TEAM (The Evangelical Alliance Mission)

The Evangelical Alliance Mission (TEAM) has worked in Japan for over 120 years, with a major focus on church planting. Even today, the TEAM Japan Purpose Statement says that: “TEAM Japan exists to establish reproducing churches in Japan to the glory of God.”

Through a variety of activities such as English conversation classes, café outreaches, parenting classes, music outreaches, returnee ministry, and media, we seek to reach Japanese people where they are. Everything we do is ultimately aimed at establishing and strengthening Japanese churches, with the end goal stated in our Vision Statement:

“TEAM Japan missionaries envision reproducing churches thriving and multiplying throughout Japan, passing on the gospel in culturally relevant ways to future generations through Japanese believers.”

We’re working towards a day when the Japanese church is reaching her own people for Christ so effectively that we are no longer necessary to the process. Until that day comes, our immediate Ministry Goal states:

“We empower Japanese, in conjunction with new church plants and existing churches, to:

1. evangelize Japanese,
2. disciple Japanese, and
3. develop Japanese leaders.”

Our goal is to increasingly become disciplers of Japanese people, both new converts and existing Christians. We also want to be catalysts for growth and change in the various churches and ministries where we work so they can effectively reach Japan.

To accomplish these goals, we follow three key strategies:

1. Cling to our Core Value of “God-Dependence” according to 1 Corinthians 3:6-7.
2. Model to the church TEAM’s values of “being Together in purpose through Empowerment, Accountability, and Mutual care (TEAM acronym).
3. Focus on six focus areas which will help us become both healthy and intentional as a mission.
   • Ministry Initiative Focus: ensuring ministry plans are well thought out and prayed through with clearly articulated strategies and goals that are in line with TEAM Japan’s purpose and vision.
   • Team-Based Ministry Focus: equipping missionaries with the skills necessary to be effective team members in a variety of multicultural teams.
   • Leadership Development Focus: developing people to effectively lead in their area of influence.
   • Member Care Focus: providing appropriate and adequate member care for our missionaries, recognizing that each missionary has responsiblity for their own self-care under God.
   • Recruitment Focus: attracting a new generation of missionaries to carry on the work that we and our predecessors have done over the decades, in new and creative ways.
   • Resource Management Focus: attempting to invest the human, material and financial resources with which God chooses to bless us in the most productive, strategic, and God-glorifying ways for Kingdom returns.

At present we have approximately 70 missionaries working in various church planting and related ministries in Hiroshima, Hyogo, Ishikawa, Kagawa, Nagano, Okayama, and Toyama, and Tokyo.

We also have a significant number of people in the pipeline who are itching to get to Japan and utilize their creativity and energy to assist us in reaching even more layers of Japanese society for Christ.

TEAM Japan is excited about what God is doing and will do in Japan in the future!