Matt & Jordan Sveyda: Fiducia, Irvine, CA 041716

Matt & Jourdan Svayda: Fiducia, Irvine (April 17, 2016)

We are missionaries. Typically, when we think of a missionary we think about a person or family travelling to another country to share Christ to others.
Christ views anyone who believes in Him as a missionary. My family happens to be called to seek God’s Kingdom in neighborhoods here in OC. It’s an uncommon missionary calling, but a needed one nonetheless.
Our current culture has given us every tool necessary to isolate ourselves & isolation is one of the leading causes of depression in America. It affects nearly 121 million people worldwide according to the Geneva-based WHO.
It’s our conviction that this is NOT how God intended us to live. We were made to live in community with one another & to experience a life full of hope, joy, & peace. As neighbors, we have been called to fight isolation in neighborhoods so that others can experience the same hope, joy & peace we have in Christ. Our goal is to build community by seeking God’s kingdom come. Community is where relationships thrive, needs are met, & others can see & experience God’s kingdom in real life.

Take our neighbor Omid, for example. Omid is a 55-yr-old single Iranian man that
lives alone who works as an Uber driver. Getting to know Omid & bringing him
into our world has been a complete joy over the past hear. Before we knew him, we
actually saw him as a bit of a problem His yard has overgrown weeds, broken down
cars, fences & debris. Last summer we gathered a group of believers & served Omid
for a day making his yard & fencing new again. You can see the 2-min. video here:
https//vimeo.com/147498556. After that experience, Omid began asking us questions
about Jesus. We spent the next couple of months studying Scripture every Wednesday
AM. We connected Omir to Mariner’s Church & watched how God began working on
his heart. A few months into attending church, he raised his hand & said “I Believe.”
We then guided Omid to join a 10-week community group called Rooted. At the end
of Rooted, those who felt God’s call on their lives were invited to share publicly their
new lives in Christ. Here’s how we celebrated it with Omid:
https//vimeo.com/160768532.

God is in the business of making all things new. Front yards, fences, houses, and neigh-
bor’s lives are all part of this renewing kingdom work.
We are calling this ministry Fiducia, which is the Latin word for “faith in Christ that
leads us to action”. Our mission is to infiltrate & reshape neighborhoods for Jesus by de-
ploying Christians from their footsteps. Part of our strategy is partnering & training local
churches to “go & do the same.” We’ve now hosted over a dozen neighborhood training
workshops & have equipped 350 missionaries where they live! Get a glimpse by going
KnowMyNeighbor.org. We know that it’s a clear calling from God to help the Church live
out its call to love God & love our (actual) neighbors. M