Be a Christ-Like Presence in Your Neighborhood with the BLESS App
by Dennis Brockman, Foundation Director
Because of your generosity, more Christians throughout Orlando—like me!—are getting to know, praying for, and sharing the love of Christ with our neighbors with the help of the BLESS app!
The BLESS app encourages Christians to pray for and make meaningful, loving connections with their neighbors. (Image Credit: Flourishing Cooperative, Inc.)
One verse that has always resonated with me comes from Jesus' final words to His disciples, known as the Great Commission. He urged all His followers to spread His teachings and embody His life, purposes, and priorities worldwide. This message is echoed in Acts 1:8, where Jesus says, “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” This verse has both motivated me and sometimes made me feel guilty for not feeling like I’m reaching my own Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria.
Reflecting on my past, especially during my younger years in transient apartment living, I didn't see my surroundings as a mission field. As time passed, I became more intentional about knowing my neighbors. A few years ago, while recovering from surgery, I started walking around my neighborhood. My HOA provided a directory of residents, which I copied to my phone. During my walks, I memorized the names and addresses of my neighbors. However, as I recovered from surgery and walked less frequently, I began to forget these details.
Then I discovered the BLESS app during its beta phase. This simple app, created by The Flourishing Cooperative, uses public data to create a map of your neighborhood, showing all the homes and their owners. It matched my HOA directory and added a visual element. In creating the BLESS app, The Flourishing Cooperative hoped to help us love our neighbors through prayer, presence, and practical acts of service. The app prompts you to pray for five neighbors daily and lets you record your prayers. This feature helped me remember my neighbors and visualize their locations.
Last year, the generosity of Covenant Partners like you sparked the official launch of the BLESS app in Orlando! Since its launch, 2,239 Christians using the app have covered their neighbors in prayer 97,471 times. The app reports that Christian neighbors have also recorded 368 moments where they prayerfully listened to their neighbors’ stories, 108 meals shared with their neighbors, 178 acts of service for their neighbors, and 102 conversations about the gospel.
Be a blessing to your neighbors by Beginning with prayer, Listening to their stories, Eating with them, Serving them, and Sharing your story of how God has influenced your life. (Image Credit: Flourishing Cooperative, Inc.)
So far, there are 66 churches encouraging their congregations to be lights in their neighborhoods with the BLESS app, but The Flourishing Cooperative hopes to onboard a total of 200 churches across Orlando to cover 1 million homes with prayer and intentional neighborly love. Will you download the app and start BLESSing your neighbors today?
The BLESS app has motivated me to be a presence in my neighborhood. It encourages me to reach out, offer words of encouragement, and potentially introduce others to Jesus. Although I haven't had the opportunity to go that far with my neighbors yet, I look forward to it. Praying for five neighbors daily has become a routine because of this app.
If you haven't already, I recommend downloading the Bless app from your preferred app store (available for iOS and Android). It’s a wonderful tool for getting to know and praying for your neighbors.
