Ministry Updates and News from the Mehns
1. Elaine has a LEADnet meeting on February 4th. Ask God that this would be a time of encouragement for these pastor’s wives and that they may have courage to share with each other. 2. On 2/13 we are having a Valentine’s party outreach event with the batch of couples we are sharing Jesus with. Ask God that this would be a great fun time but also a night where we are each surprised by…
WOW! We have a potential career missionary couple visiting the Japan field Feb 4-16. They ask prayer for their travel and for wisdom and discernment as to God’s leading for them in Japan. Ask God for discernment as they visit with the mission, the Rengo, and view ministries in Japan. Maybe some of you would like to join this couple in considering Japan for your place to serve God, believe me we are short-handed. COME…
We had great vacation time in the US and arrived back safely last month. But we both feel like we have been thrown on a fast moving treadmill since we returned to Tokyo. This spring the speed will pick up even more with visitors coming, ministries continuing, new ministries beginning, and remodeling on our house and ministry center. PTL! Meetings with Japanese leaders have been excellent last month. Thanks for praying. John has begun sharing…
Read a NY Times article this last week. The summary of it is that due to the economy and the growing silver generation there is nothing hopeful for the young people to find fulfilling employment or achieving a success life for their families. As shown by many polls on religious value this generation is searching for peace and spiritual fulfillment. There are not enough people sharing about the good news that can be found in…
20 centuries after Jesus said “go into all the world and make disciples”, Satan remains in unchallenged control of 1,800 of Japan’s UNCHURCHED RURAL AREAS (URAs) where only 1 in 1000 are Christian. Japan has about 1,800 foreign missionaries plus the Japanese pastors associated with 8,000 churches, yet only a disproportionately small and oft-isolated fraction work in rural areas. Few Christ followers are even consciously aware of the widespread number of spiritually-neglected URAs remaining in…
2010 was a challenging year to be a missionary in Japan. The decline in the dollar has eroded what we need to live and work on. The dollar in 2010 went from 95 to 82 yen/$, or a decline of nearly 15%. When we came to Japan in 1985 we got over 200 yen/$ !!!! So practically a gallon of milk went from $7.79 to $9.02. Regular gas is now about $5.87 per gallon. We…
WE’RE GRANDPARENTS! Molly Elizabeth Melancen was born December 9th, coming two weeks early. Regretfully we arrived for vacation on the 13th too late to help out at the beginning. Both Beth and Molly are doing pretty well. Thanks for your prayers for a safe delivery. Pray for our very cute granddaughter that she would grow strong and learn to love Jesus. MORE CELEBRATIONS! This year, especially December, has been a year of real celebrations for…
We wish everyone a Christ-filled warm Christmas with family and friends. May each of us appreciate more deeply the baby Jesus and what he has done to give us joy, peace, love and acceptance.
On December 5th, we celebrated 25 years of missionary service in Japan. By the grace of God we have been able to serve the church in Japan through a quarter of a century. His Grace is sufficient.
1. Elaine’s Bible study for women has many deep discussions such as the difference between being a sinner and a criminal. One re-Christian member keeps inviting new ones to join. Pray for all of them as they learn more about the wonders of Christ. 2. Thank you for praying through important meetings with the Rengo and our Japan mission in November. Everything proceeded well along with good personal interactions. 3. On December 11, we have…