Today the Hokkaido team says, “Goodbye” to Bob and Sue MacGill from San Francisco, CA. They are members of Sherwood Forest FWB. This trip marks the 5th time the retired couple has visited Japan with the intention of aiding the building projects in Hokkaido. Their company is treasured and their help is invaluable. The Hokkaido team expresses their deepest thanks.

An update from Rusty Carney:
“Upon arriving in the States, we took Grace to her initial visit at Vanderbilt on May 10 where she was evaluated by a nurse practitioner. The practitioner didn't think Grace had autism, but said she could try to get us in to see the child psychologist if we just wanted a second opinion from another child psychologist. She also recommended that we get assessments from a speech and occupational therapist. We decided to do all of the above, so our summer has been filled with searching for and scheduling appointments with doctors, speech therapists and occupational therapists.

We had been waiting for months to have Grace tested by the child psychologists at Vanderbilt because we knew they were some of the best in the nation for dealing with autism. Finally they were able to get us in, and we went in this week on the 25th and 26th for testing.

The lady who tested her said that she was an expert on autism and that she did not think that Grace had autism or was anywhere on the spectrum! She did say that she was a little behind in some areas, but that usually children who are learning two languages at once are a little behind when they're young, but soon surpass us all when they get older!

We are overjoyed at the good news, and are thankful for all of the practical things that we are learning from Grace's occupational therapist to help us deal with her sensory issues. We feel relieved that we will now have a "game plan" to follow in how we deal with Grace once we return to Japan.

We are hoping in September we will be able to return to Japan, but do not have that confirmed yet. Our time here in the States has been good, and we have really enjoyed being able to catch-up with so many people and churches. However our hearts and minds keep moving back to the people whom God has chosen us to minister to. We still have about a year of language school left, so pray the Lord would work everything out as far as when we return and where we will live.”

Ruth McDonald’s monthly efforts through The Good News Kids ministry continues to attract young moms and their children to the Good News Chapel church plant. Through the past 15 months of this ministry, Ruth has continued to develop the relationship with these moms. Just this week, Ruth announced to these moms of her upcoming "Parenting" class that she plans to begin this fall.

The Baileys were blessed to have the girls from the Tokyo E-Team visit Kamifukuoka Christ Church Sunday morning! Testimonies and special singing by the young ladies touched hearts and, following worship time, they enjoyed curry rice with the church people. The girls then ministered to the Sunday afternoon Children’s English and Bible class. They taught songs, did face-painting and were a great witness to the young children and unsaved parents by showing their enthusiasm and loving attitude, along with singing Gospel songs in Japanese.

The Free Will Baptist International Mission Board unanimously voted on May 5, 2011, via email ballot, to accept the resignation of Debbie Griffin, missionary to Japan, with commendation for 26 years of faithful service. Griffin submitted her letter of resignation on May 3, 2011.
“I went to Japan in obedience to God’s call on my life,” Debbie wrote, “and now I believe that it is His plan for me to return home to fulfill another of His commands, to honor my mother.”
Debbie returned to her home in Georgia toward the end of January at the request of family members. Using personal vacation time, she spent February caring for her mother. The board granted a leave of absence for March and April to allow her to seek God’s guidance for her future. She believes God is leading her to continue caring for her mother during Mrs. Griffin’s illness.
“It has been a joy to work alongside the wonderful missionaries of the Japan team. They are hard working people who love the Lord and are dedicated to seeing His church built in Japan,” Debbie affirmed. “May God richly bless FWB International Missions.”
“Debbie was a tremendous asset to the Japan missionary team,” stated Dale Bishop, regional director for Asia. “We will miss her, but know she is following God’s leading. We will continue to pray for her and know God will use her to build His Kingdom regardless of where she is located.”
Debbie Griffin was appointed to missionary service in April 1985.

On April 14th, the Carneys will be taking a four month medical leave to have their daughter, Grace, who is showing signs of autism, evaluated at Vanderbilt Children's Hospital in Nashville, TN. The evaluation is scheduled for May 10th at 9:30 AM. Please pray the doctors are able to get a true picture of what Grace is really dealing with, and that they will be able to equip themselves with the tools to help her during this time. They hope to return to Japan while praying the Lord would give clear direction during the medical leave.

Nathan Snow will help facilitate a medical team to go into one of the disaster areas of the tsunami affected region of northeast Japan . Nathan will transport medical professionals into the region and help them assess the area for a possible base from which the Christian relief agency C.R.A.S.H. can send relief teams. The self contained assessment team will leave from Hokkaido by ferry on Thursday or Friday to enter the affected disaster areas and will spend from 3 to 10 days specifically analyzing the needs and situation of the Morioka area. Many Japanese, both in evacuation centers and in personal residences are in much need for supplies and assistance for daily life.

An 8.8 (some reports say 8.9) magnitude earthquake hit the northern coast of Japan yesterday afternoon. We have heard from several missionaries, who have indicated that all our workers are fine.

Regional Director Dale Bishop wrote, "You may have heard of the earthquake here in Japan. All of our people are fine. There is still quite a lot of tsunamis (tidal waves) happening but we are located on a hill and away from the coast. Don't know how many lives have been lost but there is going to be a considerable amount of damage to property according to reports we are seeing on TV."

Ruth McDonald confirmed this: "We are fine!! We have also heard from all of the other FWB missionaries here, and everyone is safe and at home. The main area of damage is north of Tokyo, south of Hokkaido. None of us live close enough to a coastline to suffer from tsunamis. We definitely had a MAJOR quake, and we had some items fall and break in our house (lamps, vases, books, etc.) Our children were unable to return from school by train, as they all ceased. But the school has a great protocol in place for the students' safety, and they kept them safe and calm until we were able to go by car to pick them up. Thank you for your prayers. I'm sure there are many in need of them at this time."

"Even as we thank God for the safety of our workers, we realize that people entered eternity while we slept last night," mourned Interim General Director Clint Morgan. "The likelihood is that many of them never heard the gospel. Please join me in praying that this tragedy will give Christians in Japan the opportunity to share the gospel with family and friends."