Care Package to Japan

In this episode, I am here with my good friend, Jim Peterson, serving in Japan for almost three decades! Jim is a lover of Jesus and a second-generation missionary in Japan. Currently, Jim and Hydi are Evangelical Covenant Missionaries in the countryside of Japan. They live on this beautiful mountain called Mt. Akagi where they run the Akagi Bible Camp and host various ministries throughout the year. Jim is a lover of all things mountain, outdoors, and theology. In this episode, we talked about the gray area of what it means to honor and revere ancestors, holding the tension of the Japanese traditional yet being true to Christianity. 

Today, we will be chatting with Wenyuan Bao. Bao lives in Silicon Valley and is a Japanese cultural enthusiast. He enjoys listening to Aimer, watching anime, and learning more about God's love through Japanese culture. In this episode, we will nerd out about our mutual affection for Japanese culture as well as the amazing Japanese food that we will partake in together the next time Bao and I visit Japan. 

Today, we will be chatting with Aspen Petersen. Aspen is the Serve Asia Country Sending Coordinator for Overseas Missionary Fellowship, a mission sending organization founded by Hudson Taylor. Aspen has the privilege of being a part of OMF Short Term Workers' journeys in finding their place in Missions through the application, preparation, pre-field training, and post-field discipleship. For Aspen, it is an honor to come alongside people and help them follow God's call upon their life to reach out in love and Gospel to the people of Japan!

Today, we will be chatting with Catherine Porter. Catherine is a missionary in the northern region of Japan. She is a lover of Jesus, Japan, music, books, and chocolate brownies. Cat shares how knowing God's deep love for her propelled her to live a life surrendered to Jesus in this episode. Her yielded heart to Jesus is why she became a full-time missionary in Japan.

Hello friends! This week, I am starting the #prayforjapan series. The purpose of the #prayforjapan series is to pray for Japan through various topics within the Japanese culture. 

In this episode, I will be talking about cherry blossoms. In Japan, the cherry blossom season is when these flowers bloom. Japanese cherry trees bloom for a short time, symbolizing the transitory nature of life. We all live for a short time, and the present time is not something that we can ever get back, so we should appreciate each moment to the fullest.

Today, we will be chatting with Ed Mori. Ed lives in beautiful sunny Southern California with his beautiful wife Jill and 4 kiddos. Ed's passion is to tell people about the wonderful life that we have in Jesus, whether it'd be through getting to know his neighbors or loving on his kid's friends. In this episode, Ed also talks about something that is really close to his heart - adoption. Through Ed's story of adoption, we gain a glimpse of God's magnificent love and how God is weaving a beautiful tapestry to display the most beautiful story of all. 

Today, we will be talking with Rei Meek. Rei lives in Nishinomiya 西宮市, which is a town near Kobe.  Rei has been in Japan since 2016 and is currently teaching English and serving in ministry with a local church. In this episode, Rei talks about the absolute joy of following Christ and the delight in following His call to Japan. 

Today, we will be talking about Evie's top 10 favorite food from JAPAN!!!! 🇯🇵🍣🥟🍱🍛🍜🍲🍦 This is a bonus episode to break things up a bit and share something fun~  

Thomas is from the suburbs of Central New Jersey in the US.  By day, he thrives on coming up with solutions for the commercial insurance needs of his clients as an account manager. Outside of work, some things he enjoys are the church, Japanese, Cantonese, and Taiwanese food…as long as it’s not spicy.  He has also been to Japan twice for short-term missions with his church. In this episode, we talked about the importance of being transformed by the gospel and how Japanese Christians really have to count the cost before following Jesus because Christianity is not the social norm in Japan. 

Today, Evangeline - your host :) - will be sharing a little more about her and how God initially deposited the seed of love for Japan in her heart. 

In this episode, Steve talked about his journey from being a middle school teacher to becoming a pastor in the Sendai region of Japan. Steve shares his experience of learning to obey God and God's grace in guiding Steve as he takes steps towards ministry in Japan. In Japan's work culture, Steve advocates the importance of rest, play, and soul-feeding activities to avoid burnout. His hope and prayer are for more young leaders to be in Japan. 

Our guest today is Shogo Honda. He has an extraordinary story about his journey of putting his faith in Christ during his graduate school days at Rochester University. Today, Shogo talked about becoming a follower of Jesus and spreading His love to all those around him. It is Shogo's dream to become a professor and tell college students about the love and hope in Jesus. 

Today, our guest is the creative Stephanie Mikamo from Torrance, California. She is my good friend and a dear sister to me. Steph lived in Tokyo for about five years.  I had the privilege of seeing her progress before, during, and after her time in Japan. In this episode, Steph shared with us her time in Japan, reckoning with loneliness, experiencing the food and beauty of Japan, and loving the Japanese with the lens of Jesus.

Today, our guest is the fantastic Sharon Denise. She is a good friend, an intercessor, a retired school teacher, and a true worshipper. Sharon currently lives in Harbor City, California, where she faithfully attends a house church in the South Bay. Back in 1998, Sharon had the experience of doing missions in Japan, where she subsequently went to Japan 3 times. Today, Sharon shared her experience in Japan with us, praying for the nations and intercession by hearing His heart. 

Our guest today is Connor Edwards. Connor has been working with the campus ministry Cru since he graduated college. Taking the road less traveled, Connor decided to forgo his degree in engineering and follow God's calling to do full-time ministry. Following God's leading, Connor went to Japan after graduating to do full-time campus ministry. During this episode, he shared his experience while serving in Japan and learnings from his time there.

In this episode, I am here with my good friend, Hydi Peterson, serving in Japan for almost three decades! Hydi is a lover of Jesus and a third-generation missionary in Japan. Currently, Hydi and her husband Jim are Evangelical Covenant Missionaries in the countryside of Japan. They live in this beautiful mountain called Mt. Akagi where they run the Akagi Bible Camp and host various ministries throughout the year. Hydi is a lover of all things mountain, outdoors, and sports - and she uses her God-given talents to do ministry in all aspects of life and fully embraces her unique identity as who God created her to be.

In this episode, I am here with my good friend, Hannah. Hannah is from Texas and followed God’s calling amidst the pandemic to move to Japan. She is currently a pre-school teacher in Kanazawa. Hannah has a huge heart for equipping families with autistic children on how to navigate the complexities of daily life while caring for a child with unique needs. During our time together, we talked about the importance of fighting against isolation and being in a community where one is known and loved. Hannah also shared her heart for the marginalized both within the US as well as Japan. 

For this episode, I am here with Bryan and Renee Gibbs - the world missions director at the Navigators. The Gibbs are passionate about making disciples of all nations. They served in Japan for 22 years where they experienced the joy and challenges of being missionaries and sharing the gospel with the beautiful people in Japan. In this episode, they share their experience of being missionaries in Japan, the history of Christianity in Japan, and God's love for Japan

For this episode, I am here with someone very special - my sister Revy. Revy talks about her journey to Japan - from the birth of God's passion for Japan in her to now getting ready to move to Tokyo. In this episode, we get a glimpse of God's love for Japan through Revy.