Merry Christmas from the Chapmans

At this time of year, one often hears the phrase, “the true meaning of Christmas” in movies, TV

shows and on the radio. What follows is usually a reference to love and family. The Bible gives a

very clear description of the meaning of Christmas as recorded in John 1:14.

“The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory,

the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

Dear Family, Friends and Partners in the Gospel,

We are thankful to God for each of you and the impact you have in our lives. You build us up by your encouraging words and letters. You pray for us and for the Japanese among whom we serve as your ambassadors. It has been a joy to reconnect with many of you as we have visited our church partners. Following is a brief update, so you know how your prayers for our family are being answered. Chris (24) is in the US Navy stationed in California, but in Florida for training during the winter. We will see him in late February, Lord willing. He is doing very well and was recently promoted. Rachael (22) is a senior at Biola University studying sociology. She is moving to a new apartment this month and will make a trip to MN in early January to visit family. We are so excited to see her. She is trying to get an internship and possible full-time employment in the near future. She has found a small church to attend and has a part-time job as a restaurant hostess. Caleb (19) is living at home and working at the local Office Max. He has been accepted at two institutions for college beginning Fall 2015. He enjoys his job and is active at church as a youth group leader and as worship team guitarist, as time allows. He is working on being completely independent by the time his family returns to Japan in the summer. Anna (13) is in 8th grade at Cambridge Christian School and is doing well academically. In addition, she played on the jr. high volleyball team and is currently on the basketball team. She is very active in church youth group and has lots of friends. She is also using her new computer to keep up with friends in Japan via Skype, etc. Barb (?) is enjoying connecting with old friends and classmates, as well as with partners who have supported our ministry for many years. Home Assignment is a time for her to be spiritually challenged and recharged and she is praising God for what He is doing in her life and in the lives of our children. To keep busy, she often substitutes at the Christian school and helps with pre-school. Jeff just turned 53 and is now only 2 years away from the senior menu at most restaurants. He has spent a lot of time with doctors and has been diagnosed with fructose intolerance. With the assistance of a homeopathic practitioner, he is learning how to manage this while regaining normal digestive function. His main activity has been to visit our partnering churches, which he thoroughly enjoys. He also has been able to spend much time in Iowa visiting his aging parents. He has been greatly blessed and recharged by the Holy Spirit through some good preaching he has heard while on Home Assignment.

This appears to be the only family photo we will have opportunity to take this year. Chris is in the back and Caleb in the

front, with Rachael and Anna in the middle. This was taken at Santa Monica Pier during one of our two whole family days in July.

Caleb was chosen to take the “ussie” (selfie with multiple subjects) due to his long arms. The trip was multi-purpose: 1) Deliver Chris’ car to him at the base, as it was stored in MN when he joined the Navy 2) Deliver Caleb to the Missionary Kid Re-entry Retreat at Biola University 3) Visit Rachael, who was in desperate need of hugs We celebrated 25 years together February 4, 2014! We went to

a hotel near the beach where we first became engaged during our first year of ministry in Japan. It was a dual-purpose trip, as

we also checked out a possible future ministry site. Barb’s favorite part was the life-sized Ninja Maze.

Ministry Update As you know, we have completed the cell-church plant project and are preparing to move on to a new ministry. We will be working with an existing church to strengthen it’s ministry in the local area. We also plan to work with church leaders to launch a church-planting ministry. While we know WHAT God wants us to do, the WHERE is still undecided as of this writing. Please pray for us to discern

God’s perfect will for our next ministry site. We know it will be in the Kansai (Osaka) area, but there are several churches wanting our partnership. Two recent events have confirmed our resolve to take the gospel to Japan 1) The Prime Minister has declared that he will again make Japan into a Shinto state, joining religion

and government as it was prior to WWII. 2) For the first time in the history of Christianity in Japan, 65 Christian leaders met

to share a vision to start 50,000 Christian gatherings in the next 10 years. The amazing part about this is that all 65 leaders are Japanese! This is not a missionary-led movement. Please pray for these leaders, for the church, and for the missionaries, as we work together to wage the spiritual battle that is looming just ahead. Christ is the victor. May you experience God’s indescribable Gift in a fresh way this Christmas! Love in Christ, Jeff, Barb, Chris, Rachael, Caleb and Anna