Why sit in a confined space for twelve hours? Why transition through a time zone change of fourteen hours? Why spend three weeks in a country where we are essentially illiterate? It’s for that college student wrestling with academic pressure. It’s for the young girl entering some of the most influential periods of her life without any knowledge of who Jesus is. It’s for the man whose life and existence are tied to the company he works for. Missions is about people; encouraging those who believe in the Christ and sharing God’s plan with those who do not.

On July 12, we begin a three-week trip to Japan to show a small group of young people God’s work in Japan. Initially, a student from our church will join our family. Later, another couple and more students arrive. We will have a number of opportunities, both structured and unstructured, to share our lives with Japanese people (and other foreigners). Here are some of those opportunities (with American dates), so you can pray:

English Cafe - July 16, 19, 20, 21, 22 
English Cafe is an English outreach of Bethel Baptist Church (Iwatsuki) to a local business college.  The Japanese people will converse with fluent English speakers. The goal is to introduce Biblical ideas and principles that Andrew will speak about during a chapel time.
Our team will learn to introduce specific spiritual discussions gently in conversations.

Youth/Singles Retreat – July 16-18
The retreat is an encouragement ministry. A handful of young Christians will gather to learn from God’s Word, sing, and fellowship together. Many of these young people have few Christians their own age in their churches and towns. Andrew will speak at the retreat.
Our team will learn the importance of Christian fellowship and interaction, both of which transcend cultures.

English Outreach (Joined by the second group) – July 23-28
During this time, we will join Japanese Christians to reach out to their communities through English.  Teaching classes, working with children, and street evangelism are all possible activities. The focal cities will be Koriyama, where people were affected by the aftereffects of the 2011 tsunami, and Karuizawa, which formally contained a number of thriving churches.
Our team will learn flexibility and service.
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English Camp – July 28-30
Busy Japanese schedules make traditional vacation Bible schools difficult, so Bethel does a two-day “camp,” where students spend the mornings and afternoons learning about English and God. We will take a variety of roles as we work alongside church members.
Our team will learn that ministry takes different shapes and we can fill a variety of roles depending on the needs.

We will return on Aug 2, having completed a number of events in Japan. Events, such as these, are tools used to reach people. We ask God to keep our focus on Him and the Japanese people, not necessarily on the plans and events. We pray that God will use us to bring men and women living in Japan to Himself. Please pray with us for changed lives through our time in Japan.

“We want you to play English games with the children and show them that English can be fun; no grammar, only games.”  A mid-thirties Japanese mother sat on the couch explaining what her expectations were for the English class we would be teaching. We were surprised by this idea. Why would she want to put money into classes where elementary students would learn vocabulary at best? We agreed to teach the class, but mostly because it would help the church and give chances to share the Bible.

English learning begins in middle school for Japanese students, if not earlier.  Unfortunately, it is often taught through grammar books, resulting in poor conversation skills and a lack of enjoyment. Since English is considered useful for finding good jobs and traveling, it creates an opportunity for missionaries to use English conversation as a wonderful tool for connecting with individuals and sharing about God and His works.

As we have talked with other missionaries and learned from our own experiences, we have come to the conclusion that Christian stories, specifically ones that teach a moral or principle, are most effective for impacting students.  While students might reject a direct propositional statement (“God is the One in control of your life”), their heart may be opened by hearing stories that teach the proposition (Joseph, Nebuchadnezzar, Jim and Elizabeth Elliot, etc). As they begin to learn more about who God is and what He does, the story of the Gospel becomes more than a simple American religion.

In the end, our children’s classes turned into a lot of games, ending with a story time, while our adult classes worked on using grammar in conversations and paused for a “break” to hear new and exciting stories. Don’t worry, the adults also played games from time to time, though the stories frequently held more of their attention.

Our friend, Pastor Randy Gilmore, has helped us think through teaching English to other cultures. Feel free to check out his blog and sign up for his newsletter about using ESL for evangelism.