Archive for March, 2008

Dear Tidbit Friends,

The last few months I have felt like I stepped off of a gentle merry-go-round onto a jet-coaster. When you don’t hear from me there are usually a few reasons. One might be that I’m facing some deadlines and am making a beeline for the finish-line! Or, it may be that there is nothing tremendously noteworthy for you to put up on the bulletin board!

I’ll save some things for my blog but give you an overview of what I have been doing. My daily routine often involves work on any or all of the activities described below. All require mostly computer work at this point. Two deadlines I am heading towards are now in sight.

Deadline 1: Centennial Tour. Last year was the 100th anniversary of ABC-USA. (American Baptist Foreign Mission Society preceded this date by almost 100 years!) Baptist missionaries in Japan go back more than 130 years but the current Japan Baptist Union (JBU) celebrated its 50th Anniversary last year. To celebrate these events, International Ministries (IM) sponsored and planned a tour to Japan for last year, but for various reasons it was put off to this year. Although the tour is not a large one, I’ve been tending to the myriad details involved including housing, activity leaders, detailed itinerary including daily costs. When our missionaries and four members give me information, it is my job to fit it all together. The tour participants arrive on various dates but will all come together on March 25th and disperse on Sunday, March 30th. The tour includes meeting with JBU leaders and missionaries to hear and see their work, and learn about evangelism in Japan. In addition we will take a short tour to explore the roots of Baptist history here.

Deadline 2: JBU Women’s Meeting. The second deadline is the 49th Annual Meeting of the Japan Baptist Union Women. It is concurrent with the IM Tour. The same day the tour gathers, as a member of the executive committee I will leave for the conference grounds at Gotemba. There the executive committee will prepare for the influx of about 100 women the next day. My part includes participation in the memorial service held for women who have passed away during the previous year, evening devotions, and leading a workshop on volunteerism.

While the men-missionaries lead the IM Tour, the women-missionaries will be at this conference. The women will join the IM Tour after the conference is over until the 30th. Please pray for all involved, especially your missionaries as their sentiments need to be in two places at once.

My Other Life? Do you really want to hear how else I have been spending my time?

• Volunteers begin to arrive as early as April 15th, another group will come in May, two groups in June, one group in July/August, and one individual in September. Trip preparations, time-tables, what to bring, how to handle money in Japan and details of the work vary with each group. It is my responsibility to prepare this.

• I’ve begun to submit news articles and do correspondence work related to March 2009 JBU women’s 50th anniversary’s birthday party. I’m also corresponding with leaders in India for the January 2009 tour going from Japan to the Baptist World Alliance’s Asian Baptist Women’s Union conference in Calcutta. We hope to have fifteen of our Japanese women attending.
• I continue with my involvement as an officer (kanji) of Kanto Gakuin College with several extra meetings occurring in March and April.
• Recently two individuals – one in NE Japan and one in Tokyo – called me for directions on what to do next in their decision to receive Christ as Savior!
• One day we think we have a great plan for rebuilding on this property, and the next day we are back at the drawing board. That’s where we are at with volunteer center. So, I have to think about moving in May. There is literally no time to look at the places suggested by our mission’s real estate agent.

So, what to announce on your bulletin board? Roberta needs your prayers! How about that?
Not that I have already obtained it or have already become perfect, but I press on in order that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus. Philippines 3:12

Remembering you in my prayers,
Roberta

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
– I Peter 1:3 NASB