CONNECTION. It’s a common word with powerful implications. Dictionary.com defines connection as a joining or linking together; a relationship between people or objects that unites or binds them together. God has created each of us with a deep need for connection with Him as well as connection with others. Hebrews 10:24-25 speaks to this, as the writer exhorts, “Let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.”
This God-given need for connection lies at the heart of a creative and innovative ministry in Japan known as “The Neighborhood.” TEAM Japan global worker, Kelly and her family created The Neighborhood as a place where connections are formed through creative arts, educational opportunities, and simply just providing a space for people to be together.
A Family Calling
The journey to the creation of The Neighborhood began over 5,000 miles away from Tokyo, in California where Kelly, her husband Jeff, and their five children were living. The kids were the first to sense God’s calling to missions, and asked why their family wasn’t serving in this way.
How Kelly and her family came to TEAM is a God-story in and of itself. “God placed a TEAM Japan worker at our lunch table the same week that the kids posed that question to us,” Kelly recalls. “We had never heard of TEAM and so we thought, ‘let’s check this out.’ After that, God just kept confirming that we were supposed to be here.”
After a period of fundraising and with much excitement, the family of seven moved to Japan in 2014. For the first five years, Kelly and Jeff served as a part of other TEAM ministry initiatives, but they began to sense a stirring for something new.
Creating The Neighborhood
Kelly and her family truly have a deep gift for hospitality, and regularly opened up their home to others they met in Tokyo. They saw a great need for people to have a place to gather and connect, and they wondered what doors the Lord might be opening for them to meet that need.
“About a year before we were to return the States on home assignment, we were just really thinking about our future in Japan,” Kelly says. “We saw a need for people to have a ‘third place’ – a place that’s not home and it’s not work. They didn’t have a church community or any other place where they could meet people and just connect.”
Kelly goes on to explain that in Japan, the culture is such that people don’t generally invite each other into their homes, but as her family did so, people embraced that opportunity. “This idea formed in all of our hearts of a student ministry center – a place where we can create community and learning,” says Kelly. “It was born out of what we were already doing in our home, but seeing how we could expand it and have better space.”
God’s Provision
What happened next is a true testament to God’s provision. Kelly, Jeff, and the kids returned to the States and began sharing their vision for The Neighborhood with their supporters and churches who responded generously. Upon returning to Japan, the search was on for the right space. “We had a Christian realtor that we told our dream to, and he just went looking for it,” Kelly recalls.
When the realtor found a 5-story apartment building, he said, “It’s kind of out of your budget but it has what you need and want.” The Lord provided the funds and the family moved into the space in November 2019. They now occupy all but the ground floor, with living space for their family as well as classrooms, areas to study or hang out, and guest rooms for exchange students or others who need a place to stay overnight. The first floor is occupied by a pizza shop – a welcome amenity for the many groups and students who visit The Neighborhood. “It’s very convenient!” Kelly says with a laugh.
The Neighborhood began to see lots of activity right away until the pandemic hit in early 2020. During the height of the quarantine, Kelly and Jeff used the time to redecorate the space and plant gardens outside the building. Then as the restrictions eased, they invited individual students or families over for meals and fellowship. It wasn’t until March 2023 that The Neighborhood was able to fully open again as intended. Kelly shares that despite the setbacks of COVID, the Lord continued to provide the funds to pay the rent.
A Draw for Unbelievers and Believers Alike
Now thriving in the post-COVID era, The Neighborhood serves as a welcome sanctuary where students and families converge to unwind, engage in various activities, and foster wholesome connections. Many who are not believers might not know where the love is coming from, but they are drawn back repeatedly, captivated by the profound and uplifting experience The Neighborhood offers. Amazingly, there is such a draw to this special place that many people will travel by train for upwards of two hours to visit.
Kelly shares that The Neighborhood is not meant to feel or function like a church, but rather is a “neutral space” where people from various faith and cultural backgrounds can feel comfortable. Yet Kelly explains to people when they first come how this place has come to be. “I do an introduction and tell them that The Neighborhood is a place for them to learn and be encouraged, and that it is supported by Christians around the world,” she explains. From there, as relationships are built, the Lord begins to open the door to invite people to church or to have Gospel conversations.
The Neighborhood is also a special place for Japanese believers. “We are also providing a space for people that are interested in ministry but are not sure how they’ll fit in,” Kelly shares. “It’s providing a place that’s outside of the church where they can come and learn and be surrounded by people that are still trying to find their community. We say The Neighborhood is ‘a place where people on the outside can feel on the inside.’”
Getting Creative
While not originally created for this purpose, The Neighborhood has become an excellent example of Creative Arts Ministry – ministry which uses the arts to help aid in reaching people with the love of Jesus as well as discipleship within the Body of Christ.
Through The Neighborhood, Kelly and Jeff were already offering things like English classes, but they wanted to branch out into other ways of bringing people together. Kelly connected with Jon Tello, TEAM’s Global Arts Ministry Coordinator, who gave her great ideas to incorporate art, music, drama, and other forms of creative expression into the activities planned at The Neighborhood. Kelly says there’s never a shortage of fun and creative things going on. She laughs as she looks back at a calendar from the previous month and notices that there was only one day that no activities were taking place at The Neighborhood.
As Kelly looks back at the last five years, she marvels at the goodness of God. He brought a family of seven who originally had no plans to enter cross-cultural missions to Japan and then has given them this amazing, creative, and fruitful ministry. “We had this plan five years ago that God just totally dropped in our lap,” Kelly says. “And now, we’re in this place where every day is so exciting and it’s just fun to watch God make things blossom and grow.”
Check out a great video and more information about The Neighborhood at teamkibou.com.
