Iverson, Dan & Carol

Dan grew up in a ministry family. He met Carol in college, where both were discipled and ministered together. Carol went on to graduate school and Dan became a Marine infantry officer, serving initially in Japan. They married in 1976.

After seven years in the Marines, God led the Iversons to Reformed Seminary. God impressed on them a central Bible theme they had missed, God’s heart for all nations. A team of four couples formed during seminary. Three Japanese pastors invited the team to come work together in East Tokyo to plant churches in churchless cities and to start a presbytery. The four couples each initially committed to 12 years in Japan. The Iversons arrived in 1986 with five children.

Japan is difficult. The Japanese are the world’s second largest unreached people group. But Christ is building His Church as promised! (Matt. 16:18) God blessed, churches were planted, and the Tokyo/Chiba Presbytery was born. It now has about 850 worshipers in 19 congregations. By God’s grace, the one mission team has expanded to four teams in the Tokyo area with more than 50 MTW, Korean, Australian, and Japanese ministry partners. Since 2010, Tokyo city center church planting has become an exciting and fruitful new emphasis in partnership with Redeemer City to City. The prayer vision now is a church-planting movement throughout Japan. In 2018, Dan retired as pastor from the church they planted in 1992. He now serves as Tokyo/Chiba team leader, and as MTW Japan Director. Carol serves as principal and teacher for the team’s Covenant Community School International.

The Iversons have nine children and 29 grandchildren (at last count).