Hello Everyone!
Pastor Yasutaka-san took me around Nishinari-ku to witness and pray for the homeless today. As we walked around, we spent time conversing about churches in Japan and the ways that ministries are established. Pastor Yasutaka-San took me to the heart of the homeless area and showed me some local churches and different types of ministries. We spoke to people at each church. One place made a very large impression on me. Keep reading and you’ll see why.
I’m talking about a Catholic homeless shelter that we visited. Their mission is to take care of the immediate needs of the homeless in this area. Kitty-corner from the “homeless park” and across the street from many popular bars, they are in an extremely accessible location for people to find. They had a “ramen room” and various entertainment rooms where the men could watch television. There was a barber shop room where the men could receive a free haircut, a Japanese “chess” room of sorts and they also served hot tea to the men there. The entire building was an alcohol-free zone. I was extremely taken aback by their memorial room. This room contained the pictures of men and women that have died homeless and without family members. They had come to this shelter while they were still alive and after they passed, the shelter had a memorial service for them there. Although this shelter was Catholic based, they accepted the practice of all religions there.
Overall this homeless shelter does a wonderful job taking care of the homeless’ temporal needs. However, it was not Christ-based and people were not hearing the word. I was told that many “Christian” churches here in Japan accept the practice of all religions. It’s a scary thing to think about. In this area, many people are homeless and without any family members whatsoever. My heart broke as the Lord revealed to me their desperate need for Him alone. We were able to share the message of Jesus, pray with them and invited them to a Christian church in the same area.
If anything, seeing all of this today gives me more encouragement to continue to press on into the vision of planting a Christian church in this area someday- Lord willing! I will continue to seek the Lord’s guidance with my husband! God bless Nishinari!
Lifted Vision Ministry 