Updates

“A society grows great when old men plant trees, knowing whose shade they shall never sit in.”
– Greek proverb

Spring Update 2023 — Tilling, Sewing, and Saplings

The kind of plant needed to build a house takes a long time to grow. Tomatoes, carrots, and lettuce are important. They offer nutrition and sustenance. But you can’t build a house out of them. Trees are needed. And trees take far longer to grow and mature.

I have often pondered the path God has taken us on since our very first trip to Japan in 2018. It certainly took longer than we expected to get to this point, and we took turns along the way that I would have never predicted. Yet here we are sitting at well over 90% of our support, just months away from packing up our lives and moving overseas. I’ve also pondered how we live in a day of quick fixes, short-term strategies, and seeking to just use people instead of invest in them. What ever happened to having a fifty year plan, or a five-generation plan for that matter? When it comes to our missional aspirations for Japan, we want to think long-term and dream of what God can do—not merely with us—but with the next several generations of Japanese Christians. And it actually starts with each of you.


Travels and Partnerships
Along the road, God has allowed us to partner with so many of you dear saints and congregations to get us to the field and support our work while we are there. Just in the last month, new supporters contacted us from Oklahoma, Kansas, and Georgia to tell us they were going to partner with us as a church. Since our last update, we’ve been able to travel once again across the Midwest, meeting friends and making new ones. God has been good.

It really is astounding to think that the long-term work we’re hoping to engage in—the garden we plan to give our lives to weeding and tilling—is shared with so many of you who pray for us, give to us, and trust us to be faithful kingdom workers on the other side of the world. You’ve not just invested in our family but in the lives of those whom the gospel has yet to touch. Christ the King is building his kingdom in Japan, and it will far outlast us. You can count on it. And we cannot wait to get there and begin.


Our Family
This last season of travel has been fairly centralized, thus a bit slower in the very best way. It’s given us time to begin preparing for our eventual relocation. What does that look like? At this point mostly conversation—a lot of conversation. We’ve been talking through expectations, logistics, other missionaries’ experiences, etc… just aiming to get on the same page. We’ve been getting in some doctors and dentist appointments  while we’re still stateside. We’ve also begun organizing our earthly possessions to determine what’s going with us to Japan and what’s staying. Things have started to feel overwhelming at times, but that’s not a bad thing. Oh, and a bit of language learning has begun as well! I was practicing writing out some Kanji characters this afternoon. Sophie is just getting over a stomach bug, but is otherwise happy, healthy, and toddling around like normal kids her age should. If you’ve interacted with her in the last few months, you know what I mean. She’s a treasure.


The Road Ahead
The visa process has begun! Sophie’s passport did come in, and our family’s applications for religious worker visas have been submitted. Now we wait. While we’re waiting, there are two primary items on our agenda.  First—you guessed it—there are a few meetings we are still looking forward to this summer that will, Lord willing, bring our support to 100%. This will be a huge milestone for us and a confirmation that this mission is indeed something our King is calling us to.

Regarding the second item, I will follow up with much more detail in the very near future. Our move to Japan is going to be the most expensive undertaking of our lives. While we have long begun saving for this big move, we wanted to give some of you the opportunity to help as we restart our lives on the other side of the world. Not only will we be flying to Japan, we will need a home when we get there, furnishings for it, transportation around our area of town, and many, many other needs. My best estimation for this expense is already over $20,000. Soon I will be sending out a detailed, itemized list of what our startup-fund needs will be for you all to consider over the next few months. So many of you have offered in person to help us with one-time needs as they come up. This is one of those! We ask that you’d be thinking and praying how you might help us in this specific way in coming months.
Be encouraged, friends. The Lord is at work. His tree is growing just fine and will someday cover the whole earth (Mark 4:30-32). Keep fighting the good fight.

Grace and peace,
Joe and Sierah Pliska

NOTE: To hear an audio version of this update, click here.

“…as he has been taught.” – Titus 1:9

I just submitted my final exam for my final class at SBTS for a while. Below are some reflections on seminary and the requirements of pastor according to Titus 1.

A Note on Seminary
Before I begin, let me state that not every pastor must go to seminary. The New Testament model for preparing men for ministry is to make sure they are (a) morally qualified, (b) apt to teach, (c) and able to hold fast to the faith. These are the qualifications prescribed in Titus 1:5-9. And this training of qualified men is quite explicitly the responsibility of the local church. My hope is that the very need for large, accredited, para-church seminary institutions actually diminishes, as more and more local churches here in the US take up the mantle of responsibility to train up their own leaders from the next generation. This is a responsibility well worth winning back from the schools. But, seminary or no, any man aspiring to ministry should be theologically educated. This is a must.

A Note on Titus 1:9
Of the three qualifications laid out in Titus 1:5-9, let’s take a look at that last one. The purpose—the end goal—of Paul’s instructions according to verse 9 is that these men are able to hold to sound doctrine and refute those who teach otherwise. Simple enough, but here’s the golden question: What constitutes “sound” doctrine? Everyone thinks their doctrine is sound. Everyone. How is Titus to authoritatively know what sound doctrine is in the milieu of opinions? How is he to know what doctrine is actually biblical, so he can hold fast to it and rebuke those who contradict it? Ought Timothy just read the Bible for himself and trust his own conclusions to be sound enough? To put the question to ourselves: How do pastors today know we are teaching sound, biblical, doctrine? Paul gives Timothy the answer to this question in verse 9, “as he has been taught.”

Did you catch that? Titus confidently knew what sound doctrine was (and what wasn’t). Why? Because the apostle Paul taught him. He didn’t need to guess where Jesus was in the Old Testament, or how the ten commandments apply to today, or what the chronology of end times should be. He didn’t have questions about regenerate church membership or the purpose of the ordinances. His mentor, Paul, already showed him these things from the Scriptures. The point? God’s design for his undershepherds is for them to receive knowledge from those who have gone before. This is the model. And what confidence it gives to young men. We live in an era where spirituality, piety, and ministry are being stripped of this design. Arguments are made that with a good translation of the Bible and the guiding of the Holy Spirit, we can find sound doctrine in the Scriptures all by ourselves. This sounds humble—even spiritual. But this is not what Paul instructs Titus to instruct aspiring pastors in Crete. Consider this distinction. Paul made it a point to clarify that Titus was not to simply teach the Cretans how to study the Bible (primarily the Old Testament at the time) but to teach them what  Paul’s thoughts are concerning those Scriptures. “Titus, teach others what I taught you.” Now, this is the model often accused of being arrogant, isn’t it?

A Note Paul’s Design
Here’s why it’s not arrogant and why it’s actually the far better path. When the teachers of God’s people choose to exclusively consult their own wisdom concerning the Scriptures, they are choosing to ignore the wisdom of hundreds of generations of Christians who have gone before and written what the Spirit showed them in the text. They reject this spiritual heritage. Put in this way, which model is the more arrogant? Which path is the humble and spiritual one: ignore the deep waters of hundreds of years of historical commentary and doctrine, or take a deep breath and dive in?

Of course it’s not a clean-cut tool. Church history can be messy at times. But let’s not allow that fact and ignore our heritage. Let us not downplay the importance of the testimony of the church in determining what doctrine is sound or not in our day. Let us test our interpretation of the Scriptures against theirs. More than a man needs to be a student of a prodigious institution, he needs to be a student of the word. But a man aspiring to pastor well aught also be a student of what Christ’s church has said regarding the word. And his studies of what Christ’s church has said actually starts with what his own, local church has said. Here we have come full circle.

What is necessary then for young men to discover and defend sound doctrine, and what role does the local seminary play? In my estimation, there is a three-legged stool upon which young men ought long sit in order to discover doctrine that is sound. Personal study, pastoral discipleship, and church history—in that order. (And seminary can supplement the first and the third.) This is the path of humility, and it is the better path. Before a man stands before the people of God to teach them what God has said, he better make sure what he’s about to say matches “what he has been taught.” And this will never come from isolated, one-man-band Bible study. Seminaries can be an excellent place to find out exactly what that is.

“Tell the students to give up their small ambitions and come eastward to preach the gospel of Christ.”
– Francis Xavier, first missionary to Japan (1549)

Winter is over, spring is here, and our missionary friends tell us the cherry blossoms are coming into full bloom in Japan. A couple of years ago, I thought we’d be there by now to enjoy the sight ourselves. Now, seeing the wisdom in God’s timing, we reflect with gratitude on the last two years as we anticipate the months ahead.

Travels
This winter was an example of the ways God has regularly been showing his kindness to us in this season. We have met many wonderful people and churches, traveled to a good handful of states, and continued building the partnerships we’ll need to secure a strong kingdom work in Japan. That was all in about six weeks’ time! Right now, we’re back in the Kentucky area for a few weeks spinning a few plates and preparing to hit the road again soon. Something to pray for is our visa applications. Some of you who follow such things in the news are aware that passports are taking longer than ever to create and even renew. We submitted Sophie’s application about two months ago and have heard nothing. We cannot apply for visas and make preparations for Japan until it arrives.

State of Japan
I’m by no means an expert on international history nor current affairs, but I have been doing some reading up on both in regards to Japan. The first known exposure Japan had to the Christian gospel was in the 1500s. (The gospel came to the Americas in the 1600s.) Yet, look at the trajectories of these two nations over the last four centuries. The difference is staggering. Keep in mind, Japan is still less than 1% reached. Yet modern day Tokyo—by no means post-Christian—faces many of the same challenges as my home city here in America, Louisville, Kentucky. And many of the challenges that the Japanese have faced in the home and workplace are more and more showing up in our own land. Now, the culture war there may not be specifically against the Christian faith, but it certainly opposes the Christian ethic. We would like to ask each of you to pray for our brothers and sisters in urban Japan as they face some of the same gospel challenges we do, but in a culture that is very different from our own.

Support and Family
So many of you have reached out to us and asked how we’ve been doing these days and when our departure time is. The answer to the second question is that we are doing everything we can at this point to get ready to leave as soon as the Lord allows. But there are still tasks to be worked on in the meantime. To answer the first question, I’d give two words: we are blessed and confident. Not that we are anything of ourselves; but we have faith that God is preparing us for this calling in his own way and time. And he’s taking good care of us every step of the way. Sophie is now 15 months old and growing like a weed. I finish my last seminary class (for now, anyways) in two weeks. Then, language studies begin! Continue to pray for our support and the passport delay. It’s hard to wait. Especially for something so long in the making. And continue to reach out to us! We always love hearing from our kingdom partners.

Grace and peace,
Joe and Sierah Pliska

NOTE: To hear an audio version of this update, click here.

“A time to tear (a sign of grief), and a time to sew.” Eccl 3:7

As I write this last update of the 2022 calendar, my heart is full. “Glory to God—all glory in the highest,” as the song goes. It’s not necessarily been the easiest season for us, but there is a final Rest coming (Heb 4:9). For now, though, there is a harvest to prepare for. We are grateful for so many of you who have helped us on our journey in one way or another this year! Here are the seeds we’ve been sowing this last quarter.

Church Partnerships
I can’t say this enough: I am simply in wonder at the number of connections God is continually bringing across our path. Even now as I plan out more of our 2023 calendar, I’m reflecting on the new friends and partners we’ve met in Florida, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska (I know!), Illinois, and Ohio this fall. Our percentage is now above the 75% mark! We are in Oklahoma again now for the holidays, looking towards future travels primarily in the South in early 2023.

Schooling
I enrolled at SBTS in the Spring of 2017. This past week I walked across the stage to receive my MA degree in biblical counseling. As many of you know, that choice of degree (over more common studies for aspiring pastors) was to strengthen an area that might be regularly exercised in Japan, Lord willing. I’m thinking specifically of our discipleship and evangelistic relationships. I’m immensely grateful for my time at SBTS. My biggest takeaway is that Scripture is authoritative and entirely sufficient for all of life and godliness. I’ve only got one more class to finish—this is towards the MDiv track—before schooling goes on hold for a long while. It is a languages class focusing on biblical Greek. Once that is finished, Japanese awaits!

Parenting
Next week we will celebrate little Sophie’s first birthday. As all of you parents told us—shew, that was fast! Our daughter has been a blessing and a challenge. She means the world to us and brings so much daily joy. If you’ve met her, you know what I mean! I think often of the world she will be growing up in. How ugly, strong, and vicious will the dragons be that the Christians her generation will have to fight? As you pray for us, especially Sierah, pray that we would have the wisdom to raise Sophie to be a godly, wise, and courageous servant of the King.

Grace and peace,
Joe and Sierah

NOTE: To hear an audio version of this update, click here.?

“Overseeing the church is like overseeing your family.” – Paul to Timothy (1Tim 3:5)

Travel and Support
After finishing up our spring travels, we were able to come back home to Louisville for a bit of rest and recuperation. Much of spring was on the road, and much of our summer was with our church family back home. It was good to be spending time with those who we will be saying goodbye to someday, Lord willing. Our support has been steadily increasing so far this year. God has been gracious to allow us to partner with more and more faithful and likeminded brothers and sisters across the South and Midwest. At the end of our summer, our support was sitting right at 68%. In addition to local churches deciding to partner with us, we have also had some individuals generously decide to partner in our ministry as well. If you’d like to know more about how to individually join our missions support team, please let me know!

On a sadder note, halfway through the summer, Sierah’s grandmother did pass away. As many of you know, Kathy had been fighting cancer for the past two years. We were blessed to be able to come off the road for a time last year to help care for her during treatments. But now, she is with the Lord. This July, we drove out to Oklahoma for the funeral and spent time with family for a few days. I had the privilege of officiating the funeral and presenting the gospel to many dear friends and family who attended. It really was a sweet time, in spite of the grief.

How We Are Doing
Even as I write, we are a few weeks into our fall itinerary. This has come after a summer of learning, growth, and schoolwork as always. The road has been tough on our marriage in a few ways, and God has used this to reveal several areas in our relationship that have needed attention. What a gift it is to be part of a healthy, local church to support us in this time! In addition to wise counsel from our pastors throughout the summer, we have benefited from many edifying and challenging conversations from other mature brothers and sisters in our local church. It was a profitable summer. I’ve been reminded of the importance for aspiring pastors to attend first to shepherding their homes. The spiritual welfare of the home is the most important ministry of the two. This is why “pastoring” the home is one of the qualifications of an elder in 1 Timothy 3.
A quick update on seminary: I’m currently taking the last class towards my MA in Biblical Counseling at SBTS and I’m set to graduate this December. However, there is a twist. Since our departure timeline for Japan is uncertain (more on that below), I’ve been pursuing extra classes the last few semesters towards the larger MDiv degree in that same field. Until we depart for Japan, Lord willing, I plan to continue pursuing a full masters degree.

Update on Japan
There is no significant news on Japan’s reopening to common visas, particularly missionary visas. As I said in January, Japan could change their visa policy any day now and restore things back to normal. As many of you know, they’ve hinted several times this year that they were about to, but they just haven’t yet. The latest I’ve heard is that they plan to re-open things back to normal in October. We will see. On a positive note, one interesting thing I’ve been pondering lately is just how many missionaries to Japan are waiting State-side for Japan to reopen its borders. What will happen when Japan finally re-opens? Will there be swarms of young families pouring into that country ready to preach the gospel and plant churches? I can only hope so. We are thankful for all of you who are faithfully praying for us and partnering with us in our missions endeavor.

Grace and peace,
Joe and Sierah Pliska 

NOTE: To hear an audio version of this update, click here.?

“God cannot give us peace and happiness apart from Himself, because there is no such thing.”  –  C.S. Lewis

Spring Travels
It has been another Proverbs 16:9 type of season, but we are grateful for the way God encourages and sustains his children, as referenced in the C.S. Lewis quote above. We’ve found this to be the case these last few months as God has continually met our needs and blessed us with more church partners. Our travels in March started out in western Kentucky and ended last Sunday in western Kentucky. We left Kentucky in March for meetings in Mobile, AL, then north-central Florida. The plan afterwards was to head up to Detroit for a missions conference, followed by a few weeks in North Carolina. While we were in Alabama, we had to make an itinerary change and head up to Oklahoma instead. Graciously, I was able to fly out to the Michigan missions conference, and the meetings we missed have only been postponed. The time spent with family in Oklahoma was well worth the change in our original plans.

Summer Plans
It’s been eight years since the Ark Encounter in Williamstown, KY was built, and we finally got around to seeing it this Memorial Day weekend. What an experience! Last week, we finished up our last meeting before our summer break—a time of needed rest off the road. The church we presented at last Sunday morning voted that night to take us on for support! We are blessed and grateful to say that many of the churches we’ve visited this year have already committed to be partners with us. We are confidently trusting God that he will lead more to do the same. I am continually astounded that God keeps putting us in contact with faithful churches who are willing and interested in partnering with us. By the way, our total support number at the end of this month is 67%. Just over 2/3 of the way!

Special Request
It has been a tough time knowing how to care for and be with Sierah’s family during this season. Many of you have asked how her grandma is doing, and I want to let you know that we appreciate your care and support. As Christians, we are confident that God works everything in this world to the praise of his glory and for the good of his people (Eph. 1:11-12). It’s a beautiful hope that none in our day get to experience except for those who are in Christ. Likewise, we also look forward to a day where disease and all other curses of sin will be destroyed for good, and the last enemy to be destroyed is death (1 Cor. 15:26). Pray for our family to have wisdom and peace from God during this time.

Grace and peace,
Joe and Sierah Pliska

NOTE: To hear an audio version of this update, click here.🔊

Winter Update 2022 — Sophie, Southern, and our trip through the South

“A custom of the early church was that a Christian travelling in the interests of the gospel would look for hospitality from the local Christians in the community he was visiting.” – Commentary on 3 John 5-8

Little Sophie
It has been three months now of having little Sophie around and the adjustments that accompany her. Babies are wonderful blessings from God. We’ve had challenges trying to get adjusted to new parent life while on the road. But God has met our needs and provided us with friends and mentors to help us during this season. We are blessed. Little Sophie is healthy and growing like a champ. She has a huge smile and likes to chew on her hands. Many hours of joy have been spent watching her entertaining gestures.

Update on Seminary
This semester has been a bit hectic, but doable thus far. For those of you who have been asking, I have two classes left in my masters degree after this Spring semester. One, I can only take this summer break; the other I can only take this fall. Graduation should be this winter. I’m thankful for the opportunity to study at Southern and the open doors this has opened for us while on deputation. Further, pastors in Japan are not esteemed. Their position is seen as strange and not all that honorable compared to other “normal” things they could be doing with their time and careers. However, having a masters or doctorate-level of education can be a tool to win the ears and respect of some in Japanese society. Perhaps someday the people of Japan will better esteem these servants of Christ, not for their educational experience, but because of their character and skill in their ministry.

Travel Plans in the South
As many of you know, we were off the road for two months this past winter. We came off the road in December because Sierah’s due date was that month. Then, we took January off to get her time to recover from labor and for us to get adjusted to parenting life—as if this could be done in just a month! In hindsight, we probably needed more than a month off, but Providence has guided here. In February, we hit the road to spend about a month out in Oklahoma to continue our fundraising around Sierah’s family. We presented at a church in Indiana on the way out west, and then presented our ministry and spent time in churches in Kansas and the greater Tulsa, Oklahoma area. In March, we left Oklahoma to head down south for meetings in Kentucky, Alabama, and Florida. God is continuing connect us with new friends and churches willing to partner with our ministry.

Prayer Points
– Full-time traveling has brought its challenges, especially with a newborn.
– More meetings for 2022. (We need about 15 more churches to take us on at $200 a month).
– Visas! Japan is still not accepting missionary visas. Pray that God would move the hearts of kings.

Grace and peace,
Joe and Sierah Pliska

NOTE: To hear an audio version of this update, click here. ?

Meet the Newest Pliska!

“May God, our Father, bless our child, Sophie, and us who have given to him our family name, that we may live together in love and affection; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.”

Sophia Belle Pliska
Greetings from Louisville, Kentucky! It’s hard to believe that January is already halfway over. We have our first meeting of the year coming up in three weeks, and in attendance will be our little Sophia Belle Pliska! She was born at 9:22 PM, on Wednesday, December 29. We wanted to get a couple of weeks under our belt before sending out this formal update. We did, however, put an announcement up on our social media page last week. Feel free to give it a look and enjoy some photos of our little one below!

How Is Everyone Doing?
Sierah’s delivery was excellent. Little “Sophie” was born with a full head of dark hair. She weighed in eight and a half pounds and measured twenty-one inches in length. To date, she is completely healthy and growing as normal. We did have a brief scare in the hospital just minutes after Sophie was born. She had some fluid blocking her airway, which the medical staff were able to remove immediately and professionally. Needless to say, Mom and I didn’t sleep very well that first night. It is moments like these that remind us that God is entirely in control when we are entirely helpless. But God is also our heavenly Father and does what is only good and best for his children. We have much to be grateful for.

Prepping for Our Next Stage
In February, the three of us will pack up and hit the road west, beginning in Oklahoma. Our travels over the next few months will take us through the south as far as Florida, up north to Michigan, and then, Lord willing, out east to North Carolina. As we travel we get to learn the challenges and joys of deputation life with a newborn. Pray for us that the Lord would watch over little Sophie as she grows, that he would keep us safe and healthy as we travel, and that we would have a 2022 calendar as full as our hearts are right now. And enjoy the pictures below!

Grace and peace,
Joe and Sierah Pliska

Fall Update 2021 — Full Hearts and a Break in the Calendar
“Let brotherly love continue. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers…” (Hebrews 13:1-2)

Blessings
Winter has arrived, and we wanted to take a minute to tell you how things have gone for us this fall. I am humbled and astonished when I think about how God has moved local churches to partner with us and bless us this past quarter. We’ve been shown great hospitality by churches—some who support us and some who do not. While our summer travels took us all across the Midwest regions, this fall kept us mostly in the South. God has protected us from sickness or accidents while on the road and safety in the skies. I flew out to Seattle to visit family for my grandfather’s funeral this October. Two weeks later in November, I flew down to central Florida for a regional preaching conference at one of our partnering churches. Sierah was able to rest at home during both of these trips. Our favorite trip this year took us north to the Chicago area where one of our dear supporting churches was celebrating their 50th annual missions conference. On the last night of the conference, the church donated money towards many of our needs including tuition for seminary and Sierah’s CCEF classes, a pricey Logos Bible software package, items from our baby registry, and more. And they were not the only church to bless us over and above their monthly commitment to us! We are humbled to be so blessed.

Birthdays and Baby
Speaking of baby, Sierah and I both celebrated our birthdays already this fall and are eagerly awaiting our baby’s arrival. No, little one is not with us just yet. But the midwives tell us she is progressing steadily and healthily, and she could be here any day (the due date is tomorrow). These next few weeks will be full of big changes and adjustments!

Break from the Road
Our last scheduled meeting this year was already few weeks ago! The plan was to come off the road at the end of November to prepare for baby’s arrival and a few other things. We needed to get settled into our temporary living situation in Louisville, to spend time with our church family, and get prepared to hit the deputation road again in February. December has not been as restful of a month as we has imagined; but God has been good. Our home church purchased and renovated a residency to eventually house some of our Christian school’s faculty. But they are allowing us to stay there for the next few weeks while we are off the road. (We just finished setting up the nursery in the renovated house today.) January looks to be a month of adjustments, seminary classes, and getting our 2022 schedule sorted out.

Year-End Support Level
I didn’t want to end the letter without updating you on how our fund-raising has progressed. Our goal was to be at 50% by the end of this year, and we are at 48.5% as of this week—with more commitments promised beginning the first week of January. After a twelve months of raising support, we are grateful and humbled to see how the Lord has provided these partnerships for us.

Year-End Prayer Requests
– Healthy delivery of baby, due any day now!
– Fully booked calendar for 2022.
– 100% support raised by this time next year.

Grace and peace,
Joe and Sierah Pliska

Summer Update 2021 — Summer, Seminary, and Support

Q: 112.  Is God’s grace only for your religious or spiritual life?
No. God wants to redeem every aspect of my life, and his grace in Christ is at work in all of it. (Psalm 40; Isaiah 1:13–20; Matthew 6:25–33; Titus 2:11–14)

Summer Travels
This summer was a mix of deputation travels and family time. We announced our pregnancy to our families on vacation and attended Sierah’s sister’s wedding in Florida. Overall, our travels took us through, Wisconsin, Illinois, Ohio, Tennessee, Georgia, Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina, Missouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Mississippi. In all of these places we’ve been blessed to meet faithful brothers and sisters in Christ who are leading or serving in healthy, gospel-preaching churches. As fall arrives and Sierah’s due date approaches, we will be keeping our travels more and more regional.

Progress on Our Schooling
Sierah just finished two more classes this semester at CCEF. She is trying to squeeze one more class in before baby arrives in December. Her goal is to try and accomplish as many certifications as possible before we leave for Japan next year. As I am writing this, I’ve just finished the final exams for two classes at seminary; my next two classes for this semester start in a week. My goal is to be done with all masters classes but one by summer of 2022.

Update on Support
Our support level has gone up 12% since our last update. That may not seem like all that much, but it has put us now at 34% (over the ⅓ mark)! With the connections God keeps giving us on our travels, we are still confidently praying that we will be fully supported by the end of next year. If you as an individual or your church would like to partner with us but don’t know how, please reach out to me. I’d happily show you the different ways people are able to partner with us at this stage in our ministry.

Vision and Preparations for Japan
I was asked in a recent Q&A how we plan to reach people with the Gospel in Japan. That is a very good question—answers to which we have been exploring a lot lately. Sierah and I do not doubt that the Lord has called us to plant a church in Tokyo. But we are well aware that there is much we must learn before that time comes. How are the Japanese people today hearing and coming to the gospel? What are current missionaries and churches doing to reach the Japanese people? I want to share with you some specific ideas we’ve been considering lately, but that will have to come in another update soon. Stay tuned. For now, we are still growing our connections to missionaries and Christians already in Japan. Tools like Zoom have allowed us to have conversations with these workers and ask them questions about their own experience in ministry over there.

Prayer
– Many missionaries are still being denied return to Japan.
– Wisdom on how to reach the Japanese, specifically the men.
– A safe pregnancy for Sierah, and a healthy baby.
– Support level: 34.41% committed!

Grace and peace,
Joe and Sierah Pliska