Next Steps for Grace in Japan 日本

By: Anna Miller

Steve & Ruth Headland moved to Hita, Japan in 1992 with the goal of giving Jesus what he deserves from the people of Hita. Their work took them through a variety of ministry strategies, some which were very successful and some not as much. Then, in 2009 Steve & Ruth began taking teams of students from Grace Community each year to facilitate camps for Japanese students, and to untimely share the love and presence of God. Now after 14 years, we believe God is leading us into the next chapter of Japan ministry. Three couples, Anna and Daniel Miller, Myles and Jessica Hardeman, and Elijah and Joanna Lay, are spending several months this summer in Hita, preparing to move long-term to Japan to continue this unique ministry.

This next step has been several years in the making; all three of these couples have been part of the summer teams Steve and Ruth led each year, through which each of these couples fell in love with the people of Japan. As each of us gradually realized we had a long-term role in reaching Japan, the next step in the process was taking the Grace Launch program to prepare us to effectively live and minister overseas.

This year’s trip is now our next step in the process of preparation. Each of us couples is focusing on language and culture acquisition, developing relationships, and exploring options for future work and ministry. All these efforts are bringing us a little closer to achieving the overall goal of completing the Great Commission—that God’s name will be glorified in every people group. This isn’t only something us couples are doing however; we all have the privilege of being part of God’s grand story to bring his good news to the world as we surrender our lives and plans to his will. He’s got a good plan… and we couples are looking forward to what that means for us— to finally make the big move to Japan for the long haul.