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Q: When did the earthquake hit Japan?

When Did Earthquake Hit Japan? This blog post about the earthquake comes from a Missionary who has lived in Japan for many years…

Originally, we all kept one eye on news about developments at the power plant, and the other is often scoping out our surroundings for a good place to duck if a big earthquake should hit Japan. Every day or so we are feeling tremors and I don’t even live near the hard-hit areas!

Today, instead of feeling earthquakes every day or two, we only feel an earthquake once a week or so. However, earthquakes are continuing to hit all along the northeast coast of Japan at a rate of 3 or 4 daily. (magnitude of 4+) In the past 7 days there were 29 earthquakes! (8 of those were magnitude of 5+.)

You might find this web site interesting: http://www.japanquakemap.com You can set the map to show earthquakes since March 11 (1240 with a magnitude of 4+ at the moment), or just check on “today” to get an idea of the amount of activity that is continuing on a daily basis. In our area we don’t feel the smaller ones, or those that are farther away, but we do feel the 5′s and 6′s that are closer. However, for those living where it is occurring, they are feeling all of them and it’s unnerving to live in that continual state of uncertainty.

You can also check out the Crash Japan website for updates on relief work at: http://www.crashjapan.com Take a look at the accounts of contacts made in Christ’s name. You will be blessed. That site also includes a prayer bulletin along the right hand side of the website.

CRASH Japan and other Christian volunteer agencies are asking for volunteers to reach out to these needy people, especially with emotional care. Pastors and church members in affected areas have ministered to their surrounding neighborhoods,but they also, are under enormous stress and fatigue. AND THERE IS NO END IN SIGHT in the near future!

Though the media has pretty much fallen silent, the needs are still overwhelming in Japan!

PLEASE continue to pray, especially for Christians living in the affected areas of Japan; pray for more volunteers to step forward, and for their outreach to hurting people (physically and spiritually) still sitting in darkness.

Teams of volunteers help with soup kitchen ministry through local churches. There are still more than 100,000 people living in evacuation centers, most of which do not have hot meals available. For 2 1/2 months people have been living in gymnasiums with no privacy, no bathing facilities-or only makeshift ones, little or no medical help, no immediate hope…and the earthquakes continue to shake their world.

Already a number of people are coming to the Lord! At a local church, some have returned who had stopped attending. PLEASE continue to pray for the people in Japan.

Missionary involvement in Africa still occurs today! I heard this African missionary story and want to share it with my fellow Christian believers!

The Search For an East African Group of People

Missionary Involvement in Africa When we took the wrong road and went bouncing through the bush nearly a day’s journey away from where we thought we were going, the fuel pump broke down (literally cracked and sprayed fuel out) on our truck and we were really stuck. It happened right at a shade tree where there was another African truck that was broken down also. The three boys with that truck were waiting for their boss to come back with a new engine block. They had been there for two days and expected it would take another two days. They had a tube of gasket material in their tool box and were willing to share it with us. They did a very unlikely repair on our fuel pump. Then we had to sit and wait three hours for the glue to set up.

Meanwhile they asked us what four white guys were doing that far out in the bush. So we told our story to them. The oldest of the three, the driver, became quite interested when he heard we came to find an East African village to see if they wanted to hear and learn about the Word of God. He began asking sincere questions. He had heard before about Christianity but didn’t understand what it was all about. These boys were Muslim.

Earlier we had picked up an “accidental” translator on our road trip who was a Christian believer and very much in agreement with what we were doing. Fortunately, he also spoke the same language as these boys, so he asked permission to explain our story. Of course we wanted him to translate! Our translator started to pour out the plan of salvation and the difference between Islam and the personal relationship God wants to have with His creation. He did such a great job! I was spell-bound watching and followed his explanations even though I couldn’t speak the language. An hour and a half later, the 25 year old Muslim guy said,

I want to ask Jesus to take over my life. Will you pray for me?

We asked the other two younger boys if they wanted to also and they said,

No, we want to ask our fathers if it is OK first.

Our translator told them we respected that but explained that this was a personal decision about eternity and that each person must make his own choice, etc. He was so good. So we prayed for this young man, right there kneeling under a shade tree in 115 degree weather at 2 o’clock in the afternoon. I truly believe this young man knew clearly what he was doing. Our translator spent another hour and explained what a difference it is now, the witness he needs to have for Christ, that he will need to seek out instruction about God’s Word and will need to depend on Jesus when every manner of thing comes against him that he can no longer depend on or turn to witchcraft or fetishes, when life gets rough, etc. He was so good! This young man was very serious and understood well all our translator explained to him. (It was such a Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch experience!) It was incredible. All because we took a wrong turn and our truck broke down!

By the way, the temporary and unlikely fuel pump repair lasted for three more days on the roughest roads I’ve ever seen and four more river crossings that the water was up over the hood of the truck. One time the water was up to the windshield wipers on the windows but the little truck plowed right on through and we made it to the other side and up the next bank. That particular one was a couple hundred feet across and if it had died, we would still be there totally stuck. What an experience! So many more experiences just as incredible, including meetings with village chiefs and elders. God showed us that the door was open and the people were waiting for God’s word!

One chief told us,

I am an old man and have seen many things and gained many things. But I told God some time ago that if a missionary ever comes to our village with His Word, I will love him and do everything in my power to make him welcome so he can teach us God’s Word and our children will grow up to know God’s Word.

I did not understand their language but thought I understand what he said. I thought surely this is not what he said. I sat there about to die trying to be patient enough to wait for him to finish so the translator could translate for me. When he finally confirmed what the chief was saying. I still could hardly believe the impact of what had just happened and that I understood him! And then it got better!

This was a village that we found because of the broken truck and the wrong turn. We didn’t even know where we were exactly, except, we were a long way east of where we had intended to go. We also didn’t even know that this would be in East Africa land yet, and we were right on the edge. In fact, this village was split, part Eastern Africa and part of the other ethnic group, but the chief was from East Africa. So after saying what he did, he also said,

This is just my personal response. But I cannot respond for the village until we meet with all the elders. Half of the elders are from East Africa and half are another ethnic group.

By this time it was very dark and getting late for village life. (Nearly 8pm.) So I thought, well, we are certainly stuck here for the night. I hoped they offered us a place to sleep, because we would need to meet with the elders the next day. But the chief had other plans. He said,

No, we are going to settle this tonight. The other elders need to hear about this. I will wash and put on my chief clothes and call a council tonight. Go on back to the center of town and when I am ready I will come.

The one elder that was with us was to send word on ahead to the other elders to gather at his compound. We waited about an hour for the chief to come and the women of the compound cooked us rice and Guinea fowl. It was so good and we were so hungry!

So…they had their meeting that night with us! The whole story was told and all the elders agreed with the chief, that they wanted us to send missionaries to teach God’s Word to the whole village and the children! One of the other ethnic group elders said,

It is only God’s Word that will bring peace to our village.

Please note that this is a Muslim village on a route that we had no intention at all of passing through. In fact, the road was so bad and the river crossings so deep, we would not have even considered going down into that area if we had known.

It was nearly 10:30pm when the meeting broke up and everyone went to their huts. The elder emptied his hut for us and we unrolled our bed rolls and tried to sleep. We were still dumbfounded by all that God had done just in that one day. The next day was no less amazing!

God is still at work in a big way in Africa! All praise to God and God alone!