Missions Groups Join Forces to Plant 1,000 Churches in Japan
Asian Access and SIM USA are partnering to plant 1,000 churches in Japan by 2020.
The alliance aims to leverage the strength of the two mission-sending organizations in a new model of that helps both groups better leverage kingdom resources.
“SIM brings the stability of operational support that we needed and the mobilization horsepower to help us fulfill our vision and mission for Japan,” says Joe Handley, president of Asian Access, a 44-year-old missions organization. “This strategic partnership is not a merger or simply a sharing of back office functions. It is truly a new way of doing mission together, each bringing their strengths and committing to a common kingdom vision.”
From a practical standpoint, SIM takes on the responsibility for recruiting missionaries, as well as the financial accounting and related human resources functions of missionary training and U.S.-based care. Asian Access maintains the responsibility for championing the overall vision in Japan, managing the strategy of missionary deployment through its network of Japanese churches, and caring for Japan-based missionary personnel.
“This alliance immediately opens up a whole new country to send SIM missionaries, rather than having to set up a beachhead with a few pioneer missionaries,” says Bruce Johnson, president of SIM USA, which works on six continents with 2,100 missionaries. “On top of that, to partner with an organization like Asian Access, which already has history, success and reputation in Japan is a privilege and honor.”
