Here are our most recent prayer letters. Enjoy!
Carter Connection December 2024
It’s always amazing to see the way God works, even behind the scenes where you can’t see! Here’s a story of the amazing way God reveals Himself to those around us, and then the joy we experience when we see that He’s been working all along! “It’s A Miracle!” I don’t hear those words very often, but before the service one Sunday morning this November, Mari, one of our church members came up to me to tell me those very words. The thing is, I had no idea what she was talking about. Mari was one of the ladies who was baptized at Akigawa River last year. She has been steadily growing in her faith and has been witnessing and praying for her husband and young adult son to be saved as well. We’ve had several conversations over this last year about how it seemed that neither had any desire to come to Christ. I encouraged her and prayed with her, but neither seemed to show any interest in trusting Jesus. Then, that Sunday morning, as our service was about to begin, Mari comes walking in, beaming from ear to ear, motioning in the back of the auditorium at none other ...
Read moreCarter Connection October 2024
Summer has been an absolute whirlwind! But it’s been a good kind of whirlwind. 🤣 There has been so much to be thankful for, so many opportunities to see God’s faithfulness and care for us! It’s Official. We’re Getting Old. By God’s grace, we have officially become grandparents! In August, our oldest son Tyler and daughter-in-law Morgan gave birth to their first child, and our first grandchild Eleanor Grace Carter! We’re so excited! It’s somewhat surreal to think that we are already at this stage of life. We’re also very thankful that it worked out for us to return to the States to meet our new grandbaby in September. We were in the States for four weeks, and while we were back, we were also able to come see some of you all as well! We were able to visit eight of our supporting churches during the month. There are still more of you that I would so love to see again soon, and as my pastoral responsibilities here in Japan allow, we hope to see more of you over the next few years. Needless to say, thank you for your faithfulness! As we work together to share the good news of ...
Read moreCarter Connection June 2024
Japan has five seasons. The fifth season, rainy season usually kicks off sometime in June and lasts for about a month. While many people here dislike the rainy season because of the constant wet, we don’t mind it all. The nice cool showers are a nice respite from the coming intense summer heat. Speaking of showers…😁 God’s blessings have been continually “showering” down on us all throughout these last few months! Cookout Relaunch In the end of April we relaunched our church cookout outreach for the first time since covid began in 2020. Our church family invited many of their family and friends, and we had an amazing turnout! Over eighty people came! Easily more than half of those who attended were guests. More importantly, they were guests who were already connected to people in our church family, which means they have consistent contact with believers in their lives. For some of them, this was their first interaction with other Christians besides the family or friend who invited them. All of them got to hear the Gospel preached simply and clearly to them. It was a big day for us, and we are thankful for how ...
Read moreCarter Connection March 2024
Cherry blossom season is just a few weeks away here, and we’re enjoying the gradual change from the cold of winter to the warmth of spring. We’re preparing for several big outreach events over the next few months, and looking forward to seeing the blossoming of new life in Christ as the good news of His Gospel is sown around us! A Wedding Motoharu brought Ami to church a little over two years ago. Motoharu was already a Christian, and Ami wanted to know more about Christianity. For about a year, the four of us, (Motoharu, Ami, Bethany and I) would share a meal together after church and talk about who Jesus was, and what it meant to put your trust in Him and follow Him. During time many questions were asked, and Ami’s understanding of Jesus grew and grew. Then, in May of last year, one Sunday while spending time talking with other believers after the service, she was ready to put her faith in Jesus! The following August, Ami was one of the ladies I got to baptize in the river near our church. Last month, I was blessed to have a part in Motoharu and Ami’s wedding! ...
Read moreCarter Connection January 2024
The last few months of 2023 were jam-packed to say the least! And it seems that 2024 is starting off with a bang here in Japan as well with another big earthquake. We’re so thankful for how God is SO faithful in giving us the grace we need for each day! A Christmas Miracle Fall seemed to have been non-stop. There have been a lot of moving parts in both the ministry and in our personal lives that have kept us on our toes over these past few months. Our church family has continued to work hard in sharing the story of Jesus to those around them. Most recently, our Christmas services had 35 visitors attend! And this is with literally half of our church being sick with the flu! One of our church family had the great idea of going to church while not feeling too well and ended up sharing the flu with everyone in attendance the Sunday before our big Christmas events. (Yes, I admit. It was me. I was that church member. Sigh.) Even with all of those who were sick, we somehow managed to make it work, and were encouraged to see all the visitors who had ...
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