Christian Layman Church
God has made us what we are, and in our union with Christ Jesus he has created us for a life of good deeds, which he has already prepared for us to do. Ephesians 2:10A group of seventeen from Christian Layman Church (CLC) are going to Tokyo, Japan to be part of an English Camp hosted by Biblical Church of Tokyo. We are joining three other churches from the US. We will help the church host an English camp for up to 700 kindergarten and elementary kids. Todd and Jayne Fong, CLC missionaries to Japan, have been a part of this church and worked with the English camp for several years. Last year was CLC's first team, and we have over double the number of team members this year! Which is good because the Tokyo church is doing two locations and double the number of kids!We are excited for the opportunity to serve with Todd and Jayne and support their ministry. Less than 1% of Japan are evangelical Christians even though it is an open country. Most of the kids attending the camp are not Christians.
Below are write-ups from each team member about why they are going or what the trip means to them. We need senders, so we hope that you will consider praying for us. We can do nothing without God’s help and provision, and that starts with prayer. The cost of the trip per person is $2,800, including airfare, lodging, food, and project materials. Each person is responsible for their cost, but group support will be shared amongst the team. Because of CLC support thru the Missions budget, we are already being supported by the church, but if you feel called to additionally support the team or an individual financially, please fill out the attached response card and send it to the church office or click on the links/QR codes below to fill it out online.
Going to Japan to serve the kids is a privilege, and we do not take the responsibility lightly. Thank you for reading this and any support you offer.
Please pray for:
We would love to have your financial support and appreciate your prayers. If you would like to help financially, please click here and pick "Sort Term/Japan Mission". To support us through prayer please click here.
Please reply by Wednesday, July 16 2025. Arigatou gozaimasu!
Abbie: I am excited to see what God has in store for me in Japan. I feel I will make a strong connection with some of the kids and be able to positively impact them through this trip. I can’t wait for this experience!
Brian: People and relationships have always been my focus.
For 3 whole months I lived in the home of random strangers. Strangers that never met me before, that had no obligation to host me, but did so regardless. Through my interactions with these locals I've gotten to see God's work in the lives of farmers, city dwellers, and homeschooled children with simple lives. This country and it’s people gave me a whole new perspective on success and happiness, how little I need in my life in order to still have a meaningful existence, and to question certain social standards.
And I hope that by returning this year, I can build upon the lessons we learned in the past and bring joy to the many children who swing by Seisho Christ Church.
Claire: This summer I have a less packed summer, so I have time to go to Tokyo this time around. I love Japan as a city and am excited to go again, but I also am going because I want to help kids connect with God. I think that my younger age may help me connect better with the children.
Deanna: This will be my first time on a missions trip and I’m excited to see what God has in store for us in Japan. After joining the missions team this year and regularly praying for our missionaries I’ve been interested in learning more about what the needs are in the missions field, and experiencing it first had. I want to gain new perspective on how God is working in other places and understand better the importance of missions. I’ve had other experiences working with children, so this particular experience feels right up my alley. I’m excited to meet these kids and pray that they might be transformed by this experience. Please pray that I would be able to boldly walk through any doors that God opens for me and will make meaningful connections with the kids, locals, and the other volunteers. Please also pray that I will be able to manage working in the heat!
Abbie: I am excited to see what God has in store for me in Japan. I feel I will make a strong connection with some of the kids and be able to positively impact them through this trip. I can’t wait for this experience!
Brian: People and relationships have always been my focus.
For 3 whole months I lived in the home of random strangers. Strangers that never met me before, that had no obligation to host me, but did so regardless. Through my interactions with these locals I've gotten to see God's work in the lives of farmers, city dwellers, and homeschooled children with simple lives. This country and it’s people gave me a whole new perspective on success and happiness, how little I need in my life in order to still have a meaningful existence, and to question certain social standards.
And I hope that by returning this year, I can build upon the lessons we learned in the past and bring joy to the many children who swing by Seisho Christ Church.
Claire: This summer I have a less packed summer, so I have time to go to Tokyo this time around. I love Japan as a city and am excited to go again, but I also am going because I want to help kids connect with God. I think that my younger age may help me connect better with the children.
Deanna: This will be my first time on a missions trip and I’m excited to see what God has in store for us in Japan. After joining the missions team this year and regularly praying for our missionaries I’ve been interested in learning more about what the needs are in the missions field, and experiencing it first had. I want to gain new perspective on how God is working in other places and understand better the importance of missions. I’ve had other experiences working with children, so this particular experience feels right up my alley. I’m excited to meet these kids and pray that they might be transformed by this experience. Please pray that I would be able to boldly walk through any doors that God opens for me and will make meaningful connections with the kids, locals, and the other volunteers. Please also pray that I will be able to manage working in the heat!
Eric: We first thought this might be a good experience as a family but due to circumstances we could not all go. My daughter Claire clearly wanted to go and we thought that she could go on her own, however, as I prayed more about it I thought it might be a good experience for us as father and daughter to go together. Upon more prayer, I was reminded that after going on short term mission trips to Tijuana God provided many opportunities to share my experiences and God with others. The final part of the decision came from the opportunity to use my skills of photography for the ministry as I have been feeling called to use my photography more in service of the Lord.
Gordon: After last year’s Japan English Camp, I feel called to bring another team because I know what to expect and volunteers are needed with more than double the number of kids. I look forward to serving with Todd and Jayne Fong and seeing multiple Tokyo churches work together. With a language barrier, the stretch will be connecting with kids and local church volunteers. I’m praying that our team of 17 will support each other, build relationships with the kids, and be transformed for the long-term by this experience by seeing how each of us can be involved in God’s global ministry. May we be humble and allow God to work through us, learn from the people we meet and see how God is at work in Japan.
Helen: I heard that CLC was going back to Japan and Japan is one place I've wanted to go. I enjoy helping people and wanted to share my talents and God by helping the kids enjoy their summer camp, learn some English and that God loves them. I ask for prayers for our safety, dealing with humid weather and for getting along with our teammates.
Irene: I have never felt called to be a part of a mission trip that was out of the country. Local missions always felt more safe and convenient for me. When CLC announced the Japan trip last year, I felt a small tug in my heart that this might be something I could do. As a teacher for 38 years, working with children has been my life’s work. What better way to serve God and continue my work through children in Japan, knowing that less than 1% of people there are Christians.
I pray that God will use me to reach the children and parents in Japan and for me to be able to share my faith with them. I also pray for a humble heart and for blessings as I interact with the people I encounter during this trip. May the Holy Spirit work through me to reach those who don’t know you.
Jesse: When the second Japan Mission Trip was announced, I felt God was urging me to go. As I prayed, I continued to sense God’s leading for me to go. There aren’t many believers in Japan, but ministering to children and planting seeds in them may be a good strategy, as children tend to be more moldable and open to Christianity. Children have a special place in God’s heart.
I’m praying that God will use me at the camp to be an example and witness for Jesus. I’m open to whatever God has in mind for me to do. Pray that God will work in me to develop a bigger heart for the lost, and that I will grow in faith and learn from the team (CLC and other churches).
I’m excited and looking forward to see God work at English Camp, to get to know the team better, to see God working in team members, and to work together with the team.
Jim: As I have reflected on all the blessings that have come to me since I have begun attending Christian Layman Church I realized that it is my turn to give back to the Church. When I heard about the Japan mission I prayed on this topic and I feel that God is calling me to Japan again, where I was baptized at age 16 and I can fulfill the end of CLC's Mission statement, “to serve the world.”
John: God has been nudging me here since last year when we heard various missionaries share about Japan - the work God has been doing and is continuing to do there. Also about how much more needs to be done. And maybe God has awakened a hope that He is doing a work in my heart - a hope that I might still be of use to Him. Nudges that came in a mission trip to Tijuana - long talks with my very wise and encouraging wife on a recent family trip.
“And so I am sure that God, who began this good work in you, will carry it on until it is finished on the Day of Christ Jesus” Philippians 1:6
Joycelyn: We’re going to Japan! I thought about going on this trip with our church last year but was unable to because of my job. It would have been a wonderful opportunity to meet and collaborate with Christians from other Bay Area churches and Japan. A chance to share God’s love with unchurched kids and their families. A chance to travel to a country I’ve dreamed about visiting for years. So, when this year’s trip was announced it felt like a second chance from God. But I hesitated to say “yes” this year, again because of work. I was laid off in January 2025. I felt torn between diving into full time work again and going on a dream trip. But after lots of prayer, consulting with family & friends and just basically wondering if I was worthy of this opportunity, I finally said “YES!” I’m so excited to serve on this mission with my husband and son. I am so thrilled to get to do crafts and work with kids! (Crafts + Kids = one of Joycelyn’s happy places) For me crafts aren’t just a way to be artsy, they’re also a way to share, express and explore God’s beauty, love and wisdom. I am so blessed to feel called to serve in Japan and invite you to share this with me.
Leon: I attended the Japan mission trip with CLC in the summer of 2024. I was blessed in seeing the children/students participate in loving the camp. The Gospel was shared to the students in a fun and loving way. My teammates all showed God's grace and love for the students and each other.
Leslie: Last year when I heard about the Japan mission trip, I thought, I think I could do that. This year when the invitation was extended again, my response was I should do this. The timing of the trip falls immediately after my son’s upcoming wedding and I thought, how thoughtful that God accommodated my schedule. In all seriousness, it has been a long time since I have been involved in an immersive mission experience. I have many fond memories of serving at the eye screenings that CLC hosted for several years. Those days were full of hard work, challenges and tremendous joy. They were both life giving and faith stretching in the same breath. I surmise that Japan may hold the same fusion of experiences. I am excited to serve alongside my CLC family and our extended kingdom family to see God move in creative and unexpected ways. I am looking forward to seeing how God will plant, nurture and sow seeds of His Spirit in the children at VBS, their families and in our team.
Terri: My spiritual parents were Issei’s (first generation immigrants) and Nissei’s of CLC, having been part of this faith family for 40 years. I was raised in a loving, but faithless home. I want to honor their memory and share Jesus’ love and saving grace with the children. I also feel called to come alongside other women in Japan, encouraging them in their faith. This year I hope to continue and deepen relationships that I made with the volunteer women from last year. It’s really amazing what conversations you can have with Google translate: last year I shared with a 92 yr old Christian woman who wanted to talk to me, another woman I met in the laundromat, and I enjoyed a friendship with the STEM class coordinator.
William: I am half-Japanese, and enjoy Japanese food and media. I’ve wanted to go to Japan for a long time, but more as a tourist than a missionary. Having the right heart for the trip is something I’ve been wrestling with, and made me hesitant to sign up. However, thinking back to the previous missions trips to Tijuana, the CLC eye screenings in Oakland and Richmond, and helping out how I can around church, I’ve found that being open and available for opportunities to serve God has always been a rewarding experience.
Zina: I have always been interested in missionary work. Usually they have been through medical missions, but Irene said that this mission is helping kids. I enjoy working with children and love helping people. I feel my calling is to serve others. I love watching children be excited to learn and making them inspired. I asked God, is this what you want me to do, show me… I didn’t think I was going due to such short notice to request time off, but they gave me the time off even though other people requested before me… so that was the sign God let me know to go.
We would love to have your financial support and appreciate your prayers. If you would like to help financially, please click here and pick "Sort Term/Japan Mission". To support us through prayer please click here.
Please reply by Wednesday, July 16 2025. Arigatou gozaimasu!
