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Wendy’s January 2022 Missions Update

I pray that you had a wonderful Christmas and New Year’s celebration with your families. I must say I enjoyed eating Christmas dinner on Dec. 24th with my sons and granddaughters. It was such a joy to celebrate this special time of year with them once again and to remind them that Jesus’ birth is what gives each of us hope! We also had a great time sledding with the unusual snowfall we had over the Christmas break.

At the beginning of the year, we had been asked by our Member Care team to listen to God and see if he has a word or words for us for the year ahead. My word is “change”. Perhaps you might think “Sure, you’re going to experience change…you’re planning to return to Japan.” But change can be so many different things: moving, jobs, family life, finances, etc. And quite often, change comes when we least expect it or want it. For many people, change is difficult and unsettling, yet there are changes around us every day. The Bible is filled with change and not everyone wanted to accept change back then either. How do you cope with change? Growing up as an ‘army brat’ I experienced change almost every year or two: changing army bases to live on, changing schools and changing friends. When I look back on the past 20 years, it is more of the same kinds of change. I’ve moved too many times to count, changed countries to live in, changed jobs and sometimes friends, but there is always one constant in my life that will never change. And that is the love of Jesus! He is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow…He will never change and that is the one constant we can celebrate! What changes have you experienced recently and how does that affect you? Please drop me a line or give me a call and let’s get together and pray for one another through these changes.

One great area of change for me is that I’m now at 93% of my support! This change came suddenly and surprisingly so I give all praise to the Lord and thank each and every one of you who are partnering with me in this ministry.  Although I’m still in Canada, I still have zoom calls with Japan monthly, and am part of a weekly Multiply House of Prayer (MHOP) on Fridays at 4pm (PST) with others who have the same passion to pray for Japan. On Friday, February 25th, there will be a special time of prayer for Japan, and you’re invited to join us at 4PM PST/6PM Winnipeg time. Here is the link. It would be so wonderful to see you on the call and to have so many praying for the nation and people of Japan!

Cory & Masami Giesbrecht, who serve in Osaka, Japan are preparing to return to Canada soon for MINA. Please pray for them as they make all the necessary arrangements and that things will go smoothly for the family. I am hoping to meet up with them in Regina near the end of April, so I would really appreciate prayers that this trip will be possible. I had to cancel it last September due to Covid restrictions. But God is so good and His plans are always the right plans!

A couple of things to continue praying for:

  • Please pray that the Japanese borders would open soon so that we can continue with my visa application. Pray for Hattori sensei (Pastor of Fujigaoka Christ Church) to be able to get the other part of my visa needed so that I can submit my full application in Vancouver soon.
  • Pray for the Gotto family of Fujigaoka church. Satomi Gotto passed away after a very long illness. Please pray for Gotto san, Masami and Yumi as they mourn her loss.
  • Please pray for one of the families of Greendale MB Church. Their son, Dillon, went home to be with Jesus last week after an 18-month battle with cancer. Pray for peace and comfort for the family.
  • Please continue to pray for the balance of my support to come in. I am still needing to raise $268/month CDN. It will be a blessing to be at 100% so that once my visa application can be completed, I can head back to the field. If you would like to get together so we can talk more about an opportunity for how you can get involved, please give me a call (604-832-0477).

Praise Items:

  • Praise the Lord for my partnership development going from 69% last November to 93% as of the end of January. Thank you for praying and for partnering with me. I’m very grateful to all of you and sometimes there are just not enough words to say ‘thank you’.
  • Praise the Lord that I am able to stay living where I’m at until further notice. We will revisit it again in May, so this is a HUGE answer to prayer. Thank you so much 😊
  • Praise God for the lovely time I had with my family over Christmas!
  • Praise the Lord for the opportunities I’ve had to meet with a few of you recently. I’m hoping to see many more of you in the weeks to come.

As I close, I know we’re expecting some more snow this week. If you’re needing to be out driving in it, I pray for safety in your travels. Keep healthy and keep smiling!

Blessings,

Wendy 😊