I’ve been a missionary in Japan for over 12 years. And I’ve come to see my role, at least in part, as being a spiritual bridge builder. In a country with so few Christians, there is a pretty big gap between the Church and the culture. Local churches and pastors find it a real struggle to reach out to their communities.
I feel called to help bridge that gap. Over the years I’ve done a lot of this through teaching English as an outreach at my local church. But I’m also an artist.
The arts can be an effective bridge-building tool, too.
That’s where Drawbridge Creations comes in.
The name Drawbridge Creations comes from this idea of creatively using art and technology to build spiritual bridges and share Jesus with the unchurched. Specifically we’ll use manga (comics), serialized online, to build an audience, connect with them and point them to Jesus.
From fairly early on, I wanted a name for this ministry that involved this bridge-building image. But it took some time to settle on a name that worked for us but wasn’t already in use. Finally, with helpful feedback from friends and fellow missionaries, I settled on Drawbridge Creations.
There are two main types of drawbridges. One is the kind you’d see at the front of a castle. This idea brought up some good visual possibilities, but as someone pointed out to me, that kind of drawbridge is used not only to let people into the castle, but also to defend against enemies and keep people out. Definitely not in line with our vision.
The other kind of draw bridge is the kind that not only allows passage over it, but also under it. It moves up to allow boats to pass under, and down to allow cars to pass over. In both positions it allows connection. It’s about helping people get somewhere; letting them in, not keeping them out.
And yes, there’s also a bit of a play on words going on with this name, as we’ll be drawing comics to draw spiritual bridges. It’s my prayer, too, that God will use us to draw people to Himself.
So that’s what’s in a name.