The number of Japanese living abroad increases every year and according to the research and statistics by the Foreign Ministry’s Bureau of Consular Affairs in 2006, 1,063,695 Japanese stays outside of Japan for a longer period of time, addition to 17,535,000 Japanese as oversea travelers and short-term students (2006 Tourism Whitepaper).  That means more than 15% of Japan’s population go to one or more of 200 foreign countries every year.

The opportunities for Japanese away from their motherland Japan to hear the Gospel and to encounter the Lord is significantly increasing.

Last year’s All Nation Returnees Conference (ANRC09), created from the strong tide called globalization, welcomed 600 attendees whose ‘spiritual motherland (the country in which one becomes a Christian)’ representing 27 different countries, 100 associate churches, and 40 associate organizations from Japan.  The attendees are from 200 churches.  Then we also had from abroad 15 churches and 13 organizations, which have some kind of ministry for Japanese people.  All Nations Returnees Conference 2010 will be held with much expectation in the Lord to become world’s bridge-builder, and understand the importance of this event as an initiator of the coming historical reformation the current situation of developing the deep and wide coalition of local churches, returnees, inter-denominational ministries.