'Have you ever wanted to quit?'

"…but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect…." ~ 1 Peter 3:15 | ESV

Azusa, the boys, and I have the privilege of joining this year’s Treasure Valley Missions Conference held in the Boise area from October 24 through November 8. We are just a few days in and have already met many incredible brothers and sisters in Christ at the churches that we have visited thus far. We have also been really blessed by our very warm and gracious hosts. Today we enjoyed good pie and fellowship at their church during the Seniors’ Pie Social.

A Tool for Ministry

One of the events during this conference is a men’s breakfast. The missionary men were requested to share a tool with the participants. It is an opportunity for each of us to present a physical tool that we can use for ministry in the country to which we have been called.

My gasoline brush cutter is what came to mind when I received the request. In Japan, it’s a tool of necessity due to the hot, humid summers and the resulting encroaching jungle for those living outside of the concrete jungles of Japan. It is also a tool that I used a lot during my time working for a small forestry company before we left Japan to begin pre-field with ABWE. I believe the Lord has used my non-rocket-science skill of using a brush cutter - I am actually certified in Japan to operate one - to open more than just forest floors but to also open doors of opportunity with people to proclaim the gospel.

The following video that I made for Men’s Breakfast has scenes from my last job in Japan. While watching it I was reminded of a question I was asked when I was working alongside my friend and coworker S at one of the clear cuts we prepared and replanted.

‘Have you ever wanted to quit’

S and I had worked together in the oppressive heat of late summer, brush cutting along the county and prefectural roads of Kumamoto. We also worked together clearing vegetation between young trees as the weather cooled and tree-planting season began in late fall.

He and his wife, A, are a great team, and I really enjoyed working with them. Among our hard-working team members - about eight in all - those two would ask me the most questions, seeming to want to understand why I, an American becoming a missionary back to Japan, would do such a thing. What was my motivation?

One day, as S and I were working together, planting cedars on a steep hillside, he stopped and looked at me for a moment and asked in Japanese, “Have you ever wanted to quit?”

“Have I ever wanted to quit what?

“Have you ever wanted to quit being a Christian?”

I paused and thought for a bit. Had I ever wanted to quit? In an instant, my mind went back to a time in my early twenties when I was struggling with a similar question: “Why am I Christian?” Then I remembered the answer that the Lord gave me to that question, settling my heart and giving me great assurance.

In the sixth chapter of John, many who were following Jesus suddenly quit following him after he said some words they found confusing, upsetting, unsettling, and distasteful. In the aftermath, Jesus was left there standing with the twelve:

After this many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him. So Jesus said to the twelve, “Do you want to go away as well?” Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God.” ~ John 6:67-69 | ESV

I shared my story with S by telling him of my question and the answer the Lord gave me through Peter’s words. No, I never wanted to quit, even though I had an important question to settle, because I was reminded by the words written in the Bible and on my heart: Only Jesus has the words of eternal life.

Operating a brush cutter did not preach the gospel to my friend S, but I do believe it played a part in his desire to ask me good questions, as did using a seedling bag, a pick mattock, a measuring rod, and the other tools I used as I worked in the woods and mountains. By working hard alongside him, he became open to learning about what I think and believe and why.

When we return to Japan - hopefully sometime in the spring or early summer of 2027 - I intend to keep using tools like my brush cutter to bless my neighbors. Every year we have major neighborhood cleanup days in our rural hamlet. All the men (that are still able) pull out their brush cutters and two-cycle fuel and work their way around the nearby roads and fields, cutting down the vines and grasses that would take over if not for human intervention. It may not seem like much, but just a little hard work of knocking the weeds down makes for better soil in the hearts of our neighbors and sometimes puts me in a place where I can, like I was able to with S, give a reason for the hope that is in me.

Praise:

• that our funding for the ministry to Japan with ABWE is at nearly 90%
• for the safe travels we have had in our reliable vehicle
• for the churches here in the Treasure Valley
• for the opportunities we have had to share about the ministry to Japan

Please pray:

• for continued growth in prayer support and financial support
• for Nate’s time with a friend going through The Story of Hope
• for Nate’s parents as the younger Strattons prepare to return to Japan in 2027
• for our preparation, that we would complete all the necessary tasks

We thank you for your prayer support!