God divinely placed students from all over the world at my doorstep. And, only by His grace, I have engaged in Gospel-centered conversations with these friends of mine. Over time, God put the people of Japan on my heart. I asked my Japanese friend a simple question, “Do you believe in God?” and she responded with, “Hm, I have never thought about a god before. I’m not sure.” I was rocked to my core.

How can someone live for twenty years and never ponder the existence of God? Amidst my shock, my other friend picked up my Bible and asked, “Woah, what’s this weirdly big book?” That night, I whipped out my laptop and began to research what Christianity looks like in Japan. My jaw dropped as I read the statistic stating that 0.8% of Japan’s population is a professing Christian. That’s not even 1%! In an instant, I went from someone who had never considered mission work to someone who wanted nothing else.

I mentioned my crazy idea to a mentor of mine, and I was directed to Mission to the World. God’s sovereignty blows me away sometimes. One thing led to another, and I was on my way to Haneda Airport in Tokyo in the beginning of the summer of 2023.

I spent three months working with Grace City Church in the heart of Tokyo playing piano, guitar, cajon, and (to my surprise) singing in Japanese. Outside of church, I worked with Community Arts Tokyo to engage with Japanese people through the arts and point them to a Greater Artist. God allowed me to witness the church gain a new sister, and that sister happened to be an amazing new friend.

I felt like God was pulling on my heart to pursue international missions, and now, I know it is what He has in store for me. I can't wait for round 2 this summer.