The rest of the team

Some of you may not know that SMP not only has teams from all over the US and Canada, but that we also have an SMP team sent out from Faith Community CRC in Fullerton, California, who spent the summer in Japan after attending orientation at their home church. We want to share a few details with you about the Japan SMP team and what they've been up to this summer!

Special thanks to Tina Lee for providing us with these pictures and the stories behind them.

Japan SMP team

This is a VBS that the Japan team put on. Notice anything missing?! Despite having put out over 2000 invitations, there was not a single child who attended. Pictured is a family from the church and their two teenage sons. Tina Lee, of the Japan SMP team, said “It was a very discouraging day for all of us, but God gave us a taste of what it feels like to be a Christian in Japan.” In Japan, where less than one percent of the population claims Christianity, many view Christianity as just another “cult”, and discouraging reactions like this are commonplace.



Another VBS had more encouraging results, as about 65 children attended and enjoyed activities like a picnic and an obstacle course.

Kato-San

"One of the churches we visited, Chichibu Church, has a member named Kato-san. Kato-san was blind from birth. Our team was incredibly blessed by this man. He was baptized the weekend we visited, and during the introduction time, he stood up and told us his name and birthday. But it was even more encouraging to hear him say, “But my new birthday will be this weekend, for I am going to be baptized.” He does not see the world with his physical eyes, but his spiritual eyes are open, and he has seen the grace of Jesus Christ. How wonderful and amazing it would be that the first thing he sees is the face of God in heaven, and not the dirty sin of this world! Although he could not see us or communicate with us well, he was always there at our concerts, listening to our praise songs, trying to sing along…" (Tina Lee, Japan SMP team)