In Fukuoka

Regional Developer Mark Jones flew in to be with our team, and also wanted to see Fukuoka in western Japan and the Shaos, who are reaching out to Chinese residents of that city. We spent the day with the Shaos and heard of their vision for expanding from one location to two to better reach the 120,000 Chinese living in that city of 1.5 million. How far is Fukuoka from Tokyo? About the same distance as Toronto to Minneapolis, so we don't get to see the Shaos very often.

It was great to hear of their vision and the possibility of another worker joining them, one from their own church who is in seminary now and has a vision for the Chinese of Japan. After flying back from Fukuoka I was surprised to discover that last year the population of the city was surpassed by Chinese visitors arriving direct from Shanghai by cruise ship for shopping excursions. They choose cruise ships because there's no limit on baggage, and they purchase for friends and family.

We're thankful for the impact that's being made on Chinese who are resident in the city. Our colleagues, Henry and Wendy Chuang, will go to Fukuoka in September to spend time with the Shaos, speaking in their native Mandarin. All of our conversations had to be held in Japanese, our common language, and translated to English for Mark.