A Good and Useful Man

Champions of the Great Commission is a series of stories of One Mission Society missionaries and coworkers that have answered God’s call to fulfill the Great Commission—to go and make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:19-20). These men and women have spent their lives serving Him, sharing the love of Jesus in amazing ways with people all around the world.  


Charles Cowman

From the United States Midwest to far-away Japan, God led Charles Cowman on a great journey of obedience and surrender. As a telegraph operator in Chicago in the late 1800s, Charles Cowman led many of his coworkers to Jesus within six months of giving his own heart to Jesus. Eventually, God led Charles and his wife, Lettie (author of the best-selling devotional, Streams in the Desert) to Japan, where they founded The Oriental Missionary Society, now One Mission Society. They also started a Bible school, where Japanese pastors were trained, and they followed God’s leading to reach every household in Japan for Jesus.