“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be upon his shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” ~ Isaiah 9:6

I know that you have just read my November update but I wanted to make sure to send out a Christmas message, for without Christmas, none of us would be here in our walk with Jesus, the REAL reason for the season!

Thank you all for your many prayers for those who have been affected by the flooding in the Fraser Valley. Most of the families have been able to return to their homes and take stock of what was lost, what was saved and what needs to be done to restore their homes so they are liveable once again. Please continue to pray that the waters would completely recede and that rebuilding can start again in the new year.

I know for many of us, this disaster has had us looking at our own lives…what have we lost along the way, what have we saved and most important, what have we gained? I know that material things are just ‘stuff’, and yet we save our ‘stuff’ because it holds so many wonderful memories. But by losing our stuff, do we lose the memories? No…the memories are safe in our hearts and in our minds! I have realized over the past couple of years while living in Canada (and moving at least 11 times), that I am continually decluttering my ‘stuff’. This Christmas, I’m not able to decorate or put up a tree because (1) lack of space; (2) my Christmas ‘stuff’ is at the back of my storage unit; and (3) I realize I don’t need to decorate to celebrate the birth of my Saviour. Yes, I do miss the beautiful, shiny lights on the tree and seeing the ornaments I have saved for over 50 years dangling on the boughs. But I can always go out for a drive and see lights and decorations. So I am content to just rest in the beauty of the season and focus on Jesus and what it means to celebrate His birth.

With the 3^rd Sunday of advent just passed, we celebrated joy. Joy to the world, the Lord is come! Next Sunday, we will celebrate peace. Peace on earth, good will to men! Some days, many of us may feel like there has been very little joy or peace this year. But when we put our faith and trust in the One who came to save us from our sins, we can feel the joy and peace deep in our souls. We saw a huge outpouring of love when  hundreds of people came together to help those in need during the recent floods. It gave me such joy to know that even when we may be going through our own personal struggles, others come to surround us with joy and peace through their acts of kindness. I pray that this Christmas season, you will know the true joy and peace that Jesus brought when He came as a little baby.

On Nov. 30^th Japan closed its borders once again to all outside travellers. This means a further delay in my visa application and return to service in Japan. However, it brings about great opportunities to continue with my partnership development. Presently I’m still around 69% and need a further $1200/month USD to reach my budget needs. Please check out the links at the end of my newsletter for how you can be a part of financially supporting this ministry and thank you for prayerfully considering partnering with me! Please read the note from my Regional Mobilizer, Greg Laing. Should you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to ask. As well, being in Canada a little while longer gives me more time with my sons and precious granddaughters, so I am blessed to be here this Christmas.

On behalf of Multiply, thank you to the faithful prayer partners walking along with Wendy.  As you are aware, the pandemic situation continues to present serious challenges, including the ability to plan travel.  As we follow the situation in Japan, there is currently no opportunity for Wendy to book travel to this country, so we believe it is prudent to delay “Wendy’s departure until the summer of 2022 and want to keep you informed of this development.  In the meantime, we encourage Wendy to continue to develop her partnership team, in good faith and with hope.  Rest assured, all funds donated to her project are being pooled for her eventual ministry engagement (she is already engaged in some ministry with students remotely). Again, thank you for your support of Wendy and your commitment to serve the cause of extending the mission of God within the nation of Japan.”

Greg Laing

Regional Mission Mobilizer – Western Canada

Prayer Items:

• Please pray for those who are struggling this Christmas; pray the Lord will fill them with his peace and comfort.
• Pray for my Certificate of Eligibility to be extended beyond Jan. 31, 2022 so we don’t have to start the process all over.
• Pray for the ESL students to experience the joy & peace that Jesus brings, not only in the Christmas season, but all year long.
• Pray for me as I will be sharing on Jan. 9^th, 2022 in the Worship Service at Central Heights Church from 4-6pm in Nikkel Hall. Please come and hear more about the ESL ministry.  

Praise Items:

• Praise for an outpouring of assistance and love to those who have been dealing with the flood.
• Praise God for His Son, the reason we celebrate the Christmas season!!
• Praise God that Mark (the present ESL teacher in Nagoya) will stay until the end of March, 2022.
• Praise the Lord for continued good health and that I am able to be with my granddaughters and sons once again this Christmas. The Lord is so good.

Wishing all of you and your families a very Merry Christmas and may the joy and peace of the Lord fill your homes this Christmas season and throughout the coming new year.

Blessings,

Wendy 😊