Summer Update
Hello again all. We are just getting our feet on the ground, getting over jet lag here in the US. Our first stop is Washington state to visit Becky's family. But before we share our travel plans, here is an update on our summer.
Though Covid numbers have been at their highest, there has been minimal disruption to our daily life. That is to say people are still very cautious and church meetings are still altered, but we have not gone back to cancelling schools or church services as had been done previously when the numbers were concerning people. We have been carrying on as best we can.
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Speaking of Covid, we all got sick in the middle of July, (maybe Covid?), and passed it around the house for two weeks, each getting sick in turn. During those two weeks, we celebrated our fourteenth anniversary by sitting on the couch and taking the above picture, while Travis' fever burned, haha. Can you see the exhaustion in our eyes? We did have a chance after we all got well to go out just the two of us for dinner and celebrate our fourteen years. We are so blessed and grateful to have each other as spouses, life partners and friends. Here's to many more years!
At the same time we were all sick, Travis had his final Izumi Junior College English class scheduled. Thankfully, he was able to create an online lesson for that class session so that he and his students would not have to reschedule and cram in another class before finals the following week. And by the next week, we were all fever free and on the mend so he was able to attend class to give the final exam and finish well.
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Tim Turner and Travis continue their Wednesday English Bible study with a few people from the neighborhood; the class is continuing their study through the book of Romans. Please pray for these non-Christian attendees, that the word word take root, and for Tim as he continues to teach the class while Travis is away.
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Did you know Japan has a game called Suikawari to play in the summer where you try to break the watermelon while blind folded? This special "jumbo" watermelon was almost $100 dollars at store near our house! It was possibly not for suikawari playing, but still an interesting find with its own custom handled-basket. Check out the peeping apple on the table in front for size comparison.
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Travis has been working steadily, supply preaching about 3 Sundays a month, around at different congregations. There continues to be concern for the aging ministers of Japan, and a lack of the the next generation to hand over the leadership of the church to. We are still working with the Macedonian Project to build a program to facilitate new missionaries to come alongside these ministers to bridge the gap. The program has been paused for the last two years due to travel restrictions for new workers and tourists in Japan.
Border control measures have gradually begun lightening, and it looks as though new visas will be more accessible in the coming months. Please pray for the preaching ministers in Japan, and for new workers to be sent to Japan, and most especially for the next generation in Japan to be discipled and raised up in the Church.
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Naomi and Maye both enjoyed summer break from Homeschool and Kindergarten/preschool, respectively. We celebrated with sparklers and had many fun family outings while the girls were off of school. Since we are traveling for three months this fall, we will continue Homeschool on the road, but Maye will be off from her kindergarten until we return to Japan in December. We are grateful for the flexibility of homeschool and the kindergarten where Maye attends to be able to take a trip during the school year.
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Last month our big girl turned seven years old! We can't believe how time has flown. She is growing and maturing, losing teeth, and beginning to ask some big questions. We are grateful to God everyday for our sweet Naomi Grace.
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Daniel is getting bigger and more entertaining every day. He has been practicing a few words here and there, but mostly enjoys exploring and discovering the world around him. He is very adventurous and quite a handful to keep up with, but we love watching him explore and find new silly expressions to communicate with us.
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As I mentioned above we are now traveling on our three month furlough. Lord willing, we will travel from here, Washington state, to Alaska to reconnect with our home church family and support network there. It has been over four years and we are so excited to go back! At the end of October we will fly to Missouri and from there travel around the south and midwestern states. One of our stops in the midwest will be at ICOM in Columbus, OH. We will be at the "Say Yes To Japan" booth. If you are there, look us up!
We have many stops planned, and are excited to see familiar faces, spend time with family and meet new people along the way. Please pray for us as we travel, for enough rest to keep up with the pace. We also pray to be able to share what God is doing in our lives, and encourage others as we are encouraged by the church to keep working at whatever God puts in front of each of us.
We are so blessed to be able to take this trip. We have had so much support to get us here. However, we are also blessed with a ministry team who takes up the slack for us when we are gone. Please especially pray for the church at Machida, and the staff and church members this fall. We are grateful for them and pray that they can carry on and be blessed as they work faithfully while we are gone.
Hope to see many of you in the coming weeks!
God bless,
The Kilsons
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