many friends once again. The photo (see the downloadable PDF above) shows only a handful of us, but we had such an amazing time together. The Nagoya group is now starting to prepare for a big concert on Nov. 24^th this year. Please pray for me to have more opportunities to share about how much God loves them, especially when he hears them sing!

  April was a time for viewing beautiful cherry blossoms and more recently, wisteria. I had the opportunity to go to a few places with friends from choir, some former students and good friends. Too many photos to share but here are a couple with Miho and Hitomi checking out the cherry blossoms and then Yoko, Miho and I under the wisteria. The photos really don’t do justice to the beauty of the blossoms! (see the PDF for photos)

 As I wrap up this month’s newsletter, please pray for my beautiful grandchildren, and that they will grow knowing the Lord and his blessings in their lives. Pray for good health for all three and that Arianna and Payton will continue to do well in school. Asher will be one year old on July 4^th and he has the longest eyelashes I’ve ever seen on a boy 😊.

Some prayer requests:

• Pray for discernment for Fujigaoka and Komaki churches as they go through some possible changes in the next year with regards to pastoral care. Pray for Yamamoto sensei and Fujino sensei as they work so hard to bless us each week with encouraging messages.
• Please continue to pray for “J” from Toyota Church. She has separated from her husband “T” and is now trying to adjust to her new life without him. Please pray for T as this is very difficult for him too.
• Please pray for me to find a place to ‘hang my hat’ this summer when I come back for a vacation with my sons & grandchildren. I’ll be around from July 22-Aug. 29 so am looking to stay somewhere for a month. If you have something, or know of something, that might be available, please contact me (). Thank you 😊
• Pray for some of my older friends who have been going through severe pain and illnesses the past couple of months: Elvira, Eleanore, Valerie Jean and Elli. Pray for healing and peace.

Some items of praise:

• Praise for your prayers for Kayo, the choir member who had a biopsy. It came back negative…praise the Lord!
• Praise the Lord for your prayers for a few of the ESC members who have also been struggling with health issues: Yuko, Ken, Masa and Rocky (former ESC member). Although they’re not yet healed completely, they are able to come to class and it’s a joy to see them when I visit the class in Takaoka and Rocky’s class in Nakagawa.
• Praise for a great visit with Bob, Nasser and Cecil who joined Doris, the Giesbrechts and I for a day of sharing and prayer at Nosegawa Bible Camp.

Thank you for your prayers & support. It’s been almost 2 years since I returned to Japan and every day is a new and exciting opportunity to share the love of Jesus with students and choir members. If you would like more information about supporting this ministry financially, please check out the link below.

Blessings to you and your families,

Wendy 😊