In many ways, Japan found us. In 2010, while serving at Westminster Presbyterian Church, I became keenly aware of the spiritual need of Japan. In March 2011, a powerful earthquake and devastating tsunami hit Japan, followed by a nuclear disaster. By way of response, the missions committee began relationally connecting with those God had called to serve as the next wave of career missionaries through MTW. It was my privilege and responsibility to arrange their coming to speak to the missions committee and the church. Little did I know at the time, how God was orchestrating these encounters.
In January 2015, at the urging of Bob Drews, a retired Naval officer and volunteer MTW missionary, I went with Park Cities PCA of Dallas, TX on an MTW vision trip to Japan. I was struck by two things — the despair and lostness of the Japanese people, and the number of missionaries I already had a connection with. Two of the oldest missionary prayer cards on my parent’s refrigerator are of Craig and Ree Coulbourne (Craig was a former high school history student of my father) and Linda Karner (at CCSI in Chiba). God was beginning to reveal something.
In following up my interest, Dan Iverson encouraged Barbara and me to pray about God’s leading. We agreed to become involved in the MTW Japan Partnership (the network of churches having a long term commitment to the ministry in Japan). I prayerfully maintained contact with those I knew and had met on the field. We attended the annual MTW Japan Partnership conferences in various parts of the US. In January 2017, at the request of Dan Iverson, Barbara and I spent a week together with the MTW team in Tokyo. We returned to the US, both sensing a call to be involved in serving with MTW Japan in whatever capacity was deemed best by those on the field.
We went through the rigorous MTW application process and in March 2018 were accepted and invited to join the field serving as an assistant to Dan Iverson, the country director, and participating with the congregation of Grace City Church in Tokyo.
Our sense of calling to Japan, and Tokyo specifically, has been affirmed by my parents, siblings, some friends, and members of our home church already thinking of us as being on the field, having heard us share our experiences and heart for Japan. We appreciate our families, but have lived at a distance most of our married lives. We recognize that we will need to sacrifice time with extended family if we are to serve in Japan. Two years ago, we intentionally downsized to a two bedroom apartment – wanting to be as mobile as possible, and getting used to living with less space and disposable income.
We are on a steep learning curve as we prepare to engage Japan with the hope of the gospel. Yet, God has already been at work to prepare us culturally along the way. One of my college textbooks was “A Pattern Language” and a study of Japanese architecture. In business school, I studied the way Japan pursued competitive advantage, and developed the process of continuous improvement known as Kaizen (the two characters “kai” and “zen” meaning change for good). Barbara’s network of friends has naturally included internationals. She is a “safe” person, polite, hospitable, and a trusted confidant. We are now engaged in raising the annual support needed to reside in Japan for up to eleven months a year, for the next five to seven years, as the Lord provides and our health allows.
The Coppersmiths and Japan 