From Neighbourhoods to Nations
Love Jesus, Love People!
As a family, we’ve always been deeply involved in church. Over the years, we’ve served on almost every team — kids, worship, hospitality, prayer, you name it. But right after COVID, we sensed God calling us into a different season. Little by little, we stepped back from many of the areas we’d been serving in. And honestly? We felt a bit lost.
We kept praying: “Lord, what do you want us to do now?” Over and over, the same words came: “Love Me, and love My people.”
At first, that felt so obvious — weren’t we already doing that? But as God stripped away all the noise of “busy church life,” we began to see just how central this really is. We realised anew that the Great Commandment — “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength… and love your neighbour as yourself” — comes before the Great Commission.
That shift lifted a weight off our shoulders. So often we feel inadequate in ministry, or ill-equipped to live out our faith in a way that “counts.” I thought: I’m not good enough to evangelise. I can’t be on the prayer team — I’m not a prayer warrior. I can’t go on mission — I’m not made for that.
But then we were reminded of the simple yet profound truth of 1 Corinthians 13:
If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong… If I have faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing… If I give all I possess to the poor but do not have love, I gain nothing.
Without love, we are nothing.
So instead of striving to “do more” for God, we chose to simply love Him more. And as we did, we found our hearts overflowing with love for His people — not just inside the church walls, but everywhere.
We began to see how the Great Commandment naturally leads to the Great Commission — when we love God fully and love people deeply, we can’t help but carry His love into the world. Mission isn’t something reserved for a select few; it’s something we all live out in the ordinary moments of everyday life.
We started seeing mission not as a two-week trip to a distant country, but as a daily calling to bring hope and light to everyone around us. Our neighbours. The cashier at Lidl. The mums at the school gates. The struggling family down the street. The couple who just needs a listening ear.
We decided we would be a family on mission every day.
Instead of waiting to be sent somewhere, we opened our eyes to where God had already placed us.
Because loving Jesus — truly loving Him — always leads us to love people. And when we love people, we begin to fulfil His great commission: “Go and make disciples of all nations.”
From our neighbourhoods to the nations, it starts with simply saying: “Here I am, Lord. Use me today.”