Nakaburi
Church
Pastor and Keiko Kimura
Dinner with Henry and Keiko Nelson and Kim Ayars (between the Nelsons) and Erika Matute (on right)
Nakaburi Church is a small congregation (most churches in Japan are very small) next door to the Clarks' home in Hirakata, a suburb of Osaka. Pastor Noriaki Kimura and his wife Keiko lead the congregation, though Brother Kimura has to drive taxi to make ends meet. They are a very dedicated couple and have been with the congregation since 1983. They have two children, Mana and Hosana. Mana now has a job in Tokyo using English, having studied for a year and a half at the University of Missouri in Columbia while she lived with Chris and Jocelyn and family. Hosana studies computer technology at Nara Institute of Science and Industry.
We are fairly close to Kansai University of Foreign Studies (Kansai Gaidai) in Hirakata and through the years we have had several students (both foreign and Japanese) worship with us and attend our International Nights at Hikari no Ie. If you are a student at Kansai Gaidai, please feel free to visit and/or become a part of Nakaburi Church while you are in Hirakata. Although our services are basically in Japanese, some of you may want practice the Japanese language. We can also provide translation. Our praise songs are often sung in both English and Japanese.
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Nakaburi
Church |
Pastor and Keiko Kimura |
Nakaburi's pre-school program, Mokyoroom, teaches 3-year-olds and their mothers about Jesus through stories, songs, and crafts. | Dinner with Henry and Keiko Nelson and Kim Ayars (between the Nelsons) and Erika Matute (on right) |
We had a pre-school program, Mokyoroom, for over 30 years until March 2011 when the workers decided they should retire because their energy level was slowing down and the 3 and 4 year old's energy wasn't! We are still greeted by children (even older "graduates" of Mokyoroom, when they see us in the park or on the street. The church also has an annual fall outreach--with a meal--that reaches many with the good news that they can be reconciled to the Creator through Jesus. Paul preaches regularly at Nakaburi Church and Rickie plays the piano twice a month or so. Pastor Kimura continues teaching children in the kindergarten nearby.
Erika Matute, a missionary from Honduras sponsored by Nakaburi Church, also has a class for children on Thursdays. She has many other "irons in the fire" and ministers everywhere she goes.
The congregation was started in the early 1950s by missionaries Ray and Mattie Mings. At that time the congregation met in the basement of Hikari no Ie. The first church building was built in 1970 and our "new" building was built on the same site in 1997.
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Fall
Outreach |
How
to fix a taco! |
Our
guests really like tacos |
"If it stays together, I'll get it down!" |
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Ladies class taught by Rickie with a Bible lesson by Pastor Kimura |
Pastor
Kimura drives taxi to help support his family |
Nakaburi's
50th Anniversary Celebration |
Christmas program 2009 |
Rickie taught an English class for about 10 years until the ladies announced they were all going to stop attending the class because of their age! We still see them occasionally. Following are some pictures taken on three different trips to the U.S. with them.
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| America or Bust! (2001) | Carriage ride on Vancouver Island (2003) | In the Rockies in 2006 |
The congregation received a generous gift from a congregation in Georgia, which enabled the roof to have needed repairs. Further plans are being made for additional parking and play area.
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Kimura Sensei reading from "You are Special" by Max Lucado (with a rapt audience!) |
Our beloved Keiko Kimura "graduated to heaven" in December 2013 |
About 80 people, including small children, had to stand outside the small church building in the wind and cold for over an hour--Keiko touched many lives! |
In January 2014 gmoms, kids and teachers of the last five years of Mokyoroom gathered to reminiscence about how Keiko's life touched theirs |