Tom and Renee Border
Serving the Japanese in Ohio
Finally, brethren, pray for us that the word of the Lord may have free course and be glorified, even as it is with you. - II Thessalonians 3 : 1
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Tom and Renee Border went to Japan with their two daughters, Becky and Cassie in March of 1987 and worked as church planting missionaries in Japan until September of 2001.
It was during a furlough in 1998 when they were living in the Dayton, Ohio area, that God gave to them Japanese neighbors. The number of Japanese friends seemed to grow almost daily.
After discovering that there were over 60 Japanese-owned companies in the greater Dayton area and no church or Gospel witness in the Japanese language, Tom and Renee determined that God was redirecting their ministry to work with the Japanese in and around Dayton.
In September of 2001, Tom and Renee began Risen Son Ministries as the ground work for establishing the Japanese Baptist Church of Western Ohio. The church holds weekly worship and prayer meetings, ladies Bible studies and special evangelistic outreaches (ESL, crafts, pot luck luncheons) for ladies meeting in various locations in the greater Dayton area, Joy Clubs (Bible clubs) for children that meet in church buildings near the Japanese Saturday schools (Troy and Cincinnati), outreach to bilingual families (mostly Japanese women married to American husbands), and music ministries.
As one can see, God has clearly brought the mission field of Japan to Dayton, Ohio. The Japanese in Dayton come from all over Japan but are only here for an average of 3 to 5 years. Just think of the impact of reaching the Japanese in Dayton and the possibility of spreading the Gospel through them to the 47 prefectures of Japan!
It seems to be the dream of most Japanese to visit the United States. Today there are thousands of people from the "land of the rising sun" living in Dayton, Ohio and experiencing a kind of "new life" in America. It is the prayer of Tom and Renee that while in Dayton, these precious Japanese people will believe on the "Risen Son" and receive the greatest "new life," in Christ!
