agape love - n. selfless love of one person for another without sexual implications (especially love that is spiritual in nature)

Silk and I enjoyed visiting Pastor Kishinami this week who is noted for planting 33 house chapels in Tohoku following the triple disaster of March 11, 2011. What a wonderful visit with tremendous lessons learned.

The key to Pastor Kishinami’s success has been Agape Love! He shared how love, without expecting anything in return (no return on investment), is the key to evangelism and church planting.

While we were together, Pastor Kishinami even cut the grass of one of the friends to show his love for the neighbors as a tangible expression of this love. It was fun watching him serve and interact with the people. See the photo of him serving the community!

The other family pictured here had been served by Samaritan’s Purse and Tokyo Baptist Church after their home was submerged by the waters. They have a special needs daughter as you can see and Pastor Kishinami started meeting with them after the mother came to Christ. Her family was so impressed that they let Pastor Kishinami have a church there and they are what the mother now calls a Person of Peace for the neighborhood. 

Pastor Kishinami’s wisdom on church planting follows this pathway:

• It all starts with Agape Love “Expecting no Return on Investment!”
• From that foundation, a Person of Peace emerges who becomes the key bridge to the community
• This is followed by being friends in addition to serving with Agape Love
• Finally, the church must become like a Convenience Store – “very convenient for people to participate!”

Previously I saw Convenience Store Church Planting as a way to saturate the entire nation. But, Pastor Kishinami gave new dimensions to this idea. He shared that it’s important for the church to also be convenient to people. Something that becomes easy for them to join.

What a brilliant model for evangelism and church planting!

Love + Peace + Friendship + Convenience 

Please pray for pastors like Kishinami who are reaching out to Japan. They are taking this new paradigm of love with no returns expected and trying to become more convenient to their communities to new heights. 

May we see a breakthrough in Japan through Agape Love!

Joe Handley, President

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
@jwhandley

More Information

Here are some related stories about Pastor Kishinami:

• 33 house chapels started by Pastor Kishinami in Japan's tsunami zone ...
• Saved by a bridge and a boat... Stories of new life from Japan's Triple Disaster
• House Chapels Started by Pastor in Disaster Zone