Deputation/furlough is when a missionary or missionary family goes around the United States and presents their mission. We are missionaries in Japan. My family and I are involved in several ministries, like Bible and tract distribution, English teaching, holding special services for children and we assist veteran missionary, Ken Board, who has been on the field for over fifty years. My family and I have been on the field for seven years.

Deputation and furlough are both fun. We get to travel the US and meet all different types of people. The people we meet are always so nice and have interesting stories to tell. Along the way of being a MK you get to make all kinds of memories! I have so many exciting stories to tell. Like the time while we were on deputation, my family was driving from Jacksonville, Florida to Milford, Delaware for a mission conference. We left  Florida the day before.  We had traveled all day and now we were in Virginia. It was my sisters birthday and she was excited to get to Delaware and visit a shopping mall.  We had some spending money from the previous church.  It had been raining all morning.

We were moving along at a snails pace due to a wreck ahead of us. I was about eight at the time, so I was doing my own thing, looking aimlessly out of the window not paying any attention to the traffic I had seen so many times before. It seemed like the wreck was cleared because the pace picked back up and now we were moving about the same speed as the posted speed limit. We were about to the spot where the wreck happened when a police officer who had been working the wreck pulled out and into traffic right in front of our van.  My dad, who was driving at the time, had a choice to either rear end the police car or go into the ditch.  The ditch was full of water and  was nice and muddy from all the rain that was falling.  With my fathers lighting reflexes, he turned the car toward the ditch. I remember thinking,  “Wow this road got bumpy real quickly.” I soon came to realize that we had left the road and were now trapped in the mud that filled the ditch.   We noticed smoke coming from the sides of the van.  My bothers and sister and I all thought the van was on fire.  We began to scream.  My mom was able to calm us down and explain that the van was not on fire but that the cold water had hit the bottom of the hot engine.  It was just steam we were seeing.  That was such a relief for us.

Now four kids and two parents sat in the rain and mud waiting for a tow truck to pull us out.  The police officers were very nice and friendly.  They came and checked on us to make sure we were safe and no one had gotten hurt.  One police officer even gave us some stickers and a toy sheriff badge.  As soon as the tow truck arrived we had to get out of the van.  My mom and dad helped us get out of the van and wade through the water and mud until we had made it safely to the side of the highway.  Once we were safe and under an umbrella we were able to watch the tow truck pull our van out of the mud.  The tow truck driver told my dad it looked as if the axle had broken on the front end.  He told us he would have to take the van to the next town to be fixed.  My dad was upset.  As the tow truck pulled  the van out of the mud we were all amazed that the axle was in fact not broken.  No damage had been done to our van.   We were all cold, wet and muddy but thank goodness we are all fine, even our van.  After the van was back on the road, we loaded back inside and headed off for Delaware.  We did not get to stop at the mall but it was ok because we were just glad to be back on the road again.  This was definitely a birthday for Rachal that we will never forget.

Being in Japan has been a blessing. I have made so many friends. I have gotten to present the gospel to so many people who have never heard of Jesus. I have seen many people come to Christ, and that is worth every sacrifice, every hardship, and every penny that churches in America give to missions.

-by Jonah Wyatt, MK to Japan