Loneliness & Relationship

I wanted to share a little about the loneliness epidemic in Japan and our vision for partnering with the Rural Church Planter Training Center in Iwate prefecture.

If you didn’t know, Japan is in a historic demographic crisis where almost 30% of its population is 65 or older, and with less labor, less marriages, less children, and less multi-generational living situations, hugely increasing numbers of people are living, and dying, alone in Japan.

Loneliness and isolation has become a critical public health priority. A nation-wide survey was conducted with over 20,000 respondents aged 16 and older, and research showed that 40% of respondents said they experience loneliness sometimes to often/always, and almost 1 out of 10 people ‘never’ talk face to face with friends or family members who do not live with them, with 1 of every 3 people reporting talking to somebody in person less than once a month.

Could you imagine going a whole month or longer not talking to another person outside your own home face to face? Could you imagine aging with no one to call on for help, or even no one to know if you died?

This situation is what contributes to the surging amounts of kodokushi, or ‘lonely deaths,’ where some news stories highlight someone’s death not being known about for days, weeks, months, or in some cases even years. Since 2011, the amount of these lonely deaths has increased 261%, reaching 76,000 deaths in 2024.

Government efforts to combat isolation and foster connection has been to create services like a call center crisis hotline, a training program for ‘connection’ workers who help isolated individuals connect with services and their community, as well as working with non-profit and private sector endeavors to strengthen places that help people establish ‘loose bonds’ like cafes, or libraries and community centers.

Right here is where I get excited. Japan is searching for an answer that the gospel and church planting provides! Jesus is always the answer, but it seems like it couldn’t be more clear that this crisis is the perfect set up for where missions and church planting is a viable remedy for this social crisis. My own testimony is one of the night-and-day difference I experienced with the reality of relationship with Jesus inside, as well as experiencing the authentic and loving relationships with others that Jesus makes possible in our lives through following Him. When a local church is planted and actively serves a community, creative and organic opportunities for loving connection with others and God Himself abound.

Currently only 2% of Japan has the joy of Jesus in their hearts, and 2/3rds of rural Japan has no church. The Rural Church Planter Training Center was established in 2022 to meet this great need, and Alicia and I are excited to be called to serve in this capacity.

Would you pray for the isolated and the lost in Japan, and would you consider making a monthly commitment to send us and share the hope of an eternal relationship with God Himself? May God bless you abundantly!