April 2002

Dear Friends,

I trust this finds you doing fine and enjoying a change in the weather.

The cherry blossoms were beautiful here in Tokyo this year. It’s always rather an amazing sight to see the whole city come alive in a sea of pink for one week each year. I never tire of it, though I wish at times that we could enjoy them longer. There is in the cherry blossoms a sense that time moves very quickly, even while there is a simultaneous period of waiting and preparation on the part of the tree for this event. In this, I sense a commonality with the cherry trees, as it seems time both waits and yet passes quickly.

Recently, I received a phone call from a missionary asking if I would take her place in preaching at a church approximately two hours north of Tokyo. During our conversation, she asked if I knew of anyone to lead a Bible study group from September to December. I had turned her down earlier, sharing that I would be on home assignment from mid-June. As she and I began trying to determine when we might get together, we found ourselves laughing. Though she works in Tokyo and lives not far from where I work, I haven’t seen her in over a year. We both had to agree with one another that, with our jobs and the ability to keep in touch by e-mail, we are always surprised to see how quickly people return!

This reminded me of a comment made by one of our missionaries at the missionary conference this year. She reflected on the change she had noticed among Japanese young people in the last five years. Having been here 14 years, I had to agree that a lot has changed. For example, Japanese people appear freer with expressing their opinions, and women have gradually taken on greater roles within society. Television shows now openly discuss social issues such as domestic violence and shoplifting. At the same time, I have noticed a greater acceptance of foreigners and the expectation that people will learn to speak Japanese. The changes are not only social, but also physical. In the last 10 years, the neighborhood where I live has undergone tremendous change, moving away from single-family homes to highrises and bringing in a new subway line. My years in Japan, however, are just a teenage view in comparison to some of our long-term career missionaries. This year, for example, we honored one couple completing 43 years of mission service who had come to Japan by ship.

Though I was in charge of this year’s conference, I was still able to enjoy much of the time together. One of the things I particularly enjoyed was seeing yet another change that has occurred within our missionary community itself. Our mission personnel now represent the Philippines, Korea, South Africa, Canada, England, Japan, and the U.S. Alongside our lectures on the topic of "Christian Education in Japan: Past, Present and Future," one of the small-group "projects" we had at this years’ conference was to find creative ways to present Scripture. As our conference included several Japanese pastors, I was amazed at how many times these groups represented several nationalities and languages.

As an American raised in the Philippines, living in Japan and working in a Korean church community, I have felt blessed for the variety of nationality groups and communities through which the Lord has given me opportunity to relate. This Easter, I had to smile as I saw the young adults group and the Korean exchange student group working together to help lead our district level church choir competition. What made me smile was the fact that they had chosen to lead songs in Korean, Japanese, and English. The ability to enjoy relating together in different languages is truly a challenge that the KCCJ has chosen to turn into a blessing for its community.

This January, I began to take advantage of our Internet age in a new way by taking a class with Fuller Theological Seminary (Pasadena, California) via computer as a start to working on a master’s of theology degree. Following my home assignment period from July-September, I hope to continue work on this degree, as I believe it is a good learning opportunity and will prepare me for greater involvement in mission work.

If you would be interested in having me visit you or your church while I am on home assignment, please e-mail me at gber141@hotmail.com I would be happy to consider arrangements with you. My schedule is tentatively as follows:

• July 7 First Reformed Church, Orange City, Iowa
• July 14 Second Reformed Church Wyckoff, Wyckoff, New Jersey
• July 21 Northminster Presbyterian Church, Ames, Iowa
• July 25-28 Reunion at Biola College, California
• August 3-10 PC(USA) Sharing Conference, Kentucky
• August 11 Hingham Reformed Church, Hingham, Wisconsin
• August 18 Forreston Reformed Church, Forreston, Illinois
• Ebenezer Reformed Church, Oregon, Illinois
• August 25 Faith United Presbyterian Church, Yates, Illinois
• September Tentative for two churches in northeast Washington state

I look forward to hearing from you and hope that I may be able to see many of you while I am in the U.S.

Love in Christ,

Gail Beran

The 2002 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 185