Support

We have been amazingly blessed in the years that we have worked here in Belgium and the Netherlands. In order to do this work, we have had to rely on financial support from around the US and here in the countries we serve. Often it is difficult to find congregations that will support someone longer than 10 years. The congregations and individuals who support us have been doing it often longer than 30 years. 

And not all of that comes in monthly support or big checks. This past weekend we were with the congregation in Haarlem, with whom we get to spend time learning new songs and how to sing. They make sure that our transport costs are covered and provide a fellowship meal and good fellowship while we are there. The same thing is true of the congregation in Maastricht which covers our transport costs every month and encourages us immensely every time we get together. 

But we also requested of our supporters to continue supporting us through the coming year. Not only do we realize that the transition from mission work in Europe to life in the US will be a challenge, we still want to be able to help in some way with the congregations we work with here. The continued support will enable this desire to help. 

We are always surprised, thought we never should be, at how giving these brothers and sisters are. We heard this past summer that the church in Muscatine would be able to cover us another year. We just received news from Woodbury (MN) that they not only will cover us in 2027, but will be willing to look at 2028 as well, if we need. When we first sent out the request, we heard almost immediately from each of our individual supporters that they were on board. Some of these supporters we are not even able to visit on our Home Assignments each three years, but they continue to care about the work in Dutch-speaking Europe. 

In Abilene, Westgate (with some from the 11th and Willis congregation) will be covering our moving costs (the movers come on November 17). At Oldham Lane, they assured us this summer that they will have us covered and have already gone above and beyond. We look forward to getting to know them better at some moment. 

Looking back at the many years we have been here, we remember all of the amazing faithfulness that has carried us through these years. Churches are people, brothers and sisters who care about how God is working in many different places. Some of these congregations know us personally. Some knew us, but have changed in the passing years. And still they are willing to help in any way they can. God’s family is amazing and we are so thankful for how we are part of so many families in so many places. 

(Photo of our singing this past weekend in Haarlem)

“Opgeruimd staat netjes”

“Cleaned up looks good” is about what the phrase means. Getting things ordered, put away, cleaned up makes for a feeling of peace. “Everything in its place and a place for everything” (or is it the other way around). In any case, that is NOT what our house looks like at the moment. We are discovering things that we had forgotten we had and now need to be gotten rid of. We are trying to find places to set things (boxes and boxes of “things”) that then need to go to new owners or the container or a second-hand shop. 

While we are working on getting the house ready to hand over to the new owner, we are also continuing with our normal contacts and tasks for each week. This means that things get a bit busy. But it is good to share the truths of God’s word with the various groups we work with as well as be encouraged by all of the conversations we have along the way. 

We were touched by our last visit for singing with the congregation in Eindhoven as several of them knew that that would be the last time to see us before we leave. This coming Saturday we will be in Haarlem for the singing there and look forward to being able to touch base again with some brothers and sisters who we will not see again until we all get Home together. These are bittersweet moments and we are thankful that we get the chance to see people. 

And still, we understand that we need to take a breather every once in a while. So this last week (which is why we did not write this past week) we took a few days off to just be together. We got a cheap flight to Montenegro and enjoyed sunny weather and a new culture and food. I will get the pictures up soon so you can share the beauty if you are interested. It was good to be away on a last European adventure. 

The rest of this month we will try to get everything finished in the house. The movers come around the middle of November. We will clean the house and then stay with church members until we leave. At the congregation we all together are looking at how to make sure that everything is in its place as well. Who will take over certain tasks? How will things change? God is good and blesses in ways we could not even think of, so it will be exciting to see how the congregation grows in this time. 

Whatsit Wednesday: A coin?

Years ago, before the euro entered Europe as the currency of every European country from the EU, each country had its own currency. There were German marks, French francs and British pounds. In the Netherlands, there were guilders. But it was even more interesting when you got to the coins. 

As in the United States, there were names for certain coins. In the US a 10 cent coin is called a dime. A 5 cent coin is called a nickel. And a 1 cent coin is called a penny. The 25 cent coin is a quarter, because it is a quarter of a dollar. I don’t remember if there was a name for the 50 cent coin - perhaps called a half-dollar - but I didn’t see it very often. 

In the Netherlands a 5 cent coin was called a “stuiver”, a 10 cent coin was a “dubbeltje” (literally a little double, although it was 1/10th of a guilder), As with the US coins, the Dutch also had a “kwartje” (a quarter) which was 1/4th of a guilder. A guilder in Dutch is a “gulden”. 

But it wasn’t just the coins that were named. The paper money also had various names attached. A 25 guilder note was called “geeltje” because it was yellow (“geel” is the word for yellow). The 50 guilder note was called a “zonnebloem” (sunflower) due to the picture on the note. The Dutch money was quite colorful and varied. 

Since the introduction of the euro, these names have all but disappeared. The 1 cent and 5 cent coins are rounded off in most stores, so they aren’t really in circulation. The 10, 20 and 50 cent coins are called simply by their denominations. And although the money is still somewhat colorful - the 5 euro is grey, the 10 is red, the 20 is blue and the 50 is orange or yellow -  the names have disappeared. This could also be because they needed to be simplified and unified for the multiple countries. The coins however still show specific people or places to the various countries. 

Fellowship

One of the things that we enjoy so much with the congregation in Maastricht is how they understand how important it is to spend time together. We have various opportunities to get together, but they are all different. And different members can make it to different activities. Still, the most important thing is being together. 

At the beginning of the month we had our first Friday singing. Since our house is a mess, and since things are transitioning to taking place without us, this month the singing was held by Ruud and Karla at their house. This means that Ruud can be there, even if he was still recovering from a hip operation. The living room was full, the singing was great and the joy was complete. 

In that same weekend we needed to figure out how to get together to clean the building. This periodic cleaning is shared among the various families, but this time was a deep cleaning. So some made it on a Saturday morning, while others stayed afterwards on Sunday afternoon. For both groups the time spent together was valuable and the building got clean as well. 

This past Sunday was our 2nd Sunday Games. Whoever can and wishes stays afterwards, shares some soup which Tonia has made and their own sandwiches. After a lunch together we sit around the table to play a game that Andrew and Adriana (our young Ukrainian couple) have brought. They have all sorts of games and it is always exciting and fun. Mostly it is great to get to know one another and to be able to laugh together. 

In the coming weeks Shirley and I will be looking for opportunities to see as many members of the various churches in the Netherlands and Belgium as we can. We attended the Family Day at the beginning of September where we were able to say goodbye to some. We will lead our last Wednesday evening of singing with the congregation in Eindhoven this week and our last Saturday singing with the church in Haarlem at the end of the month. Near the end of November we will go to the Copa - a soccer tournament with the various churches - so that we can see some folks again. 

It is so good to see how God makes families and how big His family actually is. We are so thankful to have been able to work with so many people and look forward to how things evolve in the future. As we think about our transition to the US, we consider how we will also start developing relationships there and look forward to how God will use us. 

Take every effort to take part in fellowship opportunities wherever you are. God has an amazing great family and every chance we get to take part in being together is a chance to grow and to encourage others as well. We are so thankful for this life in Him. 

Whodunit Wednesday: Francis Halzen

Do you know what ghost particles are? In English we would call them neutrinos, but in the common tongue in Dutch they are called “ghost particles” (as well as officially being called “neutrinos”). The Nobel Prize for Physics was recently awarded to Francis Halzen for his work at the IceCube Neutrino Observatory at the South Pole (Antarctica). It is here that neutrinos can be tracked and captured. 

Francis Halzen was born in Tienen, Belgium in 1944. He studied Physics in Leuven and worked for CERN from 1969-1971. After this he moved to the US where he has worked as a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. It was here that he came up with the idea to build a giant detector for neutrino’s. This would have to be built in Antarctica because of the ice that was necessary to capture these particles that are everywhere and yet undetectable. 

Neutrinos pass through the Earth and our bodies every day. We just don’t notice it. Scientists for some time have figured that these particles exist, but it has been impossible to detect (and therefore to prove) them. In 1988 Halzen first presented his idea: when a neutrino collides with an atomic nucleus, it releases a flash of light. This light can be tracked if there are sensors in glacial ice. IceCube is a full cubic kilometer of ice - designed to capture these particles. The first one was detected in 2011. 

Halzxen is only the second ever Belgian scientist presented with the Nobel Prize for Physics The other was François Englert in 2013.

Plans are moving quickly

For those who may not have been able to read between the lines, here is a quick update of what is happening in the coming months. 

After much discussion, conversations with supporting churches and prayer we have decided that it is time to return to the US. While we first thought that we would make this step in early 2027, everything has been moving much more quickly. Our house sold within 2 weeks and we will be out of the house at the end of November this year. The shippers come on or around November 17 and we purchased our tickets to return to the US already. 

So on December 7 we will fly to Indiana where we will for the first time ever be able to spend Christmas with our son’s family. We will also immediately start looking for houses in the Indianapolis area so that we can get set up as quickly as possible. Our things may show up some time around Christmas, or later. We would like to be in place already, although things may not move quite that quickly. 

In getting ready for the shippers and turning over our house, we have been cleaning pout - discovering what we have had in the cellar and attic for many many years. The bedrooms and living room already look quite different, since we have passed on a good bit of our furniture. But what do you do with all of the memories? They remain, firmly locked into some things, some pictures and mostly in our minds. 

And while all of this is happening, we continue trying to keep up with our various activities with the church. We have our weekly Bible studies, singings and are planning on helping with a marriage workshop near the end of November. Soon we will be looking at how we can continue some of these activities online as well as pick up new ways to serve wherever we end up in Indiana. 

We know that we will have a good bit of culture shock to work through. We know that we will miss the people we have been with for more than 30 years here in Belgium and the Netherlands. But we also know that God will bless us with new relationships where we are going. We know that we will be in a position to build even more on our relationship with our boys and their families. 

But it sure is moving quickly!

(Photo of our living room with just one couch and 2 chairs from the other room - so that we have somewhere to sit).

Where oh where Wednesday: the center of Africa

Depending on how old you are, you might know this country as Zaire or Congo. If you know it as Congo, you might have to ask yourself which Congo. This is the Democratic Republic of Congo, or DRC. 

The country started out in history books as a free state, a private “country” owned by Belgian King Leopold II. The atrocities that took place there have continued to shock people throughout the decades that followed - as they became known. The Belgian government took over the colony because of many of these atrocities. But they continued the exploitation of the country until its independence in 1960. 

Names like Lumumba (who was assassinated), Mobutu and Kabila are perhaps well known, each for their own reason. Mobutu was the one who changed the name of the country to Zaire, attempting to return to a more original name. The Congo river was also known as the Zaire. The name came from a Portuguese adaptation of a local language name. 

Kabila changed the name back to Congo. But there are two countries named “Congo”. The Republic of Congo is on its border, which is why it calls itself the Democratic Republic of Congo. Its capital is Kinshasa and it is the 2nd largest country in Africa, the 11th largest in the world (according to Wikipedia). Over 124 million people, mostly French-speaking, call this country home. 

Most recently, the DRC was one of the surprise darlings at the World Cup held in the United States. They reached the knockout phase after having kept Portugal to a tie. In the knockout phase they went ahead against England before finally losing 2-1 and dropping out. Their play was exciting and inspiring. 

Memories

We are busy cleaning out the house. The house has sold (within 2 weeks) and we are preparing for movers to come in November so that we can return to the US in December. This is sooner than we first thought, but will work out well. It just means that there is still a lot that needs to be done in a shorter amount of time. 

Most of this is going through all the “stuff” that has accumulated. You notice I don’t say we accumulated it - it just somehow appeared. However it arrived, it now needs to be gotten rid of. Some of that “stuff” is stuff that people can use and we are trying to find good new owners. We have people who have already taken a good bit of our furniture. Other things have found their way to the recycling store. They take book, clothes and anything electronic. 

The hardest thing to deal with is all of the paper. You know the things - all those papers that you saved because it was important (like bank statements from 30 years ago, ALL of the kids school papers and much more). There are also some papers we brought with us when we first arrived. I found them in the cellar where they have been these past 30+ years. And still, we will be taking some of that with us. The rest is going into the trailer to go to the container park with all the clothes that have gotten wet in the cellar and are not useable any more. 

Coming across pictures brings back memories. It is fun to take some time to look through all of those memories - as long as it doesn’t take too much time. Today I also found the letters we sent each other when we were just dating. Airmail letters, the thin paper covered in the tight scrawl so that as much could be said as possible. We came across pictures of us both very young, attending a banquet at York College. There is even one of the concert which was the moment when we first met. 

It is amazing to come across some of these things. But it is also exciting to know that there are still memories to be made. We are sad to be physically leaving our church family, but we are also excited to see what new things will come in this season of our life. 

(Dave Rampton, Keenan McClellan, Scott Raab, Brett Osborne, Bret Carter)

Whensday Wednesday: Day of the little Prince

We missed a Wednesday and have skipped a whatsit, so we have now landed on a Whensday. Yesterday was what’ is called “Prince’s Day” in the Netherlands. This is a sort of political holiday dating back to the first King of the Netherlands in 1814, although the name was originally used for the celebration of the birthdays of the princes. There are all sorts of traditions linked to this day. 

The King and his family show up on the balcony of the palace, but first they ride through the city of The Hague in a golden coach. When they arrive on the balcony, most eyes are on what the queen is wearing. These days people are also looking at what the princesses are wearing, since the king has three daughters. Amalia is the one who will follow her father to the throne. 

Another tradition is all about the politics. This day (the third Tuesday in September) is when the government presents their budget for the coming year. The prime minister carries a suitcase with the plans which he is supposed to present to parliament. But tradition in the last years has been that all of the information in the plan is leaked to the media before it is ever presented to the parliament. 

In the end, the king goes to the Knight’s Hall in The Hague and reads a statement about how the government is going to help things along in the coming year. The statement he reads was written by the governing coalition - not by the king. Of course the current coalition is a fragile mix of left, right, middle and green. It was an interesting speech. Lately the news has told us that the prime minister uses AI to write his speeches, which is why they are so boring or seemingly inappropriate when feelings are needed. 

Still, most people simply enjoy looking at the hats, dresses, and shining gold on display. The kids get a day off of school and everyone enjoys a holiday of some sort. 

Connections

This past weekend was Family Day down at camp. In the past this day was planned at the end of Family Camp, but it became clear that it could be better organized on a different day in order to really focus on getting people together. One congregation in Belgium usually organizes the day and people from around the congregations in Belgium and the Netherlands come to share the day together. This year the day was organized by both Roeselare and Brugge. 

The nice thing about this day is that we all have the possibility to see people we do not see very regularly. In our situation it was also a time to say goodbye to some people we may not see again, since we are moving. It was exciting to see that at least a third of the people there were from the congregation in Maastricht. It is exciting to see the connections that exist between the members of the various congregations and to see new ones forming. 

These connections between brothers and sisters in Christ are so important. In Maastricht we hold a special contribution every 3rd month or so, giving to any need we are aware of. This past month we gave to the church in Colombia who are recovering from a devastating earthquake. But we are able to give because of a sister in Maastricht who is from Ecuador. Her family has connections with the church in Colombia. And so we are all connected to one another and the church there can help those in need. 

Just last week we held our singing day with the church in Cologne and met new people from that city/country. This is something we have been doing for years. We are so thankful for the possibilities to nmeet new Christians from near and far. On this day we met some new brothers from Ukraine who are living in Cologne. But we also re-connected with brothers and sisters from Cologne who we have know since 1991 when we first arrived. 

Connections come in all sorts. As a sign went up on our window that the house had been sold, many of the people that pass by our house every day - walking the dog, walking with the kids, jogging - stopped to talk with us and see if we were really leaving. Some of them are parents of kids that went to school with our kids. Some are just our neighbors. Some just smile and stop to talk when I am out front pulling weeds. The ones who know us stop for longer and wonder about our next steps and the passing of time. 

It amazes us that this passing of time can also be helpful for some. As we plan to get rid of things in our house - which is necessary in getting ready for the move - we are thankful that there are people who can use some of the things in our house. We love helping a young couple and being part of the stepping stone in their young life together. And their parents know others who can also use furniture and more. So the connections help others to move into a new season of their life as we are moving into a new season in ours. 

Our house will soon seem to be regressing to the time when we first arrived. We are moving from moment to moment of saying goodbye to people we know. Our days now are taken up with figuring out what we can keep and what needs to go (and how to get rid of it). We keep running across old memories. But we are thankful for all the connections we have had through the years and are even building as we move forward. 

Whodunit Wednesday: Lucca Brughmans

His name probably doesn’t mean a thing to you, yet. And if you do not follow soccer, it may never really hit your radar, unless the World Cup comes to your city. Lucca, follows a line of many that starts in Genk, just down the road from us. Genk is the local professional soccer club and it is known especially for one thing - training goalies. 

Perhaps you have heard of Thibaut Courtois. He is the goalie at Real Madrid, one of the best teams in the world. But before he went to Real Madrid he played for Atletico Madrid, making quite a name for himself. And before he was in Madrid he played for Genk. He started when he was younger than 18 and moved on as one of the youngest goalies in the game. 

There have been others, who you may or may not recognize by name: Sinan Bolat, Logan Bailly or Koen Casteels. They all started their time with Genk and moved on to internationally known clubs where they have made their name. And now it is Lucca’s turn. Yesterday was the end of the transfer season and Lucca was sold to Liverpool for an amazing amount. 

For the moment he will remain playing at Genk, but soon, if all goes well, he will make the move to Liverpool. There he may enter history as one of the many amazing Belgian goalkeepers: Thibaut Courteous, Jean-Marie Pfaff, Michel Preudhomme, Logan Bailly or several others. 

Lucca Brughman, who is only 18, was sold for a record sum of 35 million euro. He will keep playing for Genk until at least January, but is looking forward to his new adventure in England. In the meantime, Genk supporters are wondering who the next big goalkeeper will be. 

Wild Wonderful Wednesday

Somehow, probably because of camp weeks, we have shifted our normal schedule of Wednesdays. In August we missed a Whodunit Wednesday. Rather than keep the skip in and retain the shift, I have decided to add a Wild Wonderful Wednesday here, which usually only shows up on a 5th Wednesday. 

Today we are going to take a bicycle ride. I do not take my bike as often as I could. We live on a canal with a bike path. I can bike to Veldwezelt (and do often on a Thursday morning when going to the Bible study with Ruud) in just about 25 minutes.  I barely need to ride along or cross a busy road and have bike path the whole way. I can also get into Maastricht, reaching our church building in about 35 minutes and also riding the whole way on separated bike path. But I usually only bike if the car is broken. 

If I were to bike, I would look at taking one of the many routes around our house. We are on the edge of a National Park and the bike paths crisscross our area, taking bikers through woods, along canals and rivers and into amazing areas of natural beauty. That is what I want to do today. So come along for the ride (even if it is in your imagination). 

From our house we can bike south along the canal, keeping the canal on the left. We cross left over our lock and turn right so that we can bike along “our” castle before returning to the canal, crossing over the bridge and continuing to the South. We bike past several WWII bunkers and then past the second lock on this canal which takes us to the Albert Canal. The larger boats ride this canal and we will turn right, up a hill along the side of the paper factory. 

We have a short section of busier road, but there is a separated bicycle path, so no worries. Crossing the bridge first, we ride down to the edge of the canal, now the Albert Canal, keeping it on our right. On the right the little town of Gellik rises above us, with its church pointing to the sky on top of the hill.  We pass under two bridges and follow the road up to the 3rd bridge to cross the canal.

We are now following a bicycle trail, well marked throughout this area. We can plan out the direction we wish to go by linking the connection numbers. We pass into the national park and are met by heather fields and quiet woods before passing through some little village homes on our way to more woods. Much of the bike path used to be railroad or local farm paths turned into well-maintained bicycle paths. 

Once we cross a main road we can stop at “The Four Lords” - a stone marking the point where four lordships met. This point was also used in the 15th century for judgements, so it is also known as the gallows. Just outside our house are where two of the castles, two of the lordships, were situated: Pietersheim and Rekem. 

Biking further we pass by the military domain on the left and come to “Biking through the Heather”, a special bicycle path which carries us through the outstretched fields of heather called the “Mechelse Heide”. At the right time of year the heather blooms purple and stretches out all around. You can see a bit more of what it is like with this video.

As we arrive in the town of As, we can stop for a bite to eat and something to drink at the Station in As. We can even play a short round of disc golf at one of the few courses in Belgium. The normal bike path would continue from here, making a nice loop. But we are going to head the other direction, back towards the river. As we ride we come out by the old mines and the hills made from the diggings. This has become a thrilling tourist attraction where you can ride over the water among the hills. You can see more of that here.

As we follow the bike path to the entrance of the park, we arrive at a shopping center  called Maasmechelen Village. Outlet shops, specialty stores and a cinema are all built around the former mine buildings, including several of the elevators still standing tall. Since we are on the canal here, we will follow it South. This is one of the longest straitest stretches of canal. Technically, if you had a camera good enough, you could see from near our house (at the castle in Rekem) to this point in Maasmechelen, meeting no obstructions. 

As we bike back home, we will pass an old windmill which has been turned into a restaurant and B&B before we reach the castle in Rekem. The last section takes us past a new cafe which has been built in what long ago was a bridge house - the home of the man who would open the bridge across the canal. 

And so we have see woods, fields of heather, special landmarks, lakes and hills in one bike ride. And this is just one of the many rides around where we live at the moment. This is one of the things we will miss.

Updates and upcoming dates

As August comes to a close our camp season also reaches its end. This year Shirley and I were blessed to be able to help with Benjamin Camp, not long after we returned from our Home Assignment (2 months visiting in the US). We had a good week with active Benjamins (8-11 year-olds) and a good team of helpers. We were especially thankful for the three young people who came to help and learn about helping. I have already spoken to the young men (who attend in Maastricht) about next year and they both are looking forward to it. 

Along with the young people, we were also thankful for the help we had from a Ukrainian couple who came. They also took a group of Ukrainians down to camp after the end of Family Camp. They had to wait a few days because of the huge fires that were raging not far from camp. Thankfully the fires have been brought under control, not in the least through some very heavy rain. We are thankful for the camp weeks that can be added to the schedule of camp and that camp was not affected negatively by the fires. 

It was at the end of Family Camp, where Scott taught 2 days and attended the lessons all five days, that the fires in the Fenn took off. As we were leaving on Friday we heard on the news of the fires. When we got home, we heard about flooding in Indiana (where our son and his family live). Too dry in one area and too wet in another. It is amazing how we are much more aware of everything happening around the world. 

As we finished up camp, we have moved forward into the time of singing. Our first Friday singing was in the theme of preparing for a special Gospel Workshop that would be offered in the neighborhood where we meet as a congregation. We were thankful for the visits that evening and conversations. And it was a great time of singing! 

In just a few weeks we will be singing again as the congregation from Cologne, Germany comes to visit. We hope to encourage some local visitors also to come sing with us. This coming Wednesday we will also be in Eindhoven again for the monthly singing. We have not been there since April. We are so thankful for the opportunities that we have to sing with people throughout the country. 

In September we will also visit camp again for the Family Day and will hold our yearly evaluation and planing day. This planning day is a time to plan for next year and see who can help. The congregation in Maastricht is looking at taking a more active role in planning and helping with a week of camp. In the meantime we are trying to figure out how we can transition our role with camp as we work through our plans to move back to the US. 

We are thankful for opportunities to serve, to help people grow in faith and to grow ourselves in trust. We are thankful that camp has been used well and has been kept safe from the most recent possible dangers. And we are extremely thankful for t=all the people we are able to work with. 

(Photo of the Gospel Workshop held last week)

Where oh Where Wednesday: Charleroi, Belgium, World

In 1996, 30 years ago, the world ended up watching a horror story unfold in the little country of Belgium. As the truth came out, people around the world lost their innocence and things everywhere, but especially in Belgium, changed. There is a sharp delineation of “before” and “after”. 

Our awareness of the situation came with signs that were hung from bridges across the highway on our way to camp. They mentioned Julie and Melissa, two 8 year-old girls who had gone missing. We had heard on the news about An and Eefje, teenage girls who had disappeared after a party in Blankenberge (on the coast). In the end, after everything came out, it was known that all four girls had died because of Marc Dutroux. 

Most of this all came to light after two other girls were freed alive from one of the houses that Dutroux had in an area of the city of Charleroi called Marcinelle. Dutroux had been caught after the kidnapping of Laetitia and finally agreed to show police where she could be found. He also gave the police another girl “for free”. Sabine Dardenne had been kidnapped earlier in the year and was still being held where Laetitia was being held - in a terribly small cage hidden from sight. The police had even been in the house and had not d=found the hiding place. 

Julie and Melissa died because at one point after kidnapping them Dutroux was in jail and couldn’t get out for several months. His partner, Michelle Martin, was supposed to care for them. She didn’t. They died of hunger and were buried in his garden. She had fed the dogs, but not the children. The horror story caused many things to change in the country of Belgium and around the world. 

In Belgium the police set up a unit specifically focused on finding missing persons. Child Focus was established, which helps in looking for missing children. The police themselves were reorganized, combining the federal police with the normal police so that there could not be any more miscommunication or turf wars among them, causing kidnapped children to be left to die. 

Even more, parents became aware that their children could be in danger. Julie and Melissa were just young friends, out playing together in the neighborhood. Julie’s mother went out at 6 pm to call her daughter to dinner but couldn’t find her. An and Eefje, although teenagers, were kidnapped as they walked along a road. After this summer of horror with Marc Dutroux, people everywhere realized that what happend in Belgium could happen anywhere - even in their own streets. 

Singing and praying

One of the ways that we have enjoyed helping the churches in Belgium and the Netherlands is in singing. In Maastricht we get together every first Friday. On the 3rd Wednesday we are in Eindhoven and every September we get together with the church from Cologne and others. Last year we also started driving up to Haarlem to help with the singing there. 

In August our first Friday song was at a time that one of our young men was at camp, so we went to their house on the Sunday to talk about and practice some tips for song leading. It is always exciting to see young brothers willing to learn how to lead the singing in a congregation. Anyone excited to sing for the Lord is a blessing to the congregations they attend or visit. And our First Friday singing was special as well, as we practiced some songs we will use in a neighborhood outreach this coming Wednesday evening. 

We look forward to September when our first Friday singing will mix with the singing with Cologne. Each year we hold a day of singing in either Cologne, Maastricht or even Liege or Eindhoven. This year we will meet in Maastricht. We will use this opportunity to also reach out in our neighborhood. This week (Wednesday, August 19) we are also organizing a Gospel Workshop for the neighborhood and hope to meet some people from the neighborhood who also love singing. 

One of the things that we will continue to do even whien we leave the country is to help with this singing. We hope to continue recording songs for the Youtube channel and more. 

In the meantime we remain in prayer for the various places in the world dealing with some pretty nasty natural disasters. There is flooding near our son in Indiana (and elsewhere), the largest fir in Belgian history burning just miles away from our Bible Camp (and other fires elsewhere), earthqueakes in Colombia and Indonesia, and much more. This is not counting the ongoing suffering due to war. And still we know that God is mighty and able to help in all of these situations. 

(Photo is our First Friday singing in April at our house)

Whensday: August 11, 1999

The special glasses are sold out in all of the stores. Just the other day someone realized that they might need them and went looking. Not a pair of glasses to be had in all of the stores in the area. Everyone is ready to watch the eclipse this year and it will be different than last time. 

The last time that an eclipse was so prominent in Belgium was on August 11, 1999. We were busy with our Bible Camp weeks, as always. That week would have been during the Family Camp. I remember how often the topic was discussed in the news. First that people should be careful and use the correct type of glasses. Stories abounded then as now of people who had not taken the precautions and damaged their eyes. 

But on August 11, 1999 the weather was the biggest wet blanket. It was a cloudy day and brought a bit of rain. The eclipse was to have been at 100% and was to be seen best in the Ardennes where we have our camp. It got a bit darker, but since it was a grey day anyway, not many people noticed unless they were aware of the eclipse and waiting for it. 

Today, August 12, 2026 the eclipse will be at 90% in Belgium and the weatherman calls for clear skies. As a matter of fact, the news was telling people this time not to charge their cars on Wednesday, or run their airconditioning (which most people in 1999 didn’t even have) because the eclipse will reduce the amount of available electricity by about 1.3 megawatts. Of course the eclipse will show up in the evening from about 7:15pm.

I will be down at camp during the day, but will be back home at the time of the eclipse - teaching a Bible study online. Have you ever experienced an eclipse? Where were you? What did you think of the experience? 

(Photo is of eclipse in 2003, but similar clouds as in 1999)

On the Family Side…

One of the reasons we will be moving back to the US, or one of the blessings we will enjoy, is being closer to family. This includes, of course, being able to be grandparents from closer by. Our granddaughter will be a car ride away. We hope to be able to see her and she us more often than we get to see one another now through video connections. 

And at the end of our Home Assignment, we of course also heard that we will be becoming grandparents a second time - for Sean and Jill’s baby. Although we will certainly not be within driving distance of New York, the possibility of seeing granddaughter number two will be exciting. A continental flight will be closer than an international one. 

We of course do not yet have any specific dates or times for when we might be able to see one another, but the wheels are moving. We are talking to moving companies, are putting the house up for sale and are trying to get rid of the accumulation of “stuff” from 35 years. How much stuff can one gather in that amount of time? More than enough. 

We were glad to be able to see almost all of our family as we traveled during our Home Assignment. It will be interesting to see if the distance, although it is closer, is actually closer when we move. Reality remains that one has to be intentional in getting together with family and friends. When our first neighbors moved across the town, they said farewell, knowing that it would not be that easy to find time to see one another - and that was simply across town.

But we look forward to enjoying the little moments of the grandkids. We have already seen granddaughter nr. 1 before walking and talking and now well on her way to talking up a storm and running wherever she wants to go. Granddaughter nr. 2 is due in January, so we are praying that all goes well and we get to meet her soon and start making these memories as well. 

Whatsit Wednesday: a mussel pan

From August to September is the best time to eat a Belgian delicacy served in many restaurants and homes throughout the country: mussels. Mussels are mollusks, but are not clams. A mussel has an elongated shell compared to clams. Mussels can be freshwater or saltwater, but it is the saltwater variety that Belgium is known for. 

Most Belgians will be able to tell you how to eat mussels and many will even have a special pan in the house to prepare the tasty meal. The mussels are often eaten with “firieten” (French fries). These pans are made specifically for preparing mussels and can be stainiless steel, enamel-coated steel (most of them) or even cast iron. They are designed to steam the mussels. 

Recipes for mussels include cooking in butter, oil or even beer or wine before steaming in order to add flavor. When the mussels are prepared correctly, the shell opens and the delicacy can be removed and eaten. If they are open before cooking, you should not eat them. You should also discrad any that do not open after cooking. 

The whole process can be done in about 10 minutes, making this a favorite meal for groups together. It is a bit like gathering around a fondue, but everyone gathers around the pan. It uses all the things Belgians like in a meal: butter, garlic, beer or wine and seafood - as well as “frieten”. 

People here wait for the first fresh mussels and get their pans ready or plan their next outing to a local restaurant. Do you have a mussel pan? Do you have a special recipe that you use for mussels? Have you ever had mussels? My family loves them, although I personally do not eat them. 

Benjamins

We have been doing Bible Camp for quite some years. There are photo albums at camp with a history of who all has attended and helped throughout the years. The kids love finding these and trying to recognize who is in the pictures. I was amazed to see how often we (Shirley and I) have done the Benjamins throughout the years. We have also done the other weeks, but often the Benjamins. 

And my birthday usually falls in the week of the Benjamins, so I get to celebrate with them down at camp. Some years that means a balloon crown or funny hat. Any year it means some kind of cake or brownie and some good singing. This year we also had two campers with birthdays on the following day as well as a counselor at the end of the week. 

The Benjamin’s are the youngest group: 8-11 year-olds. Their week follows the senior camp of 15-20 year-olds. The week following Benjamins is the teens (12-14 year-olds). The last week of camp is Family Camp. One of the kids this past week asked me why they were called Benjamins and I explained that Benjamin was the youngest of the sons of Israel, as they are the youngest group. But young never means that they can’t learn or be a challenge. 

We enjoyed our challenging week and I look forward to teaching two days during Family Camp next week. At Benjamin Camp I was the camp director as well as the teacher and we learned about the gospel of Luke. It was exciting to see some of the campers making links between what we were doing in the day and the lessons we heard or the songs we were singing. 

Luke taught us that we can trust what we have been taught about the good news. He takes the reader through how remarkable Jesus is - from his birth, through his teaching and miracles, to his death and resurrection. There are pieces that we only find in the gospel of Luke. It was exciting to see how many of these moments we talked about were being lived out during the week. We talked about things being “remarkable” for example. That very day, just before class, the kids found a lobster in our creek! 

Luke also showed us how Jesus taught about forgiveness and choosing to follow. Several of the kids struggled with this very thing - how could they forgive one another. Thankfully, they are young and also had the example of the counselors around them. 

We had a great team to help out with the week. A Ukrainian couple brought their youngest to camp to have the experience. She has dealt with some very serious health issues for the past years they have been in the Netherlands, but they prepare city camp weeks in The Hague for Ukrainian refugees every year. I knew that they would be a great help. In addition we had two young people from two different congregations helping as counselors, translators and activity directors. They were amazing with the kids. We also had the help of a young lady from the church in Eindhoven who had already done a week of camp helping in the kitchen and will also be helping with Family Camp. 

Shirley helped out our sister in Christ, Tonia, in the kitchen, making sure that everyone ate well and remained healthy. This week saw a lot of dry weather which also meant some ticks. The Ukrainian girl ended up having 5 ticks removed and also fell one day over a wall. She got the full camp experience. Shirley was often the nurse for the kids, several of whom had medicines to remember throughout the week. 

In a few weeks, after we have had time to recover and get the photo albums ready, we will be putting pictures up. As mentioned, I will still be going to Family Camp in a week. We know that many of you are also busy with your summer camp weeks and continue to pray for all of the kids whose hearts will be touched with the word of God in all of these places.