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Dear Friends in Christ,
As I think back over the events of the past few weeks, I feel as if the winds of a typhoon were tossing us here and there, creating an atmosphere of tension and turmoil, anger and hurt. On Sunday mornings, it seemed as if I had to mentally prepare myself before coming to church; at times it was a task to try and remember why I even bothered. I'm guessing some of you felt the same.
However, the "why" once again became abundantly clear as I sat at that first special discussion meeting and looked around the room. There I saw the faces of friends old and new, young and not so young. And in all of those faces I saw the reason why I have returned to worship at St. Paul. In each smile and each voice breaking with emotion, I saw and heard the Holy Spirit at work. In that time of sharing our hurts and sorrows, our frustrations and disappointments, I sensed our Lord's constant presence and I truly felt the healing powers of our shared faith in Him begin to take hold in each of us. I left the meeting that day with a new hope for our congregation and a renewed desire to continue what He has always called each of us to do -- to share His Word and His Love with those who may not yet know of His glory.
Of course, for a moment we must stop and look at our situation realistically -- we are now a congregation without a called pastor, we have very little money left in the bank, and we have few remaining members still attending services, many of whom are frustrated and discouraged. What has brought us to this point? It is perhaps hard to say. For whatever reason, we have each of us come to this point from many different directions. And yet, at the end, here we are. Together. And we are asking ourselves, now what do we do?
I would suggest we must first do what our Lord has taught us. We pray. We pray for His continued guidance in all things as we look to the future of our congregation. We pray He will bless our efforts to rebuild and move forward. We pray He will continue to heal our pain and sadness and lead us down the path of forgiveness of those who have hurt us. And we must pray for His forgiveness of our own shortcomings and petty behaviors, our own selfish actions. Together, let us pray for Pastor Jim and Nancy as they begin a new chapter in their lives. And let us pray for ALL the members of St. Paul International Lutheran Church, whether they worship at Iidabashi, Ebisu or Roppongi, that we may each one of us truly know and understand we are one in Him. And after we pray, we work.
Each week, we will need to find a leader for our worship service here at Iidabashi. And if that person is willing or able, or if we can find someone in addition to help, our members have decided they would like to try and continue the out reach efforts at Roppongi, and in time once again, at Ebisu. As a group, what we can accomplish in the time between now and our annual meeting in January will surely determine how we move forward in the future. Together - in constant communication ? with each other and with our Lord.
Each week, we will need to have activity in our congregation. Being active in our faith will bring life to our congregation. Be it in the form of bible studies or lunches together after church, sharing our faith in His unending love will bring us joy and strength. Letfs have our little ones come forward to sing for us during the service. Letfs go bowling with our teens or hiking in Tochigi with our elders. At the Oct. 2, special congregational meeting the group set a schedule for Christian Education opportunities to happen at least two Sundays a month. This is surely a rock that will give our congregation a firm foundation on which to build. In addition, time has been set for the second Sunday of the month to be a time for meetings and discussion and then the fourth Sunday will be for play and planned fellowship.
And each week, we will need to be mindful of stewardship. Through our gifts of time, talent and treasures, our congregation will grow and thrive. Let's invite our friends and co-workers to join us in worship and fellowship. Let's volunteer to work with the altar guild or to distribute our church pamphlets at the local hotels. Let's put a few extra coins or bills in the offering plate to help strengthen our congregation's financial situation.
Each week, whatever each of us can do, for the good of the congregation, will bring us that much closer to a more secure future.
This month, on Reformation Sunday, October 30th, we will be celebrating the 40th year of our congregation's official presence in Tokyo. Glory be to God! Let us recall with delight the many friends over the years that have been a part of our congregation. Let us remember in prayer those saints who have gone before us to be with our Lord. And let us rejoice together in the hope that is Jesus Christ. He is our rock and our salvation.
Blessings and peace to you all,
Marcia K. , president
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On Reformation Sunday, October 30, we will have a special worship service starting at 9:15 a.m. at our Iidabashi home church site, where it all began many years ago. The NRK site is now an official historical building according to the city of Tokyo, with numerous recent renovations paid for by the government. 
