2026 Teshio News for July
Japanese don’t wear outside shoes in their homes. They might wear slippers or a designated inside shoe, which is what I do. So these clogs have been with me since the very beginning of our ministry and have been my entryway, just outside the door, slip-ons that made it handy to do a bit of outside work.
We bought them at the Minnesota State Fair from the Minnetonka company, and they are authentic with leather tops and wooden bottoms with a thin rubber sole. That means they are almost 44 years old. And are still hanging in there. You can see that the lace on the rt shoe has been gone for a while, and I just reglued the rubber sole on the left one yesterday. (Gorilla glue is wonderful!) If it’s raining a bit when I take the garbage to the block cage, the height keeps me out of the water. They give me support…..
So why all this for an old, ugly clog?
Missionaries and pastors don’t stay young …. They usually start out ambitious and full of energy, and that may continue for a very long time, but eventually this thing called aging catches up with us. I don’t intend to throw those clogs out. They are still usable, they don’t need to be pretty, and they have served me well. Some missionaries have to leave a field much earlier than they ever dreamt they would: sometimes due to health (we recently knew of a missionary in southern Japan who tried so hard to make it past the first few years, even changing locations a couple times, but he kept getting sicker and sicker. Does he need to ‘kill’ himself because of health problems just because he was called to Japan? No, we don’t believe so. The Gospel was planted and watered during their stay, and the Lord is using them greatly where He called them back to in the USA. Plus, his heart has a very deep understanding of missions, especially here in Japan, so he can pray with much knowledge and still share that with others. In his case, the desire had to be set aside. The longing to stay had to be changed. Why did God allow him and his family to come in the first place? I am sure that missionary can give you several names of people who gave every reason for the good of their work for the Lord while here.
Other missionaries move from year to year, and maybe don’t have many health challenges until later in life. Others, due to age, definitely have to slow down and can’t do as much as they did before. Oh, then they need to be called back, so support isn’t wasted because they don’t work the long hours they used to. I trust that isn’t the way you think. Just as a pastor may live and work in just one or two churches through his lifetime, we don’t ask them to leave due to age or less strength.
What am I trying to set forth here? My clogs are dinged, have rough edges, and have been repaired, but still work great. Our work here in Teshio has had to be adjusted due to us reaching our 70s, but we are still getting the gospel out. We can still get around to see people, preach in the pulpit and classroom, and be an encouragement to the believers we have here at this time. We feel dinged. Ken walks with a cane now for steadiness, the eyes don’t see as well, but good enough. I sit more to rest my challenged brain, but I still am out and about with daily needs, visitations to women, a member of three clubs so I see people outside our home because they might never be willing to come to our home, even though we are friends.
God is good all the time, whether we get up with lots of energy and plans or move a little slower for a day. God uses us still in the ministry and most recently in the training of this next generation missionary couple. We thought we were past the age to even think about training someone else, but God chose us; they chose us. Thank you, God, for gluing back our hurting or falling apart places and not throwing us out as we desire to keep going here in Teshio. Thank you for allowing us to help another couple become a missionary team that sticks and stays…not because of our wisdom but because of You, Lord.
We move a little slower, dear, but let me hold your hand as we walk these years together…
Thank you, Lord
And even to your old age I am he; and even to hoar hairs will I carry you:
I have made, and I will bear; even I will carry, and will deliver you. Isaiah 46:4
The hoary head is a crown of glory, if it be found in the way of righteousness. Proverbs 16:31
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