germany
"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Acts 1:8
Meet Joel.
"Heimat" is a German word which has no perfect English translation. It's a bit of a mix of "birthplace" and "home," often filled with sentimental emotion. Kansas will forever be my "Heimat", even if Germany is my home. But what about the time before I called Germany home?
I started attending FBC in August 2017 and immediately it became my home church. It happened quicker than I ever could have imagined. Then in Spring 2018 I stepped into the great unknown, following the calling of the Lord across the Atlantic, a calling I had first received some four years prior. It wasn't long before I joined together with an organization called Youth With A Mission (YWAM) as a full time missionary, the Gospel in tow. That's where I am today, in Nuremberg, Germany. With the Lord by my side, I am his hands and feet to a neighborhood, city, country, and world in need of a Savior.
I started attending FBC in August 2017 and immediately it became my home church. It happened quicker than I ever could have imagined. Then in Spring 2018 I stepped into the great unknown, following the calling of the Lord across the Atlantic, a calling I had first received some four years prior. It wasn't long before I joined together with an organization called Youth With A Mission (YWAM) as a full time missionary, the Gospel in tow. That's where I am today, in Nuremberg, Germany. With the Lord by my side, I am his hands and feet to a neighborhood, city, country, and world in need of a Savior.
Joel's Ministry
When you hear "missionary," it probably conjures up images of a westerner in a southeast Asian nation holding an orphaned child or in an African country drilling a water well. Likely, you don't picture an American in urbanized and well-off Germany. This is partly because there *are* such physical needs in many parts of the world. These are needs which the Church is equipped to meet. And I myself do not solely focus on the nation of Germany in the work I'm involved in. But, when Jesus said, "it is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick" (Mark 2:17), he wasn't talking directly about those who have cancer, who need basic medical aid, and who don't have access to a hospital. Rather, he was talking about those who are spiritually sick. Germany is a nation which is just that, sick, in need of a Healer.
I'm sure one question remains at this point: "What do you do?" It's a fair question. Close to the beginning of March 2022 YWAM Nuremberg opened their doors and started preparing the beds for what would soon be some 20+ refugees from Ukraine. That number continues to increase as a wave of people seeking a roof over their heads flood into Nuremberg. Keep reading to hear how we as a team, and how I personally am responding.
Upon prayerfully deciding to devote myself to a full-time response to this crisis, I partnered once again with YWAM Nuremberg, as they had expressed that they would like to jump immediately into action. We met as a team on Monday, the 28th of February to talk about this initiative for the first time. Two thing were clear: 1). we would open up to receive refugees in our building, and 2). there was a need for supplies.
Fast forward to today and we have been able to:
- provide housing for 51 people in and through the YWAM Center
- keep our Welcome Center open every day, through this more than 500 people have received needed clothing
- work with 30 volunteers serving Ukrainians in practical ways: cooking, organizing donations, packing boxes and driving vans.
- send 10 vans full of aid to the Polish-Ukrainian border
- provided 8000+ meals through the YWAM kitchen
After all of that, we prayerfully considered if we would continue beyond our original three month plan. God compelled us to do so, so now we have began Phase 2! Vans are still going to the border, meals are still being served, and the YWAM Center is still an open door to those who need clothing and shelter after fleeing the war.
I personally at the moment am helping to equip others in the team to continue on the good work in this project. I will be getting married(!) in August and will therefore be taking a step back in July, as this project has been an all consuming effort on my end the last months. After the honeymoon, we will see if there is still a need to jump back in here or if God leads us (wow, have to get used to that pronoun) towards another ministry area.
Let me share a recommendation which I hope everyone of you reads. It’s a blog full of prayer requests, stories, and photos from front line workers in Ukraine. The link is: https://www.ywamslavicministries.org. Be warned, it will likely bring you to tears, and I encourage you to let it do so. Keep those affected by this war in your prayers.
With love,
Joel
I'm sure one question remains at this point: "What do you do?" It's a fair question. Close to the beginning of March 2022 YWAM Nuremberg opened their doors and started preparing the beds for what would soon be some 20+ refugees from Ukraine. That number continues to increase as a wave of people seeking a roof over their heads flood into Nuremberg. Keep reading to hear how we as a team, and how I personally am responding.
Upon prayerfully deciding to devote myself to a full-time response to this crisis, I partnered once again with YWAM Nuremberg, as they had expressed that they would like to jump immediately into action. We met as a team on Monday, the 28th of February to talk about this initiative for the first time. Two thing were clear: 1). we would open up to receive refugees in our building, and 2). there was a need for supplies.
Fast forward to today and we have been able to:
- provide housing for 51 people in and through the YWAM Center
- keep our Welcome Center open every day, through this more than 500 people have received needed clothing
- work with 30 volunteers serving Ukrainians in practical ways: cooking, organizing donations, packing boxes and driving vans.
- send 10 vans full of aid to the Polish-Ukrainian border
- provided 8000+ meals through the YWAM kitchen
After all of that, we prayerfully considered if we would continue beyond our original three month plan. God compelled us to do so, so now we have began Phase 2! Vans are still going to the border, meals are still being served, and the YWAM Center is still an open door to those who need clothing and shelter after fleeing the war.
I personally at the moment am helping to equip others in the team to continue on the good work in this project. I will be getting married(!) in August and will therefore be taking a step back in July, as this project has been an all consuming effort on my end the last months. After the honeymoon, we will see if there is still a need to jump back in here or if God leads us (wow, have to get used to that pronoun) towards another ministry area.
Let me share a recommendation which I hope everyone of you reads. It’s a blog full of prayer requests, stories, and photos from front line workers in Ukraine. The link is: https://www.ywamslavicministries.org. Be warned, it will likely bring you to tears, and I encourage you to let it do so. Keep those affected by this war in your prayers.
With love,
Joel
An Important Message From Joel!
Dear First Baptist,
A quick and important update on how you can now support me, including how to set up monthly donations. As you know, as of February 21st my donations are no longer being processed through YWAM Tyler, Texas.
The good news is that I have a wonderful organization who will now be serving in this capacity: Mission Enablers International (MEI). The process of getting this set up has taken longer than anticipated, but now I have been given the green light to receive my support once again. Praise the Lord!
IMPORTANT: My personal ID number is KJ3864. This needs to referenced in every donation made.
Here is information on how to give:
1. Cash or Check AND Bill-Pay
If you want to mail a donation by writing a check or sending a Bill-Pay through your bank, please make the check payable to Mission Enablers International or MEI and send it to:
MEI
P.O. Box 2127
Bentonville, AR 72712
--and attach a separate note stating that the donation is for Joel Knox (along with my personal ID number) or put the number on the memo/reference line.
2. Credit/Debit Card*
U.S. and International MasterCard, Visa, American Express, Discover donations can be recurring or one-time. Visit meigiving.org/donate-associate to donate. You will need to use my account number or fill in the blank with my name.
3. E-Check or Direct Draft from Checking or Savings
Visit meigiving.org/donate-associate and choose E-Check for their payment method. These donations can be recurring or one-time. You will need to use my account number or fill in the blank with my name.
Please contact the MEI office for Wire Transfer instructions.
4. PayPal Donations*
PayPal donations can be recurring or one-time. Visit meigiving.org/donate-paypal to donate.
If you wish to make a PayPal gift recurring, you must manage that from within your personal PayPal account.
*Please consider that when giving using credit/debit card or Paypal a fee of 6.5% is deducted from what I receive, versus the standard 3.5% fee.
For any clarification questions on the technical side of how to donate, please direct your emails at: donate@meigiving.org. They’re more capable of helping on that front than I. :)
Love you all,
Joel
A quick and important update on how you can now support me, including how to set up monthly donations. As you know, as of February 21st my donations are no longer being processed through YWAM Tyler, Texas.
The good news is that I have a wonderful organization who will now be serving in this capacity: Mission Enablers International (MEI). The process of getting this set up has taken longer than anticipated, but now I have been given the green light to receive my support once again. Praise the Lord!
IMPORTANT: My personal ID number is KJ3864. This needs to referenced in every donation made.
Here is information on how to give:
1. Cash or Check AND Bill-Pay
If you want to mail a donation by writing a check or sending a Bill-Pay through your bank, please make the check payable to Mission Enablers International or MEI and send it to:
MEI
P.O. Box 2127
Bentonville, AR 72712
--and attach a separate note stating that the donation is for Joel Knox (along with my personal ID number) or put the number on the memo/reference line.
2. Credit/Debit Card*
U.S. and International MasterCard, Visa, American Express, Discover donations can be recurring or one-time. Visit meigiving.org/donate-associate to donate. You will need to use my account number or fill in the blank with my name.
3. E-Check or Direct Draft from Checking or Savings
Visit meigiving.org/donate-associate and choose E-Check for their payment method. These donations can be recurring or one-time. You will need to use my account number or fill in the blank with my name.
Please contact the MEI office for Wire Transfer instructions.
4. PayPal Donations*
PayPal donations can be recurring or one-time. Visit meigiving.org/donate-paypal to donate.
If you wish to make a PayPal gift recurring, you must manage that from within your personal PayPal account.
*Please consider that when giving using credit/debit card or Paypal a fee of 6.5% is deducted from what I receive, versus the standard 3.5% fee.
For any clarification questions on the technical side of how to donate, please direct your emails at: donate@meigiving.org. They’re more capable of helping on that front than I. :)
Love you all,
Joel
"Will you partner with me in what the Lord is doing in germany?"
Joel would love to hear from you! Click the button below to send him a message directly!
Joel's ministry is done through a partnership with YWAM. If you would like more information about the YWAM ministries please visit their website!