I am going to make an assumption – most people who regularly attend a Christian church have heard and can probably at least paraphrase the Great Commission given by Jesus and recorded in Matthew 28.

And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (Mt 28:18-20 ESV)

On the surface, our task seems straightforward and relatively simple: make disciples, baptize them, and teach. It’s only when we start to examine the scale of the endeavor and the number of implied tasks that it starts to seem a little (or a lot) more daunting.

For many years the Grace Mission Committee has faithfully established relationships with local, regional, and international missionaries to further the reach of the Gospel around the world.  Today, the committee prioritizes Grace’s efforts in three areas:

• Evangelism/Church Planting among unreached peoples in Asia
• Theological education within nascent or diminished Christian communities
• Service/Mercy missions among local and established Christian communities

Over the next few weeks, we will discuss theological education and mercy missions, but today I’d like to focus on our efforts to support evangelism and church planting in Asia. Asia represents more than half of the world’s population and is nearly twice the size of North America, yet contains more than 5300 unreached people groups (Joshuaproject.net).

In countries like Japan, there are more than 120 million people who have yet to hear the Gospel.  Grace partners with a number of different missionaries in Japan trying to change those numbers. Dan and Carol Iverson, Michael and Cathalain Carter, as well as the Japan Partnership Group are all dedicated to reaching the population of Japan for Christ. God has granted their teams great success over the past year, with an increased number of baptisms, a large increase in local partners (“Young Samurai”), an additional church plan in Nagoya, and two additional properties to expand the reach of the ministry in Tokyo.

While the Iversons and Carters are able to work openly in Japan, other portions of Asia are more hostile to the Gospel and actively seek to snuff it out. Despite persecution and government harassment, we continue to support efforts in those countries as well. While we are often unable to share details of their activities to ensure they remain safe, I can tell you God is working through these courageous men and women to reach into the darkness. Often they provide medical assistance and education to some of the most neglected portions of a country’s population.

Though the missionaries are on the “front lines”, as a retired Army Officer, I can tell you they wouldn’t be effective without our support.  Almost every update we receive includes specific prayer requests. Missionaries require consistent prayer support, short-term direct assistance/mission trips, and financial support. If you feel called to provide additional support, please contact a member of the Missions committee or email us at missions@cvillegrace.org.