The Churches and Pastors in Japans disaster area: updates

The Chinese Christian Relief Association currently has a small team in Japan exploring the long term options to assist the local churches in their relief efforts. This week they are visiting four churches which strategically lay in a good place to do an effective job. Christianity in the disaster area according to recent reports is measured with 0,3 %, in the capital city of Japan, Tokyo, with 0,1-0,2% Christians the most. Most of the pastors if they are "young"  are just short before their 70 yrs birthday.
   According to reports the disaster area churches with the biggest loss in human lives average 20 church members on Sunday worship, which means for them to handle such a big disaster relief operation is too much. - CCRA is thinking about building more permanent centers of relief for the coming month and maybe two years to assist the local churches with some proefessional personel and logistics to coordinate local relief efforts between denominations in Kesennuma, Shizugawa, Ishinomaki and Higashimatsuyam.
   Thus to transfer some of the won experience to promote the Christian testimony with an outstretched hand of love as practised after the Puli Earthquake in September 1999, when we were in Puli, Central Taiwan, might boost the impact of Gods love in so many destroyed families, hurt and bitter hearts and visionless survivors at place, where in one place more than 8000 people (half of their small cities population) died through the waves of the tsunami.
Tina Lin, a missionary from Taiwan with SEND International, helps together with support from her churches convention in Northwest Tokyo to regularly bring in people into the disaster area for 2 weeks per month. Applicants shall send in their requests to SEND International of Taiwan, Sending Department, P.o.Box 44-66 406 Taichung or mail to sendtw@ms16.hinet.net. If you would like to be updated in Chinese or English about Tina Lins work in Japan you can use the same email address to be put on the list of recepients and prayer partners. CCRA has closed its relief account, the other options are still possible to use.