Glory to God! After seeing what was our fullest month of labor thus far and our second soul saved since starting the Kisarazu Hope Baptist Church, God continued to give our church new growth and our ministry new opportunities both to encourage the saved and give the Gospel to the lost. We praise God for another great month!

The FBMI Japan Missions Trip group concluded on August 2, and everyone returned safely to the United States with a new love and burden for Japan. On August 1, we all spent a day of fellowship in Tokyo, and we were delighted to have the lost elderly Japanese gentleman who has been coming to our church since December join us for that activity. He told me that it had been nearly 20 years since he’d enjoyed such an outing. Please pray that God would continue to draw his heart as we continue to love and witness to him. On the following Wednesday, he and the lady who trusted Christ on Christmas Day but has not been able to come to services due to her work schedule and family opposition came to join us for our midweek service. We praise God that the lady has returned regularly since, and the gentleman has been listening to the Bible messages more seriously. We have been holding our midweek services since the very beginning of our church plant, and for our first six months, we held them with just my wife and me. We now have three to five people attend every week. We praise God for His working in people’s lives and the growth of our midweek prayer services!

On August 10, I was given the privilege once again to witness over the Internet to 36 Japanese exchange students hosted by the Christian school of one of our supporting churches. Please pray that they would trust Christ! On August 14, we held our first outside church fellowship activity. We had a wonderful time, and we look forward to creating more opportunities for our new family in Christ to fellowship and be encouraged, especially in a nation where Christians are deprived of fellowship as the minority of minorities.

Speaking of fellowship, the Senri Newtown Baptist Church of Minoo, Osaka, where my wife and I trained for our first 2½ years in Japan, held their annual Family Bible Camp starting August 15. We were given the honor of being invited as the main speakers this year. I spoke for the adult sessions and Danielle for the children. The camp was attended by 122 people, many of whom we served and worshipped with while we were in Osaka, including the Morgan and Madrigal families, who are fellow missionaries to Japan. Spending time with all of them again truly gave us much-needed encouragement, as this church family is what we consider to be our hometown in Japan. I had the privilege of preaching in the three camp services, and we praise God that during the first session, a man came forward during the invitation to make the decision to get baptized! This is a major step in a nation where such an open profession of faith is considered socially unacceptable and is often met with persecution from family, friends, and the workplace. Please pray for this dear brother in Christ. Our return to Kisarazu was delayed by the typhoon, but we praise God that we were able to return safely in time for our Sunday services. We were encouraged to hear from a couple we had given counseling to for their struggling marriage during our time in Osaka; they texted us to let us know that their marriage has since been healed. July and August have been two of our busiest months since coming to Japan, but they have also has been some of our most fruitful. We praise God for allowing us to serve Him here in Japan, and we look forward to what more He will do!

Danielle’s Journey

We began this month with the end of the FBMI missions trip. It was so encouraging to spend time with them and even more encouraging when several of them told us that, if God allowed, they would love to serve the Lord in Japan one day! Throughout this month, we also had several visitors, as well as friends we haven’t seen in a long time! The lady who accepted Christ as her Saviour on Christmas Day last year, whom I’ve stayed in touch with regularly, had yet to attend a church service because of family opposition. We were thrilled to see her walk through the door on a Wednesday night, as well as several services since. Another highlight from this month was Family Bible Camp, held by the church in Osaka where we trained. I was invited as the main speaker for the children’s classes. It was a huge honor, and I was so thankful for the opportunity. Camp was an incredible encouragement to us both. It is always a joy to be around the people of God. Thank you for remembering us in your prayers.

Your friends and co-laborers to Japan,

Go and Danielle Oishi