A Party for God’s Glory

More than 3,000 pieces of cake – 2,500 steaks – 2,500 liter of beverages – 200 hours of program. What was the culmination of months of planning turned out to be the biggest party that this neighborhood in Stuttgart has ever seen in its 40-year history.
Each of the 31 days from June 9th to July 9th provided opportunities for adults and children to have fun, sit back and to get to know each other in a warm and welcoming atmosphere. On a normal day we had between 100-250 guests from the neighborhood, for the Germany games more than 400 visitors. They also enjoyed the different activities that were offered. These acitivities ranged from story-telling for young children to ‘dance and rap’ workshops for teens. Dramatists and musical artists performed regularly on the open-air stage. These artists included local performers as well as artists from as far away as the US, India, Bolivia, Columbia, Ukraine and Australia. In total over 300 volunteers from 25 countries were involved in the festival.

We were overwhelmed by the positive response of the people of this neighborhood. During these 31 days we were able to meet many people and I was always amazed about how easy it was to initiate spiritual conversations. Most of the artists were able to share their testimony, and I especially enjoyed getting to know the people there during the coffee time in the afternoon. Many of my new friends were Muslim women from different countries and we were able to share a lot about our lives. Some of them came to the festival every day, waiting for me to show up. On the last day, one family from Iran invited me for coffee to their house. Like many others they were able to feel Jesus’ love at the festival and they wanted to know more.

Another highlight for me was the night when we showed the Jesus film in turkish. More than 30 kids came to watch it and several of them were so touched by the message that they accepted Jesus as their Savior.

Since we lived in the heart of this neighborhood for a month, we were able share life with our new friends. We listened to tragic stories, experienced with them life-changing moments and were able to celebrate the World Cup together. It was a huge blessing to serve this community and to see how God’s love can make a difference there.
Lots of seeds were planted during this time and we feel encouraged to continue our ministry in Stuttgart.

In the next weeks we are going to meet and pray about the next steps towards the church plant there. Possibilities range from hosting barbeques to offering an Alpha Course. Some of the IBC church members are considering moving into the community to be a Christian presence and facilitator for the unchurched people there.

We are very thankful for all the help from the different kickoff-teams who came to serve with us and for the great support of the other churches in the Stuttgart area. Like many other kickoff events we experienced a very special unity among the Christians in Germany.

Vielen Dank – thank you very much for being part of this big adventure! It was a pleasure to share with you what God has been doing in Germany during this past month!
Please continue to pray for this community, for all those who came to faith during all the evangelistic outreaches during the World Cup and especially for Germany as a nation.

Gott gebührt alle Ehre! (To God be the glory!)
Tschüss aus Deutschland!
~ Daniela

cultural training for the US Team – crowd in the big tent watching soccer – Germany fans  

Kings Kids from Bolivia dancing – one of many concerts – new international friendships