Tag Archives: love your neighbor

Love your neighbor Part 13 Be a hope Giver

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love your neighbor part 13In this blog series we want to show you that it is actually really easy to make an impact where you live. We hope you start to see that more by reading this series!

About 1.5 years ago we started an Encouragement Group at our local Coffee Shop. The purpose of the group is to encourage people and bring hope. Its been amazing to see what it does to all the people in the group including us. We normally start with a time of sharing how our week went and then we go into a time about sharing some things that encouraged us during this week and brought us hope. At the end people can ask for encouragement. It totally changes the outlook on life when you have someone speak hope into your life.

I also saw that a lot at the place where we live. Encouraging a neighbor in their dreams and speaking hope into them changes perspective. When you look at things from a perspective of hope you are more likely not giving up. When you look at things from despair, chances you give up are very high.

So how can you do it? When someone shares something with you that is not hope giving share something that’s opposite. Give Father God’s perspective on things. Example: “I saw in the news today that the economy is struggling again. I might lose my job.” Instead of agreeing share about new jobs being created every day and how God kept that person for a long time in that job even in hard times. Walk them through a time of seeing truth again. Help them to get a switch of perspective by looking at things from an angle of hope. Hope is something that is really needed in todays time.

  1. Start listening to what you say and see if you look at things with hope or despair.
    1. If you look at things with despair, ask God to help you change your perspective and look at things with hope.
    2. Ask God daily for an opportunity to speak hope into a neighbor or someone else’s life. Do this till it becomes a normal thing that you just do automatically.

Hey our friend

We had a great week here in San Francisco. We hope yours was wonderful too. After the Block Party things slowed down a little bit which was really nice. We went to a thank you dinner from the Italian community center and spoke at a school that empowers people to bring Jesus into their workplace. We also had friends visiting from Germany which was amazing!! We had a really good time showing them around San Francisco. Its always so nice to see friends from our home places.

Our DTS students also started well in North beach. Keep praying for them and all the work that is going on here. Thanks for all your prayers!

Over the last few month we lost $287 in monthly support through changes of circumstances in peoples lives. So at this point we need about $1560 more in monthly support. We want to ask for your help in sharing with people you know that have a heart for missions and would be interested in joining our support team. Of course if you are not a part of it you are welcome to join as well! When you click on this link you find out more how to do that. Thank you for all your help in this area.

Walk through this week as someone that brings hope to neighbors and people in your life!

Have a blessed week

Markus and Jen

Love your neighbor Part 12 Live Thankfulness

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love your neighbor part 12In this blog series we want to show you that it is actually really easy to make an impact where you live. We hope you start to see that more by reading this series!

Last week we wrote in this series about being real and authentic. But along with that it is also really important that we have the right attitude in our lives. I think one of the things that we need more of in this world is thankfulness. Often God is doing great things in our life or in the life of other people, but how do we share that? Are we actually giving him Glory for it and are we living in a thankful attitude? Do we always just want more or are we actually thankful for what we have?

That translates as well into your neighborhood. Many people struggle in that area and always focus on need instead of things that they already have. What about if you live your life in a thankful attitude and you show that to people too, by the way you talk! Instead of talking about all the things you want share about all the things you are thankful for. Don’t just share about material things, instead focus on things like food, health, spouse, friends etc. When you do that it will not just change your perspective but also helps your neighbors to do the same.

  1. Find everyday this week 5 things you are thankful for.
  2. Share those things with neighbors and people around you during conversations!

Hey our friend

We hope you had a fantastic week. We had the wonderful block party on our hill this week which jen helped to plan. It was amazing to see neighbors connect with each other. We also had a meeting with the neighborhood watch to talk about lighting and how it can improve safety in our community. When there is light darkness has to go.

Also last week our new DTS arrived. We had a welcome dinner with them and we look forward to get to know them more. Pray for them especially in this time of new things. It can be hard to leave behind things that are familiar and do something totally different.

Walk through this week with an awareness of all the things God has given you to be thankful for!

Have a blessed week

Markus and Jen

Love your neighbor Part 11 Be real

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love your neighbor part 11In this blog series we want to show you that it is actually really easy to make an impact where you live. We hope you start to see that more by reading this series!

Last week we wrote about a book called Bo’s Café and how it talked about relationships. Another aspect it touches is how to have true friendships in which you can show your true face and you are still loved and accepted. The book shares the story of a man who had some real issues in his life and he ends up meeting a guy and a group of other people who keep loving and accepting him, but also help him to grow.

So how do you translate this into relationships with neighbors? Very easy. Just be who you really are. Don’t put on a fake mask. If you have a hard day or go through a struggle be real about it, because over time that opens the door for them to do the same. Also share about wonderful things happening and also just normal life, that shows that you are a real person in good and bad. It cuts down on expectations for people that if they become a Christian they have to be perfect and that would not be reality. Also being real opens the door for true love. How can you truly love people or how can they truly love you if they just know the fake mask. Look at Jesus, he showed how he felt anger (kicking out the merchants in the temple), grief (when Lazarus died) etc. What did it do for Him and his ministry? It opened the door for people to be real as well and it opened up a deeper relationship (see disciples).

Of course there is also a caution with that. You don’t share your deepest secrets with someone you just met. Of course it needs to come out of the level of relationship that exists. Jesus showed it well with his disciples, he shared the deepest things with them, but not necessarily with the 5000 people crowd.

Chew on those questions:

  1. What holds me back from being real?
  2. How can I be more real with my neighbors and people in my life?

Hey our friend

We hope you had a fantastic week. Jen and I were working this week a lot on admin stuff. It is important to do that to keep the ministry running. Jen is also hosting the bookclub this coming Monday so she was doing some cleaing for that as well.

But that is all ministry. Whatever you do to further the kingdom is ministry. So don’t look at certain jobs as more or as less important. Each one is equally needed.

Remember that this week when you do your job that God called you to!

Have a blessed week

Markus and Jen

Love your neighbor Part 10 Be there for each other

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Love your neighbor Part 10In this blog series we want to show you that it is actually really easy to make an impact where you live. We hope you start to see that more by reading this series!

I just finished reading a book that a friend recommended to us called Bo’s Café (click on the link to find it on amazon) since it goes along with what we are doing as a ministry in SF. It is a Novel that tells a story of real friendships and how you walk alongside with each other in good and bad times. I believe that this is a key to greater relationships with your neighbors as well. But how do we do that?

I think one of the key things is just to be available and being there for people. That could look different in different circumstances. Sometimes it means to celebrate with them the birth of a child or a birthday, other times it might be grieving with them through the loss of a loved one or a job. The key phrase is be there for each other. But the same is true the other way around. When you go through good or bad seasons in your life you should also be at a place with them that you could easily walk over and know that they will be there for you.

But how do you establish a relationship like that? Read more about that in our next blog!

But for this week ask yourself these questions:

  1. What do I actually know about how my neighbors are doing?
  2. What effort do I take to find out how they are doing?
  3. Do I know my neighbors birthdays and make sure to remember that day?

Take an action to move towards that!

 Hey our friend

We hope you had a wonderful week and started well into this new month! Our work here in San Francisco is going well. Soon the students for the fall DTS are joining us to work with the boys and girls club here in North Beach. Pray that God will use them to be a blessing to the children in the Club. Our heart for their time here is, to see the students get excited about reaching their own neighborhoods back home with the tools they learn here.

Last weekend we had a wonderful neighbor brunch which is always a great way to connect with neighbors and get to know them more. We love our community here!

Remember this week that one part of life is about giving and taking!

Have a blessed week

Markus and Jen

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Love your neighbor Part 9 Do things together

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Yosemite 2015Love your neighbor Part 9In this blog series we want to show you that it is actually really easy to make an impact where you live. We hope you start to see that more by reading this series!

One thing that is really fun and a good way to get to know your new friends even better is to do things together. You might ask now what do you mean with that? So as an example: Every year we have different fairs and parades in our city. We mostly go to the ones in our neighborhood. So instead of going by ourselves we just invite our neighbors to join us. Its that simple.

The great thing about this is, that somebody else sets everything up for you and all you have to do is show up. I think that is pretty awesome and easy. With times like that you actually get to know each other better since you are removed from all the usual environments you are normally in. That opens the door for a new way of learning new things about each other. Another great thing with that is, that you might get to know some friends of your neighbors too.

We believe being invited by someone always makes you feel more special and shows you that you are wanted.

One thing that is really important in this is to keep inviting your new friends. Don’t quit inviting them just because they couldn’t make it a few times. Keep inviting even if it takes a while for people to come.

  1. Brainstorm and think about events that you could invite your neighbors to.
  2. Invite them and keep inviting them even if they cant make it the first time!

Hey our friend

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We hope your week was fantastic!! Jen and I took a short 3 day vacation to Yosemite National Park. It was amazing. If you click here you can see some more pictures.

For the next few weeks our life will be a bit busier since we have a block party coming up at the 20th of September and Jen is greatly involved in the planning process. Pray for Gods strength and guidance for her. Last years block party was a lot of fun and it was a great way neighbors got to meet each other.

Think about ways how neighbors could meet each other in your community!

Remember that God wants to use you in your area of influence!

Have a blessed week

Markus and Jen