Background
JOSHUA KIDWELL grew up in Las Vegas, Nevada and moved to Greenville, South Carolina to attend Holmes Bible College. His desire was to learn more about the Bible and understand more about what he believed. During his time in college he felt called to foreign missions, but had no idea where until a missionary from Japan came to his church to share. It was then that he started studying more about Japan and eventually felt God calling him to serve there.
JESSICA KIDWELL grew up in Greenville, South Carolina and served as a summer missionary in Arizona for 2 years. She attended North Greenville University to study missions with the intention of going back to Arizona, but during her time in college, God placed a burden on her heart for the people of Japan and there was no way to ignore the desire to help the people of Japan.
Joshua and Jessica met during their time at college while working at Chick-fil-A. After realizing that they both had a heart for Japan, it was hard not imagine working together to see the people of Japan come to Christ. They got married in 2014 and are enjoying the adventures that mission life brings.
Ministry Assignment
Joshua & Jessica have served with Asian Access since 2017 as Missional Partner Associates in Japan.
Wisdom for Potential Missionaries...
If you are sensing God might be calling you into cross-cultural missions, we suggest that you talk to as many missionaries as you can! The best information comes from those that are currently working on the mission field and have been where you are. Ask lots of questions and don’t be afraid. Trust God to lead you in his perfect timing and don’t get impatient.
Ministry Activities We Find Especially Meaningful...
We both believe that church partnership is crucial for reaching a culture that you do not belong too. Jess enjoys working with children and youth, while Josh works best relationally through teaching and discipleship.
When in Japan, be sure to...
...eat as much Japanese food that you can…especially tonkatsu!
Ways God is Blessing Our Lives & Ministry...
We have seen God grow our faith more in the past year through the support raising process than ever before. It is so humbling to be put in a situation in which you are completely dependent. God is in charge and we are not. It is through his timing and his planning that it is even possible for us to serve in Japan.
Hopes for the Future
- To be well studied in Japanese: We want to be able to communicate well with the people that we are working with and speak from the heart.
- To understand the culture well, so we are not consistently using the excuse of being a foreigner.
- To see more Japanese accept Christ as their personal savior: less than 1% of the population has a personal relationship with Christ; it is our desire to see more people have the chance to hear about Christ.
Recent Articles from the Kidwells...
