David and Shekinah
(This following edition of our "Who We Are" article was written in 2016, the 11th year of our pilgrimage. A separate update from April 2017 is added at the end.)
Hello everyone,
We are David and Shekinah.
We are pilgrims without a residence since 2005. We don't work for money or our keep, and have no savings.
Wherever we go we freely share with people what we can share, our experiences, our music, a helping hand, and people share with us what they are inspired to share.
We have given up our security in the present commercial society and have chosen to rather trust God for our protection, for our health, for food, for places to sleep, for transport and anything else we might need. (See also FAQ "How do you get the things you need?")
We walk with God, but do not consider ourselves to be religious. Neither do we perceive God as religious entities, but rather as life-partners. We view God as male and female beings with whom we have a love relationship. (See also "Our Perception of God")
Living what we interpret to be the freedom message of Jesus has led us out of Christianity. (See also "Why We Are Not Christians")
We are not members of any kind of religious or secular organization; and we do not give our time and strength to the commercial society, which, because of greed, exploits the poor and destroys the earth.
We each have a backpack, some basic clothes and a few other things things we need for our pilgrim life. Most of the time we have had one or two guitars. At the moment we have some equipment to help us with the making of our website. Apart from that we have no personal possessions.
We experience God in the miracles that happen to us, in the way we receive guidance, understanding, protection and the supply of our daily needs.
Since we started out living this way we have visited more cities, towns and villages and have been guests in more private homes than we can count. Although it has not been our goal to travel in as many countries as possible, yet, following God's guidance and supply, we have visited 74 countries on 5 continents without savings or jobbing.
Both of us were born in Germany, but we see ourselves as part of the Global People of Love, an identity, which is independent from passport nationality. (See also "The People of Love")
We share our observations, experiences and opinions publicly in city centers.
Speaking controversial truth and not conforming to commercial society helps us grow in spiritual strength and develop our relationship with God. (See also FAQ "Do you get into trouble for your message?")
We make an effort to formulate, what we feel is right and true, and we update our statements concerning our views as we continue to grow in understanding.
Update from April 2017
Right now we are taking a time of rest and recuperation as well as working on publishing, for which we temporarily moved into an apartment in Croatia in March 2017.
We are fortunate to still not have to work in the commercial system for our support but that through a turn of events, unforeseen by us, this time of hiatus is financially covered.
If this had not been the case we would not have considered moving into the stationary situation we live in right now.
Many people who have felt they had something significant to write received opportunity to do so away from constant public demand, and we are grateful to have such an opportunity now as well.
For over a decade we had been 24/7 either out in public places or else within the private sphere of others (those who kindly hosted us in our travels), and it was difficult to record our music and write our story and message engaged in this lifestyle. As the years went by, being on the road had also begun to take a toll on Shekinah's health.
One has to develop quite a determined mindset to be living without a permanent residence in this ongoing manner. Therefore it took us several months to come to the realization that we should indeed take this time of rest, like a "sabbatical from being pilgrims".
Since then it became clear to us that it is also good for us see our pilgrim life from a viewpoint outside of it, so that we can come to present our message in a more balanced way.
The pilgrim way of life we cultivated on the road has been an important school for us, and in our opinion, others could benefit from it as well. Nevertheless, it is not meant to be a permanent life-style. It is a means to an end.
In time we intend to be pilgrims again as we feel that there are still important matters in store for us, yet for now a period of rest and taking a distance seems in order for us.
The articles on this website were all written while we were on the road. They offer basic insight and can be an inspiration for people who are looking to launch out and make their own experiences in trying their wings of freedom. In time we will be publishing further pages and updates of existing ones.