The Penner Place: Blog

Today's the day

Wed, 08 Oct 2008 23:12:51 GMT

Today’s the day! Please if you think of it today pray for Mary Esther as she goes for the TV talk show. Earlier in the week she wrote me:

I am doing as little driving as possible while you are away this week so as not to stress out my back and leg. I will be spending the night in Higashi Kurume tomorrow so I don’t have to drive in again Wednesday because Thursday is the biggie—going down to Shizuoka for the TV talk show. Just the stress of the talk show, plus never having gone that way before, and being told the last bit of the road is terrible and requires a 4WD to get down and up and to be sure and put it in low gear etc is enough besides the 3 hours there and then back after having to go into Tokyo two days before. But I know angels are around and so thought when necessary, help will come.

So today, Kawasaki Sensei contacted me with a big apology. His son is getting married two days after the TV talk show and he has to go into Tokyo to pick up some things for the wedding . . . so would it be okay of he drove here from Mito, picked me and the two wheelchairs up in his van, drove to Shizuoka, and on the way back go just a tiny bit out of the way and pick up the stuff for the wedding?

Would I mind?! I already feel the stress relief! I don’t have to wash and wax my car, don’t have to find the way to an unknown place, don’t have to worry about the treacherous stretch that scares everyone and that requires a 4WD –would I mind?! Thank you God!

So praise God with us. And keep praying for her especially today.

Hyperbole?

Wed, 08 Oct 2008 23:09:55 GMT

Quick report from the Philippines:

From day one, my Skype reports from the Philippines to Mary Esther have been almost hyperbolic. Pastor Minamida is doing a phenomenal job connecting with the FSL (Filipino Sign Langage) translation team and training them. They have said several times “oh, now we understand what Mark was trying to tell us in March.” As a Deaf translator with years of experience,combined with a sensitivity to timing and needs, Pastor Minamida has built a strong platform as both a change agent and a trainer.

At first, I was hesitant to try to do too much in just a week, not wanting to leave behind a demoralized team that tried to take the next step and couldn’t pull it off. But everything we have tried so far has worked. We went ahead and tackled the big issues, and have already seen the team with a new enthusiasm about the possibilities for making much faster and progress with a much better translation. Praise God, who does more than we can ask or think!!

(PS from an IM with Mary Esther: ” I should tell you about Sunday. Everyone at the Deaf church was so excited that Minamida is there and praying for him and you. They kept mentioning it. The whole church was behind it and excited about it. They were so proud of you—that was definitely the theme last Sunday.”)

TV Talk Show

Fri, 03 Oct 2008 12:38:04 GMT

Mary Esther will be busy while Mark is gone. Among other appointments is a trip to Shizuoka to be interviewed on a TV talk show about Wheelchairs of Hope, along with Pastor Kawasaki. Pray that the interview goes well, and brings the right people and resources to the project.

Mark and Pastor Minamida will each take a wheelchair to the Philippines. Pray for a smooth trip through customs, and that they will meet up with their connection on the other end. Thanks so much for standing with us.

Philippines

Fri, 03 Oct 2008 12:32:34 GMT

Mark and Pastor Minamida are leaving tomorrow for a week in Manila working with the Philippine Sign Language Bible translation team. It will be a wonderful chance for Pastor Minamida to share his expertise with the team there, get a wider vision for the world, and also to enhance his skill by learning how other translators approach their work. Pray for safety in travel and good connections with the team there.

Our Visitors

Sat, 27 Sep 2008 09:19:01 GMT

Our Living Room at the Moment

This might explain why we're so thrilled at the possibility of a huge new storage space.

Jonah

Wed, 24 Sep 2008 11:46:36 GMT

Sign Language Bible

Thanks for praying! The Jonah translation is finished. It was recorded in the morning, checked during the lunch break, and we only had to re-do one short segment to correct a slight “pronunciation” mistake. Also, Mark’s time with the Japanese Sign Language (JSL) researcher was a good re-connection, and opened the door for further contact in the future. We’re hoping that the research center he works at will collaborate with us on making some software available to linguists in Japan, and also help with work we need to do on JSL to improve our translation.

Celebrate!

Wed, 24 Sep 2008 11:43:46 GMT

Praise God! Sure wish you each could have been there for the celebration of what God has done with Wheelchairs of Hope. There was a lot happening in the various communities connected with Wheelchairs of Hope, but even so, 51 people joined the party, put on by a donor to celebrate our NPO incorporation. For some key people, it was their first exposure to the project, and God opened many doors in the short time there.

Some highlights:

l The pastor of the church where we met attended, and was so touched by the work he heard about that he offered us a large area for storage and cleaning of wheelchairs. Many of you have been praying a long time for a solution to our storage problem!

l Two wheelchair users came, an OMF missionary, and a Japanese man who was recently baptized. The Japanese man owns his own wheelchair business and wants to come and help at cleaning days, and the missionary, too is interested in getting involved. Their insights and perspective as wheelchair users will be invaluable.

l A lady who travels to Bangkok several times each year said her husband met our Thailand partner in Bangkok last week. (God's timing is amazing!) She wants to take wheelchairs with her when she goes next month.

l Six Deaf people came, including a man who has been in Tokyo 4 years and has no deaf friends. He was delighted to be at the table with other Deaf and was smiling the entire time. The Deaf church members stayed to the very end of clean up and that was meaningful to me.

A question from our last update:

Q: What is NPO?? (nothing per os??)

A: Great question from a nurse! That's exactly what I thought the first time I heard it too! It's a Non Profit Organization and the application/authorization process here in Japan is rather involved. It's what is often called an NGO (Non-Government Organization) and in Japan the application process and laws are the same for NPOs and NGOs.

PS. Today we received 10 pediatric wheelchairs. We go back tomorrow to get another 5. Pray for the volunteers necessary to get the cleaning done.

Getting ready to Celebrate!

Tue, 16 Sep 2008 12:03:54 GMT

Mary Esther has been busy gearing up for the big celebration next week, Sept. 23, with about 50 people coming together for a program and lunch, giving thanks to God for the milestone of gaining NPO status and seeking to build for the future.

Thanks for praying. We finished cleaning and wrapping 4 wheelchairs at Denen Grace Chapel two Sundays ago and another 7 at yesterday’s cleaning day. That makes 44 chairs toward the 100 plus we want to send to earthquake victims in China.

Opportunity

Tue, 16 Sep 2008 12:02:11 GMT

Keep praying! Mark has an appointment tomorrow with a top Japanese Sign Language researcher to discuss some research software development, and is hoping that this will lead to further opportunities for interaction as well. The research community has been very helpful and supportive of the Bible translation, and given a lot of good input, so we want to keep building on these relationships.

We’re in the very last stages of preparation for Jonah, and hope to record the final product on Friday. Pray particularly for protection for Pastor Minamida as he gets ready to record.

Breaking the silence

Sat, 06 Sep 2008 22:40:29 GMT

9/1/08

We’re home! It wasn’t exactly a working vacation, but we stopped by Yamagata to teach a Galatians overview on the way to our vacation spot, had some leaders over in the middle, and stopped by Mito for a cleaning day on the way back.

9/7/08

Well, that’s how far we got on last week’s prayer update! It was another crazy week, but the re-make of Jonah is almost done, and six more wheelchairs are ready to go to earthquake victims. .

Today we will be at Denen Grace Chapel teaching a Sunday School class on disability, and later on cleaning wheelchairs. Pray for a fruitful time of learning, action, and fellowship, and that God would use this to bring new people to the church as well.

Next week has a lot of extra activity as well, so do keep praying for us.

Thanks so much,

Mark and Mary Esther

Genesis 36-42 Finished

Wed, 13 Aug 2008 01:08:38 GMT

Thanks for praying. It was a crazy week and we needed you praying—just didn’t manage to squeeze in time to write and tell you about it. I was at ViBi working against deadlines, first on a comprehension check of Jonah, and then on the final check of the Genesis 36-42 DVD. The new DVD structure makes it easier than ever to use, but because of the changes, there were a fair number of flaws that had to be fixed, and we finished just in time on Friday to get it to the people who will give us 100 copies for free.

Then it was time to start work on my sermon. Since I had the DVD I had just checked, I was able to preach on the amazing Gen. 38 story—one that I’ve never seen in Bible story books, but that gives us an amazing picture of God’s work in history and in the nitty gritty of life. It was heartening to see how well people understood. I just had to fill in a little background information on the culture, and congregation could grasp the implications immediately. I showed the whole passage once, and then we went back and worked through it piece by piece, filling in the background and pointing out the implications (or asking questions that led them to the implications).

Praise God for one more small piece of Scripture finished, and pray for the day when we have the funding to produce this much every month. Most people I talk to say $3M is impossible, and they’re right. We know nothing about finding that kind of money, but miracles are just fine with me, if that’s what God chooses to do. So keep asking, seeking, and knocking on the Father’s door, and we’ll see what happens.

Today, we’re off to Deaf camp. August 13-15, 70 Deaf people gather from churches all over Japan. I have no official responsibilities, but am looking forward to lots of interaction with people who are interested in translation work and leadership training.

The Penner Saga, Part Two

Sat, 02 Aug 2008 15:10:13 GMT

25 years ago today, we arrived in Japan as missionaries. Many of you have prayed for us and also supported us financially from the very beginning. Others of you have known us only recently and are not familiar with our story. As we think back, we want to say thank you for the many ways you’ve stood with us over these years, and give the second installment of the Penner Saga

The Penner Saga, Part Two

In December of 1979, we had told our Deaf friends in Yamagata that IF we decided to come back, it would take at least ten years, by the time Mark finished up at Moody Bible Institute, spent five years working his way through Seminary to get an M.Div, two years of support discovery, and another two of language school. Still, they said they would pray, and they did. Mark was able to get permission for a heavier course load the last semester at Moody, and finish in one semester instead of two.

The week Mark finished Moody, Andrew was born, and Mary Esther’s school nursing job ended as the semester was now over. We had prayed about returning to Japan and decided to head that direction and see what doors God would open. We piled all our belongings into the back of our ancient pickup truck and headed for Western CB Seminary in Portland Oregon. We pulled into town knowing virtually no-one, found an apartment, and started looking for jobs. Some of you remember the 1980 job market. It was bad. Mark memorized the address of every hospital and public office in the entire city for the promise of a job as a taxi driver and still got rejected. Finally he ended up selling Cutco cutlery—the one job that wouldn’t refuse him. Well, trying to sell Cutco. He came home one evening having helped a family put together their budget to get out of debt but not selling them a single knife. Selling on credit to a debt-laden person, no matter how fine the product, just didn’t seem right. He did manage to sell a few, but at the end of the summer, he had made a total of -$135.37 (but we’re still using our demo set 25 years later).

In talking with CBFMS, they agreed that a two-year MA program would be sufficient to meet their entrance requirements, since Mark had been to Moody. Remembering how the Deaf struggled to read their Japanese Bibles, Mark decided to focus his seminary study on Biblical languages, getting all he could of Hebrew and Greek. Mary Esther worked part time as a nursing consultant to the public school district which allowed her to work mostly from home while caring for Andrew. We got involved with the Jr. High ministry at our church, and while doing taco feeds and Bible studies with reluctant attendees, realized how our hearts ached with the Deaf in Japan.

Mark was still looking for work when the time came for the first semester to start. With enough for the first quarter Seminary down payment, Mark started in full-time at the school, figuring he would study until our money ran out, at which time we would move on to something else. But strangely, it never happened. Though we didn’t have much, there was always food, clothing, a roof over our heads, and enough to pay the school. About the time we got used to the pattern, though, with one or two quarters to go, the day finally came. There was no way to make the next payment. Not willing to borrow money, Mark went to see the registrar to explain his absence that semester. What he learned was that his bill had already been paid, in full; he would be attending school. We still have no idea who God used to do this.

Aimed again toward Deaf work in Japan, Mark focused on his thesis topic: The treatment of handicap in the Old Testament. The first passage Mark came across was Exodus chapter 4 where Moses is caring for sheep but stops to see what is with the burning bush that isn’t burning up. God speaks to Moses and gives him a task. Moses, he has excuses, many of them. His last excuse: God I can’t, you see, I’ve got this disability, a speech impediment. And God’s answer (Ex 4:11): not only do I know all about that Moses, I made your disability and I plan to use you, so now go, because I am with you.

Wow! Mark continued to study and Mary Esther kept typing. As our schedule got full, we decided to use the upcoming Christmas break to put the final touches on the paper. Christmas break came and again we turned to study what God said about disability. The day after Christmas Daniel was born prematurely. Not having insurance we rented bilirubin lights and cared for him at home. On new years eve, up late to see the new year in, we were playing games with Mark’s younger brothers. At one point, Tom wandered over to the bassinet to marvel at the new baby, but immediately turned and asked “Why is he blue?” Rushing Daniel to the doctor that night was just the first of many trips we would be making. At that time we had no clue what it would mean to raise a family with a disabled child. Yet God, in a way we could not have planned or imagined, had prepared our hearts with a study of His Word and what He had to say about disability, and how He plans to use disabilities, no matter what our excuses.

As Mark graduated from seminary, we were in the final stages of application to what was then CBFMS (Conservative Baptist Foreign Mission Society, now WorldVenture). Mark still wasn’t much of a salesman, and there was some concern as to how we would ever find our support team but as June ended, we were appointed to go to Japan to work with the Deaf. Amazing to everyone, ourselves more than any, one year, one month and one day later, on August 2, 1983, we stepped off the plane in Tokyo, Japan. Our first year we spent studying Japanese in Tokyo, moving after that to Yamagata to continue studying Japanese and also begin learning Japanese Sign Language. We had said it would take ten years to get back, but they said they would pray. Clearly, this was the place, and these were the people God wanted us ministering with.

To the Northeast and Back

Sat, 02 Aug 2008 15:07:31 GMT

Thanks for praying. Last weekend, Pastor Hori did a great job checking a translation for the first time. Pastor Matsumoto joined us Friday afternoon and spent the night too, so we had the evening and some of the next day to go over plans to adapt training material for Deaf people, and translate Ephesians. Sunday seemed like two days, it was so full, but what a blessing to join the worship service in Fukushima and see Pastor Hori in action.

Back in Tokyo, Pastor Minamida recorded a new draft of Jonah on Tuesday, and Thursday, we had our comprehension check. We expected to finish it in one day, but it took quite a bit longer than we expected just to finish chapter one. We have a lot of changes to make. We’ll work on them Tuesday, then hope to finish comprehension checks for the rest of Jonah Wednesday and Thursday. It will be a busy week, and Pastor Minamida is swamped with work preparing for summer camp in Mid-August. Pray for him. Pray for Mark to, as he will be doing pulpit supply on next Sunday to take some pressure off of Pastor Minamida.

Down to the Wire

Mon, 28 Jul 2008 13:02:38 GMT

“Last week we sent our first wheelchair to Zimbabwe.” Sounds simple enough, but the reality was crazy. It started with “we’ve never done it in less than two weeks, but we’ll try,” and ended with “thank you Lord—no one but you would have put this together.” The only way we could do it, given all the logistics, was to take the chair to the airport in the morning, leave it with baggage claim, rush back to hand off the claim ticket to the traveler, and then head straight to our next meeting. Trouble was, we still didn’t have airline permission to even take the chair as gratis excess baggage. They were supposed to call and let us know “before noon.”

“Lord, I sure would like to know before we get to the airport whether or not they will take it,” was my prayer, but we were getting closer and closer, and still no phone call. We didn’t really want to go all the way back to the airport and retrieve it the next day if our request was denied, so continued to pray. We were 15 feet (and about 3 seconds) from the Narita airport parking gate when the phone call came with the necessary permission!

This week we anticipate sending 3 chairs to Bangkok to a missionary to use in outreach there and 4 chairs to Mongolia with Japanese pastors who are traveling. Today we got final permission for both groups. Please pray for those receiving the chairs to distribute them and for the recipients. Please also pray for Mary Esther’s back which she hurt yesterday on the train. There is a wheelchair cleaning day tomorrow and all the usual men who attend are out of town. Pray that God will send the right people to help clean and box the seven chairs. We also have an opportunity to send 100 chairs to a local church in the big country west of us—they want them to distribute to earthquake victims there.

Here is a picture of your new Filipina sister sister, Marissa! She is pictured with the pastor who shared God’s love through the wheelchair delivered and the Word.

Please pray for Pastor Pascual as he follows up with the family.

The Penner Saga, Part One

Wed, 16 Jul 2008 13:31:00 GMT

The Saga

August marks 25 years since we arrived in Japan as missionaries. Many of you have prayed for us and also supported us financially from the very beginning. Others of you have known us only recently and are not familiar with the our story. As we think back, we want to say thank you for the many ways you’ve stood with us over these years. Recently a Japanese Deaf pastor borrowed my digital camera and when it was returned I noticed some video recordings that had not been there before. He had taken the camera to church and various Deaf church members had signed their greetings to us. Each one, to a person, expressed their thanks to the Church in America for sending missionaries. We will be seeing this pastor again next week as he is one of two who have asked to work on a translation of Ephesians. They feel it is crucial in teaching the believers they shepherd what it means to be Church. We are thrilled to have such partners, want to join them in thanking you for the privilege of being here. So with our thanks, here starts a recounting of the story that brought us to where we are today.

The Penner Saga, Part 1.

We were still newlyweds with Mark in school studying journalism and Mary Esther working as an RN, when Mark’s parents wrote a letter that, though we didn’t begin to know it then, changed the course of our lives.

Mark’s parents were missionaries in Northeast Japan and needed to take a 6 month Home Assignment to the US. They had an open home Deaf outreach ministry and were discipling a few young Deaf believers and asked if we would consider “filling in” while they were gone. “Just live here, be around, keep the house open to people” sounded like something we should be able to do. We applied to the mission to go to Japan for a 6 month short term missions trip.

Mark’s parent’s home provided a haven for the Deaf who at that time would not sign openly in public and experienced a great deal of discrimination. It served both as the local Deaf “coffee shop” for those who wanted to chat and play games, as well as the meeting place for those eager to study the Bible. Some came just at meals, ready for a free spaghetti dinner. More than physical hunger was their obvious spiritual hunger. During supper we sometimes had to put a stop to further questions so Mark could eat. (Holding chopsticks while signing was a skill we hadn’t mastered yet.) Reading the Japanese Bible was clearly a challenge for many of the Deaf who gathered. The prefectural school they attended did not use sign language in class, so some learned as best they could in the environment, while others occupied themselves socializing. Mark’s parents regularly had Deaf young people stay with them, sometimes living there for weeks at a time, teaching them enough reading that they would be able to pass the written driving test. At one point an indignant parent called the school and reported that the Christian foreigner had succeeded in teaching her son to read where they had failed.

During our time there, people came to the house almost every day. Of the 183 days there, on only 10 days did we have no visitors.

At the end of the 6 months they asked when we’d be returning. We explained that Mark’s parents would be returning; we had our lives to live in the US. They didn’t seem to get it. We tried to be very clear: it was Mark’s parents who were the missionaries, not us. Finally, both they and we agreed to “pray about it.” We returned to the States, Mark went back to school and Mary Esther back to nursing.

Back to Northeast Japan

Wed, 16 Jul 2008 13:29:09 GMT

Tomorrow we head to the Northeast again, this time to work with Pastor Hori, training him to check Pastor Minamida’s first draft of Genesis. Pastor Matsumoto may also join us for a bit and talk about translating Ephesians and training materials. I’m also hoping to contact a Deaf friend from our Sendai days. Pray that it will all work out. We’ll be at the Fukushima Deaf church on Sunday, where Hori pastors. We're looking forward to meeting the people there--our first time at the church though I've met people from there before.

I was just on the internet webcam this morning talking with Pastor Matsumoto (Deaf) of the Yamagata Deaf Church where we began our work in Japan. He was excited about a man who came to church with some real problems some time back, but through studying the Word in the JSL version, has made great progress in his relationships with people. Pastor Matsumoto is also thrilled at how the leaders he is training in the church are able to dive into tough passages in the some of the epistles we’ve translated and learn the deeper truths of Scripture on their own, and then share them with him and others. God is building His church!

Sometimes it just pours

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 12:46:05 GMT

When it rains, it pours! Of course, it IS rainy season here in Japan.

I meant to ask for prayer for this week’s trip to the Northeast, but ran out of time trying to do all the preparation. But I’m sure many were praying anyway, because . . .

The main reason for going was for me to interpret for Pastors Hori and Matsumoto at the Church-Based Theological Education seminar in Sendai. The main reason I said yes to interpreting, something I rarely do, was that Hori was the one who asked. I wanted to get face time with him so we could get started on translation checking (see 6/23/08 update), and just connect.

Well, not only did we connect and set a date to start work on translation checking of Genesis, the seminar itself turned out to be a huge boost. Both pastors are interested in testing the leadership training concept in their Deaf churches, and are working together on developing the materials. But it doesn’t end there. Because the materials focus heavily on the epistles and Ephesians in particular, they were wanting to get started on a translation of Ephesians. (ViBi already has Galatians, Philippians, and Thessalonians available.) Pray for them both as they seek ways to get their churches involved in the translation. I am especially excited that Pastor Hori is so eager to get involved. The only Deaf person I know of in Japan who knows both Greek and Hebrew can now be a part of the translation process via the internet without uprooting his whole family. Praise God for the new possibilities.

Great Sunday in Mito

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 12:43:42 GMT

The momentum that was building there for Wheelchairs of Hope (see 6/23/08 update) resulted in a stunning Sunday at Mito Bible Baptist Church. After a stirring message from Pastor Kawasaki in the morning service, we had lunch, and then rolled out the covering for the floor to get ready for the wheelchair cleaning day. 24 people came to help, the youngest aged 10 and the oldest 84 (and the 84-year-old lady dove right in with gusto, using wrenches to remove wheels for cleaning and even had the big electric drill/screwdriver out taking off seats). Three people came who had never been to church before. All three want to continue being involved in the project, and two are coming back for other events as well. God is at work already right here in Japan, before the chairs even get where they’re going! One of the members wrote the Pastor, “this is what it means to be Church!” He’s right. Working together, all ages, using their various talents, connecting with their community, serving the world—what a tribute to the life of Jesus in his Body, the Church.

Reaching into the Japanese community

Mon, 23 Jun 2008 05:36:59 GMT

Praise God for a great board meeting. They just keep getting better. Momentum is building with the successes in Mito with Pastor Kawasaki as he prepares for a “wheelchair cleaning day” at his church this coming Sunday. Two bike shop workers, a father of a disabled child who also runs a wheelchair rental shop, and a teacher from a Special Ed school all are interested in being part of the 15 who will gather to clean the chairs. Also interested are some 6^th grade boys. Outside the church is an open area where upper elementary and middle school neighborhood boys often gather and play. The pastor approached them last week and asked if they wouldn’t come help clean the wheelchairs. They were very enthusiastic. The pastor mentioned that these were boys who probably would never accept an invitation to Sunday school who were going to come and help out. Some who heard the announcement on the public radio station have called the city office to ask where to go to help clean chairs, and the city office called the public radio station to find out the information. News is spreading that the church is going to be involved in helping the needs of the poor who lack wheelchairs. The pastor said that people who have been curious about church, but don’t feel free to just show up, now have a reason to show up and learn more what Church is about.

Pray for equipment that will allow us to use a bar coding system to track wheelchairs in the project.

Pray for the cleaning days July 3 and 29.

Pray for the wheelchairs going to Bangkok July 4.

Taiwan and Japan

Mon, 23 Jun 2008 05:35:50 GMT

Give praise for God’s amazing work in Taiwan! “Nothing happens this fast in Taiwan” was the comment of a long-time expat present at Saturday’s main exploratory meeting. Six of the eight groups known to have Deaf ministries in Taiwan were there, and even though there was a lot of “history” between the various groups, God’s Spirit brought unity around their common need for a Taiwanese Sign Language (TSL) Bible. Not only did they decide on the date for the next meeting (September 27), they also formed a working committee to proceed with the project until they meet again. During the final prayer, the interpreter (from TSL into Mandarin) was so moved by God’s work there she could hardly speak through her tears—shared by many others in the room as well.

Pray for the leaders in Taiwan as they meet to proceed with the translation project.

Meanwhile, back in Japan . . . we finished recording Genesis 36-42! Since Pastor Minamida, the translator and signer, has still not fully recovered from his neck, shoulder, and arm condition, we are only allowing him to sign 2 hours a day. At two days a week, it took a full month just to get the recording done. But looking at it, it is clearly his best work yet. Pray for Mr. Ogata as he edits and prepares the DVD, for Ms. Kuwahara and Mark as they do the final checks on versification and computer graphics, and for Pastor Minamida as we begin tomorrow translating the last portion of Genesis—chapters 43-50.

We’re also excited that Pastor Hori, a Deaf man who knows Greek and Hebrew, has agreed to help with original language checks. Though he lives too far to commute, he can get the translation work via the internet, check it, and send the results via internet. Pray that the training will go well, and we’ll be able to work out a good system for “distance checking.”

PS Pastor Minamida is happy to be able to get is hair cut now that the recording is done.

More Details on Taiwan:

There were LOTS of meetings. Visits with the Taiwan Bible Society and some of their major donors proved productive. Mark was even a guest lecturer for all of 20 minutes at a freshman Deaf Culture class at Tainan University. He also spent hours with various Deaf groups and individuals. Though TSL began from Japanese Sign Language (JSL) during the Japanese occupation of Taiwan, it has diverged significantly in the past 60 years, so Mark had to strain to follow what was going on, and missed a lot. Fortunately, his first contact was with Pastor Wu, who knew a fair amount of Japanese Sign Language (JSL), and the bits and pieces of TSL learned from Pastor Wu helped during the intensive meetings on Saturday and Sunday. Pastor Wu interpreted for Mark on Saturday when he presented the JSL translation work, but the rest of the day, he was pretty much on his own. Interestingly, when the signing was “Deaf”, he could get by, barely, but if it followed Mandarin sentence patterns or included fingerspelling, he was totally lost. He came home exhausted, but very, very happy.

Thoughts on Shavuot, Pentecost, and Taiwan

Sat, 14 Jun 2008 13:05:54 GMT

Mark’s been in Taiwan—arriving June 8, the eve of Shavuot (in Greek its called Pentecost). Shavuot is an agricultural celebration of first fruits and commemorates God giving the Law on Mt. Sinai.

At Babel, God confounded the languages; at Pentecost, God gave the gift of tongues to the disciples who stayed obedient and had gathered together in Jerusalem. Jews from every nation under heaven were gathered in Jerusalem and heard the mighty deeds of God in their own tongues. The harvest of first fruits that day was 3,000 souls. How fitting for Mark to be in Taiwan during the festival, studying, and working with others so those who do not yet have God’s Word in a language they can understand, will someday. Pray for fruitful results.

Please keep praying for the necessary staff for the Japanese Sign Language Bible project and for adequate funding to salary them.

Ibaragi NHK publicity

Sat, 14 Jun 2008 13:03:27 GMT

Pastor Kawasaki (Vice Chair for Wheelchairs of Hope) was interviewed for 10 minutes on Ibaragi NHK (for you in the U.S., its the equivalent of NPR in your state). As a result, he has had so many wheelchairs donated that he’s having to turn down offers. Pray for more storage area. We are thankful for volunteers to build shelving in our new storage area in Tokyo. The construction project is in the competent hands of Mark and Mary Esther’s former 8^th grade science teacher who is visiting Japan this summer. Praise God for his provision.

Next week is a board meeting. Please pray for wisdom for the board members.

Taiwan Sign Language Bible Translation Trip

Sat, 07 Jun 2008 21:06:48 GMT

Today, Mark leaves for Taiwan, where he'll be for a week. Unbeknownst to him, a meeting was scheduled for this afternoon. He’s hoping to catch an earlier flight. Pray that he will make it. Pray also that God will grant him favor with the Deaf leaders, Bible Society leaders, and SIL leaders as we seek to find a way to get a Sign Language Bible translation project going in Taiwan. This is a first for him, and he really needs your prayer support.

(PS. This will also be the third and final mentored training experience for the translation consultant training he is engaged in.)

US Trip

Sat, 07 Jun 2008 21:05:18 GMT

Thanks for praying for our U.S. trip. We come back to Japan rejoicing. All our children are finished with school. It’s the first time since 1983 that we’ve had no children in school. Both Andrew and Anna have jobs and are (or will soon be) getting used to a brand new environment. Also, Mary Esther’s dad, who has been living alone in a very large house is moving to an independent living complex where he will have meals supplied, and much more company on a daily basis. So we come back to Japan much lighter than when we left.

Board meeting (Meant to post 5/22 but forgot)

Sat, 07 Jun 2008 20:37:27 GMT

Thanks for praying. Friday's board meeting went very well.
On one hand, we were keenly aware that we are just a small group of weak people sitting around a table for a few hours. On the other hand, we were energized by the realization that God's power is at work in us, and that what God is doing here in Japan among Deaf people with the Good News is affecting the rest of the Deaf world as well.
The directions we set, the quality we seek, and the systems we put in place affect sign language Bible translation projects around the world in various phases who are looking for models. Pray that the board members specifically will be able to find the funding needed to implement plans and realize dreams.

Pray also for Pastor Minamida, Mr. Ogata, and Ms. Kuwahara as they continue recording Genesis 39-42 while we are in the U.S.

Trip to the U.S. Monday

Thu, 15 May 2008 21:23:46 GMT

We will be in the U.S. from May 19 through June 6. We’ll be at Aromas Bible Church (Aromas, California) on the 25^th, and Woods Chapel Bible Fellowship (Blue Springs, Missouri) on June 1. Pray that we’ll be able to re-connect and share our passion with the sending part of our team.

We’ll also be at graduation ceremonies for Andrew (Berkeley) and Anna (Biola). Pray for them as Andrew starts a new job at UC Irvine, and Anna begins a job hunt in the San Jose area.

Annual Board Meeting

Thu, 15 May 2008 21:22:27 GMT

Things are really crazy here. Today is the ViBi annual board meeting, and do pray for us as we work together to set the direction for the next year. Pray for wisdom as we seek to take the project to the next level.

Last Friday’s recording session went pretty well. It turned out to be a rehearsal, though, because by the time the morning was up, we had found and fixed many little problems with the new studio setup, including a brilliant way to reduce shadows on the face, so decided to re-do what we had finished. (We ALWAYS had a full day for rehearsal when we used an outside studio, so this was normal.) Tuesday we recorded chapters 36 and 37 without a hitch, and yesterday (Thursday) recorded chapter 38 and went over problems in the final draft for chapters 39-42. (This will be recorded while Mary Esther and I are in the U.S.). Today (Friday) is the board meeting, and Monday, we leave for the U.S.

BBQ? Or Rain?

Thu, 08 May 2008 22:05:54 GMT

Sunday’s plans include an outdoor barbecue outreach, but the weather report promises rain the whole weekend. Pray.

Chiang Mai

Thu, 08 May 2008 22:05:15 GMT

Praise God! Thai airlines faxed permission yesterday for another wheelchair to go gratis with a passenger to Chiang Mai. Pray that we’ll be able to line up someone at the airport to meet him and take the chair.

First "mini recording session" today

Thu, 08 May 2008 22:04:10 GMT

We're trying something new today. Instead of taking a full day to record the final draft of 30-45 minutes of scripture translation, Pastor Minamida is coming for three hours--one to get prepped and ready for recording, and two hours for recording. We're not planning on finishing the whole portion--Genesis 36-42. We will record as much as we can in the time allotted, and leave the rest for the following two-hour sessions. Pastor Minamida will continue every Tuesday and Friday until we finish. Then he'll move on to start translating the final seven chapters of Genesis.

Please pray. Pray that his arms and shoulders will stay loose so they can continue healing. Pray that we will be careful not to go beyond the limits of his health in our eagerness to finish the job. Pray for mental clarity. Pray for team synergy.

Pastor Minamida will be watching a cueing draft while he signs. The cueing draft is a patchwork of previous work--the first draft plus all the corrections we made along the way that have been edited in (This is version number ten). In the final check for accuracy, I found a spot or two in here and there that needs checking. Some problems appear to be editing errors that can easily be fixed. Some are changes in the translation that might contain errors (I say "might" because I always have to be sure I'm understanding the nuances of the signs correctly). Pray that the errors will be easily fixed, and the marginal spots clearly signed in the final draft.

Pray above all that we will be able to enjoy the process. Working together to do something greater than any of us individually could ever do alone. Reveling in God's power at work in us rather than trying too hard to please God. And pray that God's word will continue to transform the Deaf of Japan, both those in churches who are eagerly awaiting the next installment of Scripture in their language, and those outside who still don't know the Good News.

New Person

Wed, 23 Apr 2008 10:47:01 GMT

Mark preached last Sunday at Tokyo Deaf Baptist Church. His passage was Gen. 24, finding a bride for Isaac, and his “sermon” style this time was highly interactive, with the focus on the passage as translated by Pastor Minamida on the ViBi DVD. Mark would play a paragraph or two of the translation, ask some questions, listen, make some observations, and move on to the next portion. After the service, a new person introduced himself. He was a Catholic Deaf man, and so impressed with the clarity of the translation that he bought the whole set of available DVDs. “I’ve never understood the Bible so clearly,” he said. Pray that we will get the funding and the personnel to complete the translation so that someday, he’ll be able to buy the whole Bible in his language. *

Talking with him over lunch, we found that he had a strong interest and a good understanding of his faith. His father had been of the “hidden Christian” line, so he wasn’t even aware of his father’s faith until the funeral. It was to honor his father and preserve the family faith that he began his quest into Christianity, but it appears that he has moved beyond that now. Pray for him, and for our future interactions, that God will use him to bring the Word to many of his friends, people in circles that go far beyond those we normally encounter.

*$3,000,000 in hand, or $300,000 pledged for the duration of the project could hire the team we need to finish the OT and NT in 10-13 years. Some have all but laughed out loud when we talk about this as if it could actually happen. So pray. Not that we can, or should even want to, twist God’s arm. We serve God, not God us. I wanted to have this in hand by the end of April so we could plan our next year accordingly (board meeting May 15), but what God is planning remains to be seen. I certainly don’t need to be right, and by God’s grace will wait as long as needed, but it does hurt to see the needs and the possibilities so clearly and yet be so far from realizing our vision.

Annual Meeting

Wed, 23 Apr 2008 10:45:32 GMT

Pray for Mary Esther. Tomorrow is the Wheelchairs of Hope annual meeting, their first as an official NPO entity. Preparation has been crazy, but God has the neatest people helping to pull it all together. Pray that tomorrow will be, over and above the business, an opportunity to revel in all that God has done for them this past year, and make bold plans for the future.

Twenty wheelchairs are going to Manila on Monday.

What a wheelchair means

Sun, 13 Apr 2008 12:28:58 GMT

Thanks for praying for the cleaning day. Many people came and worked, shared lunch and prayed together. We now have 20 chairs cleaned, wrapped and ready to go to the Philippines April 28th. What seemed impossible at the beginning of the day is now a reality.

One of the more tedious jobs during wheelchair cleaning is removing stickers from the wheelchairs—whether they are rental agency stickers or various others applied by zealous sticker–collecting children who like to adorn their individual chairs. Thanks to a very good hint from a pre-school teacher, we now have a blow-dryer in our tool box. It works oh so much faster, (and more safely) than the razor blades we employed before!

A new lady came and I was eager to hear her story. “My mother was in a wheelchair for 17 years,” she said, “so I want to help make them available for others.” She told about needing to walk slowly, watching the path carefully as she pushed her mother in the wheelchair. As her mother would give the name of each plant, things that she had before considered collectively as “weeds” took on new importance. Each with its own name and distinct leaves and flowers, they became items of beauty around her that God had created. She was so glad for the time she had with her mother, the memories of laughter and sunshine outdoors together that would not have been possible without the wheelchair. “I want others to be able to get out and see God’s beauty around them too,” she said. “Thankful” was a frequent, and intentional, theme in her conversation. It was wonderful to have her join the work.