October 2019
This week I met a young man from Syria. I’ve met a lot of young men from this country, but there was something special about this man. The first thing I noticed as he greeted me was his smile as he moved towards me in his wheelchair. He was a little late getting to our gathering due to a couple of the elevators not functioning properly on his commute from across the city. But still he seemed to be the most joyful person in the room. There seemed to be a twinkle in his eye that spoke I am happy to be here.
As I spoke with him the topic turned to his hometown of Idlib. As he spoke of family that he left behind I glimpsed a moment of his past realities and heartache that beckoned him from his present reality. This would become clearer as the night progressed. As we continued to chat, I learned that my new friend is currently studying German with a good friend of mine that had invited him to our Open Table. He came because he knew there would be a lot of English speakers at the dinner that he could practice the English he had learned in school as a boy.
We finished dinner and began our conversation time. We usually pose a question that helps us go deeper into building relationships and gives a platform for sharing what is most important to us. Our question for the evening was “What is your motivation in life?” It was encouraging to hear my brothers in Christ speak of God’s love for them and that knowing Jesus and following His example is the thing that motivates them most.
As it came time for my new friend to speak, there was a level of somberness in the room. As he spoke it became evident that war had defined his life in an inescapable way. We learned that his life before the war was filled with wanting to elevate himself by finding a great job and earning a lot of money, but that all changed the day he was hit in the back by a bullet on a street in Idlib and paralyzed from the waist down. This event gave him a new perspective that made him grateful for simply having a life to live and that he was motivated by those in worse places than himself.
“For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison”
His story reminded me of the hope we have in Christ. A hope that has brought us back to life. My new friend had experienced the joy of being given life in the physical sense and chose to be joyful even in the presence of tough circumstances, but many times we fail to recognize the inexpressible joy that is offered us through Christ. When we recognize the weight of glory that awaits us, we can find joy even in the toughest moments, because our hearts believe more in God’s promises than our present realities. This motivates us to give our lives to others for the hope that they too would grab hold of the grace offered to them. This gives me hope that my new friend is not far off. The gospel takes root in grateful hearts. Pray that this newfound perspective will lead my friend to the Author of new life and the Creator of joyful hearts.
Ministry Update
We have just come through a busy season of reaching into different communities with the hope of creating gospel influence. We have continued to encourage community among believers alongside our church through Bible studies, having people in our home and organizing monthly community dinners. We are so thankful for those God has allowed us to work with including the staff at our church and fellow believers that have come alongside us to love those in different communities across the city.
Our church family was encouraged by the ministry of Charlie Boyd from Fellowship Greenville this past month with a series on Living as an Exile from I and II Peter. It was so encouraging to see our community being stirred up and motivated to understand our identity in this way and how this leads us to be prepared to bear witness of Christ.
We were able to encourage believers to connect in three communities in different ways this month. We continue to invite men to our monthly Open Table, which I mentioned above, in Schöneberg the first Monday of every month. We hope this monthly gathering continues to be a starting point for building gospel relationships. We are partnering with an Arabic church plant in this area of the city and encouraging those that attend into community with other believers.
We also have been working weekly in Wilmersdorf and seeking to encourage refugee families. We held a fall festival in the refugee accommodation there this past month. It was encouraging to see how this brought families together and gave ground for our church family to connect with new families. We also had the opportunity to invite families to our Thanksgiving Dinner coming up later this month.
Finally, we held our second football (soccer) tournament at Templehofer Feld on October 12th. We had over 60 men from across the city compete in the tournament. This was a reconnecting time with teams we got to know in April and an opportunity to connect into new communities as teams attended from across the city. While we are limited in proclaiming the gospel in this environment, we are excited at the contacts that came out of this event and the connections that were made between believers and those in attendance.
Leading up to the tournament we held an Evangelism Workshop on how to start gospel conversations and build redemptive relationships. The workshop focused on being prepared to share, specifically by being ready to speak in a gracious and gentle way, that leads to open doors for the gospel to root in hearts. It was encouraging to see believers from across the city attend the workshop and tournament for this purpose of simply starting a friendship with one person that would lead to an opportunity to share Christ.
Family Update
We are thankful for the support of good friends this past month. Three couples in particular were such a tremendous encouragement to us through one of the busiest ministry months since we arrived in Germany. Not only did they jump into loving those they encountered, but they loved our family. We are thankful for friends that encourage us through their presence.
We are also thankful that we were able to spend a week with my brother, his wife Jessica and their son Victor. This was a tremendous blessing, especially for Quinn and Gracie having Victor here! We were able to explore new parts of the city and the surrounding area, find some good restaurants and spend time together. Aaron did an incredible job as the videographer for our tournament and Jess served with the hospitality team serving meals to the players alongside Cherry and Jeannie. They were a tremendous encouragement to us and the timing of their visit was a special gift from the Father.
We look forward to moving to a new place in the coming month. We are thankful for the new place God has provided and we have been working on preparing for this move over the past week. We received good news that our current landlord has found a new tenant and that we could save money on December rent if we could be out by December 15th. Please pray for wisdom as we work out all the details for this. We also have to renew our Visa this month in the middle of this process, so we are praying for God’s provision. We look forward to hopefully celebrating Christmas with my parents and Aunt and Uncle here in Germany this year!
Thank you for your continued support of the ongoing work here in Berlin to build up believers and herald the good news to those who do not know the Risen Christ.
Prayer Update
Please pray for us as we seek to renew our Visa this month.
Please pray for us as we move to a new place.
Please pray for our upcoming Thanksgiving Dinner at our Church that we have invited many refugees to.
Please pray for gospel opportunities that were made over the past month in different communities and that believers would be motivated to follow-up with these new friends.