Using Every Circumstance

 Way back in 1981, we had settled into our new career in Japan and had finally finished our requisite two years of language school. With great fanfare, we were deemed “fit to do life and ministry in a Japanese world".  I have to confess that to this day, I haven’t been able to fully understand all the big words on my graduation certificate, but I don’t want to talk about that.

We moved north, out of Tokyo and up to a nice little town of one million people.  Keep in mind that we were moving from Tokyo, population about 40 million, so to us it was like a quaint village by comparison. It's about halfway to the top of the main island of Honshu, and it goes by the name of Sendai.  

We had been assigned to start student ministries, so with thirteen major colleges and universities, Sendai was the natural choice. 

Our sons Trevor and Nathan came with us, of course, and that set the course of their lives.  Five-year-old Trevor was enrolled into preschool, and even though Tony and I would be traveling to lots of different churches on Sundays, we introduced him to the wonderful folks at Chomei ga Oka Baptist Church, the only place at that time with an organized Sunday School program.

And with ex-Kamikaze pilot Naoki Noguchi serving as pastor, the place was bound to be great! And it was, and it still is. We've written books about his life, and I think many of you have read them. 

Well, almost immediately Trevor had three little friends,  Jun, Makoto and Katsuya.  They were all 5 and 6, and when the four of them came together, there was some kind of chemical reaction not unlike breath mints in a bottle of Coca Cola. Try it sometime, but make sure you’re outside when you do.

Baby Nathan was the ornery little brother who tried his best to be “one of the guys”. He dreamed of the day when he could leave us and go to “Trevor's church".  

And so the story continued.  

By the time they were 16, the four boys had bonded in a way no one could have foreseen. They were inseparable, and no one could deny that they were becoming fine young men. But while we were in the States on a regular required assignment, Trevor was diagnosed with leukemia, suffered horribly for eight months and went on to be with the Lord. 

We all noted the fact that two days past the time when the doctors said he shouldn’t be alive, he hung on in a semi-coma until we got all three boys in Japan on one phone call. They took turns, while we held the phone to Trevor’s ear, encouraging him and saying they would meet him in Heaven. Twenty minutes later, his body relaxed, and he gently passed.

Pastor Noguchi, back in Japan, took the three remaining boys skiing, which we thought was a bit odd, but he said, “16-yr-old boys need to cry, but they also need to be "cool", so I took them to a safe place.”  We couldn’t help but remember that at their age, Pastor Noguchi was a Kamikaze, less than one week from his assignment. The war ended before he could go, and we thank God for sparing such as incredible man.

We returned to Japan and to our surprise, the boys kept coming to our house for weekends. I thought it was a little odd, but when I look back, it was such a healing thing for us to have a little bit of what we remembered as normal for a while each week. I also thought Nathan enjoyed being that pesky little brother again instead of his new role as oldest child.  

As soon as the boys graduated from High School, two went on into university, but we sent Katsuya to America.  Why?  Because he was a born evangelist, and Japanese university wouldn't have helped him in that field.  He had some proclivity for English (as they all did) so we thought, “Let's set him loose in an American Christian college and see what happens.”  Funds and scholarships were found and off he went.

And he failed.  

That is to say, he failed his classes, but mostly because he was too busy serving the Japanese.  He was a much-needed dynamo working in a little Japanese church there in Colorado and helping them lead other Japanese to Christ.  

After he'd been there for several months, we heard on the news that a Japanese boy had been shot at an ATM.  In DENVER!

Apparently, it involved an attempt to hijack the boy's car.  We were shocked and frightened,  but remembered that Katsuya had such a beat up old car that no one would have wanted it.

When we finally were able to contact him, he said brightly, "Oh!  I visited that boy in the hospital and led him to the Lord!  He's much better now!"

Some time later, Katsuya gave me a piece of paper the boy had written in the hospital.  It's in pencil so I can barely read it now some 40 years later, but here's what I think it says.  

“I felt a straight pain in my left arm and sad

There was a long bullet

the pain and sadness

Then I realized something

Realized something which was shining in the darkness

It gave me peace for my heart

The source of the light was the Jesus Christ

The everlasting love for me.”  

He was able to finish his school year after several weeks in the hospital and his conversion was showing itself more and more daily.  He returned to his home in Japan a vibrant new Christian.

Again.  Not what we envisioned, but isn't God faithful in using every circumstance to carry out His will?

PS. Katsuya married a little gal from that Japanese fellowship in Denver.  Her English is much more developed than his, and today they live in the northern island of Hokkaido, Japan, working in church and raising two beautiful girls.  He's still one of my extra sons. 

Let’s all remember today to let the Lord use us for whatever ‘talents’ He’s given us.

Till next time, Marsha