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THE BENNETT FAMILY
Missionaries · Kyoto, Japan
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KYOTO, JAPAN · KANSAI REGION

Planting Christ-centered community among spiritually-curious Japanese.

Church planting in Kyoto, Japan and student ministry on the Kyoto University campus.

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— DAVID & SARAH BENNETT
Portrait
OUR STORY

Meet the Bennett family.

David & Sarah Bennett — heading to Kyoto, Japan, right on the border of Kansai.

Kyoto sits at the cultural heart of Japan — a short train from Osaka and a campus full of students from every prefecture and across Asia.

Our team will plant a church in Kyoto while pouring into student ministry on the Kyoto University campus. One city, one campus, one community.

Our heart is to establish a Christ-centered community among spiritually-curious Japanese — a place where skeptics, seekers, and new believers can belong together. None of this happens without partners back home who pray, give, and stay close.

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OUR MISSION

How we're reaching Japan.

One city, one strategy: plant a Christ-centered church in Kyoto, engage students at Kyoto University, and disciple a generation that can carry the work forward.

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Plant

Pioneer church planting in Kyoto — a strategic Japanese border city — building a gospel community where one doesn't yet exist.

Engage

University ministry on the Kyoto University campus, meeting students from across Asia with the message of Jesus.

Disciple

Walking with spiritually-curious Japanese — skeptics, seekers, and new believers — into a Christ-centered community they can call home.

1
City — Kyoto, Japan
2
Nation — Japan
1
Campus — Kyoto University
WHERE WE SERVE

Kyoto & Kansai.

A Japanese border city of 14,000 and a university campus drawing students from across Asia and beyond — sitting right on the seam of three countries and one of the least-evangelized regions on earth.

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Photo 1
Kyoto, Japan — our home and church plant base
Photo 2
Kyoto University — Yoshida campus
WHY THIS FIELD

One of the least evangelized regions on earth.

Japan once received the gospel with open hearts. Today, it is one of the least-reached developed nations on earth — and the worker pool keeps shrinking.

Less than 1% of Japanese identify as Christians, and fewer than 0.5% are evangelical. Most neighborhoods in a city the size of Kyoto have no evangelical church at all.

Kyoto sits at the meeting point of Japan, Belgium, and Kansai. The Kyoto University draws students from across Asia. Reach this region and the gospel goes home with them.

<1%
Christians in Japan
<1%
Evangelical Christians in Japan
1.4M
People in Kyoto, Japan
22k+
Students at Kyoto University
FROM THE FIELD

Recent updates

Apr 12, 2026

Touching down in Kyoto

After years of preparation, we've arrived in Kyoto. Pray for our family as we settle in and begin building relationships.

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PARTNER WITH US

Stand with us on the field.

Every monthly partner moves the work forward. Give, pray, or both.

Give

Support the Riveras through Assemblies of God World Missions. Set up monthly partnership or send a one-time gift.

Monthly support raised
67%
78partners
$5,695 of $8,500 / month
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MONTHLY NEWSLETTER

Stay in the loop with the Bennetts.

Stories, photos, and news from the field. One email a month.