Easter Record Breaker

    For us, Easter is such an exciting time. In a culture where death is rarely discussed because of the insecurities that encompass it, it is a time where we as Christians can boldly and joyfully proclaim Christ’s victory over death and the grave. In a nation where Christianity is such a small part of the culture, the celebration of the resurrection of Christ has surprisingly started to draw a curious interest to many Japanese over the last several years. For the last four years, before our Easter services, we’ve held an Easter egg hunt followed by a Gospel presentation as an opportunity for our church family to invite their friends and families to hear a clear Gospel presentation of the Resurrection.This year, we had the highest ever attendance of any single day in the history of our church with a total of 110 people who came to the different services throughout the day! It was a special day for us as we saw many whole families attend and parents sitting alongside their children as they listened intently to the Gospel being preached.

A Visit from a Dear Friend

Annual Cookout

In the beginning of May, we held our annual cookout and tent meeting which has evolved into quite a big event. Over the last several years we have consistently had around 70 people attend the event. On the day before we hold the event we always cut the grass along the river to clean it up and set up tents for the big day. Each year, several people from the area have stopped by to thank us for cutting the grass for the community. 🙂 We let them know about the cookout, and always invite them to come. Last year, one neighbor, Mr. Kudo, saw all the preparation work and actually started to help us set up the tents. He was having so much fun that I invited him to the cookout! He and his wife came and had a great time, and even volunteered to cook the burgers with other church folks! We were able to get to know each other throughout the year and when the time came for the cookout this year, he was all in again. He and my other neighbor, Norio (whose wife got saved last year), are good friends and they spent the day helping me and dad haul equipment and cut grass. With A LOT of our church family helping out, the preparation day became a great time of fellowship.

Mom and Dad’s 40^th Ministry Anniversary

Furlough Preparations

Serving Him,
The Carters to Japan

To download a printable PDF version of this letter, please click here.

The kingdom of God is immense. It is immense in the scope of its magnitude and power. That God allows me to play any role in it at all is a testament to His grace, specifically towards me. Over and over, I see my miserably inept attempts to show others His glory, and I see how He chooses to use those meager attempts to show ME how He draws men to Himself through those attempts. What a joy and relief to know that His kingdom is always in HIS hands!

This reality has been shown to me many times, but in the past several months I have been specifically reminded of God’s magnitude and power in the lives of two men: Takamasa and Shuntaro.

It took thirteen years…

I met Takamasa, literally, the day after my family and I arrived in Japan thirteen years ago. He had come to welcome us to Japan and we hit it off the day we met. Since that time we have been praying that God would work in Takamasa’s heart. I have spent many hours witnessing to him and showing him his need of a Savior, but it has always seemed to fall on deaf ears. While we were good friends, it seemed to me that nothing I said would convince him to see that he needed Jesus. I have mentioned him quite a few times in my prayer letters and I’m sure many of you have prayed for him through the years.

About a year ago, Takamasa got a job in downtown Tokyo and, because of the busyness of his job, we haven’t been able to stay in touch like we used to. On a Friday night a few weeks ago, I got a call from Takamasa and as we caught up with each other he told me of some very difficult things going on in his life and he wanted to ask me what I thought he should do. I told him the first thing to do was to take care of the most important issue, his salvation. He replied, “I’ve been really thinking a lot about that over the past couple of days.” So I asked him if he was ready to trust in Jesus and without a second’s hesitation he said, “Yes, I am.” So over the phone we prayed together and Takamasa asked Christ to save him! To hear him repent of his sins and profess his faith in Jesus was one of the most overwhelmingly glorious moments I have experienced of seeing God work in a person’s life in a way that was completely out of my hands. For those of you who prayed for Takamasa’s salvation, THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH!! Please don’t stop praying for him though. He is still going through a lot of difficulty and still needs us to pray for him. And pray for his spiritual growth as your brother in Christ, too!

An encouraging email

Another young man named Shuntaro has been a true blessing to me. He is currently studying to take the bar exam to be a judicial clerk and often gets in on just the tail end of a church service because of his busy work schedule. As a very young Christian he is always hungry to learn. Many times after a church service we will take time to study the Bible and discuss questions he has relating to the Scriptures. Recently, Shuntaro and I talked about what baptism is and why Christians get baptized. I then followed up on the topic and sent him an article on baptism. After reading the article, Shuntaro sent me this encouraging email and I thought I would share it with you:

“Thank you! I read the article about baptism. I did not know baptism is so important. I think today is a defining moment in my life as a Christian. I had not understood why the people I respect so much are often Christian, like Martin Luther King Jr., Nelson Mandela, Manny Pacquiao and the doctor of the hospital I go to. They knew Jesus and the Bible well, and God made them marvelous men. Now, I know I can endure any hardship because I’m Christian and I think I want to be the Gospel that people around me can see. So I want to obey Jesus’ commandment to be baptized in the future. Thank you!”

To download a printable pdf, click here.

As we come to this season of Christmas, I am reminded again of the reason for our celebration. “For God so loved the world that He gave his only begotten son…” What a gift has been given to us! That God would choose to look upon us with such favor is simply overwhelming. Jesus, thank you for loving us enough to come to provide salvation to us.

It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!

This season is one of the heaviest concentrations of ministry that we have in Japan. Many people who would not step inside a church door will gladly come to hear (and sing) Christmas carols, as well as listen to the message of the birth of Jesus. Because of that rare opportunity of openness, we do our best to pull out all the stops to spread the gospel in every way possible. Here are several of the events that we have as at Akigawa Baptist Church to share the story of Christ’s birth.

Christmas Outreach for the Homeless

        Beyond the normal visits to the homeless people in our area, our church teams up with a military church, Yokota Baptist Church, to hold two big events every year to provide the homeless with gifts of things they might need to help get through the difficult seasons of summer and winter. The winter event is a Christmas party, where we share a hot meal together, sing Christmas carols, and share the story of Christ’s birth. This year we had 20 people attend. Many of these dear people have trusted Christ, but find it difficult to be willing to go to church. Please keep them in your prayers.

Children’s Christmas Service

We also held a special Christmas event for children on the 19^th of December. We invited children from the neighborhood, several parks, and from several English schools in the area. God blessed, and we saw 24 visitors who came, including several mothers. We were able to show a video about Christmas, as well as well as share Jesus Christ as the true meaning of Christmas. Please pray that these children will continue to come, and that the Gospel that has been sown will bear fruit.

Candlelight Christmas Service

        For our annual Christmas Candlelight Service, we have no longer been able to fit everyone into our little auditorium, so we have started to rent a nearby hall for the occasion. This is the second year at the hall and it was already starting to feel full. We were excited to have 61 people attend, with 16 first-time visitors. This service requires an enormous amount of work to prepare, and I was so thankful for all the church folks who jumped in to take part. My neighbor Norio was a big help again this year, and he even recruited one of his friends, Mr. Kudo to come early to help next year. Mr. and Mrs. Kudo came to our cookout this summer, and Mr. Kudo was a big help then too. This gradual process of relationship building is key to reaching the Japanese, especially for those who have lived a lifetime in a culture of Buddhism and Shintoism. Through the different services, we were thankful for the opportunity to minister to over a hundred people this year.

The Deep Dilemma

In the last week, I have had two separate deep conversations with people who have been seriously searching for the past several years. They have shared the difficulty they struggle with in choosing to accept the Gospel that they clearly see in the Bible and in the lives of the Christians around them, because it means they have to let go of everything they have been taught and grew up with their entire lives, including letting go of people who have passed away that are dear to them, and accepting the fact that they won’t see them in Heaven. This is a real struggle, and it is not uncommon. Please pray for the Holy Spirit to continue to work in their hearts, and to give them the strength, and the courage, to put their faith in Jesus as their Savior.

Family Health

One a personal note, please be in prayer for my family. Since the week before Thanksgiving, there has literally not been a day where one of our family hasn’t been sick. We have gone through several cases of whooping cough, pneumonia, strep throat, week-long fevers, and many trips to the doctor. We tend to face unusual difficulties right before Christmas as it seems that this is the season that we feel the effects of the opposition of Satan the greatest. This season was a rough one. We seem to have mostly recovered, but there are still a few members who are getting over their coughing.

We are deeply indebted to each of you who consistently remember us in your prayers and in your giving. We thank you for boldly going to the throne of grace on behalf of us and the people we are trying to reach. May God bless you during this Christmas season!!

To download a printable pdf, click here.

God has blessed us with a wonderful summer. It was a special summer for me personally, as I turned 40 this August. Yes. It’s official. I’m no longer young. Please pray for funds for my Corvette. J In all seriousness, I am so thankful for the life God has given me. I cannot imagine being anywhere else, doing anything else, with anyone else that could bring me more joy. God is truly gracious to me.

Summer Family Camp

This summer, we held our annual family camp with six other Baptist churches in our area. We had 60 people attend, including 11 from our church. One of the families who attended from another church was a family of 4 generations, all of whom were saved except the youngest child. This is very rare to see in Japan. It was a great encouragement to our people to see faithfulness continuing down through each generation. Thank you for praying. Camp greatly encouraged our church folks.

Start of New School

Our Christian school started on August 24, and although it has had the normal obstacles that any new work encompasses, God has graciously helped us through them. Our school has 15 students; some missionary children, and some Japanese children who are fluent in English. Please pray for the spiritual growth of the children, as well as strength, grace, and wisdom for my family and the Smith family (the other missionary family) as our workload has significantly increased.

Baptisms

A special blessing for our church happened this last Sunday as two of our Christian ladies were baptized. Mieko Kobayashi, our neighbor, and Kozue Harashima, whom we’ve been working with since nearly the beginning of our arrival in Japan, were both baptized in the Akigawa River, which our church is named after. It was the first river baptism that our church has done and it was a glorious event! Although rain was forecast for the whole week (typhoon season), God held back the rain enough to allow us to prepare the site and hold the baptism. As we were walking away from the river, the rain started falling. There were several unsaved who gathered to watch and it was evident that they were touched by the testimony of these two ladies and the glory of God. He is awesome! Pray for the spiritual growth of these ladies and for the salvation of their husbands.

Furlough

Our son Tyler will be going to college next fall and we’ll be taking a furlough in order to help him get settled in as well as to raise some much-needed support that was lost from the financial crisis a few years ago. While our main focus needs to be in restoring our support, we would love to see as many of our faithful supporters as we can. If you would like for us to come and share what God has done here, please let us know by emailing us at cartersjapan@gmail.com. I am so grateful to each of you who take time out of your day to pray for us. THANK YOU!

Serving Him,
The Carters to Japan

To download a printable pdf, click here.

   As the school year ends and another busy summer begins, I am again amazed at the speed at which time flows. We have begun our 13th year here in Japan. Tyler will be finishing high school next year, Brianah will be starting high school, and Asher will continue going to Japanese kindergarten. We are thankful for each year God gives us here, and pray we honor Him as He uses us to reach Japanese, to encourage them, and to strengthen their faith in Him.

Church cookout

One of the big events we hold each year as an outreach to our unsaved friends and family is our annual church cookout. Last year, we were greatly blessed to have several from our home church in Louisville, including our pastor, Matt Anders, come to visit and to help with the cookout. While they were here, they noticed our rather whimsical way of shading our guests by way of bamboo poles and blue tarp. After returning home, they raised money to buy and ship two beautiful outdoor shade tents, which we put to good use! This cookout had one of our higher attendances with 75 people, and all of them comfortably fit under the tents to eat, fellowship, and hear the Gospel in the shade. New contacts were made and many friends and family members came, including several husbands. The day was truly blessed.

New School

This summer, we are teaming up with another Baptist missionary family, Jim and Amy Smith, to begin preparations to start a new Christian school for children of several Christian families in the area. We are excited about the opportunity to impact the next generation with Biblical, Christ-centered teaching that will continue to nurture their walk with God, and strengthen their faith in Him in a country that has so little exposure to the Gospel. Please pray for us, that God will give us wisdom and foresight, and that this new ministry will be used to further the Gospel through the lives of the ones we teach.

Summer Camps

This is also a time of preparation for several different camps that are held throughout the summer, including a men’s wilderness camp and a family camp. Both of these camps give us an opportunity to spend time with, and witness to those who are unsaved, while away from the distractions of life, as well as to encourage, and challenge our Christians. Please pray for these camps, that they will be well-attended, and that they will greatly impact those who attend.

Our church family here at Akigawa Baptist Church continues to grow. We are so thankful to see God answer our prayers in seeing more men become a part of our church, as well as unsaved husbands who continue to come to hear the Gospel preached. Please keep your brothers and sisters in Christ here in Japan in your prayers as they continue to reach out to their family and friends, to be a bold witness for Christ in their neighborhoods, schools and places of work. We are thankful for each of you who take the time to pray for us, and who sacrifice to give so that our spiritual family can continue to grow.

To download a printable pdf, click here.

As the cold of winter passes, and the new life of spring blooms around us, I am reminded again of that new life that God has breathed into my sinful, dead heart, and the grace that He gives each day to live for Him. “And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins.” (Ephesians 2:1)

Church Growth

Over the past several months, God has continually been bringing more people to our church family. We are starting to run out of room in our small building, and are gradually running out of ways to get everyone seated in our small auditorium.

We have also had a steady stream of visitors that have been brought to church by our church family. In March, we had 17 first-time visitors who came for our regular Sunday services without any special evangelistic promotion.

In our last prayer letter, I mentioned the need for Christian men, as well as Christian families in our church. God is continuing to answer those prayers. We have been blessed to have another family attend our services for the past month or so, who recently have expressed an interest in joining our church. The father, Yuzo Sakai, is a dear brother I have known for many years, and I’m looking forward to see how God is going to use him his family. Please pray for them!

Youth Camp

Every March, we take our church teens to a Christian camp held by another independent Baptist Church about 8 hours away by car. It’s a long trip, but it is ABSOLUTELY worth it! Because of the low percentage of Christians here in Japan (less than 1%), The chance for our youth to be able to spend time with around 150 other Christian teens is so beneficial to them. I, along with four other pastors preached on Purity, the theme for this year, which is vital to our youth. Please pray for the next generation of Christians here in Japan, as they face many obstacles in their spiritual growth.

Easter Sunday

In the past 3 or 4 years, Easter has increasingly become a great opportunity to reach unsaved people with the Gospel for our church. We hold an Easter Egg hunt at a nearby park, and then have a time of singing and preaching about how Christ’s resurrection sets Him apart as the one true God, and our need for salvation through Him. Afterwards, we have a special Easter service at our church. God again blessed this year, with a total of 76 people attending the various services.

We are thankful for your sacrifice, both financially, and through prayer, on our behalf, and on behalf of your brothers and sisters in Christ here in Japan. You are truly an encouragement to ALL of us here in Japan!

To download a printable pdf, click here.

    As we begin the new year, I am reminded of Paul’s resolve. “…This one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.” (Phil. 3:13, 14) Regardless of the means, or the capacity in which God chooses to use me, my desire is to continually be molded and shaped as His vessel, until I am completed in His presence in glory.

Christmas Service

Christmas is a special time for our church, simply because of the interest Christmas draws to Christianity during this season. It is a great opportunity for our church family to reach out to their family and friends to hear the Gospel through the story of Christmas. Because we were so limited on space at our church for our Thanksgiving outreach, we decided to rent a hall for our Christmas service. God blessed the service immensely, with 52 people attending, and 10 visitors; 3 of which were first-time visitors. Again, my neighbors Norio and Mieko came, and Norio jumped in to help out throughout the time he was there. Please continue to keep them and the other unsaved friends and family in your prayers!

Visitors Throughout the Year

God has been continuing to bless us with a church family that consistently reaches out to their family and friends with the Gospel. In 2014, we’ve had 103 visitors, the highest number of visitors that our church has ever had!  Out of those, 52 of them were first-time visitors. Those numbers represent countless personal invitations, thousands of pamphlets passed out, and many, many people praying for them! For those of you who prayed, THANK YOU!!

New Visitors

Over the past several months, we have been very encouraged to see several Christian visitors who have started to attend our services, including several families in which the father is a Christian. The need for strong Christian men in our church is evident, and God may have answered that need through these families. I am very thankful for the way they have already jumped in and become actively involved in our church. Wow! What an encouragement! I earnestly pray that God uses them mightily to draw unsaved fathers and husbands to Himself. Please pray that God would use us to encourage and disciple these families.

Please continue to pray for us in the coming year, that God would protect our physical and spiritual health, that He would bless our family and our church, and that he would give us faith to follow whatever paths He has in store for us.

To download a pdf version, click here.

Family Camp

Every year in the month of August, our church gets together with several other independent Baptist churches in the Tokyo area for Family Camp. This is a time of much needed Christian fellowship and preaching. This year we were able to have several ladies attend, as well as a man named Mr. Hanagaki, a noodle restaurant owner who was saved recently. Because of his busy schedule, he and his wife (who is still unsaved) were only able to attend one day. However, while they were there, their hearts were touched by the time they were able to spend with other Christians. This year I was able to teach several young adults throughout our time at camp. Please keep these young people in your hearts as you pray for us. They are among the next generation of Japanese who will win their country for Christ.

Akigawa Baptist Church Family

In our church, we are constantly praying for and reaching out to the families of our Christians. Currently, we do not have any Japanese families in which the entire immediate family is saved. Therefore, the reality of unsaved husbands, wives, parents, and children is constantly in front of us. There are two ladies in particular for whom I would ask that you pray.

Sachiko Kawasaki has been a dear friend for many years and has faithfully served the Lord at our church. Her daughter is saved, but her husband is not. He actually comes to church quite often and he and I have gotten close over the years. Sachiko’s parents live several hours away and her elderly father’s health has started diminishing over the last year. She has been going back to take care of him as often as she can. While caring for him, she and her daughter consistently present the Gospel to him, begging him to trust Christ. His heart has gradually become tender, but he has yet to trust Christ. Please pray.

Another faithful Christian lady named Reiko Ito has been witnessing to her husband for many years. He has come to our church events on several occasions, and has even gone to help with the tsunami relief a few years ago (we witnessed to him a lot during that trip).  Last month, while she and her daughter were talking about how God has been blessing them, he told them that he did not want to hear about their God anymore. Obviously this is heartbreaking to Reiko and her daughter, Louie. Please remember to pray for Mr. Ito.

There has been some encouraging news too, though! Reiko’s oldest daughter, Sari, who is unsaved, started working at a day care center in downtown Tokyo and her immediate supervisor is a strong Christian who attends an independent Baptist church for the military nearby. We’re praying that he will be influential in leading her to Christ. Sari has also started to come to church occasionally. Please pray for her salvation!

Thank you so much for your faithfulness! We are continually overwhelmed by how vast and glorious Christ’s bride, the church, is, working to further HIS glorious kingdom, strengthening HIS body by giving toward each other’s needs, and praying for each other. How blessed we are to be part of that body of Christ!

Serving Him,
The Carters to Japan

To download a printable PDF version, click here.

Home Church Visit

As missionaries, one of the obstacles that is difficult to overcome is the disconnect that naturally happens between home church (or supporting church) and missionary. For many missionaries, it is very difficult to explain living conditions, the culture, spiritual obstacles, and the people to whom you are ministering, simply because there is often no frame of reference that can be used to adequately explain those things without actually being there. Last month, we had the privilege of having our pastor and several members from our home church come to visit us for a week and a half. They came specifically for the purpose of ministering to us and understanding how we live and minister so that they could better pray for us and our people. Words cannot describe what an encouragement this was, and still is, to us. Not only because of the encouragement that we personally received, but also because our church family in America was able to build ties with our church family in Japan. We are very thankful for the sacrifice that they made, both financially and in their time away from home, to come to be such a blessing to us.

Annual Church Cookout

Church BBQ

While our American church family was here they were a huge help in preparing for our annual church cookout. The cookout is a prime opportunity for our Japanese church family to invite their lost friends and loved ones to spend time with Christians and to hear the Gospel. We were able to condense what is usually a week-long preparation into just two days. Needless to say, I was happy! We were even able to build a makeshift canopy tent out of blue tarp and bamboo poles to provide shade from the heat that day. We ended up with a fantastic turnout with 71 people in attendance! Many of the visitors were family members of our Christians, including several of the husbands for whom we have been praying. I was able to preach a simple Gospel message to them and throughout the day we were able to have conversations with several of the visitors concerning salvation. Please continue to pray for the families of our church folks here!

“I’m From the Spirit World!”

One Sunday morning, several months ago, I was walking to the church after parking my car and I came across a lady and her six year old grandson who was playing on the sidewalk. I said hello to them and the young boy looked up, and seeing I was a foreigner, he suddenly stood up from playing and asked very intently, “Who are you?” I replied, “I’m from the church,” which is pronounced “kyōkai” in Japanese. His eyes opened wide in slight disbelief. He had misheard me. He said, “WHAT!? You’re from the yōkai!?” Which is the Japanese word for the spirit world! I burst out laughing and explained to him that I was from the nearby church, and they were welcome to come visit. Well, a few minutes later, the grandmother obliged the curiosity of her grandchild and came to church. The next week his mom came to church and they have been coming faithfully since. Praise God!

We are thankful for your faithfulness to us and ask that you continue to pray for the families of our church members. There have been both small victories as well as a few setbacks. Please continue to keep them in your prayers.

Serving Him,
The Carters to Japan

To download a printable PDF file, click here.

English Class Visitors (Continued)

In our last prayer letter, I mentioned several English class ladies, who had started to come to our Sunday afternoon Bible class. I am happy to say that Mieko, Sumie, Yoshiko, and Yuechin have been continuing to come faithfully, studying God’s Word, and learning more and more about who God is. Thank you so much for your prayers over them. There is still a long road ahead of them as they continue to learn more fully their need for salvation, and the gift of redemption offered to them by Christ Jesus. So please continue to keep them in your prayers!

The “Blizzard of 2014”

In February, we experienced similar weather to what many of you back in the States are “enjoying.” In Tokyo, there is very little snowfall. We usually get a few inches of snow in February or March, which clears up after a few days. But this year, in mid-February we were hit with the biggest snowfall in 45 years which accumulated over a foot of snow on one weekend, followed by the biggest snowfall EVER RECORDED (over a foot and a half) the next weekend! Our area shut down for several days because traffic just couldn’t get anywhere. It took us a while just to drive out of our neighborhood, simply because the streets are so narrow that there was no place to shovel the snow to clear a path wide enough to fit a car! But again, God used this time for His glory, in that as our whole neighborhood was out shoveling snow, God gave us the chance to meet and get to know several people that we had never met before, as well as continue developing and strengthening our relationship with Norio and Mieko (see the December 2013 prayer letter) as we got together to help out different areas of our neighborhood.

Sanae’s Sweet Salvation

Sane Nakahara started coming to church in October of 2009. Through the years, she has come faithfully, many times asking questions about the Bible, God, and the necessity for salvation. The questions haven’t always been easy. 🙂 But over the years, her heart has been tenderly drawn by the Holy Spirit to a desire to become a follower of Jesus. At the end of February, we had supporting pastor Darrell Hurst and his wife Grace come visit us for a few days, and during the midweek service, Pastor Hurst gave his testimony. While our church folks were fellowshipping afterwards, Sanae said to me, “Steve, I want to have that passion to serve Jesus like Mary Magdalene and Mary, Martha’s sister did.” I replied, “That’s a good desire to have, but you need to understand WHY they had that passion to serve Jesus. They didn’t serve Jesus because they wanted to be accepted by Him, but rather, Jesus had already accepted them in their sinful condition, and they were responding to the forgiveness He gave them, by serving Him out of thankfulness. There’s nothing that you can do in your own strength to be accepted by Jesus. But He WILL accept you the way you are, and then you too can serve Him out of thankfulness.” She thought about the answer I gave her for a few minutes, and then asked for everyone’s attention. “All right, everyone. I’m going to ask Jesus to save me!” So we prayed there at the table, asking Jesus to save her as she was, surrounded by her newly joined brothers and sisters in Christ! Sweet tears of joy flowed that evening as another precious soul joined our family in Christ!

To download the printable PDF version, click here