Call for Japan

After the SBS in Taiwan 2019, we planned to visit Japan to help an YWAM missionary for the whole month of February in 2020 and go back to Taiwan for an another course, Titus Project which included an outreach to Nepal to teach the Bible to Nepalis.  But, God had a different plan for us.  While staying in Japan, all our plans were cancelled because of COVID-19.  As we were seeking God’s guidance, God gave us many confirmations of His call for us in Japan. One of them was His answer to Andrew's prayer based on Acts 16:6-10. 

“And a vision appeared to Paul in the night: a man of Macedonia was standing there, urging him and saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” And when Paul had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go on into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.”

Andrew asked God if He wanted us to stay in Japan for longer term;  he wanted Japanese people to ask us to help them just like the Macedonian in Paul’s dream. God answered his prayer through two Japanese as confirmations. Their calls for help were so clear that he could not deny that those were God’s responses to his prayers.

God gave confirmation to Sarah as well. He helped Sarah to remember three incidents when Sarah's heart was stirred up; when she prayed over Japan at Yokohama harbor, when she prayed during a Burning Hearts worship, and when she worshiped during a Sunday service. God clearly guided her to see that He stirred her heart for the nation Japan, the community, and churches.

God also confirmed His call for us to Japan through our visa run. To renew our tourist visa, we had to fly out of Japan and return back. Because of COVID-19, it was an almost impossible journey.  God helped us to fly out to Korea and return back within a day without any issue. During this trip, God spoke to us through Deuteronomy 3:28 in our quiet time. 

“But charge Joshua, and encourage and strengthen him, for he shall go over at the head of this people, and he shall put them in possession of the land that you shall see.’” 

He wanted to assure us that He was the one who sends us to Japan by physically moving us out of Japan. He wanted us to charge, encourage and strengthen the next generation Christians in Japan.  When we came to Japan in January, we wrote our occupation as ‘Engineer’ and ‘Teacher’ in the entry card. But when we came back to Japan for the visa run, we wrote occupation as ‘missionaries.’ We knew that it was God who send us to Japan as missionaries.  It was a symbolic act to show that he is in full control of our lives and we were grateful to be called by him as his messengers here in Japan.

Now, we are living in Yokohama Japan as missionaries.