Brent Rogers, Kojima Japan

For Aslan

Chron of Narnia, part 2, Prince Caspian,

The big battle, the imposing foe.

Courage fails, hearts are like water.

`For Aslan!`

The cry rings out.

The echo is joined, doubling,

growing, surging like a wave.

The image of the GREAT ONE flashes into hearts

some who have never even met him.

Courage leaps high!

Hearts are bold now!

To the point of death,

all will be offered in this great struggle.

FOr ASLAN!

FOR THE GREAT ONE!

Even now we stand,

great and small struggles before us.

Visible help is weak.

Foes seem daunting.

The GREAT ONE

who makes great promises

has called us, commissioned, provisioned us.

equipped us and fortified us.

sustained and maintained us.

If God is for us, what can man do to us?

For Jesus! For God!

Our battle cry rings out.

Perseverance — one decision at a time.

Obedience — one choice at a time.

Victory — Assured!

Thank you
for morning and evening,
spring and fall
sun and moon
winter and summer,
mountain, ocean,
hill, and valley
flower and tree.

beauty and pleasure
nature and technology
teachers and students
weak and strong
bitter and sweet
Your constant care
Your perfect love
Your son’s blood

This comes from India and shows what impact Sandy had when she was a very young missionary.

I am so glad she agreed to marry me!!

From Bangalore,

Most Significant Christian Experience:

Being mentored to be a Sunday School Teacher by a very dedicated, talented and godly woman.

Since I was keen on working with the children, I spoke to the Sunday School teacher, Sandy Rogers, who was the wife of a missionary from the US. I worked with her as her assistant for few years. Sandy, who is a teacher by profession, taught me systematically on the various aspects of teaching God’s word for the children. She instilled in me the confidence to teach different age groups. I have been blessed by this experience so much so that it has been helping me in bringing up my own daughter in the fear of the Lord. So, in my church, I am comfortable in teaching different classes with ease. My own interest coupled with the guidance from Sandy Rogers at the right time and with the help of the Holy Spirit, I am able to be effective in my teaching.

72% irreligious; 56% believe in supernatural
The Yomiuri Shimbun

Seventy-two percent of Japanese do not have any specific religious affiliation, but many still believe in supernatural forces, according to a recent Yomiuri Shimbun survey.

According to the survey, 26 percent of respondents said they believed in a religion, virtually unchanged from a similar survey conducted three years ago. Only 37 percent said religion was important for living a happy life.

Views of people’s religious sentiment were split, with 45 percent of respondents saying Japanese had little religious faith while 49 percent thought otherwise.

However, 94 percent of respondents said they respected their ancestors, and 56 percent claimed to have had some form of supernatural experience.

The results suggested that many Japanese feel little affinity to a particular religion, but many do harbor feelings of respect for things that are scientifically unproven.

The Yomiuri Shimbun interviewed 3,000 randomly selected people across the country face-to-face on May 17-18, of whom 1,837 gave valid answers.

Asked about what happens to people’s spirits after they die, 30 percent said they believed they would be reincarnated, 24 percent said they would go to another world and 18 percent answered they would vanish.

The recent popularity of new forms of spirituality and other new age-related beliefs, such as an interest in previous lives and guardian angels, was particularly prominent among female respondents. Although 21 percent of all respondents said they were interested in such thinking–far below the 75 percent who were not–27 percent of women saw the appeal of such beliefs, whereas only 13 percent of men said they felt this way.

To the question about what should be taught as religious education at school, 71 percent said students should be taught about “respect for life and nature,” 31 percent said “histories of major religions,” and 21 percent selected “the meaning of religion” and “tolerance for people of other faiths.” Only 7 percent preferred not to have religion taught at school.

Respondents were allowed to give more than one answer to this question.

Views on religious groups were somewhat standoffish, with 47 percent saying these groups’ activities were unclear, and 43 percent believing they use fear-mongering and other aggressive approaches to disseminate their beliefs. Thirty-six percent said they felt these groups were good at raising large amounts of money.

These three answers occupied the top three slots to the same question in Yomiuri surveys in May 1998 and August 2005.

A great friend, and dear sister, formerly of Bangalore, now of New Zealand, encourages me regularly.
This recent email came at a crucial point as she reminded me of how God had used us in India without us realizing it.

We must pray and believe that he is doing the same thing now.

Dear Brent,

Yes you made comments in the side of the paper. Bible correspondence course
I don’t remember them except that they always made the sheets more interesting.

And you and Sandy were my favourites. I knew you more than I knew Sandy. I remember how she ran to you when she realised that Tim had nearly put his hand into a table fan, and wondered if I would find a man for myself who I would want to run to like that.

I remember being shocked that girls were not to pray aloud, and asked Sandy if Brent had never heard her pray. And she said that you prayed often together and you let her pray too. So I realised in that first camp that you two were different.

I saw you take care of Rachel and was amazed.

I often wondered why you were so indifferent to me when I smiled at you from a distance but so warm once I came close enough to shake your hand. And when I knew the reason, you became even more of a hero. But then you and Sandy did not know me very well. Not to be surprised; at the time there were many like me, but only one Brent and Sandy.

Once you came home and my mother gave you vadais to eat, and you ate about 20, unheard of, but my mother was thrilled and kept making more and more. Even that added to your hero status.
I was only supposed to eat two or three! bwr

I remember memorising some portion of scripture for you in one camp, and you telling me that my cousin Sam was my first cousin once removed.

Then your copy of the book Knowing God by JI Packer, ended up in our house. It was a fine book. My father had a good impression about you, I do not know why? I think it was because you seemed to be listening to him and because you did not seem rigid about something. See, even when you are too lazy to express an opinion, you do alright.

And then we heard that you were not well. Sandy came to Bangalore to sell the furniture.

We did write some letters. I think I told you about how we had left COC and about what we were learning about the Holy Spirit. Your reply surprised me because you sounded so open. I found your comment hilarious, about how you, the sheep, could not understand what the shepherd, some Japanese pastor, was saying. Then you both disappeared and I had to really search for you for many years. The rest you know.

So in the first half of the 1980s, yours was the main face among the missionaries that I could relate to. But you did not know that, did you? So too now, through all your weakness and hospital visits and classes and so on, God can still speak. If people do not listen, God will not hold you responsible.

Of course, constant introspection is good and we must progress and improve in the way we do things.