If you have ever thought about going on a mission trip, consider being a participant in a Japan trip this summer. For over 20 years Christ Church Lutheran has been sending teams of students to serve in our sister school, Urawa Lutheran.
As both a mother who has sent a daughter when she was a sophomore and as a team member for two years, I can assure you that this trip is one that is safe, organized and extremely rewarding. The team members stay in a “homestay” ‘with a school family. The students will attend Urawa daily, interacting in the classrooms and serving as English tutors in a variety of ways. The most enriching part of the week is staying with the families where our students can experience the culture and lifestyle of a Japanese family.
Your student will be in capable hands and in a country that puts safety as a priority. The school administration takes excellent care of our team and appreciates our students who share their faith in personal testimony, drama, songs and one on one conversation in their homestays.
Our relationship with Urawa is one that we value and treasure as an incredible opportunity to share the gospel and encourage the few Christians that are at the school. Japan is a country with about 0.5% claiming to have Christian affiliation. The Lutheran school provides daily bible reading, chapel and bible classes although even some of the teachers are non-believers. One of the draws to this particular school is programs like this that expose the students to English. Christ Church Lutheran also receives a group of students from Japan each year along with a group of teachers who spend the week at homes of CCL or VLHS families.
What an open door God is giving us to share our faith and experience the beauty of this amazing country!
If you would like to talk more about having your child participate in the 2023 Japan Mission team, please contact Mrs. Joyce Schrank (jschrank@vlhs.org) or talk to Mr. Jason Mangels (jmangels@cclphoenix.org) as soon as possible.( Participants need to be in high school or starting high school in 2023). We would like to get our team organized by the end of January. The dates are June 9 to June 19. The cost is $2,000 which includes everything but souvenirs. Fundraising opportunities are available. If you are interested but finances are an obstacle let us know. Please pray for this team as we wait to see who God is calling to serve Him once again in Japan.
Also, we anticipate hosting Japanese students once again at the beginning of August. Please keep this in mind since we will be looking for host families to host our visitors during their stay here. More information is to come on hosting Japanese students!!