Yuri is growing fast

Here is a picture of Yuri at 1 month with teddy and 7 months with the same teddy

Time with family

While we were in Japan we had a chance to spend time with Yuri’s Grandparents, aunts, uncles and her 10 month old cousin. Yoshiko has a sister and 2 brothers and Yuri is the first grandbaby, so naturally everyone was so happy to see the new addition to the family.

Yuri likes to take the Subway

Yuri gets a lot of attention

It has been fun traveling around with yuri - she gets a lot of attention. We try to tell her not to let it go to her head. haha. At first we thought it would be very difficult to itinerate with her but God has really helped us. Just about every church we have visited someone was there to help watch her while we had to speak. And if no one was able to watch her the congregation didn’t mind us holding her while we spoke. God is good.

Matt’s 9 day hospital visit

It’s amazing that during my two years in Cambodia I hardly got sick but when I came back to Japan I spent 9 days in the hospital. I started out with a fever (which lasted for 3 weeks), then I had some type of pneumonia, then I toped it all off with a problem with my lungs. But praise God I am now healed. We knew that it was more of a testing time for us. While I was in the hospital, Yoshi and Yuri had to visit the churches without me. it was a challenge but we continued steadfast in prayer and knew that God would get us through - and He did.

Itineration

We arrived in Japan last March in order to visit the churches that support us and give a report about what we have been doing and what God is leading us to do next. Yoshi and I have been praying that God would raise up intercessors who would hold us up in prayer. It has been on our heart to encourage the churches to “stand in the gap” and intercede for us and for those we will minister to. (In August we start our next term which will be for 3 years). If you feel the Lord leading you to join us in the ministsry in Cambodia through intercession please contact us at matt_akers@hotmail.com and we will send you our newsletter with current prayer needs.