ASSEMBLIES OF GODHere in Japan, we recently held an English camp, and it was a huge success, mainly because of the BGMC inflatables. We had about 30 kids in attendance, and two-thirds of them had never been to church before.
The Sunday after the camp, we held an awards ceremony. About half the kids from the camp brought their whole families! Many of these families heard the gospel for the very first time that day.
But here is the really cool part. Right across the street from the church, there is a family with two middle-school-aged kids. We have had a few conversations wtih them over the years but had never really been able to connect.
The day we set up the bouncy house, the mom came over and said, “Wow, you guys always seem to be having a lot of fun!” That led to a conversation about English camp, and she told me her daughter was studying English. So I invited her daughter to church, since our services are bilingual. She came and brought another friend with her. They both heard the gospel. And they loved church and plan to come back!
Also, one of the grandmas in our neighborhood stopped by when she saw the bouncy house. She asked if her friend’s grandchildren could come and play. So we were able to share about our weekly play group outreach.
After being inflated only a few minutes, these BGMC inflatables have already helped us to build relationships and connect people to the church. For example, we just held a play group with the bounce house set up inside the sanctuary, where there is air conditioning. Our play group is a time to connect with Japanese kids and their moms. It has been one of the most effective entry points for the church. We usually have 3-5 ids, but the first week with the bouncy house, we had 30 kids! Many of them were English camp kids, but about 10 were new kids invited by the English camp kids.
We can’t wait to see what happens in the coming months and years!
Thank you, BGMC! Chris Carter, missionary to Japan