In the northeast of Germany, especially in the region of Mecklenburg, we regularly meet people who have never seen a Bible. Many have never even met a Christian. Christianity isn’t rejected here — it’s simply unknown. This is what we call a post-atheist context: generations growing up without any exposure to faith, church or Scripture. Religion has disappeared from everyday life, and people have simply stopped asking the big questions.

Especially among the poorer population, this has created a deep sense of disconnection — not just from the church, but from hope itself. Many people struggle with literacy, isolation and long-term unemployment. In this context, traditional forms of evangelism don’t work. Flyers, events, even preaching often miss the mark — they feel disconnected from daily life.

That’s why we take a different approach.

We live in the neighbourhoods we serve. Some of our church plants meet in small buildings, others meet wherever space is available. But the real community happens in everyday life — on the street, between apartment blocks, in conversations at the bus stop or over a shared meal.

We now have four active church plants, with hopes to start four more in close partnership with the Freie Evangelische Gemeinde in Northern Germany. Our approach is incarnational and contextual: we try to be present in people’s lives, to understand their world, and to let the gospel speak in ways that make sense in their reality.

And slowly, something is happening.

People are beginning to discover faith — many for the very first time. In our four existing church plants, we celebrate baptisms every year. These are not people coming back to church — they are people encountering Jesus for the first time in their lives.

What we see is incredibly encouraging: a faith that is warm, generous and deeply practical. It’s not shaped by religious tradition or theological jargon, but by real-life experience. This kind of faith — simple, honest, close to life — has something to teach us as mission workers. We are learning alongside the people we serve.

We’re looking for people who want to be part of this — through prayer, through encouragement, or maybe even by coming and joining the work. And we love to share stories of what God is doing here.

Even in the most secular corners of Europe, the gospel is alive. And that gives us hope.
 

— By Gerrit van Dijk, ECM worker in Germany