Finding Around the World Purpose Across the Street: A Five-Minute Interview

Want a jam-packed with insight five-minute video interview on how I found purpose across the street when I couldn’t go around the world? You’ll also get a peek into the church where our family worships in the round—a creative, sacred space where connection with God, the arts, and a desire to serve the world intersect.

Listen to my interview with our pastor Palmer Chinchen at The Grove—and then keep listening to his message too.

Aaaaand, if you prefer to read, here’s the interview:

Palmer: You grew up overseas. You wanted to live overseas. But that wasn’t happening. So how did you find your purpose right here where you already lived?

Jeannie Marie: I first looked at WHO God was leading me to serve, not where. 

For me, my heart beats for the three billion people with least access to Jesus. These are mostly Hindus, Muslims, and Buddhists.

So, are they right around me? Yup. 

Maybe for others, your WHO might be teen moms, or children without parents, or are you really wanting to go all in with the next door neighbors on your street, or is the WHO your co-workers?

Second, you gotta be intentional. I put myself where they were. 

Even though I didn’t need a plane ticket, yes, I had to drive an hour to find Iraqi refugees in downtown Phoenix who were Muslim.

I had to drive half an hour to Arizona State University to find Indian and Saudi International Students who were Hindu and Muslim.

I also found a huge immigrant community from India, mostly Hindu, right here in Chandler working at Intel.

Palmer: So once you found who to serve and reach out to, what did you do?

Jeannie Marie: Just like you, I believe the Good News is holistic, both SERVING and SPEAKING. 

So, for refugees, every week, I’d take friends and my little toddler (at the time) down to serve my Iraqi friends, helping them use public transportation, translate for doctors appointments, find jobs, learn English, things like that.

For international students, they’re lonely. So we’d invite them over to spend holidays with us and take them to see Arizona sites and such. We even had students live with us over Christmas break, because they couldn’t go home for that break.

For immigrants, we would meet at a park right here in Chandler for play dates with our little kids. They were Muslim moms and that actually turned into an interfaith dialog in someone’s home for months.

Palmer: Usually we’re pretty good at serving, but it’s the the speaking about Jesus that’s harder for some. 

Jeannie Marie: Absolutely. So here’s my thoughts. Right away, I try to establish myself as a spiritual person in their eyes, someone who really loves God. So I try to do two things.

One, I pray in the moment for people. I ask to pray a blessing over their family or for some sickness or emotional pain. Everybody loves to be prayed over, and there’s no pressure on us to have the perfect thing to say. Never had anyone say no.

Second, I tell Jesus stories or ask them to read the Bible with me in relation to something that’s happening in their lives. Scripture is our primary discipleship tool, so if we can start casually reading and then DOING what’s in the Bible, it’s really natural. No pressure on them or me. 

This is how simple it is, “Have you ever read the Bible? Want to read it with me?”

If your WHO is teen moms, the neighbors on your street, or your co-workers, these two things work great too.

Palmer: You have a story that you tell that illustrates these two things, right?

Yes! I would pray for my friend Maryam all the time. So one day she calls me, distraught.

“Jeannie, my son was beat up on the playground at school because he is Iraqi Muslim. We thought we’d be safe in America. Now I’m scared. Please, can you pray for me?”

So I prayed for her right then and there and gave her some pointers on talking to principal. She called an hour later, so incredulous, and said she didn’t even have to talk to principal, they moved her son to another class, and she felt safe. She believed God answered my prayer.

She asked, “HOW do you have access to God like that. I want that!”

“Okay, I said, I’ll tell you how you can pray to God and he’ll hear you. Meet with me six times in your house, and then you’ll know how.”

“No, tell me now!” and I said, “No, it’s going to take longer than a few minutes.”

“Okay, okay,” she said. And so we did. We met in her home, with her husband and daughters present, reading through stories in the Bible to show Jesus Christ is the key to have access to God like that! 

Palmer: What was a desire to go across the street, turned into a lot more because you did those first few things and looked around right where God had already placed you, right?

Jeannie: Yes! Now, I get to write and teach so many others to do the same things, through the Across the Street and Around the World book, through The Neighbors & Nations Course. It even led to a dream of moving overseas to India with our family for awhile. I feel like I’m doing what God made me to do, and so I say to you, just say YES. Say yes, and go do it.

Maybe you need a first step! Try reading the FIRST CHAPTER FREE of Across the Street and Around the World, and you’ll find some energy and practical tips to get started going across the street, doing around the world stuff, right where you are.