God’s Kingdom (Net)work

Recently I took Yuji Kondo to our annual Church Planting Institute (CPI) conference in Japan. Introducing him to our speaker, Steve Childers, I said, “Yuji spent a month in Oklahoma City with a Presbyterian pastor’s family and heard the gospel for the first time.”

I went on to explain how Yuji went abroad again, this time to Toronto, where he attended a Japanese fellowship and was led to Christ. When he told his parents that he was moving toward baptism, they weren’t completely negative about it but they were worried. The parents agreed that they would go to church to know what Yuji was involved in.

From left to right: Yuji Kondo, Laurence Hiebert, Steve Childers

The Oklahoma pastor had contacted a Presbyterian missionary in Japan to find a church in Toyota City. That missionary had been a friend of mine for 16 years since his family used our Mennonite Brethren house during language study. He told Yuji about me.

In November 2003, Yuji e-mailed me for the first time. As a result, I spent some time with his parents, explaining the significance of baptism and sharing the gospel with them. His mother has been attending church regularly and his father has attended several special events.

Yuji was baptized the following February and returned to Japan. For several weeks he attended the MB church in Toyota City and studied the Bible with me before going to Kyoto for his last year of university. After Yuji’s good friend died suddenly, God led Yuji to commit himself to serving the Lord. When he told me that, I invited him to the CPI conference.

Steve Childers, hearing this story, was amazed how God had used a Presbyterian and a Mennonite like this! He then asked for the name of the church in Oklahoma. Yuji told him.

“My wife and I planted that church 25 years ago!” Steve exclaimed. Here he was, training church planters in Japan, only to meet the fruit of his first church plant in the USA.

Yuji Kondo will graduate from university this spring. He is praying for God’s direction for his future. We are asking God to send him to us in his hometown of Toyota City. He is considering this, as well as seminary in the future.

When you see a Toyota car or sign, please pray for the Hieberts in Toyota City and that God will use Yuji to build His kingdom here.

—Laurence and Leona Hiebert are Mennonite Brethren church planting missionaries in Toyota City, Japan.