Tak & Chee Newsletter! Vol.11 EN
Aquila Church's vision is to
"produce" and "support"
a "modern Paul"
like Aquila and Priscilla.
Autumn is here!
Thank you for your prayers! Autumn is gradually deepening and the mountains are turning red!
Last month, We helped with the rice harvest and did something called "haze-kake. This is the process of drying rice that has been harvested by hanging it upside down and exposing it to the sun. We were happy to spend time with Taka, our Senpai farmer~!
Moreover, We were so happy that Taka and his family and friends came to Aquila Church!
This rice was grown without using any chemical fertilizers or pesticides. We received the threshed rice and were amazed at how delicious it was! Please try his rice if you like! 1Kg 400 yen, 10Kg 4000 yen, I think. You can buy it by sending a message to his instagram. The quantity is limited, so don't delay! Here -> @ushiono.farm
The Joy of Living Near a Field
This year, we were not able to farm well due to wild boars eating all of our potatoes in the spring and a busy summer, but one of our three fields seems to be on its way to being harvested. We are now waiting for the soybean harvest.
I also planted peanut seeds and was able to harvest some of them, but they too were eaten by crows and raccoons. so it is not so easy.
But we have just planted garlic and onions for next spring's harvest with the help of our friends. We may fail, we may suck at it, but we keep trying! We do our best with a never-give-up spirit!
By the way, it's really fun to talk about all sorts of things while working on the farm. Whether we are talking about faith, the future, or just trivial things, we always think that the farm is a place where we can nurture both our relationships and ourselves.
Well, it seems that our story of having our potatoes eaten in the spring has gotten around to our neighbors, and one of our neighbors came over to us and said, "I know they are tiny, but can you eat them? and brought us a lot of potatoes!
We are deeply grateful and happy for the kindness of our neighbors and feel that this is what it is like to live near a farm. We hope to share our blessings in this way as well.
Went to Osaka
we went to Osaka. I received a notice about a conference of the church where Takeshi grew up, "Christ Evangelical Band", and
We were able to attend it.
They welcomed us warmly. Takeshi was also grateful that he was able to give a message as a speaker at the first meeting. Furthermore, we were so grateful that they used Aquila Coffee as a fund raiser, thinking of us who are in the middle of church development and in the midst of financial collapse! LOL
We took the liberty of creating an original blend called "Evangelical Blend. We mixed three kinds of coffee beans in the same amount to express the "Trinity" and also to express the idea of "One in Christ".
Unfortunately, we had to return home in the afternoon after giving a message at the first meeting. After all, Aquila Church is on Friday. The message in Osaka was on Thursday. The drive between Osaka and Nagano was 6 hours. It took about 7 hours including breaks. It was about 11:30 at night when I returned home.
We wanted to spend more time with many of our childhood friends and teachers who helped us, but this is our fate as we have become so busy. Let's hope for the next opportunity.
What also made us happy was that we got to meet pastor Kiyoshi Iwai, who has been a great help to Takeshi since he was a child. He was also the principal of his seminary. What made him even happier was that he was given a copy of his new book. It is a small, pocket-sized book filled with his testimony and message. The title of the book is "Please give me the warmth of the setting sun" - for my Re life and for my family.
As Takeshi flipped through the pages, he talked about Pastor Kiyoshi's late wife, a testimony he had heard several times in his messages, and other hardship stories he had not yet heard. The pastor's words sound different again now that we are at this age and pioneering a church. Please read it if you'd like, it's on Amazon, here's the link.
Ah. Oh, yes, there is a channel of Christ Evangelism Band on Youtube. You should be able to watch Takeshi's message as well. ↓↓↓↓
We are also continuing with the podcast and Youtube of Aquila Church!
We are just getting started with our podcast and Youtube! From the vision retreat we were shown to "share our vision and heart" and had begun to write, but have mysteriously switched to broadcast radio.
which is better since more people are listening than reading.
It is actually us who are encouraged in our faith as we talk with Jonathan in Australia across the ocean.
Some of you have commented and asked questions, and we enjoy it very much.
Click here for Spotify
Jonathan and his wife Carla may come to Japan in December! With their daughters, of course! And they may have other powerful friends coming with them!
They really love Japan and are encouraging us.
We are planning a short 3-day ministry school type thing this time.
We are hoping and praying that the discussion time will be enriched and that it will be a real and deep time of learning.
However, we are all praying and hoping that God will help us with the travel expenses, including airfare during the end of the year.
Please pray for us! We would also appreciate your support for the travel expenses!
↓↓↓Click here to go to their website.
Coffee Business
Well, what we couldn't quite report is our coffee roaster. We have been struggling, struggling, struggling with the timing of the purchase, with moving and summer events and all, but we finally came to a conclusion and finally bought a roasting machine!
Our conclusion was to buy and operate several smaller roasters. The reason is that if you buy a large, expensive roaster, you will have to deal with installation space, gas taps, and other construction work, as well as the risk that if a breakdown occurs, there will be no backup, and the operation will stop immediately. So we concluded that we would purchase and operate several small, reliable roasters.
Moreover, with this roaster, when a church pioneer from Aquila Church is born in the future, if he or she wants to pioneer the church while roasting coffee, we can give him or her a roaster as a gift. We are also imagining that we would be happy when such a day comes.
Also, we noticed that the coffee grinder, kettle, and measuring cups for coffee are also quite important items, and we were able to purchase them from your prayers and donations! Thank you!
We had pop up cafe several times in October, one was organized by the city and it was a big event. Our new kettle, measuring cups, and coffee grinder were all in great demand! It was a chance to connect with more and more new local people, and I'm so excited to see what God will do from here! We were too busy to get pics! Sorry!
Business name "Aquila Interactive"
I feel we are making progress by finally taking a trade name and being able to create a business bank account, etc. with a business name attached to it.
Interactive is an English word that means interactive, two-way, synergistic, etc. In a nutshell, it expresses our desire to grow in a strong relationship with God, the body of Christ, and the people of the community.
In addition, my mentor, who helped me a lot, had named the company "XX Interactive," so I followed his teachings as a sign of respect and as a reminder of his teachings.
I don't know how far Aquila Interactive can go like Aquila and Priscilla, who supported Paulo by making the tent, but anyway, we are moving forward.
Nevertheless, Takeshi is heaving with administrative documents and correspondence with the tax office. Please pray for him.
We hope to publish some concrete figures on business performance etc. in the future, but we are so busy with paperwork that it will take some time.
I can't thank you enough! ”Patisserie Pleinsoleil”
We cannot thank Patisserie Pleinsoleil enough. The owner of this cake shop in Sanada, Ueda City, is the same person who made a special birthday cake for the first Aquila Church. Since then, he has developed many kinds of cakes and baked goods using Aquila Coffee, and he also sells Aquila Coffee in his store. He even made a banner for Aquila Coffee and put it up in front of his store and held a flag-raising ceremony,
Just recently, we received a special cake for our 10th wedding anniversary.
He told us that the business of a cake shop away from the city is quite a challenge, but he still treated us well enough to cut himself a break and we really can't thank him enough. They are a wonderful couple and we are very grateful for their kindness!
The only thing we can do is to grow his wife's favorite garlic and advertise his store here. We hope you will enjoy our gift sets from Pleinsoleil, one of the best cake shops in Ueda City! ↓↓↓↓
Aquila Church
Since we started church planting, God has sent us someone every week and we really appreciate it. The living room is very cozy, but we gradually felt it was too small for us, so we moved to a large Japanese-style room these days.
Recently we tried implementing the idea of doing a bible study. It was a bible study that we would do on Saturday mornings over breakfast (would it be brunch? Maybe it would be after a full meal rather than while eating? LOL) bible and breakfast, so we named it "Aquila B&B."
The idea is that Aquila Church is on Friday evening, so those who wish to can stay at our house and do bible study over breakfast together the next morning.
In the first session, Takeshi baked bread, Chie made potage, and the leftovers from the previous night's dinner were also on the table. It was a very good time to enjoy the Bible together, using the whole Saturday morning.
There are a lot of specifics to bedding, food preparation, and expenses, and we are still trying to figure out how we can do it each week. But we still want to invest in the value we place on growing and deepening our relationship as a family. Please pray for wisdom to be given!
Testimony Film
A testimonial film was made when the team from SOZO Church in Texas came to visit us!
Starting with this issue, we are sending out our newsletter as the "Aquila Church Mailing List".
We would really like to send a newsletter to each of you individually, but the volume of newsletters we send is gradually increasing and we can no longer keep up with it, We are sorry, but we have decided to use the mailing list.
However, on the other hand, the mailing list also allows you to freely unsubscribe from subscriptions, so if you don't need it, please really don't hesitate to unsubscribe! Rather, I apologize for sending you newsletters in the past!
Also, there are so many things that happen every month that we can't tell you about, so from now on, we are rather thinking of reducing the number of words and increasing the frequency of our newsletters.
Fundraising Report
Three more monthly supporters were given last month, bringing the total to 7 now!
Current
Monthly Support Amount Total 22,000 yen and $100
Monthly Supporters Total 7perosn
October 2023
One-Time Donation Support Amount Total 62,000 yen and $1,200
(part of the previously reported donation is included in this amount)
We feel so many people praying for us, supporting us, and keeping us alive. Most of all, we are so glad for the sense of belonging and togetherness that we have in ministry with you, sharing the same vision and values, even though we are far away from each other!
We have times of anxiety and times of patience, but we are truly encouraged by your support! Thank you so much!
Please pray for
Pray that Aquila Interactive will grow into a business that supports churches and people. Please pray that we will be given wisdom and strength to run the business.
That saved souls will be raised.
That financial needs will be met.
That we will be given a team of like minded people.
Support partners for Aquila Church
Aquila Church's vision is to "produce" and "support" a "modern Paul," just like Aquila and Priscilla did.
Monthly support target of $2500
We are looking for financial support partners to help us move toward the mission and vision given to the church.
50$ x 50 persons = 2500$
50$/month for 50 support partners to continue to operate the church.
Credit card transfers can be made at the following URL
Starting from 10$/month, you can specify the amount and one-time support is available.
We would appreciate your prayerful consideration.
You can get to know us quickly via SNS
Instagram: @aquila_church_japan
Web: https://achurchjapan.wixsite.com/achurch
Spotify: 天倉Church Radio
Youtube:天倉Church Chunnel