A Report by Mark and Pauline Maxey

/LiNKLerreR/
To the friends of the Kyushu Christian Mission

Kanoya, Kagoshima 893 Japan - Box 417, N. Vernon IN 47265

LINKLETTER #284

FEBRUARY 1988

Dear Christian friends,

In the twelve year cycle brought over to Japan from China, this is the year

of the Dragon and I am "draggin" already. In ny last letter I mentioned bringing

\
/ my "One Man's Opinion" column to a close in Horizons magazine. Some readers
/ thought it was n\y own idea to end the column. Rather, it was the wish of the edi- \
tors to use the page to hear from many writers rather than just one.
\
They suggested that readers might want to write me a word of thanks. Many
did so. I will note just one from a doctor in Indiana. He said, " 'One Man's Opi
nion is one of the few articles written by Christian Church writers that is worth
reading on a consistent basis. Thank you for 150 columns. They will be missed."
I just might frame that and hang it where I can see it once in awhile.

fd. & RHONDA JUVE, NEWBORN LAURA,

November is a great month of the year. The weather is good and lots of things / 4aRAH juve & GRANDDAUGHTER ERIN

are happening: EBC camp with Joel Likins, speaker, and 29 campers; an all day Su^
daXouting of the Kushira church Sunday School with service followed by hlkin^'-irfid
picni-e~.at our camp grounds; and concrete being poured for the new Faith-Love Kind
ergarten building operated by the Kanoya church.

Pauline spoke to the joint women's meeting at the leper colony in November,
using "Prayer" as her topic. In January she used "A New Year is a New Page" as
her theme for a talk to the women's group at Kanoya church, and also at Kushira.
In addition she teaches her ladies' English Bible Class in the Christian Center
twice a month. This in addition to running her home and caring for the great number
of people who come our way. Dr. Suzaki monitors her condition twice a month and

urges her to rest more and more so easy to say - so hard to do.
A1 and Rhonda Juve, minister-missionaries at Sueyoshi church are the stars

of our annual convention held by a different church every November 23. This year
it was at Sueyoshi in the northeast corner of our prefecture. They and the church
people did a super job in preparation and in conducting the convention.
Akimaru Kuroki, leader of the church at the leper colony, was the first speaker.
He traced the 50 year history of the believers, noting that we had worked with them

for 37 years. Hideto Yoshii, from Onga church in north Kyushu, was the second speak
er. He had a vital and energetic message for us. In addition we had some special
numbers by the Yoshii quartet: Hideo Yoshii, Kanoya minister; his son, Makoto; his
brother, Hidenobu Yoshii, Christian teacher; and youngest brother, Hideto. This

family has made a positive contribution to the Christian faith in this country.
Also, in the musical part of the program, Makoto Yoshii, accompanied by his
sister, Noriko, played his guitar &sang this song he had written in our honor. It is
called "Arigato" (Thank You!).

These are the words:

kuSHI^'tnURCH BIBLE SCHOOL GUli^G

1) Like Abraham who left his home and went, you came to a strange land to visit us.
Knowing all the inconveniences you would face, you cametolive with us.

2) Like Job who endured hardships of life, you've gone through pain and sorrows.
For the sake of the Japanese people, for the sake of the Gospel, you've endured

t?"'

these hardships.

3) Like the Apostle Paul who dreamed of the salvation of the world, you've been
praying for the salvation of this country. Ue now want to carry on your dream
and your work for the Lord. We also want to live for the world.

TOOURW'iHTtR M

COURSE Jim
ll?! if? .r W-l H-JJ

26TH ANNUAL WINTER TRAINING COURSE-WALTER MAXEY, TEACHER

CHRISTMAS MEETING-PAULINE'S BIBLE CLASS

Chorus: Thank you, thank you for your unceasing work for us. Thank you, 0 God, who sent you to us.
Makoto Yoshii left in December to continue his graduate studies at Indiana University. We will miss his
sincere faith, gentle ways and cheerful service. And we will pray for his return to serve in Japan,
I also had 30 minutes to review my ministry. After which, Bro. Yoshii gave me a plaque on behalf of the conv
ention remembering my 50 years as a preacher. Later, the Kanoya church hada fellowship gathering for the same purpose.
There was a delicious carry-in supper of Japanese food followed by recollections by the old-timers of our early days
in Kanoya. We received a "His and Hers" coffee set and an automatic coffee maker and grinder that will make one sit
up and take notice - even without drinking the coffee.
Jodi Summers spent four days with us on her way back to Lebanon, Oregon after six months of service in north
ern Luzon. We had a Chinese meal for her at a local restaurant. She also gave a moving testimony at the monthly Sun
day evening youth meeting at the Kanoya church. Her folks have been friends for many years. Her father, Wy, is a phar
macist who sees that our prescriptions are soon filled and on the way to us.

December 9 was the birthday of A1 and Rhonda Juve's second daughter, named Laura Ruth. What a beautiful baby
she is. The Juve's have successfully completed their first term of service and will be returning to the U.S. for fur
lough at the end of March. A year of graduate study at Cincinnati Bible Seminary will also be a part of Iheir furlough
year. Keep them in your prayers, please.

Thanksgiving found 15 around our table, including Major Pete Juve from Kansas. Christmas brought family and
friends together in a joyful way. We talked to our absent children by phone. Here in person were Paul and Faith Axton
and daughter Erin from north of Tokyo; Walter and Mary, Shelley and Trent from Kagoshima; Fumiatsu and Sophia Ikeda who
had a Christmas tree sent us from Oregon: English teachers Jim Scott and Luann Chapman; Julia Pananen, Rotary Exchange
~student and Jeff Rada, both professor and graduate student from Los Angeles...the house was too small so we had Christ
mas dinner in the big classroom at the Christian Center. We ate a lot, rejoiced a lot, shared our gifts and gratitude
with each other and to God and enjoyed the presence of children among us. We also thanked God for a great number of
friends, like the readers of this letter, who shared cards, letters, food and other good things with us. How blessed
we are.

So much to be reported but so little space to say it. Our annual training course is held during the coldest
winter days. Our teacher this year was son, Walter Maxey, who conducted 28 hours of teaching at six churches, including
four nights of two hours each at the Christian Center. His subject, "What the Bible has to say about Ancestor Worship."

This is a subject relevant to every Japanese believer. Thanks, son, for a superb job of preparati^p^nd presentation.
You got us off to a good start for the year. Must close. God bless you all. IN HIS SERVICE,

34TH FALL CONVENTION OF KAGOSHIMA CHURCHES OF CHRIST

HOSTS: SUEYOSHI CHURCH-AL &RHONDA JUVE, MISSIONARIES

3 YOSHII BROTHERS PLUS CONVENTION GIVES

^ SON SING AT THE CONV. 50TH YEAR PLAQUE

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i^n
A Report by Mark and Pauline Maxey

APRIL 1988

/uNKLerreR/

LINKLETTER
#285

To the friends of the Kyushu Christian Mission

Kanoya, Kagoshima 893 Japan - Box 417, N. Vernon IN 47265

Dear Christian friends,

ago.

A shortened version of the following material appeared in Horizons magazine a few months
Pauline thought it would be of interest to readers of the LINKLETTER, many of whom will not

have read it in that magazine. Therefore, please read on:

Some of the best Moody Science films in their early days used what was called "time-lapse:
photography. This is how it worked: a movie camera takes sixteen pictures per second. But the Moody
Science people set a camera to take only five pictures every minute. Mounting the camera on a tripod
setting in the middle of a field, they would start the camera running at sunrise and turn it off at
sunset, many hours later. When this film was run through a movie camera at the regular speed, one
could see one day's life of the flowers in that field in just three minutes and forty-five seconds.Itwas
dramatic and beautiful but kind of sad as well. For the truth revealed was that both life and beauty
are short - "Just one life, t'will soon be past. Only what's done for Chrisjt will last."

In this letter, however, we will follow the idea above and try to give you in a few minutes
reading time a view of the significant events in our lives on the way to "mission".

Having made a life-changing decision in Minnesota under the preaching of George Mark Elliot,
I met him again in a class on the Old Testament Prophets when I moved to Cincinnati^ Ohio to continue
n\y education. This was in the fall of 1940. In the same class I met iny wife-to-be, Pauline Pethtel of

Wind Ridge, Pennsylvania.

We were married 15 months later and continued our schooling until she got

her degree and I finished two graduate degrees.

There are all kinds of Ideas on what determines destiny, but I affirm that as far as the
ministry is concerned, marriage determines destiny. I don't recall all the good advice that n\y father
gave but I do recall his counsel on marriage. He had married a superb woman and advised his sons to do

the same. My wife is such a person. She followed me to land's end without looking back and without
complaint. She reared and taught her children there as the only English speaking woman in our citytill just recently. She has been a true partner and encourager and even today, with good health rea
sons for staying home, she is always with me at every meeting and service I hold. I treasure her
presence and companionship above all others.

We were married just 1wo months after I began a ministry at North Vernon, Indiana.

map eind look it up. Follow US 50 west out of Clncinhatf.)

first child and our first recruits for the ministry.

We left there with regret in 1944 when I became

an Anny Chaplain but it still remains an Important part of our lives.

mission work since the beginning.

(Get a

In North Vernon we had our first home, our.

It has been a supporter of our

Also we have had five forwarding secretaries from that congregation

which means all our mission business is conducted from there. Charles Carter, the present minister,
says with a smile, "After I accepted the call to this church I soon found out that Morth Vernon meant
Mark Maxey." I am sure the post office knows me very well also.
When I was overseas, Pauline went to live In Laurel Homes, a government housing project in
Cincinnati, Ohio. Our first son was born in that city. Pauline soon started a Sunday School in her

apartment. Then a church service. It grew until it filled the social hall of the complex. It became
the Laurel Homes Church of Christ. Seminary students came down to worship, to serve, to be inspired
and go on to their own ministries Some found their mates there.

At the Missionary Convention in Orlando (198j^), a Black minister came over and sat down by
Pauline. He said, "Mrs. Maxey, I love you." Surprised, she said, "I don't understand. Do I know you?"
"No, you don't," he said, "but I became a Christian at Laurel Homes Church of Christ. If it hadn't
been for you starting that church, I would not be herie today. That is why I love you."

Nothing shows'the church's loyalty or Its disloyalty to Christ more than missions. The most
devoted group in any church are those dedicated to this cause. A century ago and following, it was
this loyalty to missions that made the various missionary organizations of the time the vital force
among the churches. In 1920-1921, these organizationis combined to form the United Christian Missionary
Society. It in turn became the mightiest force, the decision-making body of the brotherhood.
When it was revealed that many of the missionaries sent out by this organization no longer
believed in historical Christian truths, nor were they declaring on foreign shores the distinctive
principles of
New Testament Christianity for which we stood, it tore our people apart- never to be
rejoined, even to this day.

The time had come to write tny B.D. thesis. I determined to write a history of our missionary

work in the Philippine Islands for this project. At the same time I wanted to find out through n\y own
research just what happened to our missionary enterprise on its way from conservatism to modernism and
division. I finished writing it in time to get n\y degree but it was some later before I got it into book
form. In making this study, however, I had burned in ny mind forever the result of infidelty to the

Bible and to Christ, not only on the mission field, but also on the missionaries involved; as well

as on the churches, groups and individuals who had supported this mission - all in good faith that
that in which they had believed in so deeply was being taught and preached.

Thirty years later I had the thesis published as a book.

(History of the Philippine Mission,

Mark Maxey, Go Ye Books, 147 Ave Cota, San Clemente CA 92672. $8.50 postpaid.)

It has been a source of information for numerous articles about the Philippines but I have
never seen its existence acknowledged in either footnote or bibliography.There is oneperson,however, who
does insist that the book be read and studied. That is the grand old man of missions, J. Willis Hale,
of Manila Bible Seminary. He does not want his students of today to forget what happened yesterday
lest it happens again tomorrow.

The war ended while I was on a troop ship headed for the Japan invasion so it went to Manila

instead. I was in the Philippines 18 months, long enough for the history I had written and the people
who had participated in it to become real to me. From the Philippines I went to Japan in December,
1946. Pauline joined me there after a separation of two years. We were stationed near Kyoto, the only
un-bombed city left in Japan. We saw not only ancient culture but everyday idolatry in the temples and
shrines we visited. Unknown to us, the experience was leaving its mark.
Together, we looked up both missionaries and mission sites. We found that the churches

founded by the United Christian Missionary Society had all been handed over to the United Church of

Christ of Japan, a church formed by fiat of the Japanese government during the war. On the other hand
we were glad to see Owen and Shirley Stfll in Tokyo and Harold and Leone Cole in Osaka gathering
the Christians together again and bringing life back to our independent churches.
so.

Our oldest daughter, Paula, contracted polio in Japan, the only child on the Army camp to do
A^ng for a compassionate assignment, I was assigned as chaplain as Fort Custer, Michigan. Paula

was treated at Pfercy Jones General Hospital in nearby Battle Creek.

At the invitation of the owner, we began a Sunday School in the community hall of a new area

called Newtown. This became the Newtown Church of Christ. It was a thriving church and an active
mission church. We are sorry to report, however, it recently closed its doors.
On Sunday afternoons we drove 65 miles southwest to Vandalia, Michigan where a faithful band
of believers were holding on. We preached there for a year and a half. Then they called a preacher
full-time and a few years later built a wonderful facility a few miles out in the country. Larry
Settles and his wife, Joyce, have ministered there for 20+ years. One of the
preachers before them
was Paul Pratt and his wife, Kathleen, who later joined us in Kyushu as missionaries.
Meanwhile, on week nights, I was speaking about Japan in the churches of southern Michigan.
One day, in the middle of my sermon, I paused and said, "And we, too, are going to Japan as mission
aries." I looked at my wife and she nodded her head in agreement. Her committment had been made long
ago. She was waiting for me to catch up. 18 months from that day we were on our way to our life's
work at the southern tip of Japan.
The tenor of what I have written, while .seeming to suggest that our decision was made on the
spur of the moment, is to show just the opposite of that. Our decision was based on knowledge of the
field,.thorough educational preparation, an understanding of missionary practice and history, the
leading of the Holy Spirit and the mutual committment of husband and wife to serve as missionaries for
a life-time, the Lord willina. Also that both of us had been involved in church planting and encour
agement in our own country before going to another.

(I very much fear that present day. mission preparation, promotion and practice is for the
short term rather than the long term. Is this a sign of the times or only of our present generation?)
In addition, the churches we have served in Madelia and Truman, Minnesota; in Newtown and

Vandalia, Michigan; and the church at North Vernon, Indiana have been partners in our missionary task

frora^the verx^^giTfintngr'TTrTrtttef^woTdsrTnTose who Rinew us best^have given us complete and continuing

confidence.

Others of equal commitment have joined them through the years. Together, they insure the

_on^q^oijigjDf th^^^^

Japan both by ourselves and others. IN HIS SERVICE^

Have you read Way Down Here - the 400 page biography of our first 20 years In southern Japan? It is a

unique record of church planting and family life in an isqlated part of Japan where there were few posessions and little hope for the future. But the Gospel caught on fire and great .things happened. Per copy:
$11.50 postpaid. Buy 2 - for self & friend or as a gift for the church library. Two for $20 postpaid.
Order from: Go Ye Books, 147 Ave Cota, San Clemente CA 92672. (Check with order please. No billing.)

UNKLCTTrR

Non-Profit Organization

Publication of
KYUSHU CHRISTIAN MISSION
Box 14

U. S.POSTAGE
PAID

Louisville. Kentucky

North Vernon, Indiana 47265

Permit No. 537

Address Return Requested

EDITOR

horizons
BOX 2427

KNOXVILLE TN 37901

644

A Report by Mark and Pauline Maxey

MGOSHIMA INTERNATWHAL OmXXt OH VOiCAHOCS WM

/uNi^Lerret^/
To the friends of the Kyushu Christian Mission
Kanoya, Kagoshima 893 Japan - Box 417, N. Vernon IN 47265
Dear Christian friends,

July 1988

Linkletter #286

Do you like volcanoes? Come to Japan. It has 77 active volcanoes, 17

of which are dangerous. There are seven active volcanoes in our geographic area
and one just 20 miles from us that has erupted 5000 times since 1955. It's name
is Mt. Sakurajima. It is shown on the stamp,at the top of the page,just issued

B HI

in honor of the Kagoshima International Conference on Volcanoes, July 19-13, the

first such conference of its kind in the world. I hope they can come up with some
way to get rid of all the ash we have to live with here.

The last letter you got from us was more of a recollection of our life's

work rather than a report of our activities. Let's make up for that by recalling

some of the things that have happened since last February. In that month I start

ed preaching through Hebrews and found myself preaching a sermon about "Angels,"

&BETT'T

the first sermon on that subject in 50 years of preaching. There are a 106 ref
erences to angels in the Old Testament and 180 in the New. That ought to have

foster

caught my attention before now.

From walking, to pushcarts, to bicycles,to motorcyles.to scooters and

now to every person driving their own little cars (or big ones). To relieve the

chaos at the Christian Center we converted part of our front lawn to a graveled
parking lot. In addition, time has taken its toll on our buildings. So in the
past months we have re-done all tile roofs, painted some, repaired roofs and gut
ters and down spouts (we have more than 3 ft. of rain per year). Essentially, we
are now ready to face the next few years.

Next door to us is the Faith-Love Kindergarten wholly operated by the

Kanoya church but using mission land. They have just built a marvelous new build

ing and refurbished two existing buildings. So maybe we are trying to keep up

with our good looking neighbors next door besides doing what has to be done. It

is a pleasure to be invited to the events at the kindergarten and to teach English

to the students one hour each week. Also to have the children come visit us on

Flower Day. Recently Bro.Yoshii invited Pauline to speak to the kindergarten moth

At Sueyoshi: Me & Mrs. Chida

ers on her own experiences in child rearing and teaching.

In March we went by ferry and a very long ride in Walter's car to Niiga-

ta on the northwest coast of Honshu for the annual missionary convention, hosted
in a superior way this year by Bill and Akemi Belew and Joel and Debbie Likins.
Guest Bible lecturer was Prof. Tom Friskney,with his wife, from Cincinnati Bible
College and Seminary. He gave five excellent studies on the book of Revelation.

Afterward we were able to spend a few days with Paul and Faith Axton and grand
daughter Erin in Tsukuba, north of Tokyo, and to preach for the Tsuchiura church on
Sunday.

Hongkong: Helen &Wayann Jew

Teachers &Children bring Flowers on Flower Day Pauline w/Bro.Yoshii talks to Kindergarten mothers
WISHES*************************************

This Linkletter has gone out free of charge for many, many years.

It will continue to do so.

About half of the letters go to churches in large envelopes. We would like these churches and
groups to let us know by postcard If they want to get more letters, less letters or if the

number they are getting is just right. We are asking individual readers to do these things:
(1) Buy a 15t postcard. (2) With scissors cut out the LINKLETTER address (on the other side)

and paste or tape it on the front side of the postcard, (3) Now cut out your mailino address
and paste it on the back of the postcard. (4) Underneath your label write "Yes" if you want

to continue receiving the LINKLETTER. Write "No" if you'd rather not. (5) If your address
IS incorrect in any way, please correct it. Please do this now while it is on your mind - and

we will be grateful.

Thank you. -mgm-

March 25 found me giving the commencement sermon at Osaka Bible Seminary. It was a pleasure to do so be
cause both graduates were from Kagoshima: Miss Naomi Omura and Motonobu Ikeda, both superior young people. Miss
Omura will remain at the college as secretary and Mr. Ikeda will be doing graduate work in Cincinnati.

April 3 marked Easter Sunday

life as seen in a baby is surpassed by
3,1 preached early at the leper church
anniversary of the Kanoya Rotary Club.

this year. For me it 1s a more important day than Christmas. The joy of new
the greater joy of the promise of Resurrection and life eternal. This April
and later at Kushira church. The afternoon of the same day marked the 30th
Dr. Kinkawa and I are the only remaining charter members and were honored

as such.

Walter held his 31st EBC camp on the week-eno of April 30. Guest speaker was Stuart Kawasaki using the
theme, "The Devil is no Joke." Fine weather, fine attendance, fine participation and fine presentation. I baptized
Stuart's father more then 30 years ago before he emigrated to the U.S. Now his son is back as a short-term miss
ionary. I urged him to make it a life-term one.

May 16 found me back at Osaka Bible Seminary for a board meeting in the morning. Then a train ride to
Kyoto for a thorough physical by Dr. Clark at the Japan Baptist Hospital. He decided I was In pretty good shape
for the age I was in. Told me to lose 20 pounds. Easier said than done with the kind of food that Pauline sets out.
Back to the men's dorm at the Seminary that night, spent mostly in talking with students. Prof.Saito got me to the
7.50 a.m. homeward flight.
Mother's Day and Father's day are a month apart but we were cheered on both days by cards, remembrances

and phone calls from ourchildren In Japan, Canada, Ohio and Texas. What a wonderful blessing to be able to talk to
the other side of the world Instantly and with perfect clarity. We are sorry to report the death by heart attack
of Joe Stanes, 66, father of Mary (Walter's wife) at Hurphsboro IL, May 29. Mary was able to return in time for
the funeral and to spend a month with her mother and two sisters. He was a fine, Christian man.

The wedding of Miss Ai (Love) Ikeda, a very special young lady to Pauline and I, to Kazutoshi Zushi in
the Kanoya church on May 4, was splendid. Christian weddings for non-Christians is the "in" thing for Japanese
couples. But this "Christian" wedding was Christian in every sense of the word and a delight to all presentboth
atthe church and at the reception.

Pauline and I sang a song together for that.

Pauline continues to recleve treatment for her health problems: very poor blood circulation, high blood
pressure, irregular heart beat and tiredness. She is able to function if she can also find time to rest. Recently
she visited Dr. Ideta" ( who operated on my eye four years ago) for a special treatment to fasten tissue to her
retina in four places. (It is called a posterior vitreous detachment.) Later she will go for a cataract operation
and implant in the same eye.

In spite of our remote location, people do find their way to see us. Wayfull and Helen Jew have done a

solid piece of missionary work in Hong Kong the last 20 years. WayfulTs people came from China to the U.S. but
Helen's people came from Kyushu, where she still has relatives. While visiting them, she and daughter Wayann found
time to spend a week-end with us. She gave a greeting at each meeting she attended that was appreciated by all.
Toshiaki Chida and his wife of one month, Sachiko, finished their graduate studies at Cincinnati and have come to
serve the church at Sueyoshi for one year. We are enjoying both their fellowship and the joy they are showing as they
begin their work there. Verney and Belva Unruh, with the Genral Conference Mennonites, began their missionary work
in an actjoining prefecture very shortly after we can to Kanoya. Now they have retired from their work in Taiwan. We

were pleased that they visited us on the way back home. We were very happy, also, that Lewis Foster, a leading New
Testament scholar and his wife, Betty, made a very special effort to spend a few days with us enroute to Sydney, Aus
tralia for a year's study and writing at MacQuarie University. The title of his two hour lecture at our preacher's
meeting sums up his life and religious convictions: "Jesus is Real, The Bible Is True and The Church Is Alive."
I went as far as Okinawa with them as they headed south. Last, because she is staying the longest, our youngest

^W

daughter, Hope, a graduate student at the Univer-

ti'l

Houston
is spending
the summer
It is a joy
to have
her home again,

with
/ / fus.
^/

IN HIS SERVICE,^'^^^^

UHKUCTTtR

Non-Profit Organlxation I

Publication of
KYUSHU CHRISTIAN MISSION

U.S.POSTAGE
PAID

Louisville. Kentucky

JJorth Verno^ Wdia na 47265

Permit No. 537

Address Return Requested

EDITOR

HORIZCNS
BOX 2427

KNOXVILLE TN

A Report by Mark and Pauline Maxey

/uNKLerrefi/
To the friends of the Kyushu Christian Mission

Kanoya, Kagoshima 893 Japan - Box 417, N. Vernon IN 47265

October 1988

Linkletter #287

Dear Christian friends,

Greetings again from Japan. Fall is here and that is always

welcome. May and October are the delightful months that make the rest

Hope-home for the summer

of the year endurable.

Prime news these days is the condition of the Emporer, now in

his 63rd year of reign - the longest in world history. His health has
been failing. Radio and press give the details of his vital signs and
treatment every day. The end of an era is approaching. Old memories are
being revived. Those who grew up when the Emperor was God are praying
for his recovery. Those who suffered at the hands of the Imperial Army

are not that filled with good will.

If the sea wasn't between us, we could drive to the Seoul

Olympics in a day's time . I would like to have been there in person to

see how this country has become a modern nation, especially in the last
ten years. Their preparation for and conduct of the Olympics is proof of
that. Also keep in mind that 25% of this nation is Christian and their
numbers are growing rapidly.

With Faith & Walter - Conv. Trio

These believers are both verbal and determined in sharing their

faith. Maybe it will be they who will "turn the world upside down" in
this generation. So far, that desire to speak up and move out has not
reached into the heart of the majority of Japanese believers. Faithful
and devout they are but are not persistent in speaking of their faith
to others.

Unforgetable was seeing Ben Johnson a hero as the world's fast

est man one day and the most disgraced athlete in three days time. Green
Bay Packers coach, Vince Lombardi's famous saying was, "Winning isn't
the only thing. Winning is everything." How wrong he was. Ben Johnson

knows how wrong he was. We wish for him a new beginning and better days

ahead.

We have seen a review of the movie. The Last Temptation."

'

The King James Version of 2 Timothy 2:16 says. "Shun profane babblings." '
Shunning" is the kind of treatment this movie should receive. Let's wait

Katsuo Shimoda S Helper - Repairs

Pauline with her Wednesday Aft. English Bible Class 3Arimura sisters-Sat English Bible Class
ONE

MORE TIME PLEASE

We had an excellent response to our request in the last Linkletter to let us know whether
you still wished to receive this paper. Of the responses we received, only a handful said

"no". However, a great many of you did not say anything. So, we are asking a second time
to let us know your wishes. Please invest in a postcard. You can write your own address on
it without cutting this letter up - if you wish. We do need, however, the code number which
goes with your name on the address. Also make any corrections needed. We had 60 correc
tions on the replies received. Which shows that a lot of zip codes are changing. It also
shows that the Post Office people have been been kind enough to deliver this letter even
though the address is somewhat wrong. Thank you to them. Anyhow, while you are thinking
about it, drop your card in the mail and send it on its way to us. Thank you. -mgm=

and see if Universal Pictures will also produce movies entitled "The Last Temptation of Buddha" or the
Last Temptation of Moses" or "The Last Temptation of Mohammed." Don't hold your breath. Such movies
would result in the physical and financial ruin of the studio. Christians are supposed to be meek and
mild and forgive people for everything. If that is your view, read Matthew 23 every oncein awhile to
keep things in perspective Meanwhile make a mental note to see What the future holds for Universal
Studios and the principal actors in this production. Keep in mind the words of the late Francis Schaeffer, "God is there and He is not silent."

Well, we are supposed to be talking about Japan, not the world at large. Family-wise we have
enjoyed
having
Hope, our youngest, home for the summer - after an absence of six years. We had
time for long talks, long walks and visits to places on our peninsula she remembered from vounger days.
She returned in mid-August to resume her graduate studies- at the University of Houston and her duties
as a teaching assistant

Not happy news was the sudden- death of Joe Stanes, in good health one day and dead of heart
failure three days later. He was a faithful Christian man, father of Mary Maxey, Walter's wife. She flew
to Murphysboro IL to be with her mother and two sisters

Another death in August was that of Roger Chambers, 46, professor at Florida Christian College.
He wife was Linda, daughter of Tibbs Maxey, my oldest brother. Roger was teaching at a camp near Hi11sboro OH. He laid down for a nap at noon an<fnever woke up. He was a learned man, a family man, a Christ
ian man. He spoke candidly and forcefully regarding the liberal and emotional theologies which are being
offered as "the bread of life." to people in the pew today. Roger and I met seldom but we never stopped
talking when we did.
Sunday, July 31 was different. About midnight I was sitting in my front room talking on the
phone to David Ray, minister of Mt. Washington Church of Christ, Cincinnati, Ohio. It was Sunday morning
tnere and the ,,p rst day of ^h^r Tai th Promise Ral ly for missiohs. Our telephone conversation was heard
by the people in the pews. Son, Gregory, missions chairman at the church, made the arrangements for
this hook-up.
The annual convention of our churches in Japan was held this year in Tokyo, early August.
Walter and I went a couple of days early to enjoy some time with Paul and Faith Axton and granddaughter
Erin.

The custom

now is for one church to host the entire convention. The Mejirodai church, in the

suburbs of Tokyo, led by Harold Sims did themselves proud in hosting a great gathering. Walter, Faith
and I did our part by singing for one of the sessions. Then I sent them safely home with a closing bene
diction.

To attend a convention in Tokyo is to see your entire missionary life pass in review as you
meet and greet many of the people you either knew or taught
when they were young people in the Kagoshima churches.Of course, one feels his age when seeing these friends again but one also knows that his
life has not been in vain . You return home

determined to continue.

The 37th annual summer camp was held the first week in August. This is a joint project of the
area leaders. We rotate year by year in teaching and.other work needed to make a successful camp program.

Ky responsbility was ^ teach The Life of Christ to Junirs and Seniors - a total of eight classes.
English Bible Classes began again the first week-end in September - as did the public schools.
My children's classes meet on Saturday afternoon. My adult classes on Friday night. These classes take
time for preparation and teaching but the response and eagerness of the students is the teacher's re
ward. Pauline has a fine group of women meeting with her on Wednesday afternoon, twice a month. She is
a teacher who thoroughly prepares for every class. As a result her students have the joy of learning
something memorable at every class session.

Regarding Pauline's health it is not good but neither is she bedfast. She does the best she
can and rests when she can. She sees a doctor twice a month and is looking for a time slot when she can
have an eye Implant.

Katsuo'Sh1moda,~wiionry6u see reloading rusteH out paneling with dura-^Tuminum, has worked for
me since he was 15, except for a two year stint in the army. I depend on him to maintain the property
and to run the Christian Center. My thanks to him for 35 years of faithful service.
Financially speaking, we thank you- for providing for our needs. The value of the dollar
has Increased 8% recently. The importation of foreign goods and food has lowered some prices. Still

it Is better not to think in terms of US dollars when shopping. We have no more faithful fiends and
partners than you who are reading this letter. May God bless you all. IN HIS SERVICE

UlNKLCTTrR

Non-profit Organisation

Publication of

U. S. POSTAGE
PAID

Kyushu Christian Mission

Box

417

Louisville. Kentucky

North Vernon, Indiana 47265

Permit No. 537

Address Return Requested

644

editor

horizons
BOX 2427

knoxville TN

A Report by Mark and Pauline Maxey

/uNKLerreR/
To the friends of the Kyushu Christian Mission
Kanoya, Kagoshima 893 Japan - Box 417, N. Vernon IN 47265
mokes

DECEMBER 1988
Dear Christian Friends,

ourfriends

LINKLETTER #288

a little dearer.

Greetings again at Christmas time. Also for the New Year. It is a

time of happiness as well as a time for reflection about what Christmas
really means for us and for the world - beyond the tinsel and the wrappings.

makes our hearts

a little lighter.

63 years ago the former emporer died on Christmas Day. The govern
ment "advised" Christian churches not to have services on that day. The
present Emporer has lingered for two months now, kept alive by daily blood

makes our paths

a little clearer.

transfusions.
makes our lives

What kind of decisions must be made if he should die on Christmas

Day? And what kind of government will we have as the new emporer
it be back to the worship of the emporer as God as the rightist's
ward to the Emporer as symbolic head of state as is the Queen of
Those who want the status quo to remain are now in charge of the
Household Agency. So - we shall see what we shall see.

^ ^ a little bnghi
brighter.

begins? Will
wish or fprEngland?
Imperial

ypeacO
^ brings usall

And what does God have in store for each of us in the coming year?

a little nearer.

The Psalmist said (51:11) "In God have I put my trust. I will not be afraid."
If our personal faith is the same as his, we can face the New Year with
courage - even hope.

Since our last writing, we've been a place or two and done a thing
or two. Mainly I wanted to visit the conventions in India and New Zealand
and see as many places and people along the way as possible. It is seldom
that I make a journey, long or short, without Pauline at my side, but she
didn't feel up to this journey. She nominated son, Walter, instead. He
accepted. With the cooperation of churches and ministers who changed their
schedules and filled in for us, the journey began October 10 and ended Nov
ember 11. We can give the highlights only:

HONGKONG: Two days going and one day returning. Guests of Helen and

Walter and I - On the Way

Wayfull Jew, longtime missionaries there. Got our tickets in order and
last minute purchases. Had a three hour session with the missionary men

Welcome to Kanpur
In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ

going and both Walter and I spoke to the members of the Charis church which
meets in the Jew's home on our return.

BANGKOK. Almost a full day-the guests of Toshio Morimoto and wife,

working with Child Evangelism Fellowship. Also a brief visit with Somchai
and Georgia Pancha, working with Burmese in the city. Then the long flight
to New Delhi, India. Anise seed and toothpicks served on a tray after the

FIFTH ALL INDIA CONVENTION

CIIUllCIIES OF ClllllST

in-flight meal.

INDIA: 10 days. Ralph Harter met us at the New Delhi airport late
at night. One day with him seeing the city. Long train ride southeast to
Kanpur. Thence 3i hours by Kulphar Mission carry-all to the western edge
of the state of Uttar Pradesh. Leah Hoshier, Dolly Chitwood and Linda Stanton are maintaining a spiritual, educational and physical oasis for the un
wanted and abandoned children of the area. The staff are mature Christians

ANU CHRISTIAN CUURCUES

Ncfronlia Bhairaix, Kanpuz*
Ootoljer' xe-23, X088

THEME:"Turning the world upside down."

from this background. Dr. Leroy Garrett, Editor of Restoration Review was
also there on a teaching assignment. So the six of us had some long talks
together. Sunday was a very special time. In the evening Walter and I sang
and I preached. Dr.Garrett was also the featured speaker at Kanpur.

KANPUR. We went back to Kanpur by way of Agra and a visit to the

the most beautiful tomb in the world, the Taj Mahal. We attended part of
the Indian convention. It was arranged and hosted by Ralph Harter and the
church in Kanpur. It was held in a beautiful tent with comfortable chairs.
Walter and I gave greetings from Japan and the rest of the time enjoyed the
messages and the fellowship. Two missionary ladies, Jean Roland and Lois
Rees were in school with me in Minnesota Bible College a couple of gener
ations ago, so we had some ancient recollections to share.
We went to the Kanpur airport to go to Delhi,and onward,at noon
on Friday. Oct 21. Place was dead. Two days before,2 Air India planes had
crashed killing 164 people. Finally an agent appeared. When asked about
the situation he said, "Even if no plane comes, you will get to Delhi. "
We pondered that conundrum for two hours. Then the answer came. We were
loaded into a taxi, driven at high speed for two hours to the city of Lucknow where we did indeed get a plane to Delhi and from thence on to Singa
pore and to Australia.
AUSTRALIA. On this i^y second trip to Australia, I found it super
lative as I did before. It is a vast, open country with a hearty and friend
ly people. In Darwin we took an all day tour Into the eastern wilderness and

'"i/
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'Alice Springs

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W/ Leah Moshier
Auckland Conv. - Held in Town Hall

1/ a k I

at India Conv.-Held in a Tent

L-b

Kulpahar Mission

viewed a bird sanctury (with crocodiles) and the ancient picture writing of the
aborigines on one of their sacred mountains.Next,a 980 mile flight to the famous

small city of Alice Springs. The next day, all day by bus to Ayers Rock located in
the southwest corner of the Northern Territory. This 2980 foot rock rises suddenly
out of the desert.
Lt. is red and smooth , shaped like a loaf of bread. It offers
few hand or footholds. A chain leads straight up the mountain about half way. Under
Walter's watchful eye, I made it to the top in twice the normal time. Glad I did it
once.

Next stop was SYDNE.Y via flights to Alice Springs, Adelaide and Mel
bourne with food served on every leg of the flight. We were welcomed by Lewis and
Betty Foster and stayed at a vacant apartment at McQuarie University where Lewis
is teaching, writing and researching for a year. We never ran out of something to
talk about as we visited the harbor, the city and an unusual monument that Lewis
took us to. It marked the spot where the first sermon was preached in Australia,
3 February 1788 - 200 years ago. The text was cut into the stone: "What shall I ren
der unto the Lord for all his benefits toward me." -Psalms 116:12. A good question
waiting to be answered by each one of us everyday of our lives.

Ralph HarterS New Church

Next stop: the cosmopolitan city of MELBOURNE. We were welcomed there

by Fiona Brown, former exchange student in Kanoya and her friend, Ian. We enjoyed
a picnic together on the grassy banks of the Yarra plus a tour of the city. That

night we were guests of Dr. (M.D.) Kenneth Grigg for a Chinese meal.

Walter &I singing at Kulpahar

There is no space here to tell how we got together by mail but were
now meeting for the first time. I was moved by how he could see the hand of God

in
of
of
At

PW .A.

WATCH OUR FOR

all that happened: how we met, the mutual offers of aid and even in the exchange
ideas. Later that night we spent an hour listening to 16 speakers in the ceiling
his living room pouring out glorious organ music of the great hymns of the church.
the end of the concert, I could only say, "Gloryj Hallelujah! Amen!"

KANGAROOS

Dr. Grigg arranged an appointment for us at the 125 year old Swanson St.

Church of Christ, Alan Webb, minister. Alan interviewed Walter and I at the evening

NEXT

service and I preached. The church was filled. Two-thirds of the audience were

Asian students studying in Melbourne. Even though working and studying these stu
dents and members have given a million dollars to missions in the past 18 years.
And these students are taking their faith home with them when they graduate.

Much space -

NEW ZEALAND. A Monday morning flight of 1300 miles brought us to Wel

Fewer people

lington. With Walter at the wheel and me with the map, we had the joy of driving
through this beautiful land two days before the convention and three days afterward.
The World Convention itself was something of a disapointment. The venerable Town
Hall was filled for all sessions but the hall had no side rooms or restaurants
where the discussion sessions could be held or where we could sit down and talk with

the people we had come to see. The right ending of the convention was the Sunday a.m.
communion service. Lorraine Jacobs, wife of the convention president, had personally
made 2000 pottery communion cups for that service. This became the parting gift to
each one of us as we returned to the ends of the earth. lOi hours of flying time
to Hong Kong plus 4 hours to Kagoshima brought us safely back to Japan and .not long

after to our homes-of which there is nothing sweeter.IN HIS SERVICE,'^^(^^^^^y^

With Dr. Lewis Foster-Sydney

Do Hats an Aussie Make?

tlHKUCTTrR

Non-Proflt OrKanisation

Publication of

U. S. POSTAGE

Kyushu Christian Mission

Box

PAID

417

LouiaviUe. Kentucky
Permit No. 537

North Vernon, Indiana 47265

Address Return Requested

"""
^
*'

^
EDITOR
HORIZONS
BOX

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