The mission of Citylight Global is to empower Citylight Omaha to faithfully join Jesus’ kingdom movement of multiplying disciples and churches among all peoples by: discovering the mission of God, developing members of all ages to step into the various roles of this mission, and sending those called to GO. Joel and Kate Damon have been members at Citylight and have joyfully supported those who go and serve the nations. Two summers ago, Joel was asked by Citylight to go on a short-term mission trip to Berlin, Germany. Having little personal interest in working internationally but trusting in what God was doing through Citylight, Joel left with the team never thinking that this would be the catalyst God would use to send he and Kate to serve as long term global workers.
“Funny story, I never wanted to be a missionary,” Kate described. “When I was 12 I asked God to never send me. I remember growing up in a church where missionaries would come and talk to the church. I prayed that God would make me rich so I would not go. I love my comfort and schedule. I’ve only lived here. I have felt like the wrong person for the job because most global workers know they want to do the work early in their lives and pray for God to tell them where to go. This was not the case for me. But when God calls you, you go. I don’t feel called anywhere but Berlin.”
Joel and Kate both grew up in the church and met when they were 18 years old. Two years later they married and knew around the same time that they needed to get back to church.
“We knew in our hearts it was time to get back,” Joel shared. “We found a great church and started to grow in our faith. A few months into going to church, there was a shift in me. My focus in life was taking a corner. Being a Christian was real for me and not just something I said. Instead of not being focused on anything, I was now focused on Jesus. That was 20 years ago, and it’s been a slow, hard process but formative, galvanizing and purifying.”
God would lead both Joel and Kate through the slow and hard of life. For Joel, it was seasons of anxiety and depression that only seemed to quiet with alcohol. For Kate, it was struggling with infertility. In all of it, God was preparing and planting seeds in each of their hearts and in their marriage to take bloom on his timing. Looking back, and even recently, Joel and Kate see God leading them and loving them.
“We tried to get pregnant 13 years ago,” Kate confessed with care. “I kept asking God “What did I do wrong?” I told him “I did all these things for you.” Very clearly, I heard at that moment “There’s nothing more you can do for me to love you more.” So at the age of 28, crying out to Jesus I met him. I knew I couldn’t be good enough. He said “no” to me because of his love for me. I stopped trying to be good enough and I began to sit in my Savior’s love. He was already good enough. I didn’t have to look like I had it all together and understood for the first time I could stop trying. It was a weight off my shoulders and changed everything. The desire of my heart shifted from my own children to discipling others. Now, Joel and I disciple young married couples. Joel loves and helps me to love and disciple others. He has supported and encouraged me. I got to see a different side of Joel. He wants others to know they are loved.”
Joel has been a creative person ever since he could remember. He’s always worked full time and then has used his free time and resources running his own art gallery. He loves the arts but mostly he loves the people.
“I like living a life of service toward the creatives in my community and that work is to encourage a healthy arts community,” Joel said with care and honesty. “For the past 11 years, I have taken my free time and my own resources and given back to the community.”
When Joel opened the gallery, he wanted it to be a service of love to creatives. He wanted to show that to make something is to reflect The Creator of the Universe and to express and share yourself is a gift. Joel described it as this:
“Because I am pointed to Jesus, it makes me feel good and humbled to point others to him in this way and that this is what I am supposed to be doing, and I don’t care what others say. In the arts, Jesus is not a popular topic. It’s not criticism nor persecution, it’s just not a topic folks want to discuss. I want to show Jesus is important in every area to everyone. To make something is to reflect your creator. It’s generosity. There are things we do in a work of art that reflects what Jesus put in us. It’s not always seen. When we were children, we colored, and we would draw and imagine things and sing and dance. No one tells us to do that as children. Children make things without being told. Humans are the only ones on the planet that do this, and I think it reflects our uniqueness to reflect the Creator. That’s what I want to show and help others to understand in the creative world.”
Joel wanted to bring this same vision and truth with him to Berlin. The day came in June of 2023. Joel left with a group of ten people for ten days. For ten days, he and the team met with creatives, exercised their creativity with murals at the global team’s gallery, and gained a bigger understanding of the city’s people and their need for the gospel. When he got back, Joel thought the city and the people were great and possibly he could live there. Then again, Joel said that about most places he visited. It wasn’t until a month after returning where things moved quickly in Kate and Joel’s lives. Their faith convinced them God was preparing for them another corner to take.
“You know, I got back and thought the trip was encouraging,” Joel said. “A month later the global team there asked me to apply for a job one day after my work here in Omaha was downsizing and had to let go of me. All these years I had thought I am going to die here in Omaha and that the home Kate and I have had was our forever home. I mean we love this city. When the request came in from Berlin, my stomach dropped out. I thought “Oh no.” The global team said it would be an August 2025 start date. Kate said to me 'Fine, that’s enough time to get it out of your head.'”
Since that day in August of 2023, it has been confirmation after confirmation for Joel and Kate. Long time friendships started to peel away, prayers had been answered, and a vision trip together to Berlin last year sealed the deal. Joel even recognized that God has been preparing them to go well before 2023.
“You know I was a heavy drinker for a long time,” Joel said with tenderness. “It was for 20 years and that just stopped out of nowhere. I didn’t want to stop. It was New Year’s Day 2021. A corner was turned, and God took it away. This last year has been like the biggest corner has been turned. It’s further proof that for us to think that anything is set in stone is foolish.”
Kate saw a change in her heart when she began to pray the prayer God told her to pray. Instead of telling God that he had the wrong person and holding on to the fear of being lonely, she prayed for God to send her. Slowly, her desires changed.
“No longer I saw my home the same way and I began to hold on to things more loosely,” Kate shared. “I changed my prayer from “What do you want me to do God?” to “God send me.” I no longer see where we are going as a crazy city with graffiti and people that have no interest in being my friend. Sometimes I can feel my flesh fighting against it and the enemy digging in and I start to disqualify myself. God is so much bigger than that.”
Joel and Kate’s launch date is September of this year and a new chapter of preparation, fundraising, and language courses has already begun. Their contract is for a 4-year term with language school for the first 6-12 months. They will be serving with the two families that have been there for many years. Once up and running, Joel will be working to encourage a healthy arts community with the gallery the global team manages in the city with an active, balanced, productive, conversational, and honest approach; something that can be hard to find in the art community. He will be connecting and supporting the members of the local arts community and helping their voices to be heard in constructive and clear ways. Kate will be supporting the global team with administration and travel arrangements for visiting short term global workers. She will also help mentor and be a point person for the residents and interns at the Envision Berlin site.
“They are college aged missionaries away from their homes too,” Kate offered. “They are following their call into missions and need someone to help support their mission too. God has been preparing them for this moment as well. They are experiencing the same feelings as us! I get to love them and encourage their walk with Christ.”
As they prepare to go, the Damon’s invite their church to go with them in prayer, support and with friendship.
“Preparing looks like patience,” Joel said. “Knowing when we will get there, we will be lost in so many ways. And that’s to be expected. We need patience with ourselves and with the language and wanting to get to work and not being able to at first. Patience with our communication and with the style of communication that comes with cultural barriers. Prayer for ease in my heart. I struggle with anxiety and depression. Pray my eyes stay focused as much as they can and be balanced. When I love what I do I go in 100% instead of a balance.”
Kate described her prayer requests.
“I like plans. This last year had many uncertainties with support, sending, and waiting. It was a great lesson in patience. I am slowing down to listen and to be quiet. I am afraid of being lonely. I have great friends here. Friendship in proximity is real. Without proximity, people move on. I am also worried that they chose the wrong girl. I think that I will not be what they are looking for. I am not creative but administrative. I’m afraid of not fitting in. I want to connect with everybody and the lostness of the people who don’t know they need Jesus.”
Kate shared that as they walk through the next season of all the “lasts” ... putting away their Christmas decoration for the last time, making a hair appointment for the last time, doing something for the last time here in Omaha … that Jesus sweeps in saying “I am with you.” Jesus has been through this too. He knew his lasts... Making sure his mom was taken care of, the last moments with his friends and all the feelings of sadness that comes with it. He went through it all and left earth and knew it had to happen but still grieved. For Kate, that has been comforting because Jesus has already lived it.
God has prepared the Damons for going to the nations all their life even if they couldn’t see it or believe it at the time. The Creator of the Universe has been with them every day offering them grace, love and courage to take the corners in life that bring new paths. This call to go, however, has a cost. And Joel and Kate cannot and should not do it alone. Citylight desires to truly send our global partners and that they are not out of sight nor out of mind. Joel and Kate are currently building their “sending” team. These are people who are getting their updates so they can regularly pray for them and people who are financially sending them. This makes it possible for them to live and serve in Berlin. If you want to be a part of sending Joel and Kate, or to learn more, please visit their website, joelandkateinberlin.com.