November News

29 Nov November News

This month has been really busy and so we are excited to share it with you!

The Living Room

On Tuesday, October 22nd, it was 即位の礼 (Sokui no rei – enthronement day for the new Japanese emperor, Naruhito). This ended the Heisei era and established the new era in Japan called Reiwa (令和元年 Reiwa gannen, ‘the first year of Reiwa’, which officially began on 1 May, 2019). It means “Beautiful Harmony”.

It’s common for world leaders, dignitaries, and ambassadors from all over the globe to attend the establishments of a new monarch. In many cases, they will bring gifts and offer “blessings”. This is exactly what happened at Living Room on enthronement day.

From the outset, it was an unusual night. We gathered for our weekly worship, prayer, and ministry night. We noticed that there were a LOT of visitors in the room. At least eighteen different nations from all over the world were in attendance. In a completely unplanned night of prayer, the King above all Kings gave His gifts and blessings to the new emperor.

We were led by God to first establish Jesus as the ruler of all by enthroning Him on our praises. From there, we opened up the mic for the nations to come up and bless Japan in their own heart languages. It was awe inspiring to hear German, Norwegian, Tamil, Japanese, and other beautiful languages being unified in blessing this land that Jesus’ loves. Some Fijians brought a special gift by singing over Japan. You could truly feel heaven in the room.

Representatives from Japan received these blessings and then we all moved into a time of prayer for the new emperor. We prayed that Jesus would be revealed in and through him during his reign.

As the people of God, we are ambassadors of Heaven. We are called to represent Christ here on Earth. I believe that we operated in the authority that we have in the nations by lifting up this new era in Japan. It was such an honour to bless Japan and be a part of this sovereign gathering.

David McDaniel (Base Director)

DTS Update

The DTS that we are currently running has been through 7 weeks of lectures. We’ve heard from teachers that have come from around the world and have spoken on topics such as ‘Love’, ‘Heart of the Evangelist’, ‘Spiritual Intelligence’ (or Discernment), ‘Intimacy with God/Intercession’, ‘Identity in Christ’, & ‘Character and Nature of God’. We have seen God move in multiple ways throughout this time. We’ve seen physical healing of severe food allergies, the destruction of self hatred/fear, & the declaring of hope, light, and life over ourselves and others. These breakthroughs have filled us with hope and joy for our coming outreach. Please continue to pray for our students and staff as we continue with two more weeks of lectures before we send them off for 8 week of outreach! They will be going to Alaska, Fiji, and two separate parts of Japan.

Jeff Knelsen (Assistant School Leader)

My time during DTS has been quite adventurous. I have grown in my relationship with God more and have learned about how to live with His love as my foundation. I’ve had some challenges such as overcoming depression, anxiety, and my fear of man. I’ve been leaning on the Lord for strength and this community of believers has helped me when I’ve struggled. I’ve learned more about the gifts of the Spirit and which ones that God has gifted me with. I’m getting equipped to use these on outreach and for sharing the Gospel. I never thought I’d have the courage to walk up to strangers and share the Gospel but I’ve done it here in Japan and I’ve seen fruit from it. God has been shaping me and He is good.

Alec Nichols (DTS Student)

Africa Trip

Two of our staff and a friend of ours went to Malawi, Africa to work with a safe home this past October. This facility takes in girls that have been sexually abused from ages 3-15. Here’s one of their testimonies.

When we arrived, there was a 3 year old girl there. That broke my heart. I heard a rumour that this girl may never go home. One day, while we were eating lunch at the safe home, I heard this 3 year old girl sing a song in her native language. 

“What is she singing?” We asked the people there. 

They replied “Be comforted, oh, don’t you cry, for Jesus will take care of you.”

My heart was so moved. This little girl who has already walked through so much pain is the one who is choosing to sing this song. The girls in this safe home were the most happy girls that I have ever met! If you didn’t know their stories, you would have never known. We saw blind eyes begin to see, those with trouble walking starting to walk, and a demon oppressed lady get set free! The greatest miracle we witnessed was seeing how God restores and heals the broken hearted and brings them back into wholeness and joy.

to grant to those who mourn in Zion—
   to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes,
the oil of gladness instead of mourning,
   the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit;
that they may be called oaks of righteousness,
   the planting of the Lord, that he may be glorified.

(Isaiah 61:3)

FOR JESUS & JAPAN,

YWAM Tokyo