NEW WEBSITE

We have moved to : www.thedufoorts.com. Come check it out!

the couch story

A little while back Wim and I discovered that our couches needed to be replaced. How did we discover that? When we started to get holes in our pants because the metal springs had pushed their way out! Still they were useable so we just dreamt of buying another couch, when in reality it wasn't really an option. 

We looked on a 2nd hand website and tried to find a good deal, but either the couch was nice & too expensive, or a decent price & bad condition. Not very helpful for us!

One Sunday a friend from church called me up and asked if we were needing a new couch. Shocked and excited, I told her that actually we really did need one. To which she replied that her mom wanted to give their couch away. Why? Because she tried to sell it on that 2nd hand website but people offered so little money (€200-300) that she preferred to give it away for free to someone who needed it! So we got a couch... a NICE couch, and one that definitely fit in our budget hehe :-)

And the moral of the story is that God cares about every detail of our lives. We always say that nothing is too big for God, but it's also true that nothing is too small for Him! This was just another great reminder for us that God sees us and He cares.We hope that you will experience the same thing even today! Lots of love!

double doubting done

I want to share another experience we recently had with the supernatural (above the norm) provision of God.

We have two kids now... tada! Ezra is obviously a baby and can't walk and Nora can walk, but she's still small enough that she doesn't listen so well and will just run everywhere. So I was looking into buying a double stroller. Some friends of ours generously gave us one a few months ago, but it was a side-by-side one which was next to impossible to maneuver through the grocery store aisles. So we sold it (they said that we could do whatever we wanted with it) and wanted to buy one that had the kids sitting one in front of the other- more narrow and able to fit through aisles for shopping. 

I had been looking on Marktplaats (it's the Craig's List of Holland) and had found some nice strollers, but there was one in particular that I liked- it was a Chicco Together. I emailed with the man who was selling it, he was willing to give me a discount on the price and I almost bought it-- but in the end we decided not to because it was in Amsterdam and that was just too far to drive to buy a stroller. So I let it go and I'm pretty sure somewhere in my heart I was asking God for a stroller like that one. 

A week or so later, I was looking online again and I saw another one of these Chicco Togethers. But this time it was in Harderwijk (much closer) and the name of the person looked familiar-- it turned out it was someone from our church. I emailed with them and in the end they decided to just give us the stroller! The nice thing was that they didn't even know that we were missionaries living from gifts-- they just wanted to bless us! 

So God saw my desire/need and met it in a way that I didn't expect at all- but it was so nice! Thank you Papa!

May He provide for your needs and desires in an above the natural way today!

Mission Possible

In November, Wim and I attended House of Heroes for the first time. We were invited by a friend, and to be honest we were a bit reluctant about attending. For the past four years we didn't have a real home church here in Holland. But we accepted her invitation and decided to visit one Sunday.

I was blown away. It felt so much like home. What did? I don't know. It was just everything-- there were a lot of international people, the worship times were quite free (people moving around, everyone singing REALLY loud hehe). And I met God there.

During the worship time, I realized that I had quite a lot of hurt in my heart because of some challenges we had experienced with a church that supported us in the past. I felt let down, disappointed and because of that I had subconsciously closed down a part of my heart. Which made it difficult to experience God fully (because I was partly closed off to Him). And it was like all of a sudden the light came on, and I saw that I had a door that was locked (and had been locked for a while), and with trembling hands I unlocked that door and invited God in. Wow. After being hindered for so long and not fully realizing it, it was such a relief to experience freedom again.

So in January, we decided to become members. Since then, I've become part of the worship team, and we have started training to be connect group leaders (we plan to host it in our home). It's insane how quickly we've been "plugged in" and how much healing has come to our hearts about the topic "church".

Anyways, I tell all of this because this week our pastors, Mattheus and Rebekah van der Steen, are putting on a conference here in Holland- "Mission Possible". And we are just so honored to be able to say that we are part of that church, that has such great vision (so much so that many people think it's crazy!) and passion for God and for the whole world to Him.  If you want to watch some of the sessions (there is still a live session tonight, and in the morning I think) you can watch it on God TV. 

CHECK IT OUT HERE

Have a great Saturday and we pray that you will experience a miracle today! It will be like a wink (oogknip) from God expressing "I SEE YOU". Cause He really does see you.

from three to four...

So... we had a baby! Actually, I had a baby. And it didn't exactly go the way I had hoped and dreamed it would (note: painless labor that is over before it begins producing the lovely baby that we've been waiting for for 9 months). I ended up having a C-section after there was some confusion about what was going on in my body: I had a fever and they couldn't figure out why. They tested me for everything and there was no clear explanation-- and then my water broke and our lovely little boy had "done his business" in it (aka: pooped). I guess he was just signaling that it was his time to enter the world. And so he did.

On March 18th, Ezra James Dufoort was born. Look at how cute he is...

It's definitely been an adjustment going from having one human being who is entirely dependent on you for their well-being, to having two human beings who are entirely dependent on you for their well-being. Needless to say, it takes quite a lot of energy but of course it's worth it all and more. 

So since we had such a huge change to our family, I figured it was time to update the blog as well-- so voila! New and improved, a bit bright and "spunky"-- I hope you enjoy!  Thanks so much for your prayers for us, and your interest (obviously you're interested because you came to our blog and have read all the way until this line-- either that or you landed here by chance, and in that case: hello). Check out some of the links in our sidebar right there --> and have a great day!  :-)

no words to describe...

... how Father God amazes us over and over again. Seriously the words, "God is so good... faithful... kind" are just not descriptive enough. They don't give enough value to Him because He's just so much more...

We sent out a newsletter yesterday about our upcoming outreach to Brussels and some other news (pregnancy, exams, new car: read it here in English & here in Dutch). We wrote that we needed money to pay off the rest of our car, but we didn't write that we actually also needed money for the outreach to Brussels: €200 ($230) + more for putting fuel in the car and other expenses that come with traveling. Actually we needed to give the €200 yesterday to our team leader, but we didn't have it yet. We said we were trusting and waiting on God.

But I gotta be honest, I was beginning to feel discouraged because it FELT like there wasn't coming much response to our newsletter. Of course there are the faithful ones who always send an email in response just to let us know they are praying and thinking of us-- SO VALUABLE (note: do you want to know how you can encourage missionaries the most? Respond to their newsletters! Even ONE line! Let them know that you are out there and that you remember them!) But we had a need that was immediate and I was hoping for the like immediate answer to come. The night passed, morning came and there wasn't the answer I had been hoping for. 

I sat down for breakfast before my driving lesson and shared with God how I was feeling. I told Him that I really needed a word from Him, somehow-- a Bible verse that He was clearly speaking through, an email, a donation... anything-- just to encourage my heart. I went to my driving lesson (which went very well, by the way) and came back feeling a bit better. As soon as I walked into the living room Wim says, "Hey there was another surprise... God provided again"... a bunch emotions came over me-- relief, surprise, comfort, and most of all just feeling so loved and so seen by Him. It turns out a lovely couple who did a DTS here at Heidebeek gave us a 'New Years gift' of €400! Enough to contribute our share to the outreach and to cover the other expenses.

Wow, just wow. It's surprising every time again. I sort of feel like I shouldn't be surprised anymore, but on the other hand it's also nice to feel that surprise. Almost like God is wooing us!  Sounds crazy, I know, but that's what it seems like! So thank you Papa for hearing our hearts, knowing our needs and being kind to us. Sorry that I get so quickly discouraged and fall tempted to doubt, but thank you for your love that is bigger than my weaknesses! And thank you to our partners out there who are praying for us and sacrificing their own money to help us live the life God has called us to.

And YOU: if you're in a place of need like we have just been, we want to release the breakthrough we just received over your situation as well. God will provide and He will give even more than you need!

Love, The Dufoorts

good good father

I've been enjoying this song from the Housefires album:

"You're a good good Father

It's who You are...

And I'm loved by You

It's who I am..."

Getting to know God as the good Father perfect in every way has given so much insight to how we can parent our kids well. I know it can sound all cliche like, because all Christians say that, but I'm so dead serious. Like if I never knew what if felt like to be loved as a daughter, to be cared for, understood, released-- it would make it so much harder to be able to do that for my kids. I mean, it already is hard for me, but being able to relate to being a child helps me to raise my children.

And speaking of children... we had our 20 week ultrasound yesterday and we have a healthy baby boy growing in my belly!! Hooray!  Of course we were just super relieved to know that every thing is going fine for the baby developmentally.  But it's also so nice to be able to anticipate a little man running around the Dufoort house in the semi-near future.  I already sorted through Nora's baby clothes just keeping the things I really liked, thinking that we might need to use them again soon. But I guess not... so I must sort again. :-)

that's our baby!

Also, in light of the new family addition we are going to need to upgrade our car. We've had a faithful Suzuki that has been wonderful, but it's just not going to fit 4 of us & our things.  We started a fundraiser to raise money for a secondhand stationwagon and we're hoping that we'll be able to buy that before the baby comes.  It's a challenge though, because in one way we're excited to see how God wants to provide and take care of us.  And in another way it comes with some awkward feelings because there can be pressure to like "prove" that we need a car in order to be effective missionaries. Could we survive without one? Probably. But it will make our life easier and enable us to continue doing what we do-- traveling to Belgium, leading worship, doing life with our family. It would bless us greatly.  If you are interested in helping us with that, you can click here.

Blessings!!

provision with a double-meaning

Wim and I had planned to go to Belgium last weekend, Saturday until Monday, to share at a church and to celebrate some birthdays together with Wim's family. The only problem was that on Wednesday we had almost no money in the bank and we didn't expect something to come before the weekend. (NOTE: Wim's supporters give directly via bank transfer throughout the month, and usually people give on or around the same day, so we knew that usually money didn't come in at that time). We knew that God would provide somehow, but it's still always a surprise when He does!

That Friday we received a €100 donation from people who usually give only €5 per month, totally unexpected! And totally on time.  We were able to put fuel in the car twice, buy birthday presents for our family, enjoy a nice lunch before we hit the road and not feel the pressure of counting every cent of money to make sure that we could get there and back.

But this provision had a double-meaning for us.  Also on Friday we received an email from some people we had asked for help and input about our financial situation. We were hoping that they had some ideas how we could increase our support, and that they could also network for us. But instead their advice to us was that Wim should probably look for a part-time job. Now, we totally understand how people would come to this decision and feel that it's rational. Our lifestyle is a bit crazy, living on the edge and we have been battling to get on top of our finances for the last 3 years. We have prayed and asked God if there is more we can do, like work or get jobs, and we never felt peace that that was the solution we were looking for. Still, to receive an email like that when we were reaching out hoping for help, was quite discouraging.  

Yet God is so good. Because He knew that we would get that email exactly that day. And He knew that we would then begin to question if we were in the right place or not. And with that small act of intervention, an unexpected and very needed €100 donation, He gave us reassurance that HE IS OUR PROVIDER. He sees us, knows us, loves us, wants the best for us. We ended up having a fantastic weekend in Belgium, encouraging and championing Christians to go deeper in their relationship with God, to be more real, to be more available for Him. And we came home feeling satisfied.  No matter how many times it happens, I am awe-struck every time. God is so near and involved in our lives.... that makes me happy.  :-)

...this is also the real us :-)

So, I'm not really sure how to recover from that last blog post! I must admit after posting I had second thoughts, but then I let it go. Just like the title says: this is the real us. And that is what we are: REAL. With emotions and expressions, some pretty and some, well.... less pretty. ;-)

We've been back "home" in Holland for some time now and there is some very important news that we have yet to announce (on this blog, at least):  we are expecting our 2nd child!  A nice present to bring back from America... hehe!  

So, coming March 2015 we will officially be a family of four!  

warning: this is the real us

Today Wim and I were driving to visit some friends at a church fellowship, but first we needed to stop and get ice cream (extremely important!). On the way Wim was feeling stressed out because: Nora's stroller started growing mold, I tried to clean it but it just keeps coming back and so I was talking about maybe buying a new one cause it's just not healthy for her... But that led to other things which led to the other things.

You see, since we moved to The Netherlands 3 years ago, we have struggled with money. For about one year that struggle totally ruled our life, so much to the point that we stopped giving or being generous almost at all. After that year God really convicted us of our greedy and selfish hearts, and he used 'giving tithe' as a means to free us from ourselves. So we started to give out of our need, legalistically 10% of every gift that came in. And it helped so much. We didn't miss the money that we were giving away (we still struggled financially, but not more because of it)... But most important our heart attitude changed and we finally felt FREE. About a year after that change, we felt like a God was calling us to a deeper level in generosity. Instead of us collecting the tithe and then deciding who we wanted to bless with it, we were to make commitments and give monthly. The first step was to break us free from mammon, from the love of money and from being ruled by it. And the second step was to release control of the money. 

Those things have totally brought so much freedom into our lives. BUT...but... It's still hard financially. There have been abundant times, but if we're honest we wish there were more. Money doesn't rule over us like it used to, but we can't over spiritualize it away. The fact is you need money to pay bills, to buy food, to get around and BE ABLE TO FUNCTION IN MINISTRY. And another fact is that money is something that most people wish we would stop talking about.

I find it difficult to express how we really feel because we don't want to step on any toes, but at the same time we are bursting with emotions and actual pains that we have received in our lives as full time missionaries. 

You know what hurts? When someone in the church makes a comment about your new clothes or computer... "Wow, those missionaries sure have nice things..." Implying what? That missionaries need to live poorly?! Or when people think and radiate the thought that not having enough support is an indicator that we probably aren't obeying God in some area or other. Seriously? Seriously?! What if the tables were turned and the people who aren't obeying are the ones that have heard or felt God move them to give to our ministry, and they haven't done it! Ouch! It probably hurts (or offends) to read a comment like that, but that's exactly how it feels for us!  It's like we are surrounded by people with magnifying glasses: some are sincerely interested, but others are careless and they burn us with their poor aim (just picture all the ants that you fried with a magnifying glass in your childhood.... Yeah that's kinda how we feel sometimes).

Now I know it sounds like I'm a broken person on a rant, and the truth is I am, we are broken in many ways and we are getting healed day by day.  But this stuff just needs to be said. At least we need to say it for our sake. Missionaries are not the property of the church. We aren't opening up our lives so that we can be scrutinized. And while we make it a goal to be open and teachable, we really just need a hug and an ear to listen sometimes because we are HUMAN and sometimes life is hard. And you know what else? We need money. We do. We need prayer very much. But sometimes we wish that those prayers would materialize into support, because our lives would be so much easier then. Our minds and our hearts would be freer to love people and to bring them into encounters with God. Things are already difficult, try being in the fire 24/7, cause that's how it feels sometimes. It's not always negative, often it's the fire of God purging us so that we can represent Him well, but sometimes it's the fire of stress because you constantly have to choose: pay a bill or buy food? Pay a bill or put fuel in the car so Wim can drive to the refugee center to encourage persecuted Christians? Pay a bill or buy our daughter a toy? It's honestly exhausting.

We're all for wisdom. We're all for knowing where your money is going, making sure that you're investing in places and people who are perpetuating values that you can stand behind. So can you believe in us? Can you stand behind our hearts and not only our activities? Because our activities will change but our hearts will go with us everywhere. And our hearts burn and yearn to know God and love Him well, and to help other people discover the transformational power that is in knowing Him, the Truth. We're desperate for people to love us and stop judging us. 

Can you handle our feelings? Because this is us.

We do seek God about our finances. We seek Him about our activities. We do trust Him and we are open for Him to give us direction. We ask the hard questions: God, are we in the right place? Are we doing something wrong? Do we need to stay where we are or should we just go get jobs? And we share our frustrations with Him: God, where are you? We know you are our provider, but can't you just provide a little more? 

We know God can handle our questions, our frustrations. We know that He will tell us when there's something we need to know. We'll definitely keep you in in the loop. But until then, please, don't just be an observer, join the ride and do life with us. If God has told you to give us money, to write us an encouraging email, to come visit us so you can get a better understanding of our lives, whatever it may be-  JUST DO IT. Please. Maybe God wants to use you to bring the breakthrough we've been longing for for years.

With love, Wim, Jenni & Nora Dufoort

Full-time missionaries with Youth With a Mission

Currently based in The Netherlands

"Helping people discover the Truth that transforms"

passion

Well, one month has flown by quickly! We originally planned to update a bit more here on this blog, but we've been pretty busy up until now. I haven't been "home" for 3 years! So much has happened and changed that there's just a lot to catch up on with family and friends. Also it's the first time my family and friends have seen Nora, so we have been having a lot of times just enjoying the company of our loved ones here in the U.S.  You can read our most recent English newsletter here. Or our Dutch newsletter here (they are different because they go to different audiences).

We have spoken with some churches and individuals and we know that we have been an encouragement. We see worldwide that God is awakening peoples' hearts for true discipleship, but it can sometimes be a lonely road . Not everyone in the church is willing or wanting to be discipled. Some would rather leave it with the salvation prayer and just comfortably live out the rest of their days a Sunday Christian. But God has called us to DIE. He called us to follow Him no matter what the cost. And he called us to become like Him. All of those things require movement, a willingness to change, to be taught. And only a person who is truly in love with Jesus will be able to walk this path. Love is the only motivating factor that endures through struggles and difficulties. Knowledge, obligation, duty...they aren't enough. Only love can set our hearts on fire and move us to give our all for the One we love.

And the church has lost love. There's a lot of talk about love, but it's become a point of theology rather than a lived out reality. And so through us sharing our heart and desire to see Christians become different people, to be transformed as they come to know the truths of God, we know that we are giving a hand to the others who feel the same and who don't have people around them who understand.

The more and more we live out this calling, the more strong it becomes in our hearts. And the more opposed we become to the religious spirit, to a faith that is demanding and harsh, critical and selective, that can be earned by acting and lost by honesty. Our hearts yearn for Christians to know Christ on the inside and for the Living Water to bring transformation, to turn desert into a fruitful garden that people will see and then turn to believe in Him.

So we have one more month of furlough to go. We're going to enjoy my homeland, take time to rest and be refreshed. And when we find ourselves in the position to encourage and impart our passion for honest faith, we are going to take that opportunity and pour out our hearts! Thanks for being a part of our journey and I hope you are encouraged today!

soon and very soon!

Just THREE more days before we fly out to the USA on June 4th!  (I couldn't think of a better birthday present than to see my friends and family again after three years!)

view from our home in Epe

Thanks to God we have a family who will rent our house for two months while we are away.  This is a huge financial blessing for us and we hope that they will be equally blessed.  They have been living in Amsterdam for several years and it will be a much needed refreshment for them to stay in our home in the countryside.

We are busy packing and packing... which is quite an undertaking as it's the first time we will travel with a 9 month old baby!  But it's "de moeite waard" -- worth the effort.

our SCHATJE!

we're off to see...

So, I resisted the bandwagon as long as I could, but Mail Chimp is just too good to be true...

Click here to read the full update!

Great News!

The Dufoorts : V.S. 2014 (Nederlands)

The Dufoorts are coming to YOU! (U.S. version)

a good old year

this is our life

money matters

Nora is here!

Dear Friends,

We want to let you know that our beautiful daughter is here!  Her name is Eleanora Rosa Dufoort, but we will call her "Nora". She was born on September 14th at 10:15pm (22:15), she weighed 8lbs. 13oz. (4000gr.) and was 21 inches (53cm) long!  We really enjoy her!