Where oh Where Wednesday - Cologne

We live in what is called a Euregion. The Netherlands, Belgium and Germany all commingle in a relatively small geographic area. This was one of the reasons that we decided to come here to work with the church. Maastricht, in The Netherlands, was a crossroads, a place where various cultures converged. 

The three major cities of this Euregion are Maastricht, Aachen (in Germany) and Liege (in French-speaking Belgium). Maastricht is the smallest of the cities, with just 120,000 inhabitants. Liege tops out at about 200,000 and Aachen is the most populous with 250,000. 

But these are only the cities most directly within the Euregion. Within an hour of Maastricht are Brussels and Antwerp in Belgium, Eindhoven in The Netherlands, and Cologne in Germany. This last city is well-known for its cathedral and its scent. Yes, the term “cologne” or “eau de cologne” comes from this city (water of Cologne is a literal translation). The name of the city seems to have come from its Roman origins as “Colonia” - a colony. 

From the beginning of our time working with the church here, we have had a connection with the brothers and sisters in Cologne. They have a connection to the German Bible camp in Gemünden (about 2.5 hours from us) where we have often attended Bible study weeks. When our singing group Listen Up! was active, we often sang at German church activities, including a few times along the Rhine river in Cologne.

More recently the church in Maastricht and Cologne planned a yearly get-together to sing and encourage one another. We started by meeting in Aachen - about halfway between us. Later we organized the singing in Maastricht and then in Cologne. We have not been able to meet since the interruption of the corona years, but we look forward to singing together again next year. 

It is always good to not only know about brothers and sisters in the neighborhood, but to be involved with one another as often as possible. We are thankful for our relationship with the church in Cologne. 

(Photo: Singing in Maastricht with members from Cologne in 2018)

Whensday - Beginnings (NL)

This evening Shirley and I will be visiting the congregation in Eindhoven, returning to our monthly Wednesday evening of singing. The congregation here is a relatively young one as far as the history of the church goes in The Netherlands. Of course the congregation in Maastricht is even younger. We helped establish that congregation with our colleagues, Ruud and Karla back in 1991. 

The church of Christ in The Netherlands has an interesting history. Basically the first congregations began after World War II when American soldiers came back to the country to share their faith with the people they had liberated. Congregations were established in Haarlem, Utrecht and The Hague. Later congregations in Amsterdam and a military group in Soesterberg were added. 

In the 1960’s and 70’s buildings were purchased in Haarlem, Amsterdam and The Hague. The congregation in The Hague was at one time as large as 200 members and served a broad group of ex-pats and native Dutch. By the 1990’s the building in Amsterdam had been sold, the congregation in Schiedam (near Rotterdam) which had begun in the 80’s was rolled into the group in The Hague, and congregations had arisen in Groningen in the North and in Eindhoven and Maastricht in the South. 

Throughout the years there were efforts to reach any who were willing to put into practice what is found in the Bible about the first followers of Jesus. This has meant that various congregations are not always clones or copies of American churches. Some members have come to Christ on their own by reading the Bible and understanding what it is that God desires and then seeking a group of people who are living that very truth. 

At present there are congregations in six different Dutch cities from Maastricht in the South to Groningen in the North. The largest group is perhaps the Ghanian church meeting in Amsterdam, followed by the group meeting in Eindhoven. The congregation is also still meeting and strong in Haarlem and in Den Dolder (the continuation of the former US military group in past years). The church building in The Hague is still the largest building. Most recently it has hosted a group of very active Ukrainian refugees. 

In the past two months there have been 5 young people who have given their lives to Christ. Some of this has been as a result of work in and conversations during Bible camp. Others have been through the efforts of refugees currently living in the building in The Hague. 

Europe is an interesting and challenging field. It often resembles the first century in which the church grew up. God continues to use His own people in all areas to bring people to life in the eternal Kingdom of His love. We are thankful that we can be part of this history and that God can use us in any way possible. Thank you for your prayers for the efforts here. 

(This picture is of the Spring gathering this year at the building in The Hague)

A completed life??

Last week a friend of mine - an atheist who I talked to every week - decided that he had a "voltooid leven", that his life was complete. This is something that can be done in the society here in the Netherlands. “A completed life” means that you have decided to kill yourself. Society in general agrees that this is okay.

The man that I knew disagreed with me on lots of things that we talked about. Politics. Economics. Morals. But we also agreed on many other things. The value of people. That things are not the most important in life. Still, our world views differed greatly. 

I believe that God created us, is not the same as we are, and has the right to let us know how best to follow Him. I believe we have good evidence for this and a wonderful way to not only find truth, but to follow truth in Jesus Christ. This also means that our life here on earth is not all that exists. We are spiritual beings and look forward to eternity. 

My friend believed that we all were creations of chance, thrown together throughout the millions of years he believed had existed before our current age. He believed that we were basically noble animals, slightly better than most animals and often worse than all other animals. He believed that dying was the end of existence - despite the evidence he himself brought up concerning love, hope and the need to believe in one another. 

He was dying. We are all dying. He had pain and believed that dying quicker presented him with the answer to his pain. We talked about the reality - in my view - that there is a much worse pain than the pain he was now feeling, an eternal pain of the body and soul. 

I struggle to understand how a society can ask people to be “good”, to care for others, to do what is “right” and build on hope when this same society accepts and lauds the idea that there is nothing more than physical life and that each person can make a choice that is purely selfish, egocentric. 

Such a mixed message can only create a society of lost souls. People searching for truth and love and value, but unable to find it because they have blinded themselves to the very truth in front of them in every piece of nature. 

This society has always been present. It was so in the time of Jesus Christ, in the time of the first disciples, in the ages following as the church grew. And it is still present today - in every country around the world. And the answer, the antidote, the solution is still the gentle Healer who has come to present life. I pray that I will not tire of presenting this life as best I can. 

Whatsit Wednesday - Kinderkoppen

Perhaps it sounds a bit funny, or maybe even gruesome. In Belgium and parts of The Netherlands we walk and drive over “children’s heads”. That is the literal translation of “kinderkoppen”. So instead of kindergarten (children’s garden), it’s all about their heads. English speakers talk simply of cobble stones. 

They are found in many yards as a beautiful way to lay a path through the garden. In the front of the house they might be the basis of the driveway and the walk to the front door. The name comes from the size of the stone. Each stone is more or less square and the size of a child’s head. 

Amazingly, streets are still laid - on purpose - with these stones. They can be laid in artistic forms, are easy to replace if a section of road is damaged, and last a good while. They do not freeze and break open in the winter. 

Laying such a street, however is quite labor intensive. I remember when the city of Maastricht renovated the shopping streets, they had to have special laborers brought in from Portugal. These streets are section of downtown where cars are not allowed to drive. They are full of walking tourists and shoppers. 

Kinderkopjes may be beautiful and make nice streets and paths, but not everyone is happy about them. Bicycle races are well-known for their grueling sections of cobbled roads. Paris-Roubaix is a good example of this. The aforementioned shopping streets in Maastricht are a torment for ladies in high heels. So much so that the city made sure to also have a section of walking street with smooth stones - polished children’s heads. 

Old and new memories

This past weekend was Family Day at camp. Each year a different congregation in Belgium organizes this day where the various congregations can gather and encourage one another. In 2021 it was a minimal gathering because of corona, so this year the church in Roeselare wanted to have a day where we once again felt the fellowship of being in Christ. 

We had about 50 people from congregations from Knokke-Heist, Roeselare, Ghent, Antwerp, and Rotselaar in Belgium and Eindhoven and Maastricht from The Netherlands. In addition we had several Ukrainian brothers and sisters who have settled with the congregations in Eindhoven and Maastricht, who came to meet more of their brothers and sisters. 

We had hoped to see brothers and sisters from the French-speaking congregations on this day as well, but the weather was not all that conducive to travel or gathering outside. Still, we had a wonderful time together singing and listening to what is going on in the various congregations, how God is blessing and using us all. 

It was especially exciting to see some visitors from long ago. Just as during Family Camp a few weeks ago, a few former campers came back for this special day to share memories. It had been 21 years since they had been to camp. Things have physically changed - we have a new building and are planning on even more, we have expanded the grounds and have recovered well from the floods last year. But we are still the family we have always been. 

After the family gathering, a group stayed behind to evaluate this past summer and plan for the coming year. Camp is being used more than ever. A new week is being proposed for the young professional groups and a new week has taken its place among the regular weeks. We now have a Vacation Bible Camp during the Fall break in Belgium. 

In addition to the various weeks planned (6 different weeks and 2 different weekends), camp continues to be used throughout the year for all different groups. Churches come down for a retreat. There is a “Survival” camp for father’s and their kids - now twice a year. The French-speaking churches use camp for their youth activities. There are now also Spanish-speaking congregations planning to use it as well. This has always been the desire - that camp can be used by all of the churches to help all members grow in faith and faithfulness. 

Many of you have helped in the past to make camp what it is today. Some of you have been to camp before. We are so thankful for how God is able to use us and this place for His glory. Most recently two young people have their lives to Christ partially because of what they talked about while at a week of camp. Praise God!

Whodunit Wednesday - Fashion

(The picture is of Sean and Jill's dog, Pierre)

I remember when I figured out that Haägen Dazs ice cream was not some European brand (it sounds somewhat Danish), but simply American. It was at that time that I realized that things aren’t always what they sound like. 

This is also true when you think of fashion. Perhaps there are some (real fashionistas) who have heard of the “Antwerp Six” and know that Antwerp is a Belgian city. Dries Van Noten, Ann Demeulenmeester and Walter Van Beirendonck were all part of the Antwerp Six. Others, like Diane von Furstenberg (who was born in Belgium) and Liz Claiborne, simply sound German or Amnerican. They are Belgian, as is Raf Simons, the head of Dior. 

Even brands can sound like something else. Scapa, which has an English aesthetic, is a Belgian fashion brand. America Today, G-Star Raw and Scotch & Soda, despite what they might sound like, are Dutch brands. Viktor & Rolf are two Dutch fashion designers

It reminds me of how beautiful I have always found the idea of a melting pot in the United States. People come from everywhere. You cannot tell from a last name where someone might be from. When we first came to Belgium and The Netherlands, our last name helped. Raab is originally a German name and the double “a” makes perfect sense in the Dutch/Flemish language. Even better, in the family of God, we can come from everywhere and still belong, no matter what your name sounds like. We just want to wear the right fashion. 

So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.    Galatians 3:26-29