Day 5

Children’s Day is celebrated in Japan on May 5 every year. This national holiday was established in 1948 to promote family unity and the equality of males and females. Up until this time, there was a separate holiday for boys and girls. On Children’s Day, and for some time before it, families who have a son in their home often fly carp-shaped banners outside their homes and may display a samurai warrior’s helmet or a samurai doll inside their homes. Everyone consumes special rice cakes made for this particular holiday. “Jesus said, ‘Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these’” (Matthew 19:14 NIV). Lord, we ask that parents and others in Japan will not place obstacles in the way of hundreds of thousands of children coming to you.