Join A Team!

You may go, you may pray, you may provide financial support, you may provide logistical support — however you contribute, it is our conviction that all believers should be part of a team seeking to reach the unreached.

The opportunities featured in this category give you the chance to do just that — join a team dedicated to bringing the news of Jesus' love to those who have never heard the gospel.

In The Footsteps of Gaius

By Frank Johnson on December 19, 2020 0

Ralph Winter, the late founder of the U.S. Center for World Mission (now Frontier Ventures), once stood before a group of college students and said, “Suppose I had a thousand college seniors in front of me who asked me where they ought to go to make a maximum contribution to Christ’s global cause. What would I tell them? I would tell them to stay home and mobilize. All of them.”¹

Why did Ralph Winter, someone who did not stay home (prior to founding the U.S. Center for World Mission, he was a missionary to Guatemala), put such an emphasis on “staying home” and mobilizing? And what does it mean to “mobilize” for Christ’s global cause?

He Sets the Lonely in Families

By Frank Johnson on October 26, 2020 0

Businesspeople in Osaka — Photo courtesy of Xavier L.. Used by permission.

In Japan, if you are lonely, you don’t have to be alone.

If you’re lonely, just call the company Nihon Kokasei Honbu and they will provide you with a son, a daughter, a grandchild, etc. — any type of relative you want. And someone will show up and pretend to be your family member.

Of course, you have to be able and willing to pay the hefty free — over $1,000 (plus transportation) for just three hours of your “family member’s” time.¹

Church Planting Along a Japanese Travel Corridor

By Frank Johnson on September 6, 2020 0

Tsukuba Express Line — Photo courtesy of Justin Chase Canavan. Used by permission (personal corresopndence).

In 312 B.C., the Romans constructed the first of what was to become a sophisticated system of roads. As the Romans conquered areas, they would build roads to link newly captured cities with Rome, enabling their armies to quickly respond to threats.¹

These roads were designed with speed of travel in mind, following a relatively straight line through the countryside. They were generally 10-12 feet wide, paved with hewn stone, and reinforced with banks of sand.² Some are still in use today.³ Distances were marked with “mile markers” for every Roman mile (which were 1,000 5-foot paces, so slightly shorter than a modern mile).⁴

Hope in the Land of the Rising Sun

By Frank Johnson on July 29, 2020 0

In the summer of 2018, several Japanese children came to Tsukuba International Christian Assembly* for an English camp where they had the chance to take part in fun activities while learning English. Their parents sent them to the camp because they believed that learning English would help their children in life.**

One day, after playing some fun group games, Erin McCoin noticed that several of the kids seemed upset.

“Is everything alright? Are you okay?” she asked one young boy. Let’s call him Kosei.

“I’m not good,” Kosei responded with tears. “I’m not good.” He was upset because he hadn’t won the game.

Beauty For Ashes

By Frank Johnson on June 25, 2020 0

Garifuna Town — Photo courtesy of Kelly and Jenni Conrady. Used by permission (personal correspondence)

The Garifuna people of Central America number approximately 75,000 and live in the countries of Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua.¹ They are known for their music and dance — in 2001, their music, dance, and language were proclaimed as a Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO.²

[Read more…] about Beauty For Ashes

Let The Children Come To Me

By Frank Johnson on April 28, 2020 0

Of the three parallel passages which tell the story of Jesus receiving children to Himself (when His disciples tried to hinder them), the most descriptive is Mark 10:13-16: