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You are here: Home / Buddhist World / Using Media To Reach The Lost In Japan

Using Media To Reach The Lost In Japan

By Frank Johnson on December 11, 2019 0

Justin Canavan, Media Missionary to Japan
Photo courtesy of Jonathan Lowrance, Assemblies of God missionary with Asia Pacific Media.
Used by permission (personal correspondence)

Justin Canavan has a wealth of experience in using creative media. He has served as a videographer, producer, director, camera operator, lighting director, stage manager, tech team facilitator, director of photography, etc. He graduated cum laude from Evangel University with a Bachelor of Science in Film with minors in Broadcasting and Biblical Studies.

But in all his experience, you will find a common thread. He uses creative media to spread the gospel. Whether he was serving as a media intern at a local church, fulfilling several roles within Evangel University’s media programs, or acting as a camera operator for various television programs and films, Justin’s passion has been finding ways to use media to declare the message of God’s love to an increasingly visually-driven world.

The other thread which runs through Justin’s life is an obvious love for the people of Japan (where less than one percent of the population are believers in Jesus). In the spring/summer of 2014, Justin spent three months in Tsukuba, Japan ministering to college students as part of an Evangel University Chi Alpha team.

Tsukuba is a university town where three fourths of the population are PhDs. It’s the location of the “Tsukuba Science City,” a center for research and education that has contributed to the development of the city of Tsukuba into a hub of scientific innovation. As you might imagine, the population of Tsukuba is naturally comfortable with technology and media. Justin’s skills were a wonderful fit for the outreach the Christian community in Tsukuba has undertaken.

After the completion of his three-month term of service with Chi Alpha, Assemblies of God missionaries to Japan Chris and Lindsey Carter asked Justin to return to Japan as an Assemblies of God MAPS missionary (MAPS stands for “Missions Abroad Placement Service”). Justin returned to Tsukuba in the fall of 2016 and spent one year working alongside the Carters as the media/production coordinator and associate pastor at Tsukuba International Christian Assembly. This involved creating video promotional packages for the church, managing and creating social media content, installing and creating new production tools, directing and training the church’s new production team, preaching and pastoral duties, and much more!

While serving this one-year term, Justin’s love for and passion to reach the Japanese people continued to increase to the point that he began to ask the Lord if it was His will that Justin would dedicate his life to reaching the Japanese people through media and preaching the gospel. Justin’s question went unanswered for six months, but then as he was reading Hebrews 11, he saw that Abraham went to a foreign land, to a people not his own, because God told him to go. The Lord used that passage to call Justin to serve in Japan.

In response to God’s call, Justin has been appointed as an Assemblies of God Media Missionary to Japan and is preparing to move back to Tsukuba so that he can provide ongoing media resources and training for pastors and churches throughout Japan, all so that more Japanese people can come to know Jesus.

If you’ve read our pillar articles (which can be reached through the tabs at the top of this website), you know that our conviction is that all believers should be part of a team seeking to reach the unreached. Some will go, some will pray, some will provide financial support, some will provide logistical support.

One of the things I love about Justin’s heart that I see reflected on his website and in his social media presence (Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, where his social media savvy is readily apparent) is that he calls the church to at least three of those avenues — encouraging us to pray, give, and go.

We would encourage you to learn more about Justin’s ministry and consider if God is calling you to be part of a team dedicated to reaching the unreached in Tsukuba, Japan!

Here are four ways you can be a part of Justin’s team:

  • You can join Justin and the team in Tsukuba by subscribing to his newsletter and committing to pray for him on a regular basis.
  • You can commit to supporting him financially.
  • You can consider physically joining Justin and the rest of the team in Tsukuba to aid them in their work. Learn more.
  • If you are a pastor or missions leader in your church, we would encourage you to get in touch with Justin to see how he might be able to encourage your people for the cause of missions in Japan and also to find out how you can be of service to him.

COUNTRIES IN THIS ARTICLE: Japan
WORKERS IN THIS ARTICLE: Justin Canavan

Resources For Ministry In Japan

Our Top Pick
Jesus and Granny: A Question of Allegiance in Japan (Bridges)
Jesus and Granny: A Question of Allegiance in Japan (Bridges)
$25.00

For those who love Jesus and the people of Japan Granny and Jesus: A Question of Allegiance gets to the thorniest question in missions all over the world – the importance of our ancestors and the necessity to give allegiance to Jesus. The reader will gain insight into what the Japanese Christian is grappling with and information to help guide them to a God-honoring, truly Japanese life-style.

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05/14/2025 07:30 am GMT

Sowing in Tears, Reaping in Joy: The Life Story of Florence Miller, Missionary to Japan
Sowing in Tears, Reaping in Joy: The Life Story of Florence Miller, Missionary to Japan

Florence Miller was faced with the challenge of being one of the first North American Baptist missionaries to Japan, blazing a trail for those who would follow. From 1951 to her retirement in 1989, she sought to sow the seed of God’s Word in the lives of people who had been steeped for centuries in Buddhist and Shintoist traditions. She is credited with planting several churches in Japan, frequently encountering situations that took her far beyond her comfort zone.

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Operation Japan Prayer Guide-5th Edition
Operation Japan Prayer Guide-5th Edition
$9.00

The Operation Japan prayer guide will help you to understand the needs of Japan, while providing the information you need to effectively pray for the country and its people. It draws on multiple sources to provide detailed statistics on every prefecture, along with specific prayer needs and concerns, and includes up-to-date information on each prefecture in Japan, a system for praying through the nation in one year, and key prayer targets and issues.

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05/14/2025 01:45 am GMT

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About Frank Johnson

Frank is a 1985 graduate of Bethany College in Scotts Valley, California (B.S. Ministerial Studies) and a licensed minister with the Northern California and Nevada District Council of the Assemblies of God. Frank has been an internet strategist for over 20 years, applying principles of digital media strategy to spread the gospel. In addition, he is the author of Find A Job Through A Temporary Service, “Bringing in the Outcast” (under pen name, John Norman) in Issue 43 (January 1, 1988) of Discipleship Journal, and numerous articles in the Santa Cruz Sentinel.

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These tools will help you in your prayers for Japan (the second way to join a team — use these tools to pray in general and also for the global workers below):

  • Operation World: Pray for India (taken or adapted from Operation World, 7th Edition and Pray for the World)
  • Prayercast: Pray for Japan — Jesus Loves The Japanese People
  • Change The Map: Learn How to Pray for Japan and Be Informed of Current Prayer Requests for Japan
  • Pray for Japan (from OMF Missionaries Julian and Karolina Tenzler)
  • IMB (Southern Baptist Convention): 31 Days of Prayer for the Japanese People

05 Read Books

Sharing Jesus Effectively in the Buddhist World
Sharing Jesus Effectively in the Buddhist World
$21.71

Written by a group of Evangelical mission "reflective practitioners" committed to developing effective ways to win Buddhists to Jesus, this book describes some of the best models of mission approaches among Buddhist peoples.

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05/13/2025 02:15 pm GMT
Communicating Christ in the Buddhist World
Communicating Christ in the Buddhist World
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In this book, you will find theological approaches as well as practical strategies for evangelical Christians to use in their efforts among Buddhists without adding unnecessary problems to the increasing conflicts in the encounter of religions.

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05/13/2025 10:00 am GMT

06 Visit Websites

  • Unreached People Groups in Japan — JoshuaProject.net
  • Japan Evangelical Missionary Society (JEMS): Jesus to Every Japanese, Jesus Every Day
  • RJC Network — Reaching Japanese for Christ: Enhancing Each Other's Ministries for Sharing the Gospel
  • Moving Works: Jesus Loves Japan (Six Christ-Centered Short Films)
  • Missions Box Content Library: Resources on Japan

07 Listen To Podcasts

  • Reaching Buddhists with Mark Durene (The Antioch Initiative)
  • Understanding our Buddhist Friends and Neighbors (Global Missions Podcast)

08 Review Articles

  • Sharing the Gospel with a Buddhist: It Can Seem Hard to Know Where to Start (Radical)
  • Lausanne Occasional Paper: Christian Witness to Buddhists
  • 4 Keys to Sharing the Gospel With Buddhists (ABWE International)
  • Proclaiming the Glory of God among Buddhist Peoples (IMB)
  • Beyond Buddha to Beloved: How I Became the First-Ever Christian in My Family Lineage (Christianity Today)
  • Revealing the One True God to the Polytheistic Shinto Culture (Answers in Genesis)

09 Watch Videos

  • From Buddha to Christ — A Powerful Testimony by Tony Tran (Fishers of Men Halifax)
  • Devout Buddhist Longs for Something More (The 700 Club)

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LEARN MORE ABOUT BUDDHISM:

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Perspectives is a fifteen week course designed around four vantage points or "perspectives" — Biblical, Historical, Cultural and Strategic. Each one highlights different aspects of God's global purpose.

The School of Missions Advocacy will affirm the mobilization activities you are already doing while helping you keep the most important mobilization priorities in place.

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Frank Johnson and David Arzouni were friends, brothers in Christ, and ministry partners for over 35 years.

frankjohnson_squareFrank describes himself as an online strategist who advocates for world missions through storytelling to spotlight the work of God throughout the nations.

dfa_squareWith his wife Linda, the late David Arzouni brought the message of the gospel to West Africa for 45 years. His legacy lives on through the countless lives he affected.

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We long for the day that we will stand before Your throne, surrounded by the most diverse community ever formed — from every tribe, every tongue, every people, and every nation — those whom You have purchased with Your blood — as we cry out together "Worthy is the Lamb!"

Until that day, we commit ourselves to loving our brothers and sisters in Christ — no matter what their people group, no matter what their language, no matter what their race, no matter where they are from — and to living in community with them — that the world may know that the Father loves them and that He sent You to save them.

This day, we devote our lives — our time, our money, our passion, our mind, our strength, our everything — to see Your gospel proclaimed in every corner of this world.

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Our Daily Declaration

Lord Jesus,

This day, we cast our souls upon Your sacrifice as our only hope for purpose, meaning, and fulfillment here on earth and for life in the age to come.

This day, we swear allegiance to You, our King.

This day, we pray that You would set our hearts aflame for Your cause and for the over 3 billion people in this world who have yet to hear Your name.

We long for the day that we will stand before Your throne, surrounded by the most diverse community ever formed — from every tribe, every tongue, every people, and every nation — those whom You have purchased with Your blood — as we cry out together “Worthy is the Lamb!”

Until that day, we commit ourselves to loving our brothers and sisters in Christ — no matter what their people group, no matter what their language, no matter what their race, no matter where they are from — and to living in community with them — that the world may know that the Father loves them and that He sent You to save them.

This day, we devote our lives — our time, our money, our passion, our mind, our strength, our everything — to see Your gospel proclaimed in every corner of this world.

And we thank You for the astounding privilege of playing a small part in carrying Your name to the nations!

Pray for the Tsukuba Express Church Planting Team

Tsukuba Express Line

  1. Please pray for the areas surrounding these twenty rail stations: Akihabara, Shin-Okachimachi, Asakusa, Minami-Senju, Kita-Senju, Aoi, Rokucho, Yashio, Misato-chuo, Minami-Nagareyama, Nagareyama-centralpark, Nagareyama-otakanomori, Kashiwanoha-campus, Kashiwa-Tanaka, Moriya, Miraidaira, Midorino, Bampaku-kinenkoen, Kenkyu-gakuen, and Tsukuba
  2. Pray that God would raise up church planters and send forth laborers into the harvest fields surrounding these stations (Luke 10:2-4).
  3. Pray that God would help these church planters identify persons of peace in the areas surrounding these stations (Luke 10:5-8).
  4. Pray that God would enable these church planters to speak the word of God with boldness in these areas (Luke 10:9b).
  5. Pray that the proclamation of God’s word in the areas surrounding these stations would be accompanied by demonstrations of God’s compassion and power (Luke 10:9a).