In March 2011 our family traveled to Japan to meet with Emi’s mission conference and visit family. We felt the earthquake on March 11th while in the mountains near Nagano, and watched the TV in awe of the tsunami’s devastation. We experienced the empty grocery shelves, the rationing of fuel, and felt the alarming aftershocks. Holding our then four-month-old daughter Geneva, we left the country with conflicted hearts. Yet, as we departed Japan, we both had a sense that God will redeem this experience in His time. This summer, God confirmed that initial yearning as Asian Access approved our family to serve as missionaries in Japan. Our ministry will be:

• Family- We will partner with an exciting Tokyo-area church, Kokubunji Baptist Church (KBC), to build relationships and learn how to share the gospel in the Japanese context. KBC established a community center in Tohoku to minister to orphans and families affected by the triple disaster. This ministry is called SOLA.

• Emi continues her work with the Asian Access missionary families in Japan as the field leader of Missionary Care. Missionary families endure intense pressures, driving the need for essential relational and spiritual support to sustain their family.

• Sterling will be working part time for A2 in Japan and also part-time with a Christian businessman in Japan. His goal is to learn the language, and invest in meaningful relationships for those seeking Christ in business, in the church, and in the Japanese community.