Mission Grant #12 “Women's Witness and Mercy Asia — Mission Central” $100,000 fully funded
Women’s Witness and Mercy in Asia
By Cheri Fish, Mission Editor
The harvest field in Asia is ripe! Women in Mission are working in that harvest field, and our God is providing amazing results through their hands and feet. Asia has 38 missionaries, ten of who are women — truly Lutheran Women in Mission.
Through the mission grant chosen at the LWML convention in Mobile last summer, LWML is fulfilling our mission statement to assist and enable every woman of the Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod to use her gifts in ministry to the people of the world. The women active in missionary work in Asia are ready and willing to give a reason for the hope they have (1 Peter 3:15). There are hungry souls lining up to receive hope and truth in Christ. These women who minister with their talents, include nurses, managers, teachers, coordinators, and deaconesses.
When support comes in for missionaries, it is generally allocated for one or more of the following: transportation to the mission, transportation while in the country, insurance coverage, housing expenses, computers, office expenses, supplies and materials, and language training prior to leaving for the field. This grant supports the women while in their unique Asian mission, helps to keep them there, or helps to get them there.
In Asian culture, the desire for education is strong. The majority of the region is Communist, and many people belong to dominant religions there: Buddhism, Muslim, Hinduism. The work of LCMS missionaries entails bringing the love of Jesus Christ to the region through education opportunities. Here are highlights of the work being done by some of the missionaries in Asia.
Matt and Dee Wasmund, with their daughters, Lily and Olivia, live in Seoul, South Korea where Matt serves as the LCMS Strategic Volunteer Coordinator for East Asia. Matt connects with the individuals serving as GEO (Globally Engaged in Outreach) missionaries in South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Thailand in order to support ministries that touch the lives of hundreds of students of all ages. He engages with church and school leaders at these various sites, seeking effective ways to serve together for the sake of the Gospel.
Rev. Charles and Cheryl Ferry serve the Lord through the LCMS throughout Asia and are based in Chiayi, Taiwan. As the Asia Regional Director, Charles is responsible for LCMS work, personnel, and relationships in 10 countries. He unites local church leaders and LCMS blessings to strengthen partner churches through theological education, translation, and mercy projects. In addition, Charles provides Word and Sacrament ministry and pastoral care to geographically separated Lutherans.
David and Barbara Bush serve the Lord as missionaries in Hong Kong and Macau. David teaches American Sign Language and English at the Lutheran School for the Deaf in Hong Kong. For his classes, he writes his own curriculum and uses the Bible as one of his textbooks. Through his interactions with his students, David helps raise up leaders in the Deaf community and in the Deaf church. In addition to his work in Hong Kong, David also guides and assists the Macau Lutheran Deaf Outreach and provides religious instruction at the Concordia School of Special Education in Macau.
God is working in the lives of these missionaries as they share the Gospel message with the people of Asia. Thank you, Lutheran Women’s Missionary League, for the role you play in being the conduit to support the mission work God has asked us to do.
This story was originally featured in the Fall 2020 Lutheran Woman's Quarterly. Order your subscription here.
For more information about this mission grant, view the individual mission grant page here.
