TOKYO, JAPAN (March 16, 2011) – Evangelical Covenant Church missionaries in Japan remain safe despite the continued crisis at nuclear plants, says Pauline Carlson, a country coordinator for the Department of World Mission.

“The Japan Covenant and its churches, as well as the Covenant missionary staff, are not located in the vicinity of the plant,” Carlson said in an email message today. “There are churches and missionaries from other missionary organizations in that area, so prayers for those people would be appreciated.”

In her daily blog update, missionary Andrea Johnson writes, “We here in Tokyo are in no imminent danger at this point, but levels were several times higher than normal. The neighbor kids played outside with hoods on – I can’t convince my kids to wear hoods yet, but my oldest is following the news carefully in both Japanese and English and is quickly becoming conversant in nuclear power plants.”

Johnson adds, “The absence of ads on television is refreshing. In their place are carefully crafted reminders to encourage people to show kindness, patience, thoughtfulness, and forgiveness to one another.”

Later in her post, Johnson writes, “As I wrote this last paragraph, there was a magnitude 6.2 earthquake centered southwest of us, but no serious damage . . . I’m thankful for peace in the midst of unpeace.”

Covenant News Service will keep readers apprised of any changes regarding situations involving denominational missionaries and the Japan Covenant Church. Below is the entirety of Carlson’s statement:

“The Covenant missionary staff in Japan are very thankful for the prayers and support of many people around the world as they are dealing with the aftermath of the 9.0 earthquake and tsunami north of Tokyo. The prayers and expressions of concern are greatly appreciated. Please continue to pray for Japan and its people as they deal with this major natural disaster. Pray for the Christians in Japan that they would be salt and light to their neighbors, and will be able to share God’s love and care for the people around them.

“The Covenant missionary staff in Japan continue to monitor the situation in the area of the earthquake and tsunami north of the Tokyo area. One big news story is regarding the nuclear power plant and the evacuation of people in the vicinity of power plant. It is a serious situation for those people, but the Japan Covenant and its churches, as well as the Covenant missionary staff, are not located in the vicinity of the plant. There are churches and missionaries from other missionary organizations in that area, so prayers for those people would be appreciated.

“The Ambassador to Japan from the U.S., John Roos, has sent out a notice to U.S. citizens living in Japan that the embassy is monitoring the situation and consulting with U.S. experts in nuclear matters, and the precautions that the Japanese government are taking are appropriate for this situation. The embassy will continue to send out information to U.S. citizens when necessary.

“Please continue to pray for the country of Japan and its people. It will take time to recover from this natural disaster. For those interested in giving a donation, donations can be sent to Covenant World Relief. Covenant World Relief will be partnering with the Japan Covenant and other organizations that will be doing relief work in the affected areas.”