Jason Pratt

Missionary At little ones mission international church

I grew up an atheist, and became a Christian after college, in early 2018. Despite being new to the faith, one thing that was always abundantly clear to me from the Scriptures was God's heart for mission. However, I didn't have any particular ideas about what to do about that or where to go, and I wasn't specially seeking an answer, either. God had a different plan, though. I was baptized in May 2018, and then, as if in response to that (I say looking back on it now), God suddenly and unexpectedly, yet very clearly spoke to me one night as I was driving to work. He told me, "Go to Japan, and bring the Gospel into the porn industry." Once God showed me His heart for those people and convinced me to submit to His command, I began trying to figure out how to get to Japan and what Christianity was like there.

Japan is a nation that, despite having received missionaries for centuries, remains less than 1% Christian. It is a prosperous and developed nation, and there is not much in the way of violent persecution, or really any violence at all, but it remains quite firmly under the rule of the devil, and needs Jesus badly. Some of the major spiritual strongholds here are loneliness, depression, and conformity. Suicide and death from overwork are regular problems. Many young people are not getting married, let alone having kids, and much of the population is elderly, so the population as a whole is declining significantly. Visiting a brothel is not viewed as cheating, even if you're married. Porn magazines are out in the open with other books and available for purchase at any convenience store (which are as common in Japan as churches in the US, if not more so). Tokyo's major red-light district, Kabukicho, is not only a center for adult entertainment, but is also home to many restaurants, arcades, and a movie theater, making it a popular place for tourists and Japanese of all ages to go and hang out. The list just goes on.

This is just the tip of the iceberg of what I have learned since 2018. I came to Japan for one month in 2019 with OMF for a Vision Trip, and then I returned in 2022 as a seminary student at Tokyo Christian University, from which I graduated in July 2024. Now I am in Japan as a missionary to continue to serve Jesus here. God has not yet opened the door for me to pursue ministry with the porn industry, but He has also, during my time here, put a burden on my heart to support and build up the Church here in Japan. With such a small Christian population, many churches are also very small, and while there are many connections between churches, there is also much division. However, I have seen God moving to make more connections, and also moving to bring more and more missionaries to Japan.

At this stage, I have two visions for Japan. One, to see the porn industry completely erased as a result of God working to save every soul involved, whether actors and actresses, consumers, artists, producers, suppliers, anyone and everyone. Two, to see the Church here united as the one Body and Bride of Christ that it truly is. To those ends, I am focusing on serving at my local church here, seeking ways to build it up and to be a bridge with other gatherings of the Body in Japan and around the world, while also waiting expectantly and patiently for God to open the door to the next stage of the work He has for me here in this nation.