Akio, a college student in Osaka, Japan, was lonely when he moved away from his hometown to Osaka for school. He didn’t know many other students there, and Osaka’s population of nearly 19 million people made it easy to feel anonymous and alone.
One day, he was invited to a free event some Christians on campus were hosting. He decided to go, and to his surprise, he had fun. He received more invitations to join the group’s events, and he attended every single one.
He enjoyed every event with free food, games and friendly people.
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Eventually, he couldn’t help but ask them, “Why are you doing this?” He didn’t understand why they’d invest so much in college students for seemingly no reason.
“Because we love you,” the believers told him, “And God loves you too.”
The more he came, the more he heard stories from the believers about how God created and loved everyone in the world. Even more than that, the Christians shared stories with him of how God had given them joy and purpose.
He began studying the Bible with a Japanese pastor he met at the events. Eventually, he realized he needed more than just friendships with the believers. He needed to know the God they served and experience His love. His decision changed everything.
“I experienced peace for the first time in my life,” Akio told IMB worker Brason English, a team member in Osaka that planned the outreach events on campus.
Obvious change
Trey Fleming, leader of the IMB team in Osaka, said the change in Akio’s life was obvious to everyone around him.
“He was very reserved when we first met him, but now he’s the warmest guy in the room, and he’s soaking up everything he can learn from us,” Fleming said.
Fleming said his team sees incredible opportunities to reach college students in Osaka right now. There are 11 campuses in Osaka that each have more than 20,000 students. Many are open to the public, making it easy for his team to plan outreach events or meet on campus with students individually.
The younger generation in Japan is increasingly more open to the gospel than the generations before them. Many are second-generation atheists, and so the firm grip Buddhist traditions had on their grandparents has a much looser hold on them.
‘Tough nut to crack’
“Traditionally, Japan is a very tough nut to crack,” English said. “But I think there’s a new generation in Japan that’s changing quite a bit.”
Akio’s story is not uncommon. Many college students in Osaka are lonely and burdened by the pressures of college life. When they meet Christians who are genuinely interested in knowing and loving them, they are more open to hearing about the God who loves them as well.
Currently, the team is active on three campuses and is partnering with a local Japanese church to plan outreach events. Fleming’s desire is to build a network of partnerships with more Japanese churches that can support ministry on all eleven campuses. As much as Fleming and other missionaries desire to reach Japanese students with the gospel, they also desire to see Japanese believers equipped to boldly share their faith.
“We’re in an unprecedented time of responsiveness to the gospel in Japan right now,” Fleming said. “The harvest is truly plentiful.”
EDITOR’S NOTE — This story was written by Stella McMillian and originally published by the International Mission Board.
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