Japan Missionary

Matthew & Annette Cummings

1019 20th Street ? Orlando, FL 32805 ? worldlight@juno.com

Dear friends,

In the ups and downs of 2006, God blessed us in many ways. Although we?d like to share all of those events with you, most will have to wait for our official newsletter which we hope to send in April or May. Our purpose in this letter is to share specifically about an opportunity God has provided to do a missionary internship this summer in Japan.

As Matt has been in seminary for the past year and a half, we have been praying about where God will lead us in this training for full-time Christian ministry. Both of us have had interest in overseas missions, and since Matt was born and raised in Japan and speaks Japanese fluently, we began looking into short-term missions opportunities there. Recently we were approved by Mission to the World (the missions agency of the Presbyterian Church in America), to do an internship with them in Nagoya, Japan, from the end of May until the middle of August. We are hoping in this experience to more fully explore our gifts as a couple in missionary work, and gain more insight into God?s leading for future ministry training. We both have had positive experiences with MTW in the past and appreciate their team approach to missions. The team in Nagoya offers experience both in church planting and a seminary.

Although Japan is a prosperous and well-developed country, the spiritual poverty there is great. Less than 1% of the population (0.5%) are evangelical Christians, and average church attendance hovers around 25. There are many barriers to the spread of the Gospel, but more opportunities seem to be opening now. Despite material successes, Japan has the highest suicide rate of any developed country (matching the homicide rate in the U.S at 30,000 per year). Beneath stoic faces and polite smiles lie fear, loneliness, and feelings of failure or worthlessness.

We recently asked a Japanese Christian friend, who attends Matt?s seminary, if she thought there was still a place for American missionaries in Japan. She replied instantly, ?Yes!? She explained that Japanese see Americans as being open to deep relationships and people with whom they can share their true selves. They hunger for close friendships but struggle to find them in a society ruled by rigid expectations, outward appearances and constant competition. As American believers we have many opportunities to demonstrate the love of Christ through friendships and share how to find joy and peace in Jesus.

Our total need is $10,300 for the internship. Although this seems like a lot for three months, please understand the price includes plane tickets for three and this is Japan. In fact some current prices there are: $63.00 toll for a 250 mile highway trip; $5.00 per gallon gasoline; $6.00 per gallon milk, and so on. Japan is not cheap! We hope you will consider upholding us in prayer for this trip and, if able, contribute a gift towards our MTW internship costs. We would greatly appreciate your partnership in this opportunity to explore whether we should serve the Lord long-term in Japan.

Thank you for your friendship! May God richly bless you!

In His Grace,

Matt & Annette Cummings

p.s. In case you haven?t heard, we?re expecting baby #2, a boy, in early March.