Sushi, geisha, ninjas and samurai... hot springs, Sony, green tea and cherry blossoms: welcome to the fascinating Land of the Rising Sun!  Japan today is known as one of the most technologically advanced countries in the world, and yet its spiritual poverty is staggering.  Although some figures say that 90% of Japanese are Shintoist and 85% are (also!) Buddhist, most Japanese would claim no personal religion at all.  Evangelical Christians account for less than 0.5% of the population.  Over 30,000 people commit suicide every year – the highest in the world – because people have no hope beyond this present life.

After decades of evangelisation by foreign missionaries the church in Japan is still very small, with an average attendance of about 30 people during Sunday services.  Many churches are struggling to survive; this is especially true in the countryside where you will often find churches with only four to ten believers.  Another major challenge for the church today is ageing pastors, with few or no successors.  It is said that the average age of all Japanese pastors is between 60 and 70 years old.  Since many of them are now retiring, the number of churches without pastors is increasing, and there are fewer young people willing to take the challenge of becoming pastors.  Bible schools are closing due to lack of students. There is a great need to encourage and mobilise young Christians to be involved in ministry.

Since its inception in 1992, OM Japan has been a recruiting and sending office desiring to expose young Japanese Christians to worldwide missions, with the aim of making disciples and training a new generation of leaders for the church in Japan.  Recently, as the OM Japan team is growing, we are also developing our focus on local outreach in cooperation with local churches.  OM Japan is partnering with churches in the countryside of Western Japan in order to strengthen, train and encourage the local believers into effective ministry.

In addition to our long term and two years programs, we are also doing short-term outreaches in summer and winter. If you are interested in becoming involved in this ministry, please contact us at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .  Alternatively, you can visit our website at www.jp.om.org