Mighty is our God

This past weekend several members of the church in Maastricht organized a Youth Day. We do this for our own kids, but also so that our kids can see their friends from around the country - many they have met during a Bible camp week or other youth activity. We planned our youth day in the middle of the country so that more kids could come (Maastricht is in the fa South-West corner of the region). And we prayed for good weather so that we could have the kids outside as well. 

As the day approached, the weather was looking horrid. We had some summer days the week before which got everyone’s spirits and hopes high. But then the real April weather returned. We do, after all, live in Belgium where rain is quite normal. The weather report on the day didn’t look great. 

But we are used to being flexible as well and our theme was how mighty God is. So we trusted that we would be able to do whatever we were planning - in one way or another. And that was how things worked out. The kids arrived, all of us wearing jackets because of the cold, but it stayed dry while we worked through the first part of the day. And what amazing views we had of God’s might and beauty. The trees and flowers were in bloom, the rain clouds waiting in the distance were imposing and we could hear the birds all around us. 

The lessons on the day came from Isaiah 40 which begins with a comforting of Israel, letting them know that He, their God will save. Our God is mighty to save and knows what we experience. It was fun to be able to do plenty of object lessons with the kids, helping to show the truths that we were learning. I had them as teams make a goalie. But of course the goalie couldn’t keep the simplest ball from going in the goal. Most of them could not even get to the goal (one was helped by the team). Why do we think that we can make God, but forget that He made us? 

Later in the second lesson (inside), an object lesson showed that although some things can keep us stable, only God can keep us stable all the way. A bottle of water on a string, a toothpick and two matches proved this point. A very clear lesson for everyone there. In the meantime the teens were upstairs talking about God’s might that can be seen in creation. The example was the most recent eclipse (which we didn’t really hear that much about over here, but the kids knew about). 

The questions in Isaiah resounded throughout the day: Haven’t you heard? Didn’t you know? He is God eternal! We are thankful for our wonderful God, our Saviour and for these kids who want to know about Him. Pray for them and their hearts that they will remember the things they are learning not only from these sort of youth activities, but also from their parents and those around them in the church. We were thankful that we could host two young men whose parents are not members of the church, who do not come from a believing home. 

Next weekend we are looking forward to going to a day with Mike Houts, a NASA scientist, who will talk about science and God. We are thankful for people who are willing to speak truth in a world where truth is hard to find. And we are thankful for people who are looking to hear truth and willing to hear that truth in God. And for our brothers and sisters willing to organize activities like this and the youth days we are able to use to encourage our young people. 

Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.  Isaiah 40:28-29

September Newsletter

LIGHT in the Lowlands
Reaching out to the people of Belgium and the Netherlands

A time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth. John 4:23

Dear brothers and sisters, family and friends,
I want to take the time to tell you about a few of the people we have been meeting with, studying with, learning from recently.

Telling the truth in love
We have known Leon and Mariette Christoffels for quite some time. Their daughter, Patricia, came to camp as a teenager. Leon and Mariette attended a congregation in Lanaken that taught some things that were not Biblical. We had looked at working together with this congregation when we first arrived, and have kept the door open at all times, working with youth and trying to encourage where possible.
After some frustrating years and a time without a congregation, due to teaching, Leon and Mariette called us about something else, looking for some information and consolation. I invited them to worship with us and they have been an encouragement from the very first day. They want to know Jesus and his death and resurrection. They want to continue to grow in faith. And their desire is infectious.
We are so glad that we have kept communication open throughout the years, that the door has always been open. This is something we want to continue because we grow and are encouraged by it.

Another aspect of this same situation are our concerts with Listen Up! This month we held a concert to release our second cd. The concert was held in Haarlem and we made a major effort to invite all of our contacts. It was thrilling, then, to see so many people come to hear about who Jesus is and how we should respond to him.

The audience was not completely a believing audience. There were co-workers who simply like the music. There were parents whose children have ties in some way with one of the singers or the church. There were young men who came to help with the catering because they knew one of the singers. It was an amazing group of people, brought together to tell people about Jesus. And that is what happened. We know that when people say, “Beautiful music. I don’t know about the message, but I loved hearing you.” that they did hear the words.


Of course, the next step is to keep contact, to keep doors open and to continue talking about live with Jesus. Music alone will move people to think and act. We need to be ready to listen and communicate in love. That is what we are praying for with the church in Haarlem - and in Switzerland where we will be singing in October.


But how far do you go?
Sometimes you can talk and talk and talk - and you wonder if anyone is listening. It is not always easy to decide when to move on from a study, to allow the relationship to change. My studies with C and T often include some very clear language about Jesus, but this is not always accepted. After several years, they know what we think and we know what they think. Mrs. M. has been reading the Bible with me for almost 13 years! We have become friends, Shirley and I with her and her husband. But perhaps it is time for the relationship to change - not that we would end our friendship, but that we would shift the focus of our time. This is a difficult question.
Some people want to know more - now! LJ and Mr. W. are like that. Although I have not heard from LJ in September, we are planning to start studying again in October. Mr. W. is intrigued about what the Bible says about so many things. Although he feels he knows God, he is willing to re-examine what he knows in the light of the Bible.
And there are more people in this area who are also looking, wanting to know God better, to give their lives to Him. We need to figure out how best to spend our time. Although, as we are spending more time with the various groups, we see that this problem tends to solve itself. In addition to Mr. W. and LJ, we are also increasingly busy with the growth of our own youth in the church.
The men in the congregation decided to get together twice a week on a Friday evening for a devo. Now “devo” is a strange word for anyone here, but the evenings have already become a favorite. Plenty of singing (and really thinking about the words) and then some time to hear what God’s word says and talk about it. It has been so good to have a place to encourage one another as brothers. This has been great for Leon, Stephan and some of the young men we meet with from Tongeren.
As we continue through this year we want to continue to remember how patient God is with us and let that guide us also. It is so great to have such a wonderful, righteous God who is making us holy because He is holy!

PRAYER WARRIORS
Please keep the following in your prayers.
- Give thanks for our concert in Haarlem! Thanks to so many for praying and working hard.
- Please keep our families in your prayers as we are away from them and want to help in so many ways.
- Pray for our outreach among the young people here. There are several who are growing into faith and need continued guidance and strength.
- Pray for Listen Up! as they plan for a tour through Switzerland to assist the churches there with evangelism.
- Pray for Mr. W. and LJ as we try to get back to our studies. Also for upcoming plans for classes and outreach.

On the family side . . .
September is the beginning of school and for Sean that has meant a real new beginning. He decided to change schools this year. When he left elementary school, most of his friends went to the Catholic middle school, but he went to the school where Stephan was (a combined middle and high school). Although this was not a problem academically, he has struggled with missing his friends. Now he has moved on to this new school. It is much smaller (200 students instead of 850) and only students in his academic area, which makes things a bit better. He has been a lot happier about school in any case.
Sean is still enjoying his soccer - although it is a lot muddier here than while we were in the States. He has only twisted his ankle slightly once, so he is also staying healthy. Along with soccer he is also showing more interest in his personal fashion. He makes sure that he gets good advice from Shirley - who does a good job teaching the boys about fashion, but also about buying well and not putting too much emphasis on your outside.
Stephan has been listening to Shirley’s advice for years. This is now his senior year and he wants to make a good impression all around. He is trying to stay focused on his studies, is taking part more in school activities, and is showing who he really is as a person. His visit to the States this year showed him how much of an advantage good grades can be, giving you more opportunities. Of course others had told him this before, but this summer it sank in.
In addition to his school work he is trying to make sure he is ready for the ACT test which he will take at the end of October. The most difficult part of these tests is not really the material, but the fact that he is a third culture kid with no mother tongue. We speak English at home, but his school is in Dutch. Imagine trying to figure out what an ‘isosceles’ triangle is (named after the mathematician rather than the property of the triangle), or if something is ‘congruent’ or ‘diffuse’. These are all very specific math or scientific terms. Since his maths and sciences are in Dutch, he has never encountered these terms. So now he is practicing for the ACT, studying on top of his studying. We are proud to see how he is taking it all to heart.
On top of his school work Stephan is still enjoying his basketball – he plays on the men’s team now. He is also a real friend to his friends here. When the devo’s started (see News) he has taken part enthousiastically. At church he offered to be the one to help send the list of prayers around to the men who will be praying (the ‘prayer warriors’ – doesn’t that sound like a bunch of guys?).
Scott and Shirley are enjoying each day with each other and these wonderful boys. Not every day is wonderful of course, but you pick out the good points and try to move past the difficult times, learning as you go. They are looking forward to being able to be together when Listen Up! goes on tour to Switzerland. Usually Shirley would stay behind with the boys. Now the ‘boys’ are young men and well able to deal with Shirley being off with Scott for a week (keep them in your prayers ;-)

EXTRAS
What’s coming up?
OCTOBER
Listen Up! tour of Switzerland
Fall camp
Youth outreach
NOVEMBER
WoW course
Youth weekend

THANKS!
- For the prayers for the work here
- For the good books
- For your encouragement in emails, calls and comments on the blog

DID YOU KNOW?
Tidbits of information about Belgium and the Netherlands
(Official) Religion
Recently (5 years ago) Belgium decided to choose some ‘official’ religions which would then be sanctioned by the government as ‘official’. These are: Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Orthodox, Anglican, Islam and humanism. The Dutch have quite a history of religious reformation, persecution and tolerance. There are no ‘official’ religions, although there are several which do receive government finances. Less than 40% of people in the Netherlands adhere to a church and less than 50% of Belgians consider themselves religious. Have you come across something typically Dutch or Belgian? What did you think of it? Let us know.

Have a wonderful day today, growing up in the Lord!