Hey our friend

We had a wonderful week starting of with a Retreat with all Bay area YWAM Staff. It was so good to catch up with everyone. It was also so refreshing to hear what’s going on with all other ministries. When we got back from the retreat on Wednesday we had a great game night. The rest of the week was awesome as well with some great conversations with people in the neighborhood. We were also preaching at our church on Sunday on the topic of Family.

First of all thank you for praying for and with us! Please keep us in your Prayers in this coming season while the ministry moves forward. Pray for wisdom in how to work the most effective. Thank you so much.

Heroes through challenge Part 4 Passion vs calling

Over the years I met many people that went through challenges in their life. Some of them persevered and walked through them and at the end got out stronger. Others walked away from the challenge, till they faced a similar challenge again which they walked away from again. I often also heard people talk about how they are passionate about a certain thing and how God gave them a specific calling for that area. But then when they face challenges and things aren’t working out the way they thought they should work out I often hear the same comment, God called me for something else now. If we just follow our passion we might lose the excitement after time. But if we follow a calling that God has given us, we can be passionate about it, but in times of challenge we still know the calling God has given us for that area and won’t give up.

A calling is a word from God which gives us direction. Callings normally don’t change.
A passion on the other side can be something that is in us and it can be God given, but passion can run out. So when we make decisions our passion definitely needs to be a part of it, but we also need a word from God on which we can fall back to when times are hard and our passion might go away.

One good example from more recent History is Hudson Taylor. He felt God gave him a calling to China. I’m sure he was passionate about going there. He ended up going and faced many challenges. One really big one came from his own people back home who disagreed with him, when he decided to dress like the people he ministered to because he believed he would be more effective. He walked through this challenge and didn’t give up. He also faced many challenges in China if it was through health or attacks from locals. But even in those times he was clear of his calling. His passion might have changed by the challenges he was facing, but the calling he got kept him moving forward. Through his perseverance and not giving up in the calling he received China Inland mission started which is still reaching people today.

I want to challenge you today to really think about what God has called you to do and where you are at in this journey?

Have a blessed week

Markus and Jen

Hey our friend

We hope you had a great week! We started our week of with a vision meeting to see where we are at and what we have to do to move to the next place. It was a really good time to evaluate. We want to encourage you to do that with your own life and with the goals and vision God has given you.  It will encourage you in moving forward but then also show you the great things God already did.

All other works in the neighborhood are also moving forward. We feel that God just increases our favor with the community and gives us deeper understanding of the people who live here.

Thank you so much for all your support of us and the work here. You are truly a blessing and many things would not be possible without you.

Heroes through challenge Part 3

One of the stories in the bible that always fascinates me is the Story of Joseph, and how he didn’t give up even with the biggest challenges.

As a young boy he was the favorite child of his dad (Genesis 37.4-5). So his brothers were not too happy about that. But then he had a dream of how the things he was doing was putting him above what his brothers were doing (Genesis 37.5-9). Eventually his brothers got so angry with him that they decided to kill him, but then through intervention from one brother choose instead to sell him into slavery to Egypt (Genesis 37.12-36).

As he arrives in Egypt he keeps serving to the best of his ability, ends up having a high servant position (Genesis 39) and ends up in jail with being falsely accused of raping the wife of Potiphar. Still he stood and didn’t give up in this challenge. He kept serving God in the jail and ends up through interpretation of dreams to interpret the dream of Pharaoh and with that becomes the second highest man in Egypt (Genesis 40-41). Through his position he starts controlling the food supply and saves Egypt and eventually his family through a big drought. His family ends up coming to him to buy food and he sees how the dreams he had as a young boy became reality.

But one thing that stuck out to me was the fact that even with all the challenges he faced, he was able to forgive people that hurt him. He was never holding a grudge against any of his brothers. God saved a nation through one man who walked through the challenge and didn’t give up. It’s something for each of us to learn that whatever we go through not to give up and never build up a hate in us towards others even if they did us wrong. Let us always move forward in whatever God has called us even if we face challenges. God is with you, never forget that!!

Markus and Jen

Hey our friend

We hope you had a wonderful week. We had a quieter week after some really busy weeks. It is awesome to see how God takes care of us and gives us times of rest when needed. He really cares for each one of us deeply and we just have to listen to his guidance. Next week we are going on a Staff Retreat with all the Bay Area YWAM Staff which will be awesome.

I (Markus) also celebrated my birthday on the 27^th which was an amazing day. A wonderful friend gave me his car for 2 days, which also so happened is my dream car. It was amazing to drive it down the coast. God just blessed me through great friends

Through our work in the neighborhood we are seeing more and more depth in all the relationships we have with people. It is amazing to see how little words of hope or not talking badly about people is noticed so that people made comments to us about it.

We want to encourage you, starting today, to bring hope to people and live different then the world by speaking only good about others.

Also another good news YWAM San Francisco got approved for the building!! God did a miracle!! http://www.ywamsanfrancisco.org/miracle/

Heroes of challenge Part 2

With a short break last week we are back with our Series heroes of challenge. Today I want to look at Abraham. Abraham was the man who God made a promise to about Israel (Genesis 15 and 17). Out of his family line Israel started.

When you look at Abraham you see many times how he went through times of challenge. At the beginning he followed Gods call and left the land he was born in to go to a new place (Genesis 12). In that time period that was a huge step, leaving everything behind for some unknown land and future.  But he choose to trust God and took on the challenge. Later on his workers got in fights with the workers of his nephew over land. Abraham ended up giving his nephew the choice of land, and of course he choose the better looking land (Genesis 13). Lot made a choice with his eyes but Abraham made a choice in faith. And God did show up and made Abraham prosper even more. The later on God gave him the promise of a son and a nation that will come out of that (Genesis 15 and 17). Since nothing happened and his wife got older his wife told him to take matters in his own hand and have a son with her servant woman (Genesis 16). He did, but that wasn’t the son whom god will use to build the nation. It would be the son of promise that his wife had in an age were it was impossible to have kids (Genesis 21). But then Abraham stood in front of his biggest life challenge. God tells him to sacrifice his son (Genesis 22). With a sad heart he obeyed god and God intervenes in the last second through an angel and saves his son.

Why was Abraham such a man of God? He took God by His word and went for it. Even in challenges he didn’t walk away from his calling. Instead it drew him closer to God. He had times of failure and hick ups, but he chooses to follow God through all the challenges. This is something each one of us can learn from him. Listen to God in challenges and believe the impossible. Just look at how God did a miracle with the YWAM Base, he wants to do miracles in and through your life but we have to trust Him

Have a blessed week

Markus and Jen

Hey our friend

We hope you had a wonderful week. We definetly did with Germany winning the Worldcup!! What a wonderful day!! We had a great neighbor’s brunch this weekend and lots of great events during the week. While listening to a message of a wonderful friend and also our wedding pastor Don Neff I got reminded of the greatness of God (if you would like to hear or watch the message click on this link and click on the James Part 3 message). He talked about how we should remind ourselves daily of how big God is. That will strengthen our faith in our circumstances or in whatever He calls us to do. This is a great reminder for all of us. During the last 2 years the ministry kept growing from month to month and without knowing that a big God is with us it would have been a real challenge to take on some of the tasks. But God was faithful in each one of them. SO whatever He calls you to, go for it he is right at your side and nothing is too big for Him. This is also something we need to be reminded of with the YWAM Base and all the fundraising that is going on. But again what are 4 Million Dollars for a God who created the earth and all his followers on this earth? http://www.ywamsanfrancisco.org/miracle/

Heroes through Challenge Part 1

Many times I saw people evangelize with saying when you become a Christian life will be just perfect. They don’t use the exact words, but the message they give is that one. I don’t believe that is totally true.

When you become a Christian not everything is going to be magically perfect, but you start walking with a perfect father who is with you in all of it.

Over the next few weeks I want to look with you at the lives of different people in the bible who went on that journey. I want to start with Moses. For that I want you to read the book of Exodus to get his Story.

The life of Moses didn’t start of well. All male Kids that were born around that time were killed, because they were seen as a threat to the Egyptian society. His life was saved by a great move of his mom, which brought him to Pharos house as an adopted son. He started growing up in a culture which was not his own. When he was older he saw the injustice that was done to the Israelites by the Egyptians and he stood up and killed one of their guards. He stood up for something but that got him into trouble and he had to flee for his life. He lived in the desert away from all the luxury he had before in the Kings palace. Many years later God speaks to him and asks him to go back to the place where he committed the crime and challenge Pharaoh to let all the Israelites go. When you look at that Moses was able to protect one person through his acting out, but God already had a greater plan to free all of them. After a long discussion Moses finally went back after asking God for a helper. He challenged Pharaoh with plaques till he let the Israelites go. But now Moses had to deal with a whole crowd of people who were just set free but just kept complaining. Moses kept going aside circumstances, because he knew God was on his side. But how did he know that? He spends one on one time with Him on a daily base. Moses life was a challenge till the day he died, but he decided to walk with God and God helped him through all of them.

So now when you look at the life of Moses and see the challenges he faced you see that being a Christian isn’t making everything easy. But then when you look at the relationship Moses (Exodus 33.11) had with God you see that it was worthied. God walked with him through every situation and Moses became closer and closer with God after each of those times of challenge. Look at your life and look at the challenges you are facing because you are a Christian, and then look at your father in heaven and how He walks right at your side and how He is with you in all of it.

Have a blessed week.

Markus and Jen