Josh and Laura Rices
Josh and Laura both grew up in south Seattle. Josh was a pastor’s son and is the eldest of four; he became a Christian when he was six. Laura became a Christian when she was 8 years old, when a stranger invited her to make Jesus her Lord. Josh and Laura met and started dating in high school. They got married in 2007, after university.
Laura got her degree from the University of Washington, and she has since variously worked as a nursing assistant, state social worker and an administrative assistant for a family business. Josh moved into higher education, getting his PhD in American history from the University of Missouri. Josh has taught at several universities, including serving as full-time faculty at International Teachers College at Universitas Pelita Harapan in Jakarta, Indonesia and as an assistant professor at both Lone Star College - Tomball in Houston, Texas and Corban University in Salem, Oregon.
In fact, it was during graduate school that Josh first felt the call to Japan. In 2012, Josh joined a short-term mission team from his church. Scarcely 48 hours passed before Josh was overcome by the sense that God was beckoning us. As fast as the call came, the Lord’s direction for us took longer to unfold–nearly 10 years, but God has been faithful! The Rice family has lived in Japan since 2022, and baby Daniel was born here in 2023.
Josh and Laura are currently Japanese language students living in western Japan, and are part of the Discovery Team. Josh’s prayer is to one day be able to preach in Japanese, and Laura would like to be able to lead Bible studies and outreach events. Josh and Laura desire to see a Japanese-led, healthy and growing network of Christian disciples during their career in Japan. Josh and Laura have three children: Lukas (2014), Abigail (2017) and Daniel (2023).
Laura got her degree from the University of Washington, and she has since variously worked as a nursing assistant, state social worker and an administrative assistant for a family business. Josh moved into higher education, getting his PhD in American history from the University of Missouri. Josh has taught at several universities, including serving as full-time faculty at International Teachers College at Universitas Pelita Harapan in Jakarta, Indonesia and as an assistant professor at both Lone Star College - Tomball in Houston, Texas and Corban University in Salem, Oregon.
In fact, it was during graduate school that Josh first felt the call to Japan. In 2012, Josh joined a short-term mission team from his church. Scarcely 48 hours passed before Josh was overcome by the sense that God was beckoning us. As fast as the call came, the Lord’s direction for us took longer to unfold–nearly 10 years, but God has been faithful! The Rice family has lived in Japan since 2022, and baby Daniel was born here in 2023.
Josh and Laura are currently Japanese language students living in western Japan, and are part of the Discovery Team. Josh’s prayer is to one day be able to preach in Japanese, and Laura would like to be able to lead Bible studies and outreach events. Josh and Laura desire to see a Japanese-led, healthy and growing network of Christian disciples during their career in Japan. Josh and Laura have three children: Lukas (2014), Abigail (2017) and Daniel (2023).
