Context & Calling

July 27, 2026

When I boarded a plan for Japan, I expected to encourage missionaries, learn about another culture, and gain a greater understanding of one of the world’s least reached nations.

Those things certainly happened.

But I didn’t expect the Japanese church to become one of my teachers.

As I worshipped alongside believers, observed missionaries serving faithfully, and spent time listening rather than speaking, I realized that God was using the church in Japan to expose assumptions I didn’t even know I had. Their example didn’t make me admire them simply because they were different. It pointed me back to biblical truths that can easily become blurred when Christianity is culturally familiar.

Here are five lessons I brought home:

1. There Are No Shortcuts to Following Jesus

In America, it can sometimes feel as though Christianity has become convenient. Churches advertise programs, events, and experiences. We often look for the quickest path to growth or the next strategy that promises greater impact.

Japan reminded me that following Jesus costs something.

For many Japanese believers, becoming a Christian may mean disappointing family members, standing apart from cultural expectations, or choosing a path that few around them understand. Faith is not simply another activity to add to life; it is a decision that can reshape relationships and identity.

Jesus never promised an easy path.

“If anyone wants to come with Me, he must deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow Me.” (Luke 9:23, HCSB)

The Japanese church reminded me that the cost of discipleship has never changed. Sometimes we’ve simply forgotten how much it costs.

2. The Kingdom of God Grows at the Speed of Relationships

One of the greatest surprises was watching how intentionally missionaries and local believers invest in people.

They don’t rush conversations.

They don’t pressure decisions.

They build trust. They listen. They share meals. They return again and again, believing that faithful presence matters.

It challenged my own assumptions about ministry.

Growing the Kingdom of God isn’t about numbers.

It’s about names.

Every person matters because every person bears God’s image. Jesus never viewed people as projects. He knew them, loved them, and called them by name.

Just as Jesus said,

“He calls his own sheep by name…” (John 10:3, HCSB)

The gospel often moves at the speed of relationships.

3. Faithfulness is More Important Than Visible Success

American churches often celebrate growth because growth is easy to measure.

Attendance.

Baptisms.

Buildings.

Budgets.

Those things can certainly be reasons for thanksgiving. But in Japan, I met believers who faithfully serve year after year with little public recognition and very few visible results.

They remind me that success in God’s Kingdom is measured differently.

God has not called us to be famous.

I think that needs to be read again. God has not called us to be famous.

He has called us to be faithful.

The church in Japan helped me remember that obedience is never wasted, even when fruit takes years to appear.

4. Humility Opens Doors That Certainty Cannot

One of our team’s goals was not simply to teach, but to learn.

That posture changed everything.

Instead of arriving with all the answers, we listened to missionaries, observed the local church, and sought to understand the culture before speaking into it.

I discovered that humility is not weakness.

It is one of the greatest expressions of love.

When we assume we already understand people, we stop asking questions. When we stop asking questions, we often miss what God is already doing.

The Japanese church reminded me that mission begins with listening.

5. Every Culture Needs the Gospel- Including Our Own

Perhaps the greatest lesson I brought home had very little to do with Japan.

Living in another culture helped me recognize how easily we confuse biblical Christianity with our own cultural preferences.

Japan has cultural barriers to the gospel.

So do we.

The answer is not to become more Japanese or more American.

The answer is to become more like Christ.

Every culture must continually submit itself to the authority of Scripture. Every church, including mine, needs to ask whether our traditions reflect God’s Word or simply the culture we’ve inherited.

That realization may be one of the greatest gifts Japan gave me.

Coming Home Changed.

I thought I was traveling to Japan to encourage the church in Japan.

Instead, God used the church in Japan to encourage me.

They reminded me that discipleship is costly, relationships matter more than quick results, faithfulness outweighs visible success, humility creates space for learning, and every culture needs continual transformation by the gospel.

Perhaps that’s one of the beautiful mysteries of missions.

We go believing we have something to give.

And often, God brings us home with far more than we ever expected to receive.