The city is gorgeous, but I feel empty and lonely?
Here's a parasol church for you.

“I’m scared that my life will continue like this.”
“Homeless people like us don’t appear in the news or newspapers even if we die.
“No one is trying to identify me.”
“I was in so much pain that I wanted to die.
Because if I die, I won't have to go to school and I won't be bullied.

“… It was hard to tell anyone about this, but this is the first time I’ve said this in front of someone else.
Still, I'm glad I can tell you everything here."

Even in cities crowded with tall buildings and crowds, there are still marginalized and sick people.
Some of them even throw away their precious lives.
Parasols were spread out on the streets for the poor souls who could have been saved just by holding their hand and listening to their stories in silence.
'Parasol Church' is the story of a pastor's 'ministry of listening to the concerns of those who are tired of loneliness'.


Sodom and Gomorrah, Corinth, Ephesus, Rome… Most of the places in the Bible where the gospel was preached were large cities.
How could the gospel spread in a city so rife with idolatry and worldly practices? Because the gospel deeply understood the times and healed the individuals and society within it.


Even in today's world, a life as dry and hectic as endless competition, people unexpectedly knock on the door of Parasol, a place with nothing more than two chairs and a banner that reads, "We listen to your concerns."
“Excuse me… Can I talk to you?”

A world where people struggle in pain and even turn their backs on life.
People are overwhelmed by the injustice and misfortune that cannot be helped, such as people who have suffered an accident and are left without a livelihood, a grandmother who has lost her only daughter, and an elementary school student who is bullied by his friends. However, the author goes out into the streets every week to lend a listening ear and reach out to share the warmth of God.
Because only the God of healing can remove their resentment and curses and restore them.
The author, with a calling for urban missions, says that the city we live in now is a mission field.
The church should be a friend to those who are lonely and desolate.

Cities are developing day by day and providing many benefits, but there are also many hidden shadows.
In the cracks between people, there are those who secretly suffer from loneliness and alienation.
There are many people passing by on the street, but there are more and more people who visit counseling centers because they do not have friends to share their feelings with.
(…) The sight of them, driven to the edge of life, listening to the word and receiving prayer was so earnest and sincere.

---From "Introductory Remarks p.7"

He must have had a time when he was a young man, burning with passion.
Even if you fail the exam, there must have been hope that gave you the strength to take the exam again.
But at some point, that motivation and hope gradually faded and faded, and eventually disappeared.
How wonderful it would have been if someone had been there for me at that time. It was a precious life that wouldn't have crumbled if someone had encouraged, supported, and loved it.

---From "I feel like a useless person p.32"

“Thank you for listening to my story.”
He put down the plastic bag containing ten yogurts on the table and ran out again in a hurry.
How could he have money if he only ate once every few days?
When I think about his situation, many
Emotions came flooding in.

---From "I feel like a useless person pp.32-33"

There are no trash cans in the kingdom of God.
No matter how deeply we have been hurt, no matter how embarrassing things we have experienced, God does not abandon us, but uses us.
When God decides to give grace, no one can escape it.
(…) God is the greatest healer.
There is no one he cannot use.
God is always waiting to give us good things, even if we have not yet lived in His grace.

---「There are no trash cans in the kingdom of God pp.
Among 40-42

“Why wouldn’t it be difficult?
Not long ago, a person who was like a friend to me suddenly jumped in front of a train while we were walking together.
“He passed away on the spot.”
“…It must have been very shocking and difficult for you to experience something like that right in front of your eyes.”
(…) I felt so sorry for him, living a life where death was a daily occurrence.
The lives of other homeless people who lost their lives were also heartbreaking.

---「He was once a successful action actor, but p.
Among the 57

In fact, my grandfather lived his entire life building a wall between himself and the church.
Because of a small wound I received from the church in the past, I lived my whole life criticizing the church.
But who could have imagined that meeting me, following the injustice that had befallen her, would become a channel for the gospel? Even my grandmother, who had long prayed for her husband, had never anticipated this turn of events.
(…) I discover God’s amazing wisdom in transforming my grandfather’s anger into the joy of salvation, and today, I listen to the words of someone who came to find the parasol.
Hoping that their lives will not be mired in the swamp of anger, but will settle in the gentle land of grace.

---From "They Took My Land! pp.81-82"

As I continued to do counseling work, I began to see people regularly coming to Parasol.
As I prayed for them and preached the word, one thought occurred to me.
'Ah, this is a church.'
I, too, had a prejudice that when it came to church, I only thought of well-equipped chapels.
But as I focused on the people I met, I realized that the church is not a building, but a gathering of saints who have been called.
I realized.

"If Jesus is present, the Word is witnessed, and fellowship is shared through prayer, even with just two chairs on the street, then this is the mission field and the beginning of the church."
---From "This is a church, pp.86-87"

What does mission mean in this day and age? It means being a friend to the poor in spirit, to those who are marginalized and groan in the shadows.
(…) Can the church become a friend to those who cry on the street?
---From "What if my daughter never wakes up? p.92"

Q.
Just hearing the explanation is comforting.
But on the other hand, there is also the question of whether 'human' counseling alone can solve problems.
There is a view within Christianity that counseling is unbiblical.
However, the counseling we are talking about here means counseling that is thoroughly God-centered.
(…) The ultimate goal of street counseling is not simply to listen to a story, but to help the counselor meet God, realize his or her own sinfulness, receive a calling, and become perfect before God with the gift of faith.
We must not forget that this entire process is also carried out under God's guidance.
Our best counselor is God.

---「Appendix, On Becoming a Good Listener pp.
From 164-165