“The challenges to the gospel are certainly great in Japan,” OMF Australia National Director Paul Jessop writes in the latest Billions. “The church is small and faces many trials. Only 1-2% of Japan knows the beauty of Christ.”

And yet…God is at work in and through His people in Japan. Read how two students, inspired by their personal experiences in Japan, stepped out in faith to pioneer a new movement in Cambodia—and other stories of His creative ways!

• Beyond language through art – “Art is able to touch people’s hearts without language, and through beauty, we can point people to the Most Beautiful One,” Kalos and Aggie Chan write. They recently hosted an arts short-term mission team in Niseko, Japan.
• Revealing the beauty of Christ through art – Short-term mission arts team member En Hui Ong shares highlights from a recent trip to Japan: meeting faithful Christians, seeing God’s provision, and beauty from a wasteland…
• Strategic mission—without getting on a plane – Japanese pastor Takeshi Shibuya shares how the Lord led him from his Christian family in Japan to ministering at a Japanese church in partnership with OMF in Melbourne, Australia.
• Behind closed doors – Short-term worker Annie Tan gets a close look at daily life for missionaries in Japan, learning that “gospel work in Japan involves being present, purposeful, proactive and patient.”
• Japan: a personal reflection – If the gospel is so powerful, why are so few Japanese people saved? OMF Australia National Director Paul Jessop challenges us to pray for the current spiritual opportunities in Japan.
• Not retired in Japan – After decades of service in East Asia and Australia, Zechariah and Elizabeth* are on a new mission adventure: pioneering returnee ministry with East Asian students. They share what it’s like to not be retired in beautiful Japan.
• Friendship and food: student ministry with the Japanese House of Peace – OMF alumni Gary Weston has been reaching out to Japanese people for over forty years. He shares how a local ministry began with food—and tips on how you can start your own!
• One day at a time: 25 years in Japan – “God has shown us over the last 25 years that He even uses very ordinary individuals,” David and Wendy Marshall write. They reflect on serving one day at a time in teaching and mission publishing.
• Sussing out Japan for 20 years – We’re blessed with a number of online groups praying for Japan. Japan SUS (named for people ‘sussing out Japan,’ preparing to serve as missionaries) is one of them, and recently reached 20 years of praying together.
• Special moments in Japan: 10 years with OMF – Paul and Mel Jessop share highlights from ten years of ministry with OMF – God’s miraculous provision as well as His wisdom, rebuke and comfort at just the right times.
• From reluctant to convicted – “Looking back on our lives, we can see how God faithfully worked on our often-reluctant hearts, drawing us into partnership with His good work in the world,” Joe and Shirley Moormann wrote just before heading to Japan.
• Expecting the unexpected – Darren Hindle grew up with a vague belief that ‘maybe God exists…’ An invitation to Bible study dinners, a short-term mission trip and the timely guidance of a friend led to his preparing to serve in Japan.
• For love, not duty: short-term mission with kids in Taiwan – “Before I became a Christian, I imagined that mission was about going to a poor area,” short-term worker Wei San Tang says. She shares lessons God taught her about mission on a recent trip.
• Transitions to local leadership in Taiwan – In their roles as finance manager and short-term mission team coordinator, Peter and Mandy Denham have seen God at work in the transitions of OMF ministries to local leadership and the Taiwanese church.
• Mission in the margins – Baptisms, team unity, local church partnerships, stories of marginalized women now available in English…Gus and Audrey Chan have many highlights to share of their latest term in Taiwan.
• A baptism, Bible stories and an intern – Church planters Aaron and Amy Koh (who also wear the hats of mobilization team leader and training and development coordinator) are seeing the fruits of long-term ministry in the Taiwanese port town of Donggang.
• Missionary-driven to locally-driven ministry – It’s been a little over 10 years since Nat Leow started a prayer group for Cambodia, and God has been changing the nation. “A missionary movement out of Cambodia is the next big thing” they’re now praying for.
• A lifetime of God’s faithfulness – On the year of her 80th birthday, we invited OMF Australia national council member Jeannette Kuswadi to share of her journey to mission and some of the ways she’s seen God work.
• Preparing people for God’s Kingdom – OMF Australia Finance Manager Edwin Lee shares reflections from the book of Nehemiah. “The work he carried out was much more than rebuilding a wall…Seeing the people of God scattered, he drew them together.”

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Bonus art: Back cover art designed by Sarah Lok @freescriptureart.com