Daniel Bartz
NORDLICHT Kirche | Hamburg, Germany
Tell us about your family.
My wife Kathrine and I have been married for 22 years. We have three daughters: Elva Louise (15), Liv Cecilia (13), and Theda Johanne (8).
As a family, we love spending time outdoors—especially hiking and being in nature—as well as making music, playing games, doing sports, and traveling around Europe. Our German spaniel, Caspar, is also an important part of the family.
How have you seen God working in your family?
I have seen God working in our family by drawing us into the life of the church together, not just alongside it. Our kids have truly enjoyed being a vital part of the new church plant—they are not simply consuming youth or kids’ ministry, but actively participating in it. They are serving, contributing, and learning what it means to belong to the church, not just attend it, and that has been a real gift from God.
Before planting, I thought cultivating healthy relationships with my wife and kids would mostly come down to balance, structure, and protecting family time. While those things are still important, planting has shown us that they are not enough. This season has revealed our deeper need for grace and the Gospel in everyday family life.
After more than 20 years of church planting, it has stripped away any illusion of self-sufficiency and reminded us that we cannot sustain our family or our calling by strength alone. God is using this to teach us to slow down, to listen more carefully to one another, and to lean more fully on His grace—trusting that the same Gospel we preach is what continues to shape, heal, and sustain our family.
How have you seen God working in your life?
I have seen God at work in my life by reshaping my understanding of identity and dependence. God began to expose how deeply my sense of worth and well-being had become tied to performance—especially to being the “perfect” pastor and church planter. Over time, He has gently but firmly stripped that away, showing me how much my heart was resting on the success of my work and on visible results in ministry.
Through the Gospel, God has been teaching me to rest less in success and more in His grace, reminding me that my value is not earned but given. Even now, I sense God continuing to work on this area, inviting me into deeper trust, humility, and freedom—learning to live and lead from dependence on Him rather than from outcomes.
How have you seen God working in your church?
I have seen God clearly at work in our church through His faithful provision. Time and again, He has provided the right locations, the right people at the right time, and the resources we needed—often in ways we could not have planned ourselves. These moments of provision have strengthened our trust that this church is truly God’s work, not ours. One of the most impactful things I have learned in the planting process is how real the responsibility is for the flock God entrusts to us. Planting has deepened my awareness that leadership is not about building something I want, but about discerning where God wants His people to go and shepherding them with care and humility. At the same time, I’ve been encouraged by the openness and curiosity toward spirituality and faith among younger generations, which has renewed my hope and sense of calling. Together, these lessons have changed me—moving me from a posture of performance to one of listening, dependence, and trust in God’s leading.
What is your church’s mission/vision?
We seek to make an impact by joining in what God is already doing in Hamburg—living sent lives, building real relationships, and clearly embodying and communicating the Gospel in the everyday rhythms of the city. Our aim is not to attract people with programs alone, but to engage culture thoughtfully and meet people where they are, especially those who are spiritually distant yet open and curious.
We are intentionally trying to reach urban professionals, families, and the next generations—skeptics, doubters, and questioners who may never have considered church a place for them. For us, success is not measured primarily by numbers, but by transformed lives: people coming to faith in Jesus, growing as gospel-centered disciples, and living for God’s glory and mission in their neighborhoods, workplaces, and families.
Five years from now, we hope to see a healthy, reproducing churches marked by deep community, spiritual maturity, and missional engagement. We long to see many spiritually lost Hamburgers come to love and follow Jesus, leaders raised up and sent out, and new expressions of church planted across the city. Ultimately, we hope to see lasting spiritual renewal in Hamburg as the Gospel takes root in people’s lives and flows outward into the city.
How can we be praying for you?
1. For my wife – clarity, encouragement, and grace as she discerns her calling as a 'pastor’s' wife and teacher, and finds her place in this season.
2. For our church plant – a smooth and joyful integration of the new youth director into the church and team, with favor among the young people and their friends.
3. For discernment and guidance – that we would listen well to God and clearly hear the next right steps in reaching our friends for Christ.
To send Daniel a note of encouragement, write to HelloCP@spanishriver.com.