We have had a glorious day of sunshine, bright blue skies, a bit of wind, but spring is definitely coming.  Much of the news today from the computer has dealt with the earthquake in Japan, all news filled with sadness,  and how can it not be—it is so surreal to watch the videos that are on all the news channels .  And yes, I do want to share one report of what will no doubt turn into hundreds when they ever get communications up inside Japan and when the brothers and sisters who survived may want to share how they survived.  Here is a story from a brother who lives some few miles away from the nuclear reactor that is one of the current problems.  This was shared with me:

This came from a very good friend of mine who lives just 65 miles from the nuclear power plant that’s been on the news. This is his account of daily life in Japan after the earthquake.

Subject: Some things that were heard and seen the last two days.

Here are a few items that came in at the meeting today and I wanted to share them with you.

All the congregations in our immediate area have reported that all the brothers and sisters are accounted for. It is believed that many of the brothers and sister who lived near the coastline immediately headed for the high ground (flee to the mountains) and were saved. WHEN THEY FELT the earthquake and HEARD the sirens they acted wisley. 

Please keep your brothers and sisters here in Japan in your prayers. Many have lost everything and ONLY have their brothers and sisters now and maybe a few items that they have carried with them. The brothers here are very organized as you might have guessed and all will be carred for as soon as possible.

#2 The news report says that from the time the 8.8 earthquake hit and the first waves came it was less than 15 minutes in some places. For 6 minutes the sea ONLY pushed and gained momentum moving forward and pushing everything out of the way. Then it started dragging everything back toward the sea. Then it decided to come forward again so in effect it was a giant washing machine.  What a mess it made.

#3 Japan is one of the MOST developed island nations in the world.

There is a tremendous amount of live footage from this disaster and it is amazing to see huge oil tankers getting thrown around like a toy boat. We will all no doubt be seeing this for many weeks. It or a similar disaster could happen there close to you so please be as prepared as you can. Think Ahead! Japan is very used to tsunami’s but nothing like this tsunami ever happened before.  Japan is used to earthquakes but nothing like this has ever happened before.   ???

Water mains are broken and electric power plants non-op are all over the place.Not to mention reactors that they are unable to shut down/turn off/cool down etc..etc 

Inland and on the coast water and food and propane for cooking and heaters and gas (in case you can drive to a relative or friend in a safer area) are already in short supply.

Grocery stores are EMPTY! People are rushing to buy up anything they think will better their chances for their daily survival.

Many people who did have a survival food supplies still lost everything because their entire house floated away. It seems the people in the hills are the ones who have more supplies so it is good to think WHERE or with whom some emergency supplies can be stored safely.

I tell you honestly that it is a very strange kind of scary feeling when during the meeting we get a aftershock that shakes the ground under the kingdom hall. Some sisters let out a little scream and the brothers may have done the same. Our Kingdom Halls are always build strong and nothing broke in ours this time but it sure makes one think about where we might be on the last hour of the last day of the system of things. ??? 

One last amazing thing that I thought was awesome. The town Sukagawa where our Kingdom Hall is has very little water right now because the main water main is broken.

People are lined up a hundred deep or more to get water from the water trucks that have been brought into the town.  Our Kingdom Hall was built on top of a spring and by the front door there are two faucet’s. The witnesses who live in the town brought their water jugs with them to meeting to get water. I was one of the water fillers. It was a great honor ( and a good way to meet the brothers)  and they are all happy because they know where they can come and get fresh water. Their Kingdom Hall has everything we really need.

Br. Karl   (End of letter from Japan)

But there was an official statement released this morning at the breakfast table for the  Bethel families in all the branches and I believe the brothers encouraged those who heard it to share it with their families to give them reassurance.  This is what one brother shared and it was forwarded to me:

Dear friends,

This morning, we received an update from the head of the Bethel table regarding the situation of our brothers in Japan. They informed us that about 310,000 persons in the North have fled their homes and are currently staying in some 850 shelters that have been set up by the government. None of the brothers are at the branch. In the affected area, according to available records, there are about 2,300 of our brothers. At this point, it has been confirmed that one brother and one sister have lost their lives, and one unbelieving husband of a sister also died. Sadly, so far, 115 of our brothers have also been reported as missing. 5 Kingdom Halls were destroyed. Three disaster relief committees have been set up to assist the brothers.

Regarding ways in which we can be of support, we were encouraged to continue persevering in prayer for our brothers and sisters in Japan. This is something that the Bethel family has been doing non-stop over the past few days, since we first learned of the news. We also have been encouraged to make donations to the worldwide work to share in assisting with the needs, as necessary funds will be funneled into caring for the needs in Japan. 

Two scriptures were shared, which are both appropriate for us to be comforted with. Psalm 46:1, 2 reminds us: “God is for us a refuge and strength, a help that is readily to be found during distresses. That is why we shall not fear, though the earth undergo change and though the mountains totter into the heart of the vast sea.” We are also encouraged by 2 Corinthians 1:3-7 which describes Jehovah as the “God of all comfort” who “comforts us during all our tribulations.” 

For our part, we have 70-80 personal friends (as you may well know) who live in in the Saitama/Tokyo area. We have been in contact with many of them and have been reassured of their well-being. They appreciate the reassurances of concern and the prayers in their behalf by many here. It is very comforting to them. We reach them periodically because of rolling blackouts issued by the government in order to conserve energy. For many of those not in the immediate affected area, their anxiety is focused on the yet unfolding nuclear situation which presents challenges all its own. 

We hope this information is helpful to you in directing your prayerful thoughts toward many of our dear brothers in Japan. As we receive any further useful information, we will be pleased to convey it to you. (End of letter from Bethel)

Now for a different note, something to encourage us from the field ministry.  This experience took place in Belgium—and you can see that the brothers and sisters everywhere are very cognizant of the many refugees being brought into their lands (or who are fleeing there).  

Saturday had a great experience in service.  Firstly it was really cold (below freezing with the windchill) but I’m pioneering this month so couldn’t even dream of hiding under my covers . A sister in my hall, Danielle and I worked together and I did the magazine presentation at the intercom for an apartment building and the man, Kiren, came down and invited us up. On the way up to his apartment I decided to offer him the BT book instead of the magazines and as soon as he looked at it he said “How did you know that I wanted to learn about the Bible?” He told us that he is Hindu (from Bhutan originally but lived in Nepal for years) but hasn’t found answers and comfort and just 2 weeks ago he started to go to the Dutch Protestant church near his house because he wanted to learn about the Bible and how to pray (he doesn’t speak Dutch but said he didn’t know where else to turn. He said he didn’t know how to pray either so he just looked at what the other people were doing and followed them.  We were able to talk with him for about an hour, left the BT book with him.  He said where he lives no one else in the building speaks English and he doesn’t speak French and only a very very little Dutch so he said he is very lonely most of the time and feels like there is no chance for him to have friends unless he goes back to Bhutan (although he has no family there..his mom died when he was 5 and since his brother was a political activist against the government the rest of his family “disappeared” in 1991 and he hasn’t heard from then since). We helped to see that even though neither of us are from Belgium originally by going to the meetings, we have been able to make true friends here and then we offered to pick him up for meeting on Sunday.

 

Sunday when we picked him up he said that after we had left on Saturday he went to the community center (CC) in the area because he was just too much is shock at what had happened that he needed to get out of his apartment and he was so surprised that God could answer his prayer in such a short time. At the CC he met another man from Nepal so he invited him to the meeting today and that guy came too! Kiran’s English is ok but not great; the 2 languages he speaks fluently are Hindi and Nepali. There is a brother in my Hall from Nepal so Kiran was able to speak to him today at the Hall. We only had an English Bible available for him, but there was a brother visiting our hall for a few weeks who had a Nepali Bible with him so he gave it to Kiran. Yesterday evening he said he has wasted the first 39 years of his life so he called and said he wants to study every day.  Danielle’s husband started the study with him this morning. (End of letter from Belgium)

Now I close with a hope that this letter has been uplifting to you in some small way amid all the chaos and sad news around us.  Yes, we must lift up our heads and rejoice!

Your Christian brother,  Weldon