Burwells in Mission

January 31, 2012 Burwell Bulletin

2012-02-05T19:22:00.000-08:00

Dear Friends & Family,

“Sing to the Lord, bless His name; tell of His salvation from day to day. Declare His glory among the nations, His marvelous works among all the peoples!” Ps. 96:2,3

That’s a pretty good summary of what we “the church” are supposed to be doing both locally and around the world. It is our purpose and your purpose for still being on this earth. To that end we are trying to find, assist, train and send out new missionaries. We are thrilled that people we have been talking to are headed to China, Holland, Japan,
and Albania for short term trips. There are also two single ladies we are talking to that are applying for long term work in Japan and China. That is why we are in this ministry for this season of life and that is why we still need your prayers and support as much as ever. We need to find a lot more people to go long term while the doors are open and the opportunities are there.

However we have not forgotten our brethren and friends in Japan and wanted to give you a quick update.

God’s Work in Japan recently

We wanted to share three short stories about how the Lord encouraged us with the truth that His Word does not return void and is still working long after we left Japan.

The first story is from Sachie Igarashi Kobayashi. We first met her 7 or 8 years ago after she had gone through a rough divorce and was trying to raise two teenage boys. She came to the Lord through her time at the Lighthouse church but did not get baptized until after we returned to America two years ago. Then the Lord brought a man into her life and they got married and moved to an area about an hour from Tokyo.

This past year her father-in-law got sick with cancer and Sachie was the care giver. She shared her testimony and stories about us and the Lighthouse and her father-in-law believed and got baptized before passing away late last fall! Now her brother-in-law is wanting to go to church and read the Bible! Her husband also reads the Bible and goes to church but has not yet taken the steps of faith and baptism. Would you please pray for these two men to take that step?

The second encouraging story is about Megumi Shikimi, who was brought to the Lighthouse church by Sachie about 7 years ago. Megumi’s son, Yuhei, became a believer and was baptized in 2010. We just heard that Megumi has also been baptized in the Hofu church this past Christmas.

The third story goes way back to a family we met around 1993 in Hofu city when we were teaching English. We used to get together with them and they heard the gospel many times but never seemed to respond. We have been exchanging New Years cards with them ever since then and this month the husband wrote that his mother had passed away but that he contacted a church and had them do a Christian funeral! It’s hard for a Christian to get a Christian funeral in Japan if they have any Buddhist relatives, yet we had not ever heard that anyone in the Yamagata family is a Christian. We don’t have their email so will have to write via snail mail and see what is going on with them. But obviously in some way, Christianity has made an impact on that family.

Prayer Needs for Japan

Please pray for Claudia Chan, the new short term missionary for Christar in Japan as she raises support to go teach English at the Lighthouse for two years. Hopefully she will leave for Japan by the end of February. Pray that we would also find another single lady to go to Japan to help her out.

Please pray for the Japanese nation as they approach the one year anniversary of the tsunami disaster. Many fear that the suicide rate will spike at that time. We hear encouraging reports about ministry increasing in the region and people coming to faith but there is still so much yet to do in the rebuilding of cities and hearts.

Chuck is planning to take some college and seminary students to Japan this summer. Please pray for God’s provision of the right people for the team and the funding.

Please keep praying for Miyoko Oki (mother of Ayaka) who is struggling with depression, hearing voices and is really under a lot of spiritual oppression. Pray for spiritual and emotional healing. Ayaka is still growing and doing well and seems to be free of leukemia. In April she will be in first grade. In fact she would like to go to church but Miyoko won’t go because of the voices in her head. Here is a picture of Ayaka riding a pony over New Years.

Ministry Opportunities for you or your friends

Would you help us recruit workers? We are looking for people to teach in international schools in Albania, Turkey and the UAE. The UAE positions are salaried and do not require support. We are also looking for long term missionaries to work with Iranian immigrants. Christar is involved in a very fruitful ministry in Asia that needs more people. These positions require faith support.

Christar also does an annual three week training course in Muslim evangelism in Dearborn, Michigan where there is a very large Muslim immigrant population. It is a very practical “half classroom” and “half in the streets” type of training where you will be meeting, befriending and sharing with Muslims. This training is offered in July and is open to anyone 18 years or older. If you know of anyone that might be interested in this, please tell them to contact us and please share about this opportunity with your pastor or missions committee.

Our upcoming travel schedule

Feb. 1^st – we will both be at Master’s College

Feb. 6^th-8^th – we will both be at Biola and Talbot

Feb. 17^th-20^th – we will be near Santa Cruz, CA for a missions conference targeting Asian Americans to out into missions.

Feb.29 to March 10 – Chuck will visit his mom in KY

March 13-16 – we will be at Biola’s missions conference

March 16-17 – we will be at another missions conference for Asians

March 18 to 23 – Chuck will be at two schools in Oregon

Family News

Jan is enjoying her two days a week of babysitting grandchildren and we have enjoyed good times with our kids this past 6 weeks.

Chuck’s mom will be having hip replacement surgery on February 7^th and would appreciate your prayers for success. Chuck’s siblings will be there the first three weeks and Chuck will visit her at the end of February.

We thank the Lord and so many of you for special gifts in December that kept our account in the black. You all are an awesome prayer and support team!

We would appreciate your prayers for our health and protection too. We are generally in good health and have played tennis and done long walks on the beach. But Chuck has had bouts of back pain and atrial flutter that the doctors say are not serious but they do slow him down. Jan has had some dental issues, which are never fun, and our medical insurance is only marginally helpful.

But God keeps healing us and providing for our needs in new and unexpected ways so we thank Him for all we have.

Summary of Prayer requests

1) Pray that we meet the right people for the opportunities we have open with Christar in 30 different countries.

2) Pray for safety and good health while we travel to various campuses and conferences.

3) Pray for the people applying for long term ministry and for the preparations of people going on short term trips

4) Pray that a couple more students, with long term potential, would join Chuck’s trip to Japan.

5) Pray for Chuck’s mom’s hip surgery and recovery

6) Pray for Claudia Chan to be fully supported and off to Ube, Japan by the end of February.

7) Pray for the nation of Japan to recover and rebuild and most importantly that there would be a great response to the gospel in all areas and more workers to go there.

8) Please pray for salvation and protection from evil for Miyoko and Ayaka Oki.

9) Please pray for Sachie’s husband and brother-in-law to come to faith in Jesus.

10) Please keep praying for the salvation of the English students and choir members and neighbors who have heard the gospel and have yet to respond. Pray we are wise in our correspondence with them.

All our love to you,

Chuck and Jan

Pictures in the order they appear.

Sachie Igarashi Kobayashi

Yamagata Family

Megumi Shikimi

Ayaka Oki on a pony

Lighthouse church and some choir people on Christmas day 2011

2011-12-14T20:52:00.000-08:00

Burwell Bulletin

Chuck & Jan Burwell December 14, 2011

14 W. Fiesta Green

Port Hueneme, CA 93041-1820

( home 805-283-6500

( Chuck 805-452-4424

( Jan 805-665-7193

* theburwells@yahoo.com　

Merry Christmas to our Friends & Family,

“For unto us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be upon His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” Isaiah 9:6

Thank you so much for praying and partnering with us as we seek to mobilize workers to join our Christar teams.

We pray that this Christmas season you will hear His wise counsel, will experience His mighty power, will be comforted by the Father’s loving arms, and will have a heart filled with peace that surpasses understanding.

Updates, corrections and answered prayers

We praise the Lord that a young lady from New York has been accepted as a short termer with Christar to work for one to two years in the Ube Lighthouse church. Her goal is to get there in January or February and she is just starting to do support raising. Please pray for Claudia and pray also that we can recruit another missionary to work with her.

Praise the Lord for special donations to our account at Christar that has put us in the black for two months in a row. For the first time in over two years we are no longer running a deficit. Thank you for giving and praying.

In our recent email bulletin we shared about 52 new Hindu background believers in India but we found out that actually they are in Bali, Indonesia and came to faith through a local church there. Christar missionaries have been asked to help with discipling them.

This is an update on Pastor Youcef in Iran that was just reported this week. “US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has called on Iran to release a Christian pastor facing death due to his faith in Jesus. Nearly 200,000 Americans have signed a petition for the US government to intervene and help gain freedom for Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani. In calling for Nadarkhani’s unconditional release, Clinton said Saturday, “Today, we call on every government to release all prisoners of conscience immediately and unconditionally, including Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani.”” Your prayers are working.

Mobilizing Missionaries

Since early September, Chuck has visited CIU in Columbia, SC, been to Biola twice, Corban in Salem, OR, and also to Master’s College, Azusa and to two Asian American missions conferences in LA. Jan accompanied him on all but the CIU and Corban trips. We are seeing a number of folks sign up for short term trips and it looks like Christar will have an above average response this coming year for short term trips. But our department is still at half of our goal for getting long term applications for service. Please pray with us to see many more mobilized.

Japan ministry update

Pastor Uchida’s mother recently believed in Jesus but unfortunately his father passed away in November and did not indicate that he was a believer. Please keep praying for their family to be comforted and provided for.

Another one of the saints, Mrs. Teraoka, passed away in late October. She was around 87 years old and we first met her when she came to an outreach piano concert by Sam Rotman back in 2004. It took a few years but she eventually believed the gospel and was a great blessing to the church. She is pictured here with her daughter-in-law when we visited Ube this May. Pray that her son and daughter-in-law would believe some day. They insisted on a Buddhist funeral.

The Lighthouse church also had a cooking class outreach event in November and the participants including the Uchidas and Weinhofers are pictured here.

The four gospel choirs did a combined concert as a tribute to Maria Sato, the director who passed away in April of this year. We just watched the DVD of the concert and they really did a super job. Of the 80 or so members of the four choirs, somewhere between 15 and 20 are Christians, so we all need to keep praying for them.

Chuck is planning to lead a team of college students to Japan next year, if the Lord wills, so we ask prayer for the right ones to apply.

Miyoko Oki, mother of Ayaka the little girl who survived leukemia, is really struggling and in need of the Lord’s saving grace. Please keep praying for Miyoko

Local and Family news

Pastor Yamamoto and his wife are doing well and still trying to find a meeting place in the Thousand Oaks area for a Japanese small group meeting. They are also continuing their ministry at the Japanese church in Santa Barbara. We were able to participate in their Christmas outreach to UCSB and SBCC Japanese students this month.

We have also been helping with the 2^nd and 3^rd grade Sunday School at VMC this fall and it has been a lot of fun. We are amazed at how much spiritual food these little minds can absorb! Pray we can recruit some future missionaries here!

We were blessed for ten days in November with a visit from Chuck’s 88 year young mother who came out from Louisville, KY and also spent three weeks with her sister in Phoenix. She did great and we had a wonderful time.

Burwell Blooper

Jan and I(Chuck) were recently getting work done on our cars so we would drive to the mechanic and leave one car and drive home. Then the next day we drove to pick one car up and drop the other one off and as we drove home I said to Jan, “Why are we both in the car together going both directions?” and she says, “What do you mean…..Oh my gosh! I could have stayed home! We are losing it!” Ah, the blessings of getting old. At least we had a nice ride and a good laugh together.

Summary of Prayer requests

1) For Claudia to raise all her support to go to Japan

2) For another female applicant to join her in Japan.

3) That we would have 14 more financial supporters join our regular support team (we gained one last month).

4) Pray for freedom for Pastor Youcef and the thousands of others around the world who are jailed for their faith.

5) Pray that Christar can double the number of applicants we currently have for 2012.

6) Pray for God’s comfort on the Uchida family and for the Lighthouse church to grow in faith and numbers.

7) Pray for Mrs. Teraoka’s family to believe.

8) Pray for the unsaved choir members and English students to understand and believer the gospel.

9) That God would put together a team of students to go to Japan with Chuck next year.

10) For Miyoko Oki to be saved from the spiritual oppression that she is in.

11) For the Lord to provie a meeting place for the Yamamotos and the Japanese group in Thousand Oaks.

12) For our ministry to the 2^nd and 3^rd graders and that they would all know the Savior and grow in His grace.

Thank you again for your precious prayers and gifts.

Merry Christmas and love to you all,

Mrs. Teraoka and her daughter-in-law

Gospel choir - in memory of Maria Sato

Jan at Biola

Lighthouse church cooking class with Weinhofers and Uchidas

Japanese outreach Christmas party in Santa Barbara

Chuck's mom with Melissa, Liam, Jackson and Justin in back, Nick , Megan and Brooklyn in front

Home Office

Christar

PO Box 850357

Richardson, TX 75085-0357

800-755-7955

: www.christar.org

Burwell Bulletin - Nov. 12, 2011

2011-11-12T23:00:00.000-08:00

Dear Friends and Family,

"Oh, magnify the Lord with me and let us exalt His name together.

I sought the Lord and He answered me and delivered me

from all my fears." Ps. 34:3,4

We thank you once again for your precious prayers. The Lord has answered!

You prayed for our trips to Biola, Corban, Azusa, Masters and the two

Asian American events. We were able to share in three classes at Biola and

around 7 classes and seminars at Corban and talked with dozens of students

at each of these locations. We are now in contact with many of these folks

who are very interested in missions. We need you to keep praying for them

and us as we guide those who are pursuing missions to get their applications

started.

The second big answered prayer is that there is a young lady applying for

a two year short term ministry with Christar in Japan and she would work and

live at our former church plant, the Lighthouse Ube Christ Church. Please

pray that she can get her application finished soon, and get to Japan by the

end of January. Pray for her support raising also.

The third answered prayer is that apparently Pastor Uchida's mother is

believing in the Lord now! Please keep praying for his father, who is not yet

believing and is suffering from terminal cancer. In fact he may only have a

couple of months left. Pray also for the Uchida's to have strength, hope and

encouragement as they labor for the Lord and desire to see more fruit.

A fourth answered prayer is that our son, Nick and his wife have finally been

able to close the deal on a house in Goleta. Its a fixer-upper so please also

pray for us old hired hands that get to help :)

The fifth answered prayer truly is a miracle of the Lord and due to your prayers.

We reported that our support account has been in the red for over two years.

As of November 1st due to some very special donations, our support

account is in the black!! Thank you, thank you for your prayers and gifts.

We are still in need of about 15 more regular monthly financial partners in

order to stay in the black on our support account. Thank you for praying.

Other ministry news and updates

Christar has many teams around the world, working in remote and least

reached Buddhist, Hindu and Muslim people groups and they are crying out

for more workers for the harvest. We have about 45 new Christar members

that are still trying to raise support and finish their preparations to go to the fields.

Would you please pray that each one of them gets out to their target area?

Christar is also organizing short term trips to 12 different countries in 2012 and

some of these are in partnership with colleges we have been recruiting at. There

could be anywhere from 50 to 100 people combined in all these trips. Please

pray for godly, humble and teachable students to sign up for these trips.

We heard a big praise from our India field that recently there were 52 Hindus

that accepted the Lord and are in need of discipling! That is the kind of

problem we wish we had in all of our fields. Again, please pray for more workers.

As of now, we have one more recruiting trip planned for this year and that is to Biola

again from Nov. 14th to 16th. AC and Teresa Acosta, Christar missionaries from

the Philippines will be accompanying us there. Please pray for much fruit from

this visit. Pray also that we can stay healthy and energized. Chuck has been

on the road for 38 of the last 65 days.

Other Japan updates

Several non-Christians have been attending outreach events like craft classes

at the Lighthouse church. They are having a cooking class on Chinese cooking

on Nov. 18th which will be taught by a short term missionary from Christar's

Hong Kong field. She is a Chinese citizen, ministering in Japan for about a month.

Please pray for spiritual fruit from this class and her time in Japan.

The workshop training for choir directors was well attended and very well received.

Please pray that a director or two will rise up from one of the choirs in or near Ube.

Chuck is hoping to lead at least one group of students to Japan next year and

possibly a second trip somewhere so please pray for wisdom and God's

provision and enabling.

Summary of Prayer requests

1) For many to apply and go out as missionaries with Christar and others

2) For the 45 who are already accepted and raising support to soon be at 100%

and headed for the field.

3) For many to be raised up for short term trips in 2012

4) For the young lady applying for a two year short term trip to Japan

5) For Pastor and Mrs. Uchida to be strengthened and encouraged and for the

salvation of his father.

6) For God's hand of protection, provision and guidance to be upon us and our

children and grandchildren.

7) For 15 more financial supporters to join our team and help us to get more

workers out to the most needy areas of the world.

8) Please pray for those 52 new Hindu believers and that all of our fields

would be fruitful.

9) Please pray for the short term worker in Japan now with Christar and for

Chuck to be able to lead a team there in 2012.

10) Please keep praying for the salvation of English students and choir

members in Ube and for a new choir director to rise up.

Thank you for your precious partnership with us and taking the gospel to

the 3.5 billion who do not have a witness among them.

With love and prayers,

Chuck and Jan

Mobilizing at Azusa

Mobilizing at Evangelica Free Chinese Church

Mobilizing at Corban College

Burwell Bulletin-brief update Oct. 3, 2011

2011-10-03T23:15:00.000-07:00

Dear Friends and Family,

Thank you for the prayers and encouraging notes over the weekend.

We just had an update from Pastor Uchida. He says he does not expect his father to live

much longer so to please pray for his salvation. His parents now live with Pastor Uchida's

family and have been attending church with them when their health permits.

We would also appreciate prayer for Miyoko Oki to have healing and comfort and salvation.

We can't share any more details but we know she would value your prayers. Her daughter

Ayaka continues to improve and gain strength.

We don't have any more updates on Pastor Youcef in Iran so we just ask for continued

prayer for his release and for the protection of his family. Pray for strength of all the

believers in Iran too. Estimates are that there are as many as 300,000 Iranian believers

around the world now, with many of them still inside the country.

Thank you for praying for Nozomi Samura (Sammy) Fujita. She says her wedding was

all she had dreamed it would be. We added a picture of Nozomi and her new husband

and also one more picture of some of the Ube gospel choir members.

May His grace and love fill your hearts,

Chuck and Jan

Gospel choir- Noriko, Naoko, Kiyomi and Chisato

Miyoko and Ayaka Oki with Chuck

Pastor Yousef and family in Iran

Nozomi and her hubby on their wedding day

2011-08-29T20:53:00.000-07:00

Burwell Bulletin

Dear Friends and Family,

"Trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness. Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart." Ps. 37:3-4

These are some favorite verses of ours that we saw proved to be true as we trusted in the Lord and dwelled in the land of Japan for many years. He gave us the desires of our hearts; a planted church with a ministry center and dozens of very special Japanese friends.

Now as we dwell and trust in the land of California, we are beginning to see our desires come to fruition. There are many positive developments and answered prayers that we would like to share with you this week.

Mobilizing Missionaries to plant churches among the least reached peoples of the world

Three of our desires have been (1) to see our home church send out more missionaries (2) to see more missionaries go to Japan and (3) to help Christar mobilize missionaries to plant churches among least reached people groups in about 30 countries world wide.

Praise the Lord that our home church, Ventura Missionary, has recently sent out a single man to the Thailand-Burma border, a couple to Mexico and in the fall is sending a single lady to Guatemala. Missions giving has also increased and we are very excited about how God is once again stirring hearts for missions at VMC.

About a week ago Pastor Uchida (Lighthouse church in Ube) asked us to start looking for a short term (one or two year) missionary to come to Ube and teach English to replace the Weinhofers who are going on furlough next year. (They will then move to another city to do an internship in a cell group church.) One of our contacts who recently graduated from college is very interested in this opportunity in Japan. And we have a number of other contacts who are planning to go to Japan eventually. They won't all go with Christar but we are still rejoicing that God is replenishing the aging missionary work force in Japan.

Thirdly we are receiving more and more inquiries from people wanting to work with the least reached in China, Holland, Spain, Turkey and other places. As you can imagine, it is a huge step of faith to decide to go into missionary work so these people have a lot of questions and we need a lot of wisdom as we interact with them.

Japan ministry update

There have been many answered prayers in Japan and we want to share some highlights with you.

The Hikari church plant has had some children recently put their faith in Jesus and the indigenous church we first worked at in Hofu has had a bit of a revival lately and will be baptizing three believers between now and December. One of them, Mayumi Taneda, was in our youth group in Hofu back in 1996 and her mom has been a faithful church attender for over 20 years. You just never know when those seeds are going to sprout!

We are also excited about the news that the Ube gospel choir will be transitioning into the Hallelujah Gospel Family. However they have not yet secured a director or found someone to train as a director in the Ube area.

Pastor Uchida also reported that a number of English students are showing more interest in the gospel. Pastor Uchida's parents have also made the transition to living with them at the church parsonage and they are attending church each week. His parents are not yet believers.

Local and Family news

We recently met with Pastor and Mrs. Yamamoto and they were not able to work out a ministry arrangement with their former church in Camarillo so they will continue leading the Japanese congregation in Santa Barbara and may start a new house church for Japanese in Ventura County somewhere. For the time being it looks like we will just assist them with special outreach events. Please pray that many of the un-churched Japanese folks in our area would be reached and also pray that the Yamamotos would receive some new sources of support.

Thank you for your many prayers for Nick and Megan and the birth of our granddaughter, Brooklyn Elizabeth Burwell. She arrived on July 13 and weighed in at 8lbs 14 oz. Like her cousin, Liam Wilkins, born in April to Melissa and Justin, she is growing like a weed, but cute as a flower.

In August we will help a bit with the Child Evangelism Fellowship booth at the Ventura County Fair and then take a couple of weeks off to enjoy our kids, grandkids and the S. California beaches. During that time Jan's sister Edie will also visit us which we are really looking forward to as well. Then in September the crazy travel schedule begins again. Pray that we are rested up and ready!

Summary of Prayer requests

1) That we would meet many prospective missionary candidates

2) That we would have wisdom as we interact with them
3) That we would mobilize 10 folks for short term missions in 2012
4) That we would mobilize five folks for January and another five for the June orientation with Christar
5) Wise use of our time as we set up visits to colleges, seminaries and missions conferences.
6) Spiritual growth and maturity for new Christians in Japan
7) For the relief efforts in Tohoku Japan to bring not only relief but hope, joy and salvation to the people
8) For the Ube English students and choir members to put their faith in Jesus
9) For a gospel choir director to be trained for Ube city
10) For the Yamamotos to reach many of the un-churched Japanese in Ventura County
11) For good times of refreshment and planning in August.
12) That the Lord would provide us with about 15 more financial support partners.

Jan's mom at 100 with Melissa and her great grandson Jackson

Noboru Nishimura and Chuck in April 2003

Nozomi "Sammy" Samura - Nozomi means "hope"

Beach Boys at Ventura County Fair

Thank you again for your precious prayers and gifts.

Love and thanks to you all,

2011-7-27 Burwell Bulletin

2011-07-27T19:27:00.000-07:00

Dear Friends & Family,

"Trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness. Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart." Ps. 37:3-4

Mobilizing Missionaries to plant churches among the least reached peoples of the world

Japan ministry update

There have been many answered prayers in Japan and we want to share some highlights with you.

Local and Family news

****SPECIAL ANNOUNCMENT FOR THOSE IN THE VENTURA, CA AREA****

If you are near Ventura and have not yet heard our presentation about our trip to Japan in May, we will share some video and pictures and stories on Sunday, August 14 in the Fireside room at Ventura Missionary Church. We will present it twice, once at 11:00am and again at 12:15pm. Please join us if you can.

Summary of Prayer requests

1) That we would meet many prospective missionary candidates

2) That we would have wisdom as we interact with them

3) That we would mobilize 10 folks for short term missions in 2012

4) That we would mobilize five folks for January and another five for the June orientation with Christar

5) Wise use of our time as we set up visits to colleges, seminaries and missions conferences.

6) Spiritual growth and maturity for new Christians in Japan

7) For the relief efforts in Tohoku Japan to bring not only relief but hope, joy and salvation to the people

8) For the Ube English students and choir members to put their faith in Jesus

9) For a gospel choir director to be trained for Ube city

10) For the Yamamotos to reach many of the un-churched Japanese in Ventura County

11) For good times of refreshment and planning in August.

12) That the Lord would provide us with about 15 more financial support partners.

Thank you again for your precious prayers and gifts.

Love and thanks to you all,

Burwell Bulletin - June 13, 2011

2011-06-13T19:35:00.000-07:00

Dear Friends & Family,

“Do not let the flood waters engulf me or the depths swallow me up…..Answer me O Lord, out of the goodness of your love; in your great mercy turn to me.” Ps.69

“Lead me to the rock that is higher than I. For you have been a shelter for me; a strong tower from the enemy." Psalm 61

Many verses in the Psalms and the prophets have taken on deeper meaning since being in NE Japan. I (Chuck) spent eight days working with CRASH Japan (Christian Relief Assistance Support Hope) in Tokyo and three days in the tsunami hit regions of NE Japan. It was heart wrenching and overwhelming at times but there were also many reasons to have hope. Jan joined me in Tokyo and we then visited Ube City and the surrounding areas for two more weeks. That too was a very blessed and encouraging experience.

Disaster relief work with CRASH Japan

It is hard to fathom that about 300 miles of coastline (like from San Diego to Santa Maria in CA) were hit by the tsunami in Tohoku (NE), Japan. We drove along 50 miles of coastline between Ishinomaki and Kesennuma cities and could not believe the destruction. Most of the smaller villages and towns near the coast were totally wiped out with only foundations and a few concrete structures left. Some cities were loaded with debris and others were wiped clean as the receding waters took everything out to sea. In most of the areas we went through, the tsunami reached heights of 30 feet but in a number of smaller, narrower areas, the waves hit as high as 137 feet! The debris was still there as proof of how high the waves reached.

The work in the CRASH office is a vital and necessary part of mobilizing and training volunteers who go to the Tohoku area. There are teams to help with cleanup, construction, chaplains for survivors and chaplains for ministering to the volunteers and pastors in Tohoku. The work is physically and emotionally draining and there is a real danger of burnout for volunteers and pastors. There are also assessment teams and teams to manage the bases that CRASH has set up in six locations of Tohoku.

Chuck joined up with a team of pastors and missionaries to deliver supplies to some of the evacuation shelters and to help clear debris in three locations. The first day we delivered goods to an Ishinomaki shelter and spoke with two evacuees. Toshie told Chuck about fleeing to high ground with her husband and watching their home get hit by wave after wave. First the windows were knocked out, then the roof was carried away, then the Remains of a church in Kesennuma city

tatami matts floated away and finally the waves stopped

and they went to their home. She was so grateful that they were able to find their family photo album and that no one in their family had died.

Another evacuee, Tomoko, gave us a tour of Ishinomaki and we drove through areas where hundreds of homes and buildings were destroyed by tsunami and fires. Tomoko said that she and her husband also fled to high ground and they were so close to the tsunami waves that they could hear the screams of the people trying to flee. Then as the waves got higher the screams ended and there was silence except for the cries of grief from the people on the hillside. She is not able to forget those cries.

But there is hope coming to Tohoku in the form of volunteers and the Lord. Even though we were doing such small tasks in the cities we visited, the local people were so grateful that people cared about them. When we shared that millions around the world are praying for them and not forgetting them, the people literally cried. In fact many Japanese from Tohoku to Tokyo to Yamaguchi Ken told us with tears that they were so grateful for all of the help from America, including the military, search and rescue teams and Christian volunteer groups. We also heard two testimonies of people in the rescue shelters coming to faith in Jesus through the sharing of volunteers.

These are times of harvest. We have never seen people this open in Japan so it is crucial that your prayers continue for the salvation of the Japanese and the raising up of more volunteers and long term workers. We were so encouraged to see how many Japanese Christian volunteers there are and how well different churches and organizations are working together for a common good cause.

Update on Lighthouse church, gospel choir, English class students and other friends in Yamaguchi Ken

We arrived in Ube on a Friday afternoon and had good fellowship with the Weinhofers (Christar missionaries) and Pastor Uchida and then settled into the guest quarters of the Lighthouse church. The next night we had dinner with six of the choir members. On Sunday we led the praise time and preached at the Lighthouse worship service, and then helped with a children’s outreach in the afternoon. A number of our former English students (moms and kids) were also there. It kind of felt like we had never left!

Monday we had prayer day with the Uchidas and all of the other Christar missionaries and then the following two weeks were pretty much filled each day with lunch and dinner appointments with choir, church and English class friends. We also participated in two choir practices (did Bible devotions with them too), visited the Yamachika family (heart transplant in 2005) in another city and went to a memorial service in North Kyushu for Maria Sato, the former choir director.

The believers at the Lighthouse are a little tired but otherwise seem to be doing well. The Uchidas are especially in need of prayers for strength and grace as Pastor Uchida’s parents move in with them to live. His father has terminal lung cancer and his mother has beginnings of dementia. His parents are not yet believers. Their daughter Yumi has started college, so Mrs. Uchida is working a secular job for four hours a day and Pastor Uchida is also looking for a part time job to help pay for college costs. Please keep them in your prayers.

Since we left Ube in January of 2010, four believers have moved to other cities and two other believers are attending a different church in a nearby city, so six have left. But there are three new folks attending so the net decrease is three. Please keep praying for spiritual fruit from the choir, English and children’s outreaches.

Special highlights and answered prayers

We saw some direct answers to your prayers for the gospel choir. Most of them came to the worship service the second Sunday we were there and heard Chuck share a testimony about the volunteer work in the tsunami areas. It was such a delight to see Mrs. ↑ Nemoto with her 9 month old son, Kazuaki. He was diagnosed with cancer a few months ago and is responding very well to treatments and is expected to fully recover!

The second answered prayer was to see Miyoko Oki and her daughter Ayaka, who was healed of leukemia. She is a lovely 6 year old now and drew us some pictures of angels. We had hoped she would be believing by now but we know that God is not through working yet.

The third partial answer (and still in process) was that Chuck met with a missionary in Tokyo who has trained 32 people to be gospel choir directors in Japan. Some of those directors live as close as Hiroshima and Kyushu so the Lighthouse church is in process of trying to get a director for the choir through this group. Pray that the Lighthouse and the choir would be in agreement on this transition.

Christar Mobilizing Update

As we write this letter, we are at the Christar New Personnel Orientation in Dallas, Texas. There are 10 new candidates, 8 short term workers and 12 appointee members here for training. Pray for these folks to all become successful missionaries and that we could have triple the number of folks next year! Our 30+ fields are in desperate need of more workers to reach the least reached.

Pastor Yamamoto family update

Your prayers for the Yamamoto family (Camarillo and Santa Barbara Japanese churches) are being answered too. At one point, it looked like they would be moving back to Japan but now it appears that God is going to keep them in Ventura County. We do not have details and things are still being worked out, so we really appreciate your continued prayers for them.

Family news and support update

Please keep Nick’s wife Megan in your prayers as she is due to deliver a little girl in July.

We are looking forward to a short visit from Sanae Nimiya, a believer from the Ube church, who will be with us from June 22^nd to the 27^th.

We praise the Lord for supplying all of the funds needed for Chuck’s time with CRASH Japan and for our visit to Ube City. Please pray with us as we seek to find new financial partners to join us in this ministry of mobilizing workers to reach the least reached.

Summary of prayer requests for our ministry/family

1) Praise for the healing of Kazuaki Nemoto and Ayaka Oki. Pray for the salvation of these two families.

2) For God to raise up many more missionary workers.

3) Praise that the Yamamoto family is planning to stay in this area. Pray that they will have full support.

4) Pray for the ongoing relief work in NE Japan. Pray for the volunteers to be strengthened and full of joy and for the impacted people to receive the hope & love of God

5) Pray that God will open the hearts of our friends in Ube and that many of them would believe the Gospel

6) Pray for Pastor Uchida (Ube Lighthouse) and his family. Pray they receive strength, rest and sufficient income for their needs. Pray for many new believers to join them.

7) Pray for the Lighthouse church to find a new director for the gospel choir.

With love, thanks and prayers,

Chuck and Jan Burwell

Pictures from the Christar New Personnel Orientation in Dallas, Texas - June 2012

Pictures at the CRASH office in Tokyo Japan

Church in Kesennuma, Japan after tsunami

Burwell Tsunami report- May 5, 2011

2011-05-05T19:53:00.000-07:00

Dear Friends and Family,

It has been a week since writing and I just spent a week working in the CRASH headquarters but I wanted to continue the previous story and tell you about day two in the town of Ishinomaki. It seems that every other story I have watched on TV about the tsunami has mentioned Ishinomaki and I had never heard of it until the day before we went there.

“Do not let the flood waters engulf me or the depths swallow me up, or the pit close its mouth over me.

Answer me O Lord, out of the goodness of your love; in your great mercy turn to me.” Psalm 69:15-16

Psalms like this keep going through my mind as I process the stories I hear from survivors of the tsunami. On day two our team was asked to help clean debris and mud from two homes in Ishinomaki City. The other task was to buy some supplies for one of the rescue shelters at a local home center type store and take one of the missionaries to that shelter to do some trauma counseling. That driving task fell to me since I was the only one who could drive the rental van. We immediately hit heavy traffic as there is only one main road in and out of Ishinomaki and there are all sorts of construction and cleanup crews coming into town every day. As we sat stopped in traffic we wondered, “What would we do right now if there was another earthquake?” It seems we would have to abandon the car and run for higher ground. A few days later a story was in the local papers (and on the internet) about how many people died in their cars in towns like Ishinomaki and Kesennuma, the two cities we worked in. Here is an excerpt from that story.

“Traffic jams that formed after the devastating March 11 mega-quake increased the death toll in the Tohoku region by stranding hundreds of cars that ended up being swallowed up by the tsunami, survivors said Sunday.

No way out: Vehicles swept away by the March 11 tsunami are piled up in Kesennuma, Miyagi Prefecture, on March 12. Survivors say traffic jams following the quake added to the tsunami death toll. KYODO PHOTO

Although local governments had warned residents not to use cars to escape the tsunami after a similar scene unfolded in the massive 1993 quake at Okushiri Island in Hokkaido, many people still attempted to flee by car anyway.

Right after the magnitude 9.0 earthquake struck in March, a heavy traffic jam formed along Route 398 in the city of Ishinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture, said city assembly member Yoshiaki Shoji.

Shoji, 60, who evacuated by bicycle to an elementary school near the national road, said he shouted "Escape! Escape!" to the vehicles in the logjam, but nobody responded, apparently because all their windows were closed and nobody heard him.

Shoji, who managed to survive by running up to the second floor of the school, said he found many toppled cars there.

"From now on, I would like people to think that it is common sense not to escape by car" when a tsunami hits, Shoji added.

"Many residents were swept away by tsunami with their cars. We had urged them to head for higher ground to evacuate without using cars, but failed to keep everyone informed about it," Shigeru Sugawara, mayor of Kesennuma in Miyagi, said.

Meanwhile, some people said they survived because they decided to abandon their cars.

Takeshi Nitta, 42, a company employee in Ishinomaki, said he tried to go to a hill by car at first after he saw the tsunami, but a traffic jam discouraged him from doing so.

He said he abandoned his car at a nearby temple and escaped death after scrambling up a cliff via rock-fall prevention nets.

"I thought a car would help me escape sooner, but I would have been dead if I had stayed in it. Just the thought of it makes me shiver," Nitta said.

Back to my letter.

When the sirens sounded, a recent survey of residents showed that around 30% did not think there would be a tsunami, 15% figured it would just be a small wave even if there was a tsunami and another 15% figured they would wait and see if the water started rising and then take off for the hills if necessary. So approximately 60% did not immediately leave the areas until they realized danger was imminent. And I talked to one couple in their 80s who stayed in their home and said the first wave came in about three feet high into their home and just a few hundred feet from them the water got over 6 feet high because two waves from different angles converged and basically doubled in size, yet they never left their home even though there were more waves to come.

I have to confess that I do not know how fast I would have left town had it been me. I probably would have loaded computers and pictures into the car first and looked for any elderly neighbors that needed help and then started out for higher ground. Then I would have hit a traffic jam. Would I have been smart enough to leave my car and “stuff” behind and get myself and others to safety? How often has clinging to “my stuff” bogged me down in this life and kept me from doing the things that the Lord really has for me to do? And I cannot count the times I have met with folks in Japan and the USA who are just “waiting a little while longer” before taking the step of faith that gives us eternal life and joy and peace forever. Why do we wait until we can see the tsunami coming? For too many people, not believing the warnings, not wanting to abandon the house or car or stuff, cost them everything. It’s a lesson I will not soon forget.

So after about three hours in traffic jams to go to two home centers and drive all of about 5 miles round trip, I got back to help with the last load of debris from one of the houses. We trucked it to a new landfill, down by the ocean, that was formerly used for importing and exporting but now the warehouses and railroad lines and wharf and ships are destroyed so the area has been converted into a huge landfill. They say that the city has to deal with the equivalent of 10 years worth of trash and debris all at once. But it is an amazing operation with huge mounds of refrigerators, another huge mound of tatami matts, another of glass, another of steel and another of burnable products. A steady flow of trucks is coming in all day long and there are no scales or fees being paid to dump stuff. But they are still sifting, separating and recycling whatever they can.

At the end of the day we fought the traffic back to the church where we were staying, grabbed some fast food Japanese dinners and went to a public bath for a good hot soak and to try and process all we had seen and experienced. Knowing how many were praying for us was a constant encouragement.

I will try and send installment three before too long. But I did want to ask you to pray for the following

1) For the churches near the tsunami affected areas to be strengthened and empowered to be shining lights for the Lord to the people around them. Pray also that they not overwork or grow weary and that plenty of help continues to come.

2) Pray for the Lord to open the hearts of the survivors in those areas that they might understand and believe.

3) Please pray for Jan as she drives to LAX on Monday May 9^th and flies out early the next morning and meets me in Tokyo. Pray for our time in Tokyo as we meet with Toshie and Masaaki, two Japanese who stayed with us in CA way back in 1986 and 1987. They are still not Christians yet.

4) Please pray for our time in Ube City starting May 13^th that we can be an encouragement to the Lighthouse church and can spur our English class and choir friends on to put their faith in the Lord.

Tsunami Relief - pictures - May 1, 2011

2011-05-01T21:28:00.000-07:00

Burwell Tsunami report- April 30, 2011

2011-04-30T20:59:00.000-07:00

Dear Friends and Family,

I (Chuck) want to share with you some brief impressions and thoughts and prayer needs from the tsunami stricken areas of Japan. I am now back in the Tokyo area for the weekend after spending three days in the tsunami stricken areas of Ishinomaki and Kesennuma which are about 30 and 80 miles north of Sendai. The following is taken from my second day in Japan and first day into the tsunami stricken areas.

The Psalms have taken on deeper meaning for me."Hear my cry O God; attend to my prayer. From the end of the earth I will cry to You when my heart is overwhelmed. Lead me to the rock that is higher than I. For you have been a shelter for me; a strong tower from the enemy." (Psalm 61:1-3)

It was overwhelming when we entered the city of Ishinomaki, about 30 miles north of Sendai.

First we just saw some debris in the fields and we thought, "Surely the tsunami could not have come this far" as we were still over a mile from the ocean. But as we got closer to this little sea side port city, we could see water lines on the homes and buildings and mud and debris in the streets. As we moved east, the water lines got higher. Then we entered the first of three rescue shelters where we delivered some supplies.

The rescue shelter is a gymnasium in the Jr. Hi school and the Jr. High students are still having classes in the adjacent building. Most of the "homeless victims" are gone during the day, out working or cleaning up their homes. But when we arrive a few are there, and we see that each family has about a 10 by 10 foot plot of space with their belongings in boxes, piled neatly like short walls around their space, about 2 or 3 feet high. Not much privacy from your immediate neighbor, andI felt I was "invading their private space" and wanted to leave the gymnasium as soon as we were done bringing in supplies.

As I left the gym I met a very cheerful woman who introduced herself to me as Toshie and said that she and her husband had lost their home and they were staying in the shelter. Her kids are the same age as our children and all of her family survived. She said that they lived near the ocean and when her husband heard the siren he drove home and picked her up and they headed up the hill near their home. She said the first wave went over their home (they could see it from the hill) and then wave after wave kept coming and the roof finally gave way, then the tatami matts floated out and they figured all was lost. But she was so excited when they went down to their home because she found most of her family pictures in the rubble. She said she was thankful because she had her family and she had her memories and they could rebuild their home. But she is not sure where they will rebuild. She was so thankful that Americans and Christians from around the world were sending help and praying and "remembering us and cheering us on". Her attitude was amazing.

Then a lady named Tomoko, who is doing volunteer work in the shelter, gave us a tour of the worst hit parts of the city. It took our breath away. Boats and cars piled in very strange positions and places. Cars with pink flyers stuck to them meant that bodies had been found in the cars. We cannot imagine what it must have been like those first few days with bodies still laying around the city. We then drove by an elementary school where the sports field was just filled with rusted and burned out vehicles. Tomoko said that the tsunami pushed most of the cars up against the school and then the leaking gasoline was ignited by electrical shorts in the school and everything burned as it floated on the water.

Tomoko was up on a hill with her husband too and she said she will never forget the sound of the screams coming from the city as the waves came in, and then afterward it was silent. The tsunami did not reach Tomoko's home.

Tomoko and Toshie are not believers yet they show an amazing resilience at this point. But they are going to grow weary as the process of cleaning and recovery drags on for months and years. They need our prayers and they need a steady flow of outsiders to come in and show them that the world still cares and remembers them, and more importantly, that God still cares and loves them. Please pray that they will meet the Savior in the days to come.

One image that will never leave me is when we stood up on the hill overlooking the city where the Shinto shrine is and the cherry blossoms are blooming. Cherry blossom time is usually a happy time in Japan but there were no picnics or barbecues or Japanese lanterns strung in the trees in Ishinomaki. People stood on the hill that overlooked the destruction below in the city and either stood in silence or wept. The image of the cherry blossoms, which symbolize the beauty and brevity of life, against the backdrop of the destroyed city will forever be fixed in my mind. I am so thankful we have a Lord who will never leave us, no matter how dark and painful the suffering might be.

Finally, we settled into our lodging in Ishinomaki, a beautiful church building that is filled with food and supplies from CRASH and blankets from Samaritan's Purse and is taking on the ministry of housing short term relief workers. Please pray for Pastor Kanaya and his flock as they serve their community and the relief workers. Pray they not grow weary and pray that they can be shining lights in the city of Ishinomaki.

I better sign off for now and will try and continue this story in the next day or two.

Thank you for praying for the people of Tohoku Japan and for the Lord's light to shine brightly there. Thank you for praying for me to be strengthened and filled with His Spirit and joy and compassion as I share with these precious people.

Love and grace to you,

Chuck (for Jan and I)

Burwell Bulletin - April 13, 2011

2011-04-13T21:05:00.000-07:00

Dear Friends & Family,

“You rule the swelling of the sea; When its waves rise, You still them.” Psalm 89:9

The Lord has stilled the swelling seas in Japan but hearts of the people have yet to be stilled. They need the Lord now more than ever as they continue to be shaken by aftershocks and concerns about the nuclear power plant.

Please pray that the Japanese will seek the Lord, the one who can still their hearts and fill them with peace.

JAPAN DISASTER UPDATE

For those who do not receive our email updates, we want to let you know that the folks we worked with in Yamaguchi Prefecture are all fine as they were over 600 miles from the earthquakes and tsunami.

As you probably know, the biggest concern is still the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant. We received an email that there are five Christians among the workers at the plant trying to bring it under control and the team leader from the government, Mr. Sato, is also a Christian. Here is the report we received.

“Mr. Sato is an Assistant Vice-Minister for Engineering Affairs at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. He has been appointed as an emergency response team member to stop the disaster at the Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Plant. He is currently leading a mission to cool dangerously overheated fuel. This is an enormous task with huge responsibilities.

People at his church are aware that Mr. Sato is not in that position by coincidence and are asking for the fervent prayer of God’s people. Mr. Sato needs to be on strict diet to control his diabetes. Recently was hospitalized for a short time. His wife said he won’t be able to come home for at least a couple of months. He stopped by home for a brief moment, but he was drained physically and emotionally. Please pray for him and his team.”

Some have asked us how non-Christians are dealing with this disaster. Here are some comments that non-Christian friends have sent us. “It is horrible to think about the suffering going on and not being able to help. All we can do is pray and send money. How can those disaster victims remain strong?” “ It makes me think more about the value of life. I am constantly worried about the nuclear plant.”

DISASTER RELIEF WORK AND OUR TRIP TO JAPAN

We have had tickets to visit the Lighthouse church in Japan since last year. Chuck will leave on April 25^th to help for two weeks with the relief work being done by CRASH (Christian Relief Assistance Support Hope). He will either be on one of the teams near the areas hit by the tsunami or will be helping in the command center in Tokyo. Jan will them join him in Tokyo on May 11 and we will head to Ube City on May 13^th, returning to CA on May 26^th.

You can help with the cost of our trip to Japan, a donation for the relief work and for a gift to the Lighthouse Church by giving directly to Christar and putting in a note saying, “Burwells- Japan relief work”. We have received about $1250 so far in extra gifts this year to help.

You can also donate directly to CRASH via PayPal on their website (http://www.crashjapan.com) but this is not tax deductible in the USA. To be tax deductible you can either send it to us at Christar or CRASH has a church in the USA that you can sent it to and they will send it to CRASH in Japan. (That church and address is;

Horizon Central

1001 E. Palmer St., Indianapolis, IN 46203

(Put “CRASH” in the comment line)

LIGHTHOUSE UBE UPDATE

The church and the gospel choir have been involved in fund raising activities, like concerts, to raise funds for the victims near Fukushima and Sendai. Our former teammates, the Weinhofers had a team from their home church come to Ube and help with several projects and outreach activities in March.

Pastor Uchida’s daughter, Yumi, started college this month and Mrs. Uchida has started a part time job to help with these new expenses. Pastor Uchida’s parents are also in need of regular care and may be moving into the Uchida’s home in the next couple of months.

We also had a heart breaking prayer request from Mrs. Nemoto one of the choir members. Two years ago she had asked for prayers to be able to have children and the Lord answered and gave her a son, named Kazuaki, 7 months ago. She recently found out that he has a cancerous tumor and asked us again for prayer. They are now at a hospital in Fukuoka and we have not heard any updates. They are not yet believers.

CHRISTAR MOBILIZING UPDATE

Thank you for praying for our very busy recruiting month of March. Chuck spent two or more days each at Master’s College, Azusa Pacific, Corban Univ. and Multnomah Univ. and we both spent four days at Biola. Chuck also attended a commissioning service in San Francisco for a new Christar missionary going to China.

On April 8^th we spent an evening sharing with the five teams going out on short term missions with Westmont College. It was great to see their enthusiasm.

People ask us, “Are your efforts bearing fruit and success?” To which we have to reply that the fruit is often a long time in coming. Sort of like church planting in Japan. For most students we talk with, it will be years before they apply to a mission board because of schooling, paying off loans or getting married. But of the 60 or so that we are in regular contact with, probably a dozen or more will be deciding in the coming year about applying for missionary service. Pray for them and pray for us as we mentor and give advice to our contacts.

YAMAMOTO FAMILY UPDATE

Pastor Yamamoto and his wife have been ministering to the Japanese speaking community in Santa Barbara and Ventura counties since 1993. Their support was coming from Japan and one church in Santa Barbara and one in Camarillo. The one in Camarillo has discontinued their support and so the Yamamotos are planning to move back to Japan in June, unless the Lord has other plans.

That is where you, our prayer partners come in. We told the Yamamotos that we would make their need known and also contact churches in the area that might be interested in supporting a new church plant to the Japanese speaking community. If you or your church would be interested in supporting a new church plant to Japanese speakers in Ventura County, then please contact us.

They will wait about one more month and then make a decision about whether to return to Japan. Please pray and talk to your church leadership about this.

FAMILY NEWS & MONTHLY SUPPORT UPDATE

We are very excited to announce that we have a second grandson, Liam James Wilkins, born to Melissa and Justin on April 7^th in Santa Barbara. Both mother and baby are doing well and Jackson seems to be enjoying it too.

Please keep Nick’s wife Megan in your prayers as she is due to deliver a little girl in July.

We thank the Lord for the new prayer partners and financial supporters this year who are supporting our work at Christar. Although we have received special gifts for our trip and the relief work to Japan, the regular monthly support from churches and individuals has only increased slightly this year. Please pray that our regular monthly support would increase by $800/month.

Summary of prayer requests for our ministry/family

1) Healing for Kazuaki Nemoto and salvation of parents.

2) For God to raise up many more missionary workers.

3) Please pray for the Yamamoto family to gain more support and be able to stay in this area and help minister to the Japanese people in Ventura County.

4) Please pray for our travels to Japan and for our unsaved friends in the Ube area (gospel choir, English students, and neighbors) to believe in our Savior.

5) Pray that God will continue to supply all of our needs.

6) Pray for Megan and her baby

Prayers for Japan and the relief effort

1) Pray for Mr. Sato and the other Christians at the nuclear plant to be courageous and loving in their witness. Pray for protection and success for all the nuclear plant workers.

2) Pray the nuclear reactors can be safely brought under control and that radiation would not spread.

3) Pray for the victims to receive the peace and hope that only Jesus can give and for their emotional and physical strength and ability to start life over again.

4) Pray that the Japanese church would send many into the relief effort and be compassionate and visible witnesses.

5) Pray that revival would sweep across Japan.

6) Pray that all the Japanese churches and missionaries would work together in the relief effort and glorify God

7) Pray the Japanese Christians would grow in their faith and many would become pastors and leaders.

8) Pray for the CRASH relief effort as they try to organize hundreds of volunteers into teams to serve in six base camps and the command center.

9) Pray for strength, good health, stamina, faith, love and patience for the relief workers.

10) Thank the Lord for the prayers and gifts and volunteers pouring in from all over the world. He is moving in many hearts around the world because He loves the people of Japan.

We pray that you experience God’s love this week.

With love, thanks and prayers,

Chuck and Jan

Burwell Bulleting – update – April 15, 2011

Dear Friends and Family,

After printing the enclosed prayer letter we received some shocking news from Japan via email. Maria Sato, the gospel choir leader, suddenly went to be with the Lord on April 13th. She was in her 40s and had such a zeal for praising the Lord and had amazing musical talent. She directed four choirs altogether and we do not know how she will be replaced. But our prayer is that God will keep the choir ministry going and that He will use this heart wrenching event to bring many into His kingdom. Many in the choirs are partly believing but not yet fully trusting in Christ for salvation.

Please pray for the choir members and for Maria’s mother and for others who were close to Maria. Thank you so much.

Love,

Chuck and Jan

Pictures

Mrs. Nemoto and her baby

Biola Missions conference

Maria Sato - choir director

2009-01-01T19:58:00.000-08:00

We have been having a great time with our children and grandson, Jackson over the holidays. Here Jan is helping out with some yummy veggies as Jackson gets distracted by the camera.

Chuck and Jan in Japan

2009-01-01T16:32:00.000-08:00

Welcome to the new blog for Chuck and Jan Burwell. We hope to keep you up to date on our work here in Japan and post pictures on a regular basis.