Unified...

From my heart to yours … Thank you!!!

webmaster — Wed, 09 May 2012 23:15:43 +0000

Dear Unified … family,

Yesterday was a day of wonderful news! Pastor Gavin and I visited Gene Fujii who is recovering well from his quadruple bypass surgery. He is still feeling a bit tired and weak, but he looks great! We got to stay for 10 minutes before Gene had to lay down to rest again.

That preceded my office visit to my doctor. I got the results from my latest blood test. Not only did I lose 14 pounds in a month, but my bad cholesterol level dropped 40 points! My sugar levels are normal and so I am off the pre-diabetic list. My doctor was amazed! He said to me, “it is not how much you eat, but what you eat that makes the difference. See you in three months!!! Yipee!!

When I first got the word of being pre-diabetic (I have a family history) I jokingly said to Kerry, “I’ll just see Jesus sooner!” Than the Holy Spirit spoke and said, “Yes, but you will not finish what I have for you to do!” Ouch! Imagine, making it all the way into heaven and finding out this disappointing news. Thinking that I didn’t finish well put the fear of God in me more than any diagnosis on earth ever could! So I was instantly motivated to change my diet. I have been avoiding carbohydrates and process sugar. And Walla!! Really no exercise, just changing my diet! Try it! Of course I will be adding exercise into my lifestyle as this is not an argument against doing it!

My goal is my optimum weight back in High School of 128 pounds. Unified … are you ready!!! Kerry says, I will be to skinny! Well, I am finding out skinny is better than sorry!!

I so appreciate all your prayers and encouragement. I want to say what we do and how we act do make a difference for the Kingdom!

Love you all!!! What an amazing family we have at Unified …

Don’t forget, this Sunday is Mother’s Day! This will be my first Mother’s Day without mom! I am missing her already, but I know she is in a better place having finished her race well.

Prophet Larry Randolph will be our guest speaker!!

Happy Mother’s Day to all the wonderful moms at Unified …! You Rock!!!

See you then!

Pastor Dean

Article by Pastor John!

webmaster — Tue, 08 May 2012 19:46:30 +0000

Dear Unified … family,

I am posting a great article by Pastor John which he wrote after he received a revelation on the value of serving. Please read it and take it to heart. Remember as Arthur Burk described, we are a mercy church on servant land! As we align ourselves to what the Lord has designed we set ourselves to be positioned towards fulfilling our destiny.

Blessings,

Dean

*******

Calvin Say, A Servant Attitude, and Real Promotion

Ephesians 2:22-23 states, “And he put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.” Jesus is Lord. I see him standing at the front of our church, ruling and reigning, taking his rightful place in the body. He is directing us to do something very special in this season.

I’ve never seen His leadership so clearly in all my years in Christian ministry. I’m excited and fearful all at the same time. God is speaking. We need to listen. What is he saying? God is calling us to a lifestyle of sacrificial, loving service. It’s not just mediocre service, but the radical, amazing grace kind. It’s another level of maturity. Please read on as I try to unpack this for us.

“Calvin Say was a busboy for twenty years at Flamingo Chuck Wagon while serving in The House of Representatives?” I have to admit this was impressive. Could I do this? Could we do this? To serve in a seat of power at The State Capitol and then clean tables at Chuck Wagon provides a powerful example of what it means to be a servant leader.

I saw an authority on this man that came from years of self sacrifice. He sign waves, canvasses door-to-door, works at the family business, works tirelessly to pass fair bills, and graciously receives criticism from both friend and foe. He forgives and continues to serve the state of Hawaii with a humility and wisdom not found today in the politicized atmosphere of modern day government. He has done this for 36 years. That’s amazing. God wants us to have the same amazing longevity and perseverance when it comes to having a servant heart.

God is highlighting this. His finger is pointing directly at our hearts. How do I know? He is using the teaching tool of repetition. First, God, through Arthur Burk, has made it very clear that our church resides on servant land. This means the ground we walk upon exudes loving service to our community, state, and one another; it exudes authority in the spiritual realm over the spirit of death and sickness; it exudes authority to shift governments and countries.

Since we prayed for and activated the ground of 1419 10^th Avenue, the servant redemptive qualities of the land have been heightened. We now have the high privilege of walking in this amazing destiny and calling of our church. Actually, if I wanted to get real accurate, we now are walking in the destiny and calling of Christ. That’s real living. That’s real authority. Mark 10:45 states, “For the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Second, God used Calvin Say, a politician, a Samaritan, to teach us, God’s chosen people, what it means to live like a Christian. You have to see the irony in this. Politicians are known for lying, stealing, hypocrisy, and using their position for self-serving purposes. Calvin Say was and is none of these things. His example of humble service challenged us all to rise to another level of service. God used a politician to set the servanthood bar for the people of God. He really did. God is amazing.

This made me ask the questions? Could I feel secure preaching a message from the pulpit on one weekend and at the same time park cars on another? Could I feel the joy of serving as a writer of articles in the morning and as Aimee’s teeth flosser in the evening? Could you serve in a ministry that you totally love and then serve in another that doesn’t fit your giftings and calling? Could we serve in children’s ministry? Could we help park cars? Could we just serve for the purpose of serving? The answer should be yes because servanthood is not a role or a duty, but a heart attitude. God is promoting hearts at this time. He really is.

Lastly, in our staff meeting we had to deal with the challenges of finding people willing to serve in various ministries of the church. It was a good discussion. It challenged us to work through these things as a team. I loved the free flow of thought and idea, but at a deeper level, God made it clear that he wanted the church to move into a higher level of maturity when it came to service. No one is exempt. Hearts are being revealed at this time. God used Calvin Say, the redemptive gift of our land, and the topic of ‘service’ in our staff meeting to repetitively ram home this message: we are called to be servants. God confirmed with three witnesses again.

A servant heart leads to promotion, protection and real power. God promotes humility (1 Peter 5:5-6). Servants naturally walk with this type of heart. They lean on the power of God for protection and are able to resist the attacks of the Devil effectively (1 Peter 5:5-11). Humble people ask for help, the prideful get smashed. A servant heart gushes forth with wisdom, authority and power (1 Peter 5:10, Mark 10:45,) Stephen the 1^st century busboy moved in this type of authority (Acts 7).

Jesus said the greatest among you will be the servant (Luke 22:24-27). Unified…, God is calling us to serve one another with the right heart and attitude. It’s a call to real maturity (Phil 2:3-4). It’s not a shallow life of pleasing man, but a deep call to love one another (1 Corinthians 13).

If you see a need in the church, go and serve. It may not be in your area of gifting, but God will bless you with character development and intimacy with him. Remember this: God will reward character and not spiritual gifting (2 Pet 1:5-11). You may not even know your gifting or calling, but as you serve, God will bring more and more clarity in this area. Serve to see. Lastly, cross over from your ministry and help in another. Look at the church not as separate ministries, but as one, unified family.

Calvin Say ended his talk by saying that God took a busboy and made something special out of his life. As you walk with a servant heart, watch what God does with your life. It all starts with making the choice to humble yourself and serve.

Pastor John

Another Important Lesson Learned!

webmaster — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 20:43:49 +0000

Dear Unified … family,

There is a fearless group of people who go out regularly into Honolulu to bless and pray for people on Friday nights. No, it isn’t Firestarters, nor is it a Treasure Hunt! It is open for anyone to join them and do amazing exploits for God. They go where the Lord sends them and have awesome encounters with God and the people they meet. If you are interested you can see Pastor Wayne.

This is their story …

Blessings,

Pastor Dean

*******

Testimony from Friday night in Chinatown: It was an unusual night- so different than what we had planned to do and what we have been doing. However, God showed up and He blessed the waitresses who served us, the restaurant and the atmosphere was changed! God also blessed us, as the waitresses treated us like VIP’s, although we had just met them!

Blessings,

Wayne

This is my recollection of what turned out to be a wonderful blessed night. Please feel free to add or edit, or submit your own perspective.

We (Carol Kanayama, Gregg Hamamoto, Greg & Kristina Nifong, Mike Kanayama, Janet China) first gathered at Unified to decide on a venue for the outreach effort. Wayne asked us where God told us where to go. Greg Nifong said he saw a statute, like King Kamehameha holding a spear. That indicated downtown. Kristina offered Chinatown as the place God advised, Janet China suggested the Home Improvement Show at NBC, Greg Nifong said Chinatown felt right, and Wayne said Chinatown had been on his heart for a while.(Someone else — MIke?–might have said Chinatown too. I was distracted, thinking of food because I was hungry, as was Gregg Hamamoto. (At some point, I said we should go eat together but I was sure that was because of my preoccupation with food. I could sort of see us eating together although I didn’t say that to the group.)

So Chinatown is where we went. I drove the ladies– Janet and Kristina– and Wayne drove the men– Greg Nifong, Gregg Hamamoto, and my cousin, Mike. We agreed to park in the Municipal lot under a park bordered by Nuuanu Avenue and Beretania Street. However, I had difficulty finding the entrance, and as I circled the block, lo and behold, Wayne was in the next lane, and he said the parking lot was on Beretania and Maunakea Street. So that’s where my group went– at least, we thought that was the designated lot– we learned there are a LOT of parking lots in Chinatown–but we didn’t see Wayne’s car and wondered where they were. The men were concerned, and called us at various times to coordinate meeting up with us. They had parked in a different lot, and we women waited, as arranged, outside of the Municipal lot on Beretania Street.

The evening was turning dark, and the atmosphere was beginning to change with the working people and college students dwindling. We women were directly across Wong Kee Restaurant and Legend Seafood Restaurant at the Cultural Plaza. Just as it started to get a little spooky waiting there because it’s a high crime rate area, Kristina noticed our guys approaching on Beretania Street, and she said, “The men are coming to rescue us.” It really felt like that! Like in cowboy movies where the cavalry come to rescue the women in distress. It was a real kick to see our guys walking toward us– I think I’ll always remember that scene.

When we met the guys, my cuz, Mike, said he needed to get to a bathroom quickly, and Greg Nifong echoed him, saying, he confirmed that! We went to the Cultural Plaza to find a restroom, and the men went upstairs to the Chinese church. But they were denied entrance because it wasn’t a public bathroom. Wayne was drawn to the sign — No Public ~~Bathroom~~ Restroom- in Legend Seafood Restaurant, and he went in there to ask if they could use the restroom. Annie, a waitress, gave them permission. I was relieved for them because I was starting to wonder what they’d do if no place admitted them. When the guys came out of the restaurant, Wayne felt we needed to bless the restaurant, so he suggested having soup in the restaurant. When we were seated in the restaurant, we ended up ordering dinner! (Just what I had wanted to do– eat together.)

The place was elegant, with white cloth tablecloth and white linen napkins, and a huge chandelier. The waitresses were dressed in a white shirt, black pants and black vest– formal-looking. The food was excellent!! As we settled in, we relaxed, and had a really nice time. I felt as if we were celebrating and God was happy that we were.

We felt truly blessed. We prayed for the place to prosper, and within a half hour, more customers arrived.

After dinner, we prayed for ~~Queen~~ Quing, our waitress, because her wrist hurt. Afterward, she tested her wrist, twisting it around, and said it felt good!

Annie (the waitress who let the guys use the bathroom) was watching from a distance. She practically ran over to us, and stuck her left arm out, saying, “Do the same thing for me too!” Her wrist hurt too. We prayed for her, and she thanked us. (She didn’t tell us whether it got better, but from her reaction, it must have.) I guess she related the experience to maybe the supernatural element of tai chi or kung fu because she said it was like “tai chi/kung fu”, and she demonstrated some tai chi/kung fu moves for us.

She then gave us free dessert! Three different kinds of a liquidy pudding, which were like zenzai. It was quite delicious.

After the wonderful meal and dessert, we debriefed outside the restaurant. The men said that at first, they felt that they needed to hurry up and get over the distractions — the parking lot miscommunication, urgent bathroom need, and being denied bathroom privileges– so that they could pray for people. After all, that was our purpose for going out. Wayne said he was wondering why all of these things were happening, but as he was in Legend’s restroom, he felt God wanted to bless the restaurant. The guys said they had to set aside their agendas for God’s agenda because God wanted them where they were- in Legend Seafood Restaurant.

Mike said he felt as if we were foreigners in the place at first, but later felt we fit right in– it felt comfortable.

I just felt blessed and special. The meal, the place, and the service made me feel special, as if I was being honored. It blows me away to think of this, but I felt as if God was honoring us. Us! The Scriptures about how God delights in us, and how He rejoices over us are real!

And we did get to bless Annie and Quing. And Janet later.

What an unusual night! And what a blessed time it was. Thank you, God!!

Carol

On our Way to Bethel Church!

webmaster — Sun, 29 Apr 2012 08:39:34 +0000

Dear Unified … family,

Kerry and I just arrived in San Francisco connecting to our plane to Redding, CA. I opened my email and enjoyed reading Carol K.’s testimony. Way to go Carol! I love your spirit. Oh, don’t forget to register for Larry Randolph on May 11-12. It is just a few weeks away. I do plan to close registration, so don’t delay.

Blessings,

Pastors Dean and Kerry

*******

On my way home tonight, I asked God to highlight someone who needed prayer. I hadn’t prayed for any strangers over the last three days except a 15 second prayer for our security guard at work.

I went to Long’s Hawaii, and met “Gary B”, who used to work in my office over 30 years ago. I’ve seen him maybe three times since then. Tonight, he related how he has a medical condition, retroiperitoneal fibrosis, that led to one of his kidneys failing, and the other one having problems with excess protein in his urine. (I looked up the condition when I came home, and it’s a serious medical problem that can lead to kidney failure.)

Gary is a very friendly, humorous, and open person, and I asked him if I could pray for him. Just my asking touched his heart, and he was grateful. As I prayed, I felt the Holy Spirit sort of zap into his kidney. After about a minute, I asked if he felt that, and he said, “Yes, I feel a vibration.”

I said, “That was the Holy Spirit!” We talked some more, I prayed again, and then I asked if he had accepted Jesus as His savior. (Avy, if you hadn’t brought that up with Melissa on Monday night, I wouldn’t have thought of asking Gary the same thing!)

Gary said he had accepted Jesus a long time ago, but maybe he had “lost it”. I told him how the father rejoiced when his prodigal returned home, and how Jesus would rejoice the same way if Gary accepted Jesus again. I actually led him in a prayer about believing in Jesus as the son of God, Jesus’ death to save us from sin, and His resurrection to give us life. (This was my first time I led anyone in that kind of prayer, but Gary was already a Christian, albeit lukewarm and maybe fallen off the path.)

He seemed quite interested in learning more, and I encouraged him to visit our church one Sunday. Too bad I didn’t have a card for the Monday night healing service because he seemed interested in that too. He said he’d visit me at work with the doctor’s report if the test in two months showed a drop in his protein count.

Mike– I think Gary might be interested in the senior citizens group when it gets underway at our church. I’ll invite him.

Gary said I had changed (I said, yeah, I got older), and he said, with a laugh, that I “wasn’t as mean” to him (he was half-joking but half-serious), and that I looked “radiant”. That was a nice topping to an already very nice meeting with Gary. In fact, Gary said, he felt that was the reason he came to Long’s– to meet me! And he said it was a nice end to a very good day, which included finding his lost key at Costco.

I was uplifted by Gary being touched by the Holy Spirit, and by Gary’s interest and thankfulnesss. It was all so good!

Carol

My Strategic/Ideation/Activator Maximizer/Adaptability Gift!

webmaster — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 22:26:50 +0000

Dear Unified … family,

Recently I took an online test recommended by Danny Silk which identified my top 5 strengths. It was called “Strength Finders 2.0.” The test identified my strengths as strategic, ideation, activator, maximizer, and adaptability. In simple terms, “I am a person who strategically thinks of ideas to either start things or to improve on what is already there. I guess the Lord knew that I also needed “adaptability” to keep in balance and temper the other four gifts. He also had to give me a redemptive mercy gift and put me on servant land to fully express my God given design. Why an I sharing all this? It really have to do with a suggestion I have for our Unified … families which I have been thinking about.

Here goes …

I realize that many of our couples because of the busyness in raising a family or the lack of family support are not able to have regular dates nights with their significant other. The more kids and the younger the kids, the harder it gets. I want to propose an idea which may help.

1) Families partner with other families to share in the responsibility of caring for each other’s children to provide time for a date night. I think it should be a shared thing because our culture is so strongly tied to shame and obligation that it can become less than productive if there is only receiving from one couple and not contributing to others.

a) I would suggest getting to together with a few couples in your area where you live and work something out to share the load of watching each others kids. Details can be worked out between the couples.

2) Secondly, I am looking to implement date nights where the church can provide a “quarterly” night out for couples. The church would have an activity where kids could be dropped off so couples can plan to go out with other couples and get to meet people within our fellowship. This could serve to strengthen the Unified … family bond between the individual families.

Saying this, I feel the second option would work best if it is being first implemented in each home.

I am open to suggestions and feedback. Let me know what you think. But please keep it short as I may have plenty to read. Love you all!

Blessings,

Pastor Dean (and Kerry)

Gene’s Surgery was a Success! Please continue to pray!

webmaster — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 09:53:34 +0000

Dear Unified … family,

I was just informed by Pastor John that Gene Fujii’s surgery was a complete success. He had a quadruple bypass. He is out of recovery and in the ICU resting. Marie thanks everyone for your prayers.

Give Jesus a praise but don’t let your guard down yet. Stay vigilant and continue to pray for no complications or infections. We want a speedy and miraculous recovery for Gene.

Blessings,

Pastor Dean

Arthur Burk’s Saturday Seminar Recording! “The Land, Your Spirit, and Your Brain!”

webmaster — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 02:49:48 +0000

Dear Unified … Family,

TheSLG.com owns the copyright so we cannot sell Saturday’s seminar recording. It was an SLG event. We were the host. If you want a copy you will need to contact Arthur’s ministry directly. Their website is www.TheSLG.com .

Thank you for your understanding …

Pastor Dean

Thank you Unified … family!

webmaster — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 08:32:11 +0000

Dear Unified … family,

Thank you so much for joining us in honoring Pastors Cal and Joy. They shared how much they felt honored by you, our Unified … family. It warmed Kerry and my heart as your spiritual parents to see you embrace them and receive them as part of our Unified … ohana. Heaven smiled on us and I know God is well pleased with what transpired today. Kerry and I are so proud of you.

All our love,

Dean and Kerry

What An Amazing Treasure Hunt!

webmaster — Sun, 15 Apr 2012 07:48:05 +0000

Dear Unified .., family,

Last night was another amazing Treasure Hunt night. Fifty people formed six groups and went to three locations, Kahala Mall, Ala Moana, and Walmart. They prayed for an estimated 150 people with three salvations. Yah God!

Awesome job Uyeda’s in facilitating the hunt!

I love how the Lord works so I want to share a testimony from Lissa Cockett. This story is sooo God, sooo good, sooo funny, and soo awesome! You are amazing too, Lissa!

Blessings,

Pastor Dean

*******

Treasure Hunting tonight with Paul & Betty leading the way was a redeeming time, the Lord brought a treasure right to me at Ala Moana this evening. I apologize for a long testimony but it was so rich with the hand of God and I wanted to capture what happened without cutting too many corners.

I had “circus” on my location list among many other details.

I was also feeling sluggish about blessing people tonight but honestly I was with 4 youth and was feeling the pressure to be a good example to them, ha!

I wandered into the foodcourt at Ala Moana by myself as the gals & I split up to find our treasures.
I went and stood by the doors leading out of the market to the covered parking when I spotted someone with a circus circus shirt on so I paused to access and plan my next move.

As I stood there a man approached me and immediately told me he was an athiest, moved here from L.A. to write a book about athiests view of GOD…go figure? His name is James.

I asked him if knew anything about Jesus and he laughed and realized that I was probably a Christian based on that question. Regardless, he liked my “vibe” and wanted to chat some more about how Christians are selfish, judging etc

He asked me if I would give him a $1000 no questions asked, thinking that Jesus might do the same.
I told him I would, that I would give him $10,000 if Jesus told me to…no questions asked. He gave me his address in case I get the green light to send him some money, ha!

The Lord told me to ask James about his Mom at one point. He said, so what do you want to know about her? I said, she is still alive right? He said yes. She isnt in your life anymore is she? And he said, no she isnt but she lives somewhere on Oahu and “I am trying to find her”! It sounds like he maybe had some exchanges with her along time ago and he was always upset with her so she has totally kept away from him. He isn’t even sure of her name.

So I asked him, if you don’t know her name, but you know what she looks like and what her occupation is where did you get these clues? He responded reluctantly by pointing up to recognize the LORD! The Lord had given him these clues over the years!

My heart just opened up to pour out everything I have experienced being rejected by MY own parents and family and shared that with James that his Mom didn’t leave “HIM” but it is out of her brokenness that caused this division with NO reflection of who he is…how do I know this I asked, because I have been rejected by parents out of THEIR brokeness, it had NOTHING to do with me.

I told James that my Papa God, however has never forsaken me even though my earthly parents have etc. I told him that in order for him to reach his book writing dreams and the fullness of his destiny that he needed to release his mom from his anger and unforgiveness.

We talked for 30 min’s, much was said. I hadn’t even told him I was on a treasure hunt yet! As the conversation continued he shared he has many health issues and I could see the pain mounting the longer he stood talking to me. He self medicates with alcohol to manage the pain of the illness and the rejection.

So as he stood there I asked him if I could pray to get rid of the pain and he said “no no no” a few times. Finally, I said just stand there (a few feet from me) God is going to relieve you of this pain and without waiting for his response I started praying healing from heaven along with the peace of heaven to cover him. I saw the peace ON him, like a portal opened over him, and could feel the annointing on him, though he wouldnt admit he felt it, he got wrecked…I KNOW HE DID!

I then pulled up JAMES 1:1-5 on my phone and started reading it to him and he actually came over and read it with me! I asked him if he has ever tested out his theories of God by actually asking HIM to take away the pain or bless him financially and he said NO. So I told him he needs to do it, that this meeting wasn’t chance, that the LORD loves him so much to make this divine encounter so he could be reminded of his greatness, that he is AMAZING and so much more.

I told him numerous times what a wonderful man he was and he said “we’ll see” and I replied each time “NO, you ARE amazing right now!” And finally I asked James, “Do you know why I came here tonight in the first place?” It was a riot telling him that I was there to find a treasure and he was IT!

I was so blessed and I know that as I (we all) am able to share my journey and speak into others lives that I get even more healing as God continues to REDEEM! I felt a bit ambushed tonight and can only imagine what James is feeling! Also, James actually came up to ME! God made it so easy and others testified to that tonight as well.

Times are super crazy good with Papa! xxoo Love in Jesus, Lissa

Treasure Hunt!! Tonight @ 6:30 pm!

webmaster — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 19:48:11 +0000

Dear Unified ,,, family,

Tonight is Unified …’s monthly Treasure Hunt! Last month over 70 people ministered to over 200 people throughout Oahu. People were healed, received prophetic words, encouraged, and received Christ. Many people were out on their first treasure hunt and were excited to see how the Lord flowed through them powerfully.

I want to invite you if you would like to join tonight’s hunt! Remember “God rewards risk and not success!” It is fun when you treasure hunt in teams. It’s simple, fun, and a great way to fellowship. Even entire families can participate.

If you are interested, meet at Unified … at 6:30 pm. Paul and Betty Uyeda are the facilitators and will be giving instructions on what to do. Then you will be off to find your God ordained treasure. If you thought easter egg hunts were fun, wait to you experience a treasure hunt!

Hope to see you there.

Pastor Dean