In the winter of 2017, when it had been over six months since I’d moved to Japan with my husband and son, the initial honeymoon excitement was wearing out and I was beginning to feel discouraged. I’d lived in Japan when I was younger and already spoke the language; I was consistently praying and going on prayer walks. But I felt like nothing was happening. No one was coming to Christ.
At that point I got an invitation to join one of Novo’s prayer teams, Prime Intercession (now Prime Creative). I wasn’t sure I should join because I didn’t think I had the gift of intercession. I had this image that someone with a gift for intercession would spend hours praying on behalf of people, going through a list of all their problems...and I just didn’t have that kind of patience! But as I considered the invitation, I heard God say, “Just join hands with others. That’s all you need to do.” So I said yes.
Each time the Prime team met on a video call, we’d pray for each others’ ministry contexts, and on one of our first calls, I shared how I felt that nothing was happening in our ministry. The team prayed. I felt something change after that prayer. It was an atmosphere shift, like darkness lifted off of me.
That same day, I had my final life coaching session with a lady I’d been praying for for awhile. (Life coaching is a helpful service we offer in Japan that can also open relational doors.) In addition to some other topics, my coachee Hana* occasionally wanted to discuss spirituality. She was especially into New Age ideas and I sensed that she was searching. At the end of our coaching session that evening, Hana told me she wanted to talk a little longer.
Hana opened up to me and shared how she’d just been on a personal retreat to a “spiritual spot.” There are many such places in Japan, where people go to seek spiritual power. Hana confided, “I was praying there, and felt like someone was saying, ‘God isn’t at this Shinto shrine. It’s only people.’ And then I felt like that same voice said I was a tree.” She told me she felt that if she were a tree, she needed to take care of the tree—herself—but she didn’t know how.
As Hana was telling me this story, Psalm 1 came to my mind: “That person is like a tree planted by streams of water...whose leaf does not whither.” I shared that scripture with her, and then explained, “The God who created heaven, earth, everything—and you—is going to take care of you. As you abide and accept him, you’ll be like that tree planted by streams of water. You don’t have to be concerned about how to take care of yourself; God’s going to take care of you!”
It clicked for Hana right away. So I told her how the God of heaven and earth sent Jesus, and how he died for her. “You can call him ‘Daddy,’” I told her.
“I can call God Otochan (Daddy in Japanese)?” Hana marveled. It stirred her heart.
I suggested she could read the book of John to learn more about this God who cared so personally for her. She accepted my suggestion.
Hana messaged me after reading the first chapter of John: “I don’t really understand the whole story, but I said to God, ‘I believe in Jesus.’” We started doing weekly Bible studies together over Skype, and I was able to baptize her a few months later.
On another call with the Prime team, someone heard a word from God about Hana: “This new Christian is going to be an evangelist who shares about Jesus with others.”
I’ve found that word to be true. Hana’s not afraid to share about Jesus. In Japan, it’s taboo to speak about religion, but Hana tries to find ways to share about God in everyday language. She works at a temp agency where she’s in charge of taking care of the staff. Sometimes that means mentoring and counseling them through issues at their workplace. Hana uses what she gets from the Bible and shares it with these staff. She’ll also tell them, “I’ll pray for you. You should pray, too, today, to God.” She’s always looking for opportunities—recently she even spoke about the true meaning of Christmas with the attendant filling gas in her car!
In Japan, less than one percent of the population are Evangelical Christians; Shintoism and Buddhism are the predominant religions. Some people say it’s really hard to share the gospel with the Japanese, and there are different theories for why that is. But I’ve actually found that, like Hana, a lot of people are searching for spiritual things, and surprisingly, they’re not against supernatural things like miracles. A presentation of the Four Spiritual Laws may make no sense to them. But when you start where they are at—coming alongside their spiritual journey, hearing their stories to discover what they are seeking, and looking for where God is in that picture—I think many people are open and want to know about the Creator God.
Hana was the first, but we’ve seen several other people receive Jesus since that first time Prime prayed for us and I felt things shift. God has really worked miracles. I could tell several more stories of clear answers to prayer—things that happened right after we prayed together. I really believe we wouldn’t have seen these breakthroughs in Japan without the prayers of the Prime Intercession Team.
Looking back, I think God didn’t want to do this work in Japan just through me. “Join hands with others,” he said. God wanted me to connect with others in prayer. In Prime, we joined hands spiritually over video calls, and I could message the team in moments where we needed prayer. The team would pray, and we’d see breakthrough!
We can always pray on our own, but I believe there’s power in praying together, and God wants that. When two or three gather together in his name, he’s with us (scripture). Our prayer multiplies. And when we see answers together, our joy is multiplied as well!
A Few Thoughts on Intercession
My time with Prime Creative has broken down my stereotype of what it means to be an intercessor. Intercession is not about going through a list or covering all of a person’s needs. It’s hearing God’s heart and his love for others. Prayer is really just communication with God—hearing, receiving, and also responding.
In the beginning, I tried to set aside an hour to pray every morning but my son would sometimes interrupt me. I used to feel frustrated, but then I decided to change how I prayed.
Now my personal prayer practice is actually very simple. When I wake up in the morning, I say, “I rejoice in you God!” Then I ask God the following six questions**: “What do you think of me?” He usually responds, “I love you!” “What do you want me to do today?” He gives me thoughts and ideas. Next I’ll ask, “Who should I serve today, and how shall I serve them?” “Who should I share the Good News with and how shall I share it with them?” “Is there anything I should repent of?” “How can I serve my brothers and sisters in Christ?” I jot down what God brings to my mind.
When my son wants attention during this daily exercise, I invite him to do it together with me. I do this every morning, then throughout the day when God brings someone to mind, I’ll pray. It might be that I’m listening to a worship song, and a specific person comes to mind. I’ll pray for them, and maybe send them a message about the song to encourage them. Anytime, anywhere, is a God-space—a space he can use for prayer.
If you are looking for ways to intercede, I encourage you to look for opportunities to join hands with others and multiply your prayers. And let God lead your interactions each day. You never know when he may give you a word and an open door to share him with others.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Rie Manabe-Kim and her husband Christian live in Fukuoka, Japan, with their son Noah. They have served with Novo’s cross-cultural collective, Ethne, since 2017. The Kims have a vision to see movements of people coming to Christ, and a heart to be a catalyst of reconciliation and healing between cultures and generations in Japan. Rie is an active member of Prime Creative (formerly Prime Intercession).
*name changed
**These six questions are derived from Upward, Outward, Inward by Japanese pastor, Mitsuo Fukuda