Letters from Guam
by Eric Ji

Beyond the Postcard

To many people, Guam and Micronesia mean blue water and a tropical getaway. But these islands have carried deep wounds for a long time.

• Islands marked by war and the bombDuring World War II, Guam lived under 31 months of occupation, and about 18,000 residents were forced into camps. On Saipan, at least 8,000 civilians died, and the plane that bombed Hiroshima took off from Tinian. Warships still lie at the bottom of Chuuk Lagoon, and the Marshall Islands endured 67 nuclear tests.
• People leaving, families breakingThe population of the Federated States of Micronesia fell by nearly 30 percent in ten years. Many families left behind struggle with alcohol and disease, and youth suicide here spread so widely that researchers called it an epidemic.
• Faith in name only, new teachings moving inNearly everyone here is counted as Christian, yet in many places faith has not become life. Into that gap, other religious movements are planting themselves on island after island.

Ministry here is not a vacation. It is the front line of a spiritual battle. Please pray with us that the gospel would reach one college student on campus and one child at an island school.