By David and Evangeline Kindervater, Alliance international workers who serve in Japan
In recent years, thousands of Japanese have flocked to gospel-singing workshops. According to music industry insiders, such workshops have sprung up across Japan in record numbers, largely due to the popularity of the 1992 movie Sister Act. The phenomenon has inspired an outreach by an Alliance congregation in Japan.
As members of the gospel choir waited for their Christmas concert to begin, we saw God at work. We had worried that few would come. But as noon approached, the heavy rain predicted turned to sunshine, and people began to fill the hall. Fifteen minutes before start time, the choir had to vacate their seats to help the hall staff bring in 30 extra chairs to accommodate the growing crowd.
At 2 p.m., the choir entered and began to sing “Everybody Clap Your Hands,” by Percy Gray. “We praise you, O Lord! We magnify Your name. We worship you, O Lord. . . This is the way we praise Him. Clap your hands.”
The crowd, most of whom had never heard gospel music before, joined in clapping their hands with us.
Our emcee for the event, Mrs. A., has been singing gospel music with us for several years. Like most of our choir members—and most Japanese in general—Mrs. A is a Buddhist.
Last Christmas, after learning that her husband had cancer, she came to our church to tell us the news and cry. She had never been to church before, but that is where she chose to go when she heard the difficult news. We all cried with her. Her family is heavily involved in the Buddhist temple, and she has helped out there from time to time, so she said she could not come back to church. She continues to sing in the gospel choir, though.
A Dilemma
As emcee, it was Mrs. A’s job to introduce the songs. She faced a problem, however. The location we use has rules restricting religious activity, and all the staff members from the facility were in attendance. We needed wisdom. Some of us feared speaking too directly about the meaning of Christmas and bringing trouble to the gracious facility leaders who have allowed us to practice there each week.
However, Mrs. A, the Buddhist, insisted, “I have to talk about Jesus. If I don’t talk about Jesus, there is nothing to say.” And so, she did. She made a light joke at the beginning, saying she was not a Christian but that she could not explain the songs without telling them about Jesus. “So please listen,” she said. Everyone laughed and then listened as she shared the meaning of each song.
“The next song we are going to sing is ‘Shu-o-Aogimite’ (Lift Your Eyes to the Lord), a Japanese gospel song,” she said at one point. “When you are facing a trial that you cannot endure in your own strength, or a situation which cannot be solved by human help alone, lift your eyes to the Lord and receive strength from Him to make it through! When I remember that I am always being protected by a wonderful God, I’m filled with joy and can sing with joy.”
Had a Christian introduced the songs, we might have had problems with the facility. But Mrs. A was able to do so. Though she is not yet a believer, God spoke through her.
Thank you for your prayers for the Japanese people. Please continue to pray with us that God will open the eyes of our choir members, so that they would see the light of the gospel and give their lives to Christ.
Pray
Use the weekly Alliance Prayer Requests to join the Alliance family in interceding on behalf of our global teams, who rely upon the Holy Spirit for opportunities to share the gospel with those who have little or no access to the good news.