January Update

Japan is rich with heritage and tradition. The above picture is one of "36 Views of Mt. Fuji" painted by Hokusai, a Japanese painter who lived somewhere between the 18th and 19th century. Most people are more familiar with his painting, "The Great Wave off Kanagawa" (神奈川沖浪裏).

Many aspects of Japanese culture have withstood the test of time in ways that cause intrigue and wonder in the western world. This really does set Japan apart from a lot of other places. Terms like "J-pop" (referring to Japanese pop music) or Anime (referring to Japanese-style animation) are Japanese-specific exports. If you've taken business classes at a university, you've likely studied detailed structure, practices and policies that shape Japan's dominant workforce that boasts a $5.92 trillion GDP.

As Hiroko and I pray and work towards getting to Japan we find ourselves more and more hopeful that Japan will finally see an awakening towards the gospel of Jesus Christ. There are a couple of reasons:

• The bible. Jesus tells Peter that he will build his church (Matthew 16). In addition to other points in scripture Revelation 7 has been powerful for our family. A picture of every nation, tribe, and language worshiping God in heaven for eternity.
• God is supremely interested in His glory to the ends of the earth. Much has been written on this. Here is an article from Desiring God on the subject I would encourage you to read.

God will accomplish his mission. He will! Japan will know Christ and be reached with the gospel. Our hope is that Japan will be a country that uses its rich history and culture to send laborers in to the harvest. We are hopeful and prayerful that it is in our lifetime.
 

Then he said to his disciples, "The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest."
Matthew 9:27-28