Dear Friends,

This message is about the future because I'm writing to let you know that Marilynn and I will be making a ministry change early in 2010. We have had a call extended to us to serve the English-speaking department of Tokyo Musashino Evangelical Free Church (aka - Musashino Chapel Center (MCC)) as pastor. We anticipate a start date for this ministry around the end of March 2010. This is the same church we served for 2 ½ years from 1985 -1987.

In March 2009 we received, completely unsolicited by us, inquiries from two international congregations as to our willingness (without any obligation on our part or theirs) to be considered for pastoral ministry. When two such requests come within 10 days of each other, we naturally ask if God is trying to tell us something, so we said “yes”. We were determined that if one of these inquiries was of God, He would need to make it clear. He has done that at every step along the way until the end of September when the congregation - both Japanese and English Depts. - voted to extend the pastoral call to us. A few days after receiving that news, we accepted their invitation.

The English Department is quite small (about 60 - 75 adults in worship on Sundays). The pastoral ministry is not a "full-time" position. The salary and housing the church is able to provide will overcome the budget deficit that we went into 2009 with and which was projected to become even more acute entering 2010. We will be partial “tent-makers” in Tokyo, serving the church, yet also serving with ReachGlobal in roles that have not as yet been clearly defined. Through a “dual ministry” (MCC/RG), we envision a huge gospel impact in Asia as we work with MCC and RG to multiply churches in Tokyo and from Tokyo to Japan and Asia. A part of the ReachGlobal vision over the next 10 years is that 100 “Acts 19” sites are identified as places of regional/international influence from which the gospel will spread and grow. Greater Tokyo, with 40 million people and global influence certainly qualifies as an “Acts 19” location!

The church greatly desires for us to continue in a role with ReachGlobal and is very flexible in terms of time they will allow for RG-related ministries, including travel throughout Asia. The church strongly desires to be connected to RG and RG-related ministries in Asia and our pastoral role will allow us to help make that connection. In fact, even before we officially begin our ministry in Tokyo (probably around 1 April 2010), we are working with colleagues toward another multi-ethnic, multi-language, multi-congregational approach to church multiplication on the East side of Tokyo.

ReachGlobal-Asia is in the midst of a major restructuring in which alignment will no longer be along geographical lines. We do not know any more about the details of the restructuring as word has not come from senior leadership of ReachGlobal as to the specifics. Even without our moving on to a new ministry in Tokyo, the RG-Asia restructuring would most surely result in a change of role for Marilynn and me. We have begun a discussion with Senior RG leaders as to the shape and scope of an RG-Asia role for us, in partnership with the pastoral ministry of the English Dept. of Tokyo Musashino Evangelical Free Church (MCC).

What does this mean for us at this time? Over the next several months, we still continue to oversee two large areas of ReachGlobal-Asia work. As the new alignment and configuration of ReachGlobal-Asia is unveiled, our place in that restructuring will become clearer. It may be that we will have a focus on Tokyo and Japan with other responsibilities for ReachGlobal-Asia in other parts of Asia.

What we do know is that, if our present team of faithful prayer partners and financial supporters will continue to stand with us in our ReachGlobal-Asia ministry, we will have our present and projected budget deficits eliminated as we receive income through pastoral ministry “tent-making” in Tokyo.

Will you continue to stand with us our partners in ministry? Our calling to serve has not changed. Our area of the world (Asia) has not changed. The shape and scope of that ministry in Asia will be changing. We will be faithful to our calling and also in keeping you informed of the changes in our ministry as they become clear to us from senior ReachGlobal leadership.

Thank you for your faithful praying and financial support. We are deeply grateful.

Warmly,

Howard & Marilynn