Carter Connection January 2026

In our last update, we had to make the difficult announcement that Bethany’s cancer has returned. So many of you have responded in so many ways to show us your love for us. We cannot say enough how thankful we are for the care and support we have received over these past few months! Our hearts are overwhelmed with gratitude for each of you who have reached out, who have prayed, and who have given to meet our needs during this time. Thank you!

One of God’s promises that has been central to this season in our lives is in Proverbs 3:5–6, “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.” While the path has definitely been hard, we have seen God directing us through it in many clear and amazing ways through each step. He has given us grace for each day of the journey.

Church Family in Japan

Before returning to the States, we needed to make sure that our church family in Japan was taken care of. For the first few weeks away, I gave our church family passages of Scripture to study during the week, and then have them share the things they learned with one another as part of the service. That has worked well. We also had a missionary to Singapore that our church in Japan supports come for a few weeks to preach. Something that has been helpful for us is the difference in time: Sunday morning in Japan is Saturday night in the U.S. This has allowed me to lead the services by Zoom even while I’m here in the States. As things are starting to settle down, I am now able to preach to our church family in Japan by Zoom for the foreseeable future while we care for Bethany here in the U.S. We know it’s not the same as being there. So please keep our church family in your thoughts as you pray for us. The path God is directing them on is not easy either.

Now That We’re In The States…

We arrived in the States the same way we usually do… hitting the ground running. What has made this even possible for us is that along with her cancer medical treatment, Bethany has also been on a holistic treatment. This has been a SIGNIFICANT improvement for her! Before the change, she had been enduring a lot of pain and nausea. To the point where it was just hard for her to get out of bed. Now that we’re back in the States, it has been nonstop with things that need to be done, and Bethany has been keeping in step with everything. Honestly, my mind is blown with her energy. The cancer is still there, there are still days with pain, and we are keenly aware of what is likely to come. But for now, we are thankful for how well she has been doing. We made a quick update video update a few days ago, and if you would like to see it, or share it with your church family, we would love for you to!

Here is the link to the video.

Now that we’ve met with Bethany’s doctor (who is excellent by the way!), we are working through a plan for how best to treat her cancer. Please ask God to continue to do what He’s been doing… direct our paths (Prov. 3:5-6) There is much that we don’t know or understand still. All we can do is trust in Him and lean on Him. And that is enough.

(For a printable pdf, please click here.