{"id":7121,"date":"2026-02-27T21:15:03","date_gmt":"2026-02-28T03:15:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/missions\/?p=7121"},"modified":"2026-02-27T21:16:44","modified_gmt":"2026-02-28T03:16:44","slug":"bamba-newsletter-february-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/missions\/bamba-newsletter-february-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"Bamba Newsletter: February 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Greetings from Japan!<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

New Year\u2019s is the biggest holiday in Japan, filled with many traditions rooted in both Buddhism and Shintoism. From midnight on New Year\u2019s Day and throughout the day, temples and shrines are crowded with people seeking blessings and good fortune for the coming year. Some sincerely follow Buddhist and Shinto teachings, while others participate simply out of habit or cultural tradition. There was a long line at the shrine behind our house on New Year\u2019s Day. It saddened us to see so many lost and searching souls, yet we are deeply grateful for the opportunity God has given us to share His light in Japan. We are thankful for your partnership and for your love for the Japanese people. Through your support and prayers, we can continue bringing God\u2019s love and forgiveness to the people of Japan.<\/p>\n

Over the holiday season, we held a Christmas cooking class for the children in our neighborhood. Some of the kids brought friends who had never attended before. Everyone enjoyed making cookie and marshmallow mugs and snowmen, and the mothers loved seeing their children\u2019s creations.<\/p>\n

\"Christmas<\/a>

Christmas cooking class<\/p><\/div>\n

We also hosted Christmas parties for the children in our English conversation classes. We played games, ate cake, and shared the true reason Christmas is celebrated around the world\u2014because Jesus was born for all people everywhere, including the Japanese people. Many of the children had thought Christmas was Santa Claus\u2019 birthday.<\/p>\n

\"Christmas<\/a>

Christmas party for the neighbors<\/p><\/div>\n

Our church held a Christmas service with more than 80 people in attendance. This was quite a surprise, as our small building can only hold about 60! Many visitors came for the first time to see what a Christmas service at a church is like. Since then, several couples have continued attending regularly. Many of these new couples have young children, which has been a great blessing to our aging congregation. Please pray with us that the seeds planted during these Christmas activities will continue to grow and flourish throughout this year.<\/p>\n

\"Christmas<\/a>

Christmas church service and potluck<\/p><\/div>\n

The Japanese school year ends in March and begins anew in April. As children grow older, move up in grade, and graduate, we always reorganize our English conversation classes to accommodate their new schedules. Please pray that God will bring more students to fill our classes, giving us more opportunities to share the Gospel with children and their families.<\/p>\n

We are so thankful to have you with us in this mission to share God\u2019s love with as many people as possible. Without you, we would not be able to shine God\u2019s light in the darkness of Japan. Thank you!<\/p>\n

\"Our<\/a>

Our Christmas family reunion<\/p><\/div>\n

Family |<\/strong> We were thrilled that our children were able to come to Japan and celebrate Christmas with us this year. Justin and Rachel came, bringing our first grandson, Akio. It was his first time flying and his first visit to Japan. Hiro\u2019s mother was also able to meet her great-grandson! Ax was able to take time off work to come, and Hunter was on Christmas break from his graduate studies. The church members were encouraged and happy to see our children again; many remembered when they helped with Sunday School and church activities.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Your Missionaries to Japan,\u00a0<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Hiro and Eryn Bamba,<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Olivia, Hunter, Ax, and Justin (Rachel & Akio)<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Greetings from Japan! New Year\u2019s is the biggest holiday in Japan, filled with many traditions rooted in both Buddhism and Shintoism. From midnight on New Year\u2019s Day and throughout the…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":38,"featured_media":6638,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[29,1,4],"tags":[108,610,283,308],"class_list":{"0":"post-7121","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-missionary-newsletters","8":"category-uncategorized","9":"category-world-missions","10":"tag-bamba","11":"tag-february-2026","12":"tag-hiro-and-eryn-bamba","13":"tag-newsletter","14":"entry"},"title_es":"Bolet\u00edn Bamba: junio 2020","content_es":"

\u00a1Saludos desde Jap\u00f3n! <\/h2><\/div>

Parece que las cosas cambian a diario durante estos tiempos de incertidumbre, pero podemos encontrar consuelo al saber que nuestro Dios no cambia. Es el mismo ayer, hoy y ma\u00f1ana. Independientemente de cu\u00e1n inconstante sea el mundo o cu\u00e1n inconstante sea la econom\u00eda, sabemos que Dios tiene todas las cosas en Sus manos. Podemos encontrar consuelo y paz en Dios sin importar lo que suceda a nuestro alrededor. Nos duele el coraz\u00f3n cuando miramos a nuestro alrededor y vemos el miedo y la incertidumbre en los rostros de los japoneses. <\/p>

Frente a la pandemia de COVID-19, la ciudad de Chofu, una ciudad vecina a Saitama donde vivimos, ha ofrecido una descarga gratuita de un legendario monstruo anti-plaga, Amabie. Sugieren que las personas usen la imagen para ayudar a prevenir el coronavirus. Buscamos todas las oportunidades para compartir la esperanza que tenemos en Cristo con los japoneses para que no sientan la necesidad de recurrir a monstruos imaginarios en busca de falsas esperanzas. <\/p>

<\/p>

Tuvimos que cancelar nuestras clases de conversaci\u00f3n en ingl\u00e9s para el mes de abril, pero pudimos comenzar de nuevo en mayo en Zoom. Hemos echado de menos interactuar en persona con nuestros estudiantes y sus familias, pero estamos agradecidos de haber podido seguir vi\u00e9ndolos virtualmente. Nos ha dado la oportunidad de comunicarnos tanto con las mam\u00e1s como con los pap\u00e1s, lo cual es raro ya que generalmente est\u00e1n en el trabajo. Sin embargo, dado que muchos de los pap\u00e1s han estado trabajando desde casa y los ni\u00f1os est\u00e1n estudiando en casa, ambos padres han tenido la oportunidad de participar en nuestras clases. Ore con nosotros para que las palabras de aliento que compartimos apunten a nuestros estudiantes y sus padres hacia Dios y Su perd\u00f3n que es para todas las personas. <\/p>

Hiro ha podido realizar nuestras lecciones de escuela dominical en l\u00ednea. Estamos agradecidos de poder seguir compartiendo el amor de Dios con los ni\u00f1os en nuestra escuela dominical, incluso cuando no podemos estar con ellos f\u00edsicamente. Los pap\u00e1s de nuestros ni\u00f1os de la Escuela Dominical no asisten a la iglesia. Ore con nosotros para que los mensajes que los ni\u00f1os escuchan en casa puedan tener un impacto en el coraz\u00f3n de sus padres tambi\u00e9n. <\/p>

Estamos muy agradecidos de que incluso entre todos los vuelos cancelados y las actividades canceladas, Justin pudo terminar su primer a\u00f1o en Liberty University con \u00e9xito y pudo regresar a Jap\u00f3n para el verano. Estamos muy agradecidos por este tiempo juntos antes de que Justin regrese a la universidad y Ax se una a \u00e9l en su primer a\u00f1o de universidad. Contin\u00fae orando por Justin y Axe y los ajustes que tendr\u00e1n que hacer y por nosotros, ya que ser\u00e1 dif\u00edcil tenerlos a los dos tan lejos de casa. <\/p>

<\/p>

Estamos muy agradecidos por sus continuas oraciones y apoyo. \u00a1Su compromiso con el cumplimiento de la Gran Comisi\u00f3n est\u00e1 marcando una diferencia en todo el mundo! Su asociaci\u00f3n est\u00e1 llevando la esperanza y el amor de Cristo al pueblo japon\u00e9s. \u00a1No podr\u00edamos llevar la luz de Cristo a Jap\u00f3n sin ustedes! \u00a1Gracias! <\/p>

Muchas bendiciones, <\/p>

Hiro, Eryn, Justin, Axe, Hunter y Olivia Bamba<\/strong><\/em> <\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>","author_name":"Hiro & Eryn Bamba","jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/missions\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/02\/2-e1740073790544.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pb62Ar-1QR","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/missions\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7121","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/missions\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/missions\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/missions\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/38"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/missions\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7121"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/missions\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7121\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/missions\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6638"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/missions\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7121"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/missions\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7121"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/missions\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7121"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}