Japan Mission Project

Hello to all those waiting eagerly to hear an update from the Japan Mission Project. Drew Glosson here. There’s been a lot of excitement stirring around these parts. A few weeks ago I was able to travel up to Saku with the rest of the Japan Mission crew and finally work out some details. 

Right now i’ll let you in on some of the smaller details and happenings here in Tokyo. The last official day for Grace Christian International School is on June 11th. That day will kick off the big countdown to the wedding day. Until then we are starting to wrap things up with the other areas of ministry that i’m currently involved with. Saturday was the last bible study for the college group in Higashi Nakano. We had a good time togetherl though not many people could make it since it was on a different day than we usually meet. However, we do have plans to have some sort of BBQ get-together to say our farewells. Of course, they will be welcome to visit us anytime in Saku and hopefully they will continue to come to camp.

The youth ministry at Grace Christian Fellowship has also begun to wind down. Both myself and my translator Yuki are stepping down this summer. I have spoken with several people about passing on the torch, but no one has stepped up to the plate yet. Starting next year the youth group will become an all girl group for the most part. The few guys in the group will be graduating and leaving as well. So I am really praying that the women in the church will step up and help shape these young girls into Godly women.

My fiancee is finally quiting her job next week. This will mean the we can start making real headway in the wedding planning department. So far only the big things have been taken care of, we still have to work out all the smaller details. Also, for everyone who wants to see the wedding but cannot make it here your in luck. We will be streaming the wedding live over the internet for my parents and others who can not be here. I will let you know more about that when the time comes.
Finally, after our wedding we will be returning to the states for a visit from June 30th to September 16th. Our purpose for this trip is to introduce my wife to my family and to also connect with you, our extended church family. We would love to be able to meet and catch up with all of our sponsors and supporters. We currently don’t have any dates booked so if you would like to meet with us or if we can visit you church please contact us and let us know. We would love to tell you all about our adventures here in Japan and what God has in store for us as we return to Japan this fall and continue our ministry.

If you would like to contact us you can do so by emailing japanmissionproject@gmail.com

We would ask that you continue to pray for us as we prepare for our new lives here in Japan. Pray that we would strive to keep Christ number one in our marriage. Also, please pray that God would send replacements for those leaving Grace. We are in need of new teachers, translators and a youth minister. If you know of anyone who might want to fill those roles. Please email us with that information.

Again, Thank You all for support and praying for us as we strive to make Jesus known in Japan.

As the summer is drawing closer so is our time here in Tokyo. Here is a document that we are sending out to churches and ministries detailing what our future is shaping up to be. We would encourage you to read it and spread the word. Please tell your churches about the Japan Mission Project. We are looking for partners and church who are willing to commit to praying, supporting, counseling, training and preparing us for our future in the ministry here in Japan. 

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All trains have reached their final destinations, everyone is home and accounted for. April was a very busy month for all of us here at the Japan Mission Project. We did quite alot of traveling and alot of talking. We got some things nailed down and we have a rough draft of the future in Saku. It's been a long time coming but lately it feels like the Japan Mission Project is no longer just a name but it is now becoming an actual entity. We are praying that as we continue to grow and take shape that the Lord will use us to bring about change in many people's lives here in Japan.

Transitioning to Saku is shaping up to be a long and tedious process but we are all excited to get started. On the Tokyo side of the JMP, Megumi and I are finishing up one life and preparing for another. Megumi is currently winding things down with her job. She will be finished working at the end of May. She is also preparing to part ways with her home church a She and I are putting together wedding plans for our wedding on the 26th of June. We are making three plans at once. First for the wedding, second for our trip to America and thirdly for our move to Saku when we return.

Here in Ome, the school year is winding down. The last day is June 11th and will be my last day teaching at Grace Christian International School.  Also my time as the youth leader for the church will be coming to an end as well. I love those kids a great deal, and we have had some good times together. We are planning some big events for the youth to end with a bang. My prayer is that if i've done anything with that, it's that i've been an encouragement to them and that I have gotten them to see the importance of being good bible students and reading our bibles. 

Another thing drawing to an end is the Tokyo bible study in Higashi-Nakano. We have had a great time together of the past 2 years studying the bible. Last week, one of our friends in the study told us that they wanted to start attending church. So, we got her connected to Tim Turner, pastor of Machida Christian Church. Please pray that she will continue to study the bible and come to believe in Jesus. Our last bible study is May 8th and then we will have a goodbye party on May 22nd. Please, pray that our friends might come to believe in Jesus during these last days together with them. 

As for the Rucks, they are still working for Meysen Academy in Sendai. They are working hard on studying the language, while trying to balance being in an all English environment. The Ruck's have been leading a Bible fellowship time for the teachers and workers of Meysen on Sunday evenings. While many of the teachers are Christians not all of them are. Please pray that the fellow believers could unite together and be an encouragement to each other as they strive to live together in Japan. Also pray that those who do not believe in Jesus might come to know him through this.  The Ruck's are also working with Asahigaoka Christian Church, there they are learning how the church functions in japan. In April of 2011 they will be ending there contract with the school and will join Megumi and I in Saku. 

Megumi and I are planning to move to Saku in September this year. I will be posting a full report of our Saku plans very soon. 

It seems the members of the JMP are officially separated again. We had a great time together over the past two weeks. We were able to spend alot of time talking about future plans in Saku together and just catching up on each others lives. The Rucks started the new school year this week. They will be working with Meysen academy until April of next year then they will come down to join Drew and Megumi in Saku. There's alot of news and some video footage that to post. We will do our best to have it up sometime next week. So stay tuned. In the mean time if you didn't get the link in the last newsletter, here's a recent video that was put together as part of a series that Drew is making showing what exactly he does in Tokyo. Also don't forget to check the blogs. Drew has posted some about the trips already. 

We're home. We returned from a long weekend out in Saku with the Christianson's. There's alot of news and slew of updates will follow in coming week. We had a great trip and made alot of headway into the planning part of the future. I, Drew, will be heading back out this weekend and making the trek up to Sendai to spend a little more time with the Ruck's and talk some more things over. Until my return, Stay Tuned!