16:07

So, here we are-- November 28, 2012, a lovely autumn day.  And what are we doing exactly?

We began the morning with prayer and worship together with our team.  After that, Wim went to be a "taal maatje" (language coach) with a man from Ivory Coast (he's been doing this for a few months already).  And now he's busy working together with DTS students cleaning up leaves at one of the Heidebeek buildings.  That's one of the dis/advantages (if you could call it that) of living in a forest-- lots of leaves! ;-)

I've been busy most of the day working on our songbook for the Prayer & Worship Centre.  Since we sing quite a lot, it's really nice to have a good, updated, relevant songbook with both English and Dutch songs.  I'm revamping the style of it a bit, trying to make it more user-friendly and it sure is tedious work!  But it's a much easier than making the songbook in Tbilisi-- having to find songs that are in English, Russian and Georgian... all three of which have different alphabets-- read:  completely different letters, ways of reading, etc.  And then, trying to make all 3 translations of one song fit on one page while trying to make it look as least confusing as possible...ummmm, yeah.  Let's just say that that project makes this project look like a piece of cake! 

But since I'm sitting a lot, I decided to take a walk at coffee break.  Here it's dark when we wake up and dark when we get home (like, it's 4pm now and the sun is setting), so sometimes I feel like I don't experience the day because I'm in the office most of the time!  There are days that I don't really care to "experience"-- especially when it's cold and rainy, as it often is here in The Netherlands... but today was really beautiful and sunny!  I couldn't resist!  (By the way, if you are living in Norway or Sweden or someplace that has like 23 hours of night in the winter, please forgive my complaining...)

Another thing I think is a bit funny, is that miniature ponies are just like normal here.  They're almost like pets, like everyone has them (exaggeration...) and I still feel a bit of that childlike excitement when I see one!  There was a "herd" of them today and so I took a picture...and yes, they are drinking water out of a bathtub... normal, right?!) :-)

Have a nice Wednesday!

"aan Zijn voeten"

God is looking for worshipers that will worship in Spirit and Truth.  We want to be those kind of worshipers!

We've been busy preparing for "aan Zijn voeten - aanbiddingsavond".  We're looking so much forward to spending this time with our beloved Belgians worshipping God!  We're praying that people will be able to find and express their own unique ways of showing love and worship to God, as well as finding their place in the corporate expression of worship!

Let's GO!

The past days have been really great!  The GO Fest has come to Heidebeek, with so many young people ready to go out into the world to represent Christ to the Nations!  Here's a photo of all of the teams (leaders and participants) who will be going out!  The festival is over today, and the teams head out (some have already left).  They'll be gone for 2 weeks and after that they'll come back to gather again for a reporting service.  Can't wait to hear all of the good things God will do through these people!

Wim and I both have been helping out as volunteers:  Wim as a referee for the volleyball tournament, and I with the worship band!  Here's a photo from one of the worship times, I'm there sitting at the piano!  It's been so much fun-- I think being around all of these young people just gives a youthful atmosphere that affects all around!  Feeling very youthful, joyful and excited about life!

normal life

Last Monday Wim and I celebrated our one year wedding anniversary!  It seems crazy to think that a year has passed already, and even crazier to think that there will be many more years to come...!  

Our wedding ceremony in the U.S. June 25, 2011

We had a week vacation in Zeeland, a province in the west of Holland, by the North Sea.  What's interesting is that much of this province is actually below sea level, and sadly in 1953 it was massively flooded.  We had the opportunity to visit the "watersnoodmuseum" in Ouwerkerk, which was really very interesting and I think important to also understand more about this country!

During the week of vacation, we had to attend an introduction day for the inburgeringscursus.  This is sort of a "naturalization course" (I think that's what you'd call it in English) for spiritual workers in The Netherlands.  Wim came with me for that day, but he is not required to take the course because he is from an EU country, so I will be attending alone.  There I will learn Dutch language and culture, and also many practical things about the country.  The interesting thing is that it is for all spiritual workers, so I'm in class with not only YWAMers, but also Catholic nuns and priests, Muslim imams and so on!  An interesting and challenging environment for sure!  Please keep me in your prayers as I study with this group over the course of a year and a half! 

Click on the image to read more info about the course, but sorry it's only in Dutch!

 

twenty-six

Yesterday Jenni turned 26!

I love my birthday-- really I do!  I think it's a combination of the feeling of starting "new"-- and the presents (one of my "love languages" is definitely receiving gifts...!), I just like it, a lot.

This was my first birthday as a married woman, and I must say it's pretty nice to read something like this on your facebook (and also to hear it in person!): "Happy Birthday!!! schatje and most beautifull women in the world I LOVE YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"   :-)

I also feel an excitement that I haven't felt for quite a while-- being on the verge of something really exciting, as Wim and I discover more and more what God has put in us individually and together as a couple....searching out our purpose in this life, and waiting as He is revealing bits and pieces to us over time!  

I'm so grateful that God has brought me this far in life, given me so many unforgettable experiences, and that He is still bringing me... actually now it's, "us", along on this awesome journey!  

Looking forward to see what this 26th year will bring...

a nice birthday surprise on my office door!

forever always unending

It can be so simple and natural to react with gratitude, faith, adoration to God when a need or desire we have, has been met or fulfilled.  Like it says in the Proverbs, 'a desire unfulfilled makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled brings life' (my rough recollection)  And there is nothing wrong with having this appropriate response when we see His answer to our prayers and even our longings!  Even people who claim to have no faith in God, will often in a moment of relief proclaim, "Thank God!"

But then there is the flip-side:  what about when we pray, we pray A LOT, we stand in faith, and we don't see the answer we are looking for?  It can feel like God doesn't hear us, or that He doesn't care so much.  The seeming silence can feel like a dark, lonely cave.  This is such a difficult thing for every believer, and yet it's something we must learn if we want our faith to be genuine.  When I pray, whether a simple desire or a serious need, and whatever answer God gives (or whatever seeming "silence" I encounter)-- I want to come out of that still saying, "God you are good and I trust in You.  You are the Father of lights and there is no shifting shadow in You." And I want to keep pouring out my desires and/or needs until He shows that He has a different desire for me,  a better way (maybe I cannot see that it is better, but He knows what the future holds and He knows what it is better).  Or, I want to keep pouring out my desires and/or needs until I see the fruit of my prayers. And most of all, I want to keep God in high regard, not questioning His character, but believing that He is who He says He is.  I believe that that is what brings a shift in the way we follow Him.

In the past, when I was praying for something and not seeing any results, it often sent me spinning down.  Into doubt, confusion,  sometimes even depression, loneliness.  I lost sight of God.  But this is a lesson that I, and we also as a married couple, are learning.  When we are praying and we don't see the results, we steady our feet on our Firm Foundation (God) and we say: 

God we trust in You.  We will trust in You.  You are our Firm Foundation.  You are the Giver of Life.  You are the Most Wise One.  You are the Most High One.  You are the One we choose for.  And our choice is a visible sign of our worship to You.  God, we trust You.  You know our needs and our desires.  Lord, we thank You for your care.  We believe You will never leave us or forsake us.  Father, we love You.

and the crowds came

Heidebeek Open Huis - photo taken by Berre Ruijsink

I have never seen such a thing as YWAM Heidebeek's open huis!  Wim has seen it before when he was here at Heidebeek as staff, but for me it was a first! We heard that there were about 1300 people who came during the whole day... even our Dutch neighbors came, and our family from Belgium!  There were teachings, music, information stands, international food, tree climbing, and even a real life ostrich... yes, seriously!  It may seem strange that a missions organization would do such a thing, but it was a great opportunity for people in the neighborhood and from elsewhere to really see us.  To see that we're not some strange secret club.  To see that we are real people, who really love Jesus, and who are motivated by that love!  

running with the wind

Wow... we are SO BUSY!  It began on Friday with a "love feast".  This is sort of a YWAM tradition-- where we gather together, eat tasty food, enjoy each others company, share stories and sing to the Lord!

Wim and I all dressed up, looking lovely!

Then this weekend we drove to Belgium and stayed one night-- to visit some of Wim's relatives.  It was a really nice time!  I met Wim's grandpa (he's 91 years old!) for the first time, and we had some great conversations with Wim's Aunt!  Here is Wim together with his grandpa!

Wim with his grandpa Jerome

And now this week, all of Heidebeek is in an uproar (in a good way) to prepare for the coming Open Huis!  This will be on Thursday, and we expect ±1000 people!

Today, I worked in the gardens of the hospitality houses... this was a first for me!-- I'm not exactly a gardener!  The only memories I have of gardening were bad ones-- having to pull weeds as a household chore-- I despised it!  But today I found a lot of satisfaction in what we did.  It was really nice to see the end result, how it really improved the look and feel of our guest houses.  I think that it made it look much more... "hospitable"!

And to top it all off-- this weekend (Friday - Sunday) I will be leading worship for a group of people who will lead outreaches for young people this summer (this is something called GO Teams)!  Well... gotta go... so much to do still!  :-)

inspired creation

writing songs to glorify Jesus!

Wim and I have been here at Heidbeek now for.... almost 9 months.  So, since our first year slowly is rounding off, we have been given some opportunities to try different things outside of our support ministries (sort of to see what we'd like to do in the future as well).  One thing that I am getting to do is spend one morning a week working on music with my friend Joni!

She came to me a few weeks ago and asked if I would like to play music with her at this event called G.O.D. (Global Outreach Day-- read more here) in Amsterdam, so I said yes!  We decided it would be good to meet once a week and to work on writing music!  It's really fun for me to invest my time in this as well, because I LOVE IT.  Seriously, a lot.  And I believe that God has gifted me and I want to use that gift, develop it, share it and glorify Him with it!

Here are the lyrics to the song we are working on now (which are subject to change, since it is a "song in construction"!)  We will sing this at the G.O.D. event :

no other god

There is a place where peace abounds - it's in His grace

There is a way that love can be found- it's in His face

And I will serve no other god, though they may try to tempt me

No I will serve no other one, only You Lord, only 

There is a place where hope abounds - it's in His name

There is a way that life can be found - it's through His gates

And I will serve no other god, or any other treasure

I will serve no other one, only You forever 

They can tempt me, try me, pull me and bind me

But I will never leave

Because my Lord, You sustain me, you've healed me and you saved me

So I will never leave

I will never leave you

I'll be faithful to You

And I will serve no other god, or any other treasure

I will serve no other one, only You forever 

When we've polished it a little more and make a recording, we can share it with you!

a word from Wim

Maintenance and good stewardship of the things God has entrusted to us

Here I am working together with Daniel from Holland-- teamwork and fun! I believe it is important that we take good care of the things that God has given us, only then will He entrust us with more things. Also it is good to work in a team and do things together, because it is more fun, the work goes faster, and it is good fellowship. It is also great to see that God is using our experience from the past: I have worked in road-construction for seven years before I joined YWAM. I see that the things I have learned there He is still using to bless the body of Christ and further world wide missions today. 

Maybe you are thinking: Why is this missions to work in the garden and do maintenance?

The base where we work is a training base for missionaries, if these properties are not maintained, then we can close them after a few years because things will start to fall apart and stop functioning well. We have to show hospitality to visitors by taking care of our properties. A beautiful, colorful place is also a place where people feel welcome and safe! 

Use your gifts don't think they are not important or not spiritual.  Doing maintenance, preaching, evangelising, making coffee, cleaning the toilets-- one thing is not more spiritual then the other thing. Do what you like, do it well, and do everything as if you were doing it for the Lord!

Ephesians 6:7, "Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not man..."

Moving the plants so that we can change the drain pipe from the gutter on the roof

a (very) short missions trip!

On Sunday, Wim and I went to an African church in Mijdrecht (a city in Holland, about 1 hour and 15 minutes from where we live).  

the choir leading worship in church

Seriously, it felt like we went on a short-term missions trip... but like extremely short term, just a few hours!  We really stepped into another world.  The service was bilingual- sometimes translated between English and Kinyarwanda, and other times between English and French.  And the style of church service was very typical "warm-climate culture" : starting around 13:30ish... singing, talking, singing, testimonies, singing, sermon, singing, talking... and about 4 hours later, we were through.  :-)

But it was a really wonderful time.  The people there are really hungry for God.  They are very open to learn and to be taught.  It's the perfect soil for God to grow incredibly beautiful things in!  We would like to visit there more regularly, but we will have to see how God will lead us!

At the church, I also shared a story with them:  We had received a very big bill from the insurance company (it was because it took me some time to be registered here in Holland, and when it finally happened and I applied for my Dutch health insurance, they told us that we had to pay back a few months... Dutch laws... but anyways) we had this big bill, and honestly we didn't know what we were going to do with it.  So one morning, I went away to pray.  I wanted to pray about the financial need we had, but I was also overwhelmed with the desire to pray just to know God more.  I wanted to be eager to know more about Him, just like I was when I first started to really live as a Christian believer.  I went through a process in prayer, and came out with a feeling of contentment and trust.  I decided, that whether or not God made a miracle to give the money, I was still going to say, "God, You are good!!"  A few minutes later, I went to find Wim, and he had really surprising news!  He told me that his church in Belgium had given a big donation...  something that we were really not expecting!  In the end, God really did provide more than we needed to pay our bills, and He also provided the peace I needed in my heart. For us, this was a really amazing miracle.

So there is a story from our lives, maybe (hopefully) to encourage you today! 

'serving God by serving others...'

This is a view of one of the hospitality houses here at Heidebeek.  This is part of my [Jenni] job-- preparing them for guests who are to come!  The guest who will be coming now is a speaker for the Generations Discipleship Training School.  (This DTS is for people from all generations, including families!)  The speaker will teach all week, and so it's so important for him to have a nice place to come and rest after the day!  We hope that the people who stay here feel really blessed! 

One thing that I have found to be important for me, is to work in a team!  I'm so glad that I don't have to do all of the work alone!  Here is a picture of Stella, who will be helping out in the hospitality department for the next three months.

But you know what is the funny part?  Stella was my teacher in the Bible course I did here in Holland in 2009!  She was even my "homework mentor"-- she was the one correcting and grading my work!  And now we work together cleaning houses and ironing sheets!  It's funny, but nice how things work out sometimes!

Here is Wim continuing his never-ending job-- cutting the grass!  (I just couldn't get him to pose this time!)  It seems like very routine work (and it is!) but it really makes a difference for the people living here, working here and visiting Heidebeek!

a great start

On Monday and Thursday mornings, we begin with "base worship".  This means we begin the day worshipping the Creator!  The One who made all of us, the One who enables us to even have a YWAM base, the only One who is worthy of our worship!  (worship: "the feeling or expression of reverence and adoration for a deity ; honor given to someone in recognition of their merit ; devotion"). 

Our worship is expressed in many ways-- usually on these days we put our worship into song and sing, along with praying and reading the Bible aloud.  The DTS students are gone, so it's a quiet morning with a few of the staff.  But I love it, it feels like home.

And you know what is the best part?  We are all choosing for this.  No one is forcing it.  We are choosing.  I once wrote a song-- "I choose who I sing for, it's You my Lord.  I choose who I live for, it's You my Lord.  I choose who I will serve- all the earth... that all may see [You] and believe."  This is it.

a day in the life of...

Today I was on kitchen duty in the morning... we made a nice meal for about 50 people!  I've heard someone once say that, 'an army won't march on an empty stomach'.  Not that I necessarily like the battle-analogy, but people need to eat-- so we feed them!  

Wim is on grass-duty... pretty much all day!  There are a lot of fields around Heidebeek itself, and also at different locations that are a part of Heidebeek-- and the grass grows fast with all of the rain and sunshine!  So here he is, working away! 

welcome to our world!

I think most people don't realize what it's like to be, not only missionaries, but missionaries who have two different native languages.  Thankfully the Belgian people are wonderful and most of them speak English... but still, it can be so challenging!

So, unfortunately for now, this is only going to be an English blog.  But hey, if you're Belgian (or also any other nationality!) and there is something you don't understand, Google Translate does wonders.  It's not a perfect translator, but it really can help to get an idea of what is being said!

I used to have a blog while I was with YWAM in the Republic of Georgia... actually, I tried to update it and use it also for our new ministry in the Netherlands-- but it was really difficult to do so.  There I was mostly writing as a single person... and then to use it as a married person... it was just weird.  So here is the new married-person blog.  :-)

But if you are interested, it's still there-- you can go back and read some stories from the old glory days! You'll notice that as the years go, the posts got less.  That was due to meeting, dating and marrying Wim... :-)  But if you go back to 2006-2010ish, there are some interesting stories and a look into what my life was like, and what I was like!

 (click on picture to be directed to read my old blog!)

But that was the past, and this is the future... so here we begin!  Welcome to our world!