History

In 2001, Dr. Ronald Sawka of Christian International Asia wrote a book called “From Goat Nation to Sheep Nation: A Prayer Guide for Confronting the Spirit Behind Shinto”. He pointed out that there is a mechanism in Japan that has been working through Shinto and Emperor worship to strengthen the power of Amaterasu, the Queen of Heaven, which has been the main spiritual stronghold over the nation of Japan. In his book, Dr. Sawka presented some specific ways to tear down this stronghold.

In 2001, a nation-wide prayer network “Gideon’s Army II Japan” (2001-2006) was launched. Using the strategy the Lord showed us, we came against the Queen of Heaven over Japan through intercession and spiritual warfare. The following year, on May 19th, over 100 Japanese churches held an event to repent of the national sin of Emperor worship. Under the leadership of Gideon’s Army II Japan, many prayer initiatives were launched. Many churches and prayer groups took part in spiritual mapping for their regions. The Holy Spirit would show the prevailing sins in that area. The intercessors then went to specific sites to repent for the sins of the ancestors and to ask God to cleanse the land of the curses from that sin.

There are many testimonies of great blessing and breakthrough as a result of cleansing the land. For example, one of the staff at CI Asia had a dream in which a young child was crying and asked, “Mom, why have you deserted me?” Following this dream, we began to understand that Sano city in Tochigi Prefecture had made a declaration called ‘Children’s Town Declaration’, and that the city was located right on the ‘Nikko-reiheishi Road’. Nikko-reiheishi Road was built during the Edo Period for messengers carrying Imperial orders to Nikko in order to make Ieyasu Tokugawa a god. Along this road were post-stations and red-light districts, which resulted in many babies being aborted. The well-known “Sano Yakuyoke Daishi” is also a shrine that serves as a memorial for aborted children. The intercessors at Sano church discovered that abortion had been one of the main sins in the city, and they were led to repent and to prayer-walk around these places. As they did this, more and more high school students and other young people started coming to church, and the numbers at the youth meetings grew.

This was not the only result. If you have been traveling to Sano for several years, you will have noticed the changes there. Suddenly, big outlet malls and shopping malls have been popping up and the local economy has been improving rapidly. Transformation includes not only salvation of souls but also the healing of the land itself. When the curse is removed, blessing comes in its place, so that even the economy of a region will be affected. This is what we have seen in Sano.

In 2005 and 2006, Cindy Jacobs came to Japan. Both times she repeatedly talked about the issue of abortion in Japan. She pointed out that the spirit of death was ruling in this nation, which has resulted in “abortion” or premature death of many spiritual movements or initiatives. These initiatives, which came into being through prayer and united effort, often bore little fruit. She led us in deep repentance for the sins of infanticide (very common in past Japanese history) and abortion, and came against the spirit of death, which lies heavily on this land.

Cindy Jacobs also challenged us to rise up as “reformers” to bring righteous change to our society; to help remove the reproach off the land. Proverbs 14:34 says, “Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people.” We have been praying, doing “identificational repentance”; and doing spiritual warfare over this nation. But now, as we receive the mantle of the reformer, we must take action and begin to confront some of the social issues that stem from this “curse of death” over Japan.

We feel that this new strategy is the best way to bring the life of God back to these islands. It is a step of action after years of intercession and repentance. We are launching an NPO (non-profit organization) called “Japan Alive”. Our main target will be the area of abortion and many of the issues surrounding it.

The vision of “Japan Alive”

The vision is based on Isaiah 60:1, “Arise and shine, for your light has come” and Isaiah 61:1-3, “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to preach good tidings…to heal the broken heated, to proclaim liberty…to give them beauty for ashes….” These scriptures were the mission statement of Jesus Christ (see Luke 4:18-19), and must be our mission statement as well. Not only will we continue to teach and preach about healing and deliverance, but also we want to reach out to the poor and needy. We want to proclaim liberty to the captives; to help people choose life, not abortion, which results in more curses, captivity, and death.

There are many social problems in Japan that can be traced directly to the “spirit of death”. For example, the death rate in Japan is now higher than the birth rate. The suicide rate continues to rise. Reported cases of abuse of all kinds continue to escalate. Each year thousands of young girls go into prostitution, often only for easy money. The number of abortions (reported) per year is an astounding 300,000. (Experts believe the actual number is much, much higher)

One of the reasons we have chosen to speak for the children, who have no choice, and for the ones whose lives have been terminated before they could begin is because of the apostolic mandate. “…He will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children…”(Mal. 4:5-6). This is our apostolic mission.

We will focus on abortion, and the areas surrounding this subject, including healing for those who suffer from post-abortion trauma, and providing abortion alternatives such as adoption and foster care. We will even aim to start a movement to raise the standard of sexual behavior (sex within marriage).

Launching Japan Alive!!!

Is Abortion legal?

Japan has a law called “Botaihogohou”, written in 1966, which is an amendment from the “Yuuseihogohou” in 1948. Article 14 states that registered doctors may perform abortive surgeries with the patient and the spouse’s consent under certain circumstances: 1.) If there is any risk of harm to the mother’s health due to physical or financial reasons in delivering the child; 2.) If the pregnancy was the result of any sexual abuse and was unwanted. As you can see, legally, abortion is not freely available in any circumstances. The law clearly states that it should be restricted to these two reasons. However, in reality, this phrase “due to physical or financial reasons” has been very broadly interpreted and misused in most cases.

How is the baby aborted?

When does life begin?

Just when does an unborn baby become a “real person”? There have been many debates about this issue, from moral, philosophical and biological positions. We do not attempt to give an explanation for each of these arguments. These babies are, if they are not artificially removed from the womb, real people that would be born into this world to live. We do not believe that we can draw a line to determine at what week a fetus becomes a life or when it is not.

“My frame was not hidden from You,
When I was made in secret,
And skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth;
Your eyes have seen my unformed substance;
And in Your book were all written
The days that were ordained for me,
When as yet there was not one of them.”

Psalm 139:15-16

When the sperm enters the ovum and forms a living cell, new life begins inside it with 46 chromosomes from the parents, 23 from the mother and 23 from the father. This cell holds everything that is necessary for human growth and a complex genetic blueprint that specifies sex, color of the hair, eyes, skin, height, and much more. This is truly amazing. Surely, God Himself “forms us in our mother’s womb.” (Psalm 139:13)

Some statistics on abortion

According to the statistical data conducted by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, the number of abortions during the year 2005 in Japan was 301,673 (under 21 weeks). It is said that the reality is as 3 to 4 times worse. Some other sources have reported numbers in the millions. Please compare the following numbers so we can understand the severity of this problem. (The following data on abortion was provided by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, and Embryo Fund.)

Would it be too much to say that abortion in Japan is nothing but a massacre? The only reason that these lives are treated as things is because they have no voices. They are unable to protect themselves. The Bible teaches us this. “Open your mouth for the mute, for the rights of all the unfortunate. Open your mouth, judge righteously, and defend the rights of the afflicted and needy.” (Proverbs 31:8-9)

Lastly:

On June 26 th, 2006, we had our first meeting for Japan Alive to determine the direction we should take. As we sat around the table, we noticed a family walking through the yard. It was the missionary family owned the house in the past. They visited Sendai for only a few hours for the first time in 17 years, and we happened to be gathered together there for a few hours ourselves. We were surprised to hear their reason for visiting Japan this time. This missionary couple had adopted and raised two Japanese children. The younger boy had become restless wondering who his real mother was. The family decided to come to Japan to find his mother, and amazingly, they did. The son and mother met each other, cried, and hugged each other tightly. His mother was pregnant with him before she was married, and her family pressured her to abort the baby. But an obstetrician introduced her to a missionary lady who gave shelter to unwed expecting mothers until their babies were born. The young mother chose this option and gave birth to this little boy who was then adopted by this American missionary couple. The mother said to the boy, “I just could not keep you with me, but I have always wanted to hold my own son in my arms. Do you hate me?” The boy answered, “No, I don’t hate you. But I thank you for not aborting me and giving birth to me.”

Was it a coincidence that we were gathered in one place from America and all over Japan for these few hours? We don’t think so. God arranged for this miracle meeting to take place because He wanted to confirm to us that He cares deeply about this issue. Our society often sees abortion just as a convenient way to get rid of a “mistake”. We do not want to debate whether or not women have the right to choose to have an abortion. We know that that is a very complex issue. What we want to do is let people know that there is another option. We want to help them choose life.

Join us!! We want to work together with you in this, to see these lives protected and saved, and to see God’s righteousness and justice come to this nation.

Please join us in this work.

* Japan Alive is a NPO. This means that we would aim to not only work with Christians, but to also make an impact on the market place by gaining support and approval from the wider society.

Thank you for your financial support. Please send it to the following account:

postal account: 00120-6-611449 japan alive
japan alive director teddy sawka
1617 ohashi cho sano shi tochigi ken 327-0003

email: japanalive@ciasia.net (f.a.o. ayako lawrence, kumiko jenkins)