The Curse of the Colonel and Other Tales

Japan is an interesting case study in a lot of areas. If you get a chance to, talk to someone who has travelled to Japan. Ask them what makes it unique. Chances are you'll get a lot of different answers. Through the years I (Chad) have learned a lot of different things.

• Japan's literacy rate is nearly 100% and consistently scores lower than any other Asian country in English proficiency tests.
• Baseball has superstitions in Japan also: the Hanshin Tigers, a popular baseball team from Osaka, hasn't won a championship in since 1985. A lot of people think it has to do with an unfortunate accident with Colonel Sanders. In fact, it's known as "The Curse of the Colonel".
• If you're at a stop light when the light turns green--you don't say "It's green." you simply say, "blue".

The list really does go on and on. If you dig a little deeper, you start to find out some items that are a bit more reflective of their never being a Church presence in Japan:

• In 2002, reports suggested that as many as 1 million Japanese people (mostly young men) were "hikikomori". Living intentional lives of isolation--often never leaving their bedroom for years.
• "Tanshin funin" is common in Japan. It's an "unaccompanied job transfer". Working men, providing for their families, are transferred in country or even to other parts of the world and leave their families at home. Its effects on the family structure are well-documented in the article above. 
• There are several cafés in Japan with bizarre themes. One café in Tokyo lets customers sleep (non-sexual--simply sleeping) with a stranger for up to 10 hours. You can pay extra for eye contact or to be pat on the back.
• Suicide is an epidemic in Japan (over 30,000 annually for 14 years straight). Tragically, teenagers and school children aren't exempt from this, as this first hand account reports, bullying is a major factor towards many individual's burdens.

Our call to Japan has us serving at Christ Bible Institute. One of the avenues of ministry that Christ Bible Institute operates is a coffee shop: The Heart and Soul Café (Jeremiah 32:41, I will rejoice in doing them good, and I will plan them in this land in faithfulness, with all my heart and my soul.)

The Heart and Soul Café seeks to be a safe place for Japanese young people. A place that is safe from bullying, a place to establish relationships, to practice English, and to have a great cup of coffee. Above all, it is a place where the hearts of Japanese men and women have been moved to salvation.

Would you pray for the Heart and Soul Café this month? Would you pray for the missionaries who run the shop? Would you pray for the people that walk by it every day? Would you pray for the LORD to move mightily?

This might be helpful to look at while you pray. Thanks to modern technology you can see the building while you pray: http://goo.gl/maps/imCCA (you can "walk" next to the building. The Heart and Soul Cafe is on the first floor).