Daily Biblical Lesson ~ Remembering You
Joy to Pray for One Another --- via Postcard

Michiko Umekita (Kagoshima)

the postcards, however, I began to read the Bible
over and over and to think thoroughly what it
told me. There were a lot of passages too
difficult for me, but thanks to the messages by
the different pastors who authored the Daily
Lessons, I was able to deepen my understandingof the Biblical word.
The names of churches in the booksuggesting you pray them, didn’t mean much tome before, except for a little curiosity about its
location. After I began sending postcards,
however, I got back responses occasionally orreceived weekly or monthly news from several
churches. Consequently, I began to feel closer
to the churches that I knew only by name. It isalso a pleasure to meet friends in faith at‘Biblical Lesson Seminars’ and other gatherings.
Honestly speaking, I still feelawkward sending postcards like this, with mypoor handwriting. I am also afraid to offend
the recipients by writing unsolicited. Yet,nurtured by the Word and supported by theprayers of many, today I am in good health andable to write postcards.
I thank all of you who receive mypostcards. I am also thankful that I am joined
together with many brothers and sisters in theLord. Thank you so much.

The request to write about the ‘prayer postcard’has reminded me of one spring morning 15 years
ago.
Then I was at a loss, neither able tolook after my mother --- I had left her mattercompletely to my brother ---, nor to find a placein church. Due to worsening health conditions,I left my job five years earlier than theretirement age in the previous fall. I took
several vocational training seminars at the public
employment security office, but there was noone to hire a 55-year-old woman with a healthproblem. I didn’t know what to do.
One early April morning, I woke up
earlier than ever before. The next thing I knew,
I was sitting at the desk, reading the Daily
Biblical Lesson.
Then, I somehow
remembered the postcard I saw on thenoticeboard of my church several years back.
It was a ‘prayer postcard’ sent by Rev. M.
“Maybe I can do that,” I vaguely thought. I
jotted a line or two (don’t remember what Iwrote) on the postcard in hand and posted it.
Day after day, I somehow kept waking up early,
contrary to my habit. I spent about an hour or so
reading the Bible and the Daily Lesson,
meditating and praying, and writing a postcard.
One hour felt so short. After a while, I
received a postcard from a church. It said, “Wepray for you too.” I almost trembled with joythat came welling up in my heart.
Reading the Daily Lesson had been
my custom but I just skimmed it before going tobed and thought I had read it properly. Writing

In Christ6

Hello, dear friends in Japan

Eimi Watanabe

In each case, the main purpose ofthese projects is development of economy andsociety. They may have brought aboutdevelopments for society at large, but behindthem are almost always victims of development,
the poor and the weak. Most of these havebeen brought into our office because there wasno other option for solution.
The process of the Panel goes asfollows. First, we try to find out the causes ofcomplaints (damages and injuries) and assess
their degrees, then determine whether or not theprojects sponsored by the World Bank havetriggered them. We further decide whether or notthere have been failures on the part of the WorldBank to observe its own policies and regulations,thus causing damage and injury. Following
each inspection, the World Bank offers asolution or solutions, which need theendorsement of the Board.
This might give the impression thatthe inspection process goes rather automatically,
but at each stage of this process, we are required
to make hard decisions, and we painfully feelthe difficulty of giving fair judgements---all themore so as we repeat this process.
(to be continued)

Since my gradutation from graduate school, I
have worked quite a long time for theUnited
Nationsintheareasofdevelopment until my retirement. I now
chair the World Bank’s Inspection Panel inWashington D.C.
The Inspection Panel was establishedtwenty years ago in order to address problems
brought forward from citizens about projects
sponsored by the World Bank which might cause
trouble to villages, residents in the slums, andthe environments around them.
We accept complaints directly fromcitizens, and assess damages or injuries, anddegrees thereof. In case there are, in fact,
damages or injuries, we inspect whether or not
the World Bank is responsible in any way. The
Inspection Panel is, therefore, quite independentof the main body of the World Bank andrequired to be completely impartial. So
generally speaking, the staff of the World Bank
do not really enjoy the role we play.
The cases we have accepted andinspected are quite varied. We have heard
complaints from villagers who work at acoconut plantation in the Papua New Guinea;
residents in South Africa who live in theneighborhood of a large power plant which havebeen harmful to the environment and the lives ofthe surrounding community; residents of slumsin Nigeria who have been forced to leave theirareas because of an urban development project;
Kenyan aboriginal residents who were ejectedfrom forest areas where they had lived since thedays of their ancestors because of projects meant
to protect nature. We visit these areas and we
also hear from those involved in these projects.

7