ASI & OCI

At the time of this writing, I'm sitting in a hopelessly crowded train towards the capital of Germany. My final destination is Dresden (capital of Saxony), where I'm joining my German speaking co-workers for our Annual Review meeting with our managing authorities responsible for the EU funded programmes for regional policy. I appreciate that I'm allowed to join this annual trip, especially as it's taking place each time in a different German city. I'm also thankful that I can combine this trip with a fact finding mission to our venue for next year's summer camp (which will be held in Saxony), as well as a visit with dear friends in Thuringia. 

The last few weeks of my life have been quite eventful. At the end of October, I attended the ASI Europe meetings in Sofia, Bulgaria. It was very inspiring and uplifting. I was also happy to see that all the funds needed for the various projects were raised. Our "Hope Life Centre" in Brussels was also among the beneficiaries, which was a great blessing. 

The weekend after, I joined the OCI AdAgra meetings, which took place in the Netherlands this year. I enjoyed it a lot, especially as I was already acquainted with the main speakers, Paul & Natasha Dysinger and Chad & Fadia Kreuzer. After the event, I was able to ride back to Brussels together with the Kreuzers. They had a few days to travel before their next speaking appointment, and so we were able to spend some extra time together. The programme at AdAgra was quite full after all, so it wasn't really possible to spend a lot of quality time talking with other participants. However, I really liked the topics, especially the spiritual applications; and also the musical programme was a blessing. 

Now I look forward to discovering Dresden, as I have never really been there. There are lots of delays again on German railways, but we are hopeful that we will make it there still at a decent hour tonight!

Some impressions of the old city centre in Sofia

Edwin & Paul Dysinger sharing about agriculture

The venue of AdAgra

Blessings Galore

There have been so many happenings lately, but so little time to write them down. So where shall I start?

September 19 was a very special day in the life of our family, because my dear grandmother turned 100! It was such a blessing to experience this day together with her, still being in good health for her age, and also being able to understand what's happening around her and still knowing the people who love her and care for her. Even the Lord Mayor of our city came to congratulate her! 

Grandmother and I

Newspaper article on the visit of the Lord Mayor

Another blessing is that our move to the new church building is imminent now. Yesterday, we worshipped in our old building for the very last time! So today, every member is encouraged to help with the big move. In fact, we already started moving the non-essential items last Sunday, but there is still quite a bit that needs to be done both in the old and in the new building. All is still work-in-process, but with the Lord's help, we will soon have an ideal space for our church services. The Lord is good!

With some dear Sisters at our old church building 
(the boy is extremely sad to leave this house...)

Last weekend, the Pope came ot Belgium. It was a huge endeavour for the city of Brussels, and I don't even want to know how much money has been spent on the security aspects alone! On Sunday, before he flew back to Vatican City, there was a public mass held at the big stadium right by the atomium, and about 35.000 Catholics from all over came to see the "Holy Father". I was quite impressed by the dedication these people manifested. They cheered and waved their flags, and even children were brought to him so that he would bless them. But why do they put this man on a pedestal? Never having been part of the Catholic church, this has always been a mystery to me. After all, it's not people we should worship, but God alone. But I pray that these Christians will come to a right understanding of the bible, making it their one and only foundation of their believes.

Many people came in busses to see the Pope

Thos who didn't get a seat in the stadium, could watch everything on screens outside

New Church in the Making

I probably never shared about our church building project on this blog. This is a rather recent development. Actually, it's been many years that the church leadership realised that our current space is way too small. We are just occupying the third floor in the Conference building, and that's maybe sufficient for a congregation of 50-60, but not for 100+. In fact, every week I tend to leave this place with a headache, because of all these noises on a rather small space. 

Nevertheless, the Lord has been good to us, and we have found an adequate place to buy, in a nice residential area in the south east of Brussels. I consider it a miracle how He has led in the financing of this project, enabling us to raise 100.000 Euro last year in May, and now even raise 50.000 Euro more to do the necessary renovations. Of course 100.000 Euro is not enough to buy a church building in Brussels, but the rest is being loaned to us by the Inter-European Divsion in Berne, Switzerland. So we will have to pay off a mortgage now, but there are so many advantages in owning this building. 

Currently, our brethren are still busy with the renovations. I went there last Sunday to help feeding them, together with some other Sisters. I was quite impressed by what I saw there. We are all excited to move in there at the end of October, Lord willing!

Our brothers working

The baptismal font

View to the garden

With my Sisters serving lunch

Back with a Vengeance

Please forgive me for not writing. I know it's been a year since I posted here the last time. But of course there is always something happening to write about, so I will do my best to make it a priority again to share at least about some of those happenings in this public journal. 

We are in late summer already, and again, I can look back on a very blessed camp meeting in the Westerwald region. This year, the organisation was particularly challenging for us. It already started around April, when our two international speakers (Frank Fournier and Ron Duffield) had to cancel their participation in short order. So we had to look for replacement speakers, which we could thankfully secure before the end of May. However, one day before the camp, one of the international speakers had to cancel because of a conflict in his agenda he somehow had overlooked. But with the Lord's help, we were able to fill all the gaps with speakers who were already there, including one brother from our team, as well as one of our former speakers who was also present at the camp. 

So our only international speaker for the adults was Michael Carducci, and Maurice Berry was there for our youth. We were also blessed by Roman Ril as our German speaker; and those who filled the gaps were equally used by the Lord in a powerful way. If you are interested, you may watch the recordings on our YouTube Channel. 

Our international church here in Brussels is going to move to a new building next month, Lord willing. I will post about this more later. 

Yesterday, I got to go to the famous flower carpet at the Grand Plaza, which is happening there every two years at this time. It was beautiful! But as pretty as these flowers look like, they are going to fade within a few days. This reminds me of Isaiah 40:8:

"The grass withereth, the flower fadeth, but the word of our God shall stand forever."

Indeed, only His word can be a constant in our lives. It's the rock that we can stand on today, and it's the rock that we can stand on tomorrow!

Mary, Janice and I at the flower carpet

Summer Blessings

Sorry for not posting sooner, but things have somehow happened in short order lately. So what follows is a summary of the main highlights of this summer:

In July, I spent ten days in the "Bio-Vital Hotel Die Arche" in north east Germany. It's basically a hotel where people can stay for a few days or longer, which serves healthy vegetarian food and offers some wellness options (like swimming pool, infrared sauna, massages and other treatments). They also organise various lifestyle sessions, like NEWSTART programmes, depression recovery, grief support, hiking and fasting, etc. The programme I took part in was called "Augenschule" ("eye school"), where we learned how to improve our eye sight with some simple exercises. I especially appreciated that the programme was very holistic, i. e. the lady who accompanied us through this programme didn't just teach us the exercises, but we also received food that is good for the eyes, poultices and hydrotherapy for the eyes, wellness treatments (like massage and whirlpool - because relaxation is important for the eyes), etc. The beautiful nature surroundings topped it of. It was also a great experience for me to be on the receiving side and not one of the people running the lifestyle session, as I'm used to from my time in the US.

During the second week of August, our annual German camp meeting took place. This time, we had about 450 participants and everybody was blessed with the programme and the atmosphere. I'm thankful that the organisational aspects went well. Of course, there is always room for improvement, but the Lord will help us with that. You can watch the recordings here. 

Right now, I'm still enjoying part three of my summer vacation, which is another 10-day juice fast in Vojvodina, the Hungarian part of Germany. I'm thankful to be here again after six years. Last Thursday, my friend Nelly (a former co-worker from my time at Uchee Pines in the US, who is currently visiting me) made it here safe and sound, after a long and rather adventurous trip. So far, I'm doing well with the fast, although I'm longing to chew something again! 

And finally, I would like to share a quote from 1 Selected Messages, page 337 to you. It has really spoken to me this week, and I hope it's a blessing to you as well!

"When we are united to Christ, we have the mind of Christ. Purity and love shine forth in the character, meekness and truth control the life. The very expression of the countenance is changed. Christ abiding in the soul exerts a transforming power, and the outward aspect bears witness to the peace and joy that reign within. We drink in the love of Christ, as the branch draws nourishment from the vine. If we are grafted in Christ, if fiber by fiber we have been united with the Living Vine, we shall give evidence of the fact by bearing rich clusters of living fruit. If we are connected with the Light, we shall be channels of light, and in our words and works we shall reflect light to the world. Those who are truly Christians are bound with the chain of love which links earth to heaven, which binds finite man to the infinite God. The light that shines in the face of Jesus Christ shines in the hearts of His followers, to the glory of God."

A few impressions from "Die Arche" Lifestyle Center:

I enjoyed the whirlpool

Part of my daily food here in Serbia :-)

May Blessings

I had intended to publish a post earlier, but you all know how it goes sometimes!

Just some highlights: At the beginning of May, I spent a long weekend in Eupen. I really like being in this little town, as it is the capital of the German part of Belgium, and of course everybody speaks my mother tongue there. It's also close to Aachen in the very west of Germany, where I was able to spend the Sabbath. The rest of the time I did some hiking, attended a nice concert at the local Lutheran church, and also did some work for our upcoming German camp meeting in August. 

On 20 May, we had the annual Health Emphasis Sabbath from the Inter-European Division. So it was my turn to give a sermon that morning. I spoke about the urgency of "Putting the Right Arm to Work". If you are interested, you can watch the recording on YouTube (starts around 1:03).

Another great blessing has been my new gardening opportunity. Given the fact that I'm allowed to plant only a rather small part of the garden behind the house I live, I'm thankful that I got acquainted to a nice lady in the neighbourhood whom I can help planting a vegetable garden. It's such a blessing to be able to grow your own food!

The last thing I would like to share for today is my experience with the ADRA Food Truck (you can find out more about it here) It's a truck that is stationed in Brussels city once a week, giving out free vegetarian food to homeless people. Together with three others, I had the opportunity to serve these people for one afternoon. We had good fun, as you can see from the pictures below!

All in all, I'm very grateful for all these open doors, and for so many opportunities to share the gospel. I haven't mentioned our new church building project yet, but I will do so soon. Stay tuned!

ADRA Social FoodTruck

After serving over 100 meals

The tomato plants 

Eggplants

April Blessings

This past month has been a bit cold overall, but there were some sunny days, for which I'm always thankful. I didn't travel anywere during the Easter holidays, as I always like to be in Brussels during this period. My organisation doesn't only give us Good Friday off (in addition to Easter Monday), but also the Thursday before. However, in Belgium, only the Monday is an official holiday, so I can use these additional days to get errands done, besides taking a break. 

The nature highlight of the month was definitely Hallerbos, a beautiful forest a bit south of Brussels. It's also called the "Blue Forest", because every year in April, it's covered with an amazing carpet of bluebells all over. It was very idyllic and beautiful to look at. 

Another major blessing is the fact that I have new garden to do agriculture! It turned out that in the garden behind my house, there will be only a small space of land for me to cultivate this year. So I posted in the neighbourhood forum on the internet, asking if there is anybody in my vicinity who would let me help them in their vegetable garden, and in return share the harvest with me. Then I got a response from a lady within walking distance from my home, saying that I was exactly the person she had been looking for! It turned out that she has a large garden and is eager to start growing food, but has no idea how to go about it. So by now, we have already prepared the soil and will soon start planting. I'm so excited! Will send some pictures soon. 

I don't know if I have shared before about the "Revival School" I've been following since September. It's offered by FAST Missions, and I can highly recommend the classes there. It's my earnest prayer to experience true revival in my own life, and to be able to spark this also in our church, and that we can soon become a training center to make new disciples for Jesus. One quote of Selected Messages keeps ringing in my ear: 

A revival of true godliness among us is the greatest and most urgent of all our needs. To seek this should be our first work. There must be earnest effort to obtain the blessing of the Lord, not because God is not willing to bestow His blessing upon us, but because we are unprepared to receive it. (Selected Messages 1, p. 121)

May the Lord help us to become true Revival Agents, so that the work on this earth can be finished soon!

Beautiful bluebells all around!

March Blessings

Well, it has been a quite eventful month, at least the first part of it. 

Early March, I went to Germany; as usual partly for work, and partly to see family and friends. I was able to spend a few days at our property in the Black Forest, which turned out to be a nice and relaxing retreat. It was pretty cold, but I was usually hiking when outside, so I could keep warm. The weather was only partly sunny, but I'm always enjoying the fresh air and the calm nature setting there. The altitude is almost 1000m (3300 feet), so you may imagine how different it feels to be in this kind of environment. 

The rest of my short trip was also a blessing, as I could speak to a class of students again, and was able to visit friends and family members. 

Coming back to Brussels, I noticed that the springtime had made some remarkable progress. I never get tired of the flouring trees each year at this time, although it's the same trees and the same colours every time! I'm so thankful for nature coming to life again. This year, I'm also endeavouring to grow a vegetable garden again. It looks like I'm not being very successful in growing from seed (similar to last year's experience), but this will not hold me back. Whatever I don't manage grow from seed, I will buy as small plants. 

Today was the Quarterly Day of Fasting and Prayer by our world church. The purpose is for God's people to pray unitedly, and specifically to "Rebuild the Altar", in other words rebuilding our altar of worship with God. The goal during this special day of prayer was that all participants will desire to rebuild their altars of worship in how they honor God and His Word; that they will fall in love with God’s Word afresh (love is worship), desire to live by it (obedience expresses worship), and desire to share it with others (sharing is calling others to worship). I led out in a special prayer session today during church service, and I hope we can continue this tradition, also by having additional programmes with special emphasis on prayer. I feel an earnest desire of personal revival in my own life and also in the lives of my church members. May the Lord help us in sparking this revival we so desperately need!

Titisee in the Black Forest

Beautiful Ravenna Gorge

Beautiful flowering trees near Brussels

At Tervuren Park

Janice and I had a nice outing

Home Improvement

Today is the first day of March and I'm thankful for some sunny, yet pretty cold days here in Brussels. Lately, I've also been grateful for the completion of my home improvement project. Back in November, I had shared a bit about the renovations in this post. The walls were completed still before Thanksgiving, and subsequently, I started buying and assembling IKEA furniture in my guest room/home office. It took a while to get all the needed parts, and for the wardrobe, I needed some help from an experienced person, but now it looks very nice, as you can see in the pictures below.

Last week, I also enjoyed a visit of my good friend Carla from Brazil. We had met at Newbold College when we were both studying there back in 1997. Ever since, I already had the opportunity to visit her twice in Brazil, but it was the first time that her and her family could come over to visit me. It was a blessing to have them, and I'm grateful that this friendship has lasted for so long. On Sunday, we took a wonderful trip to Bruges. Although it was cold, we enjoyed the picturesque scenery alongside the little canal flowing through the city.

Tomorrow, I'm off to another trip to Germany, both for work and for leisure. I look forward to speaking at a school again, and then to spending an extended weekend in the Black Forest. 

As I'm enjoying my "new" home, I've also been pondering about the heavenly home that Jesus is preparing for us while we are awaiting His return. As much as we can appreciate our earthly surroundings, it's nothing in comparison to the celestial mansions that are waiting for us on the earth made new! 

"Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and will receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also." John 14:1-2

May the Lord help us not to focus so much on what we have here on earth, but rather to fix our mind to a much better place that He is preparing for us in the Heavenly Mansions! 

My new wardrobe

My new home office furniture

With my friend Carla, her daughter, and Janice in Bruges

Views from our boat trip

Berlin

This past Wednesday, I returned from a 5-day trip to Berlin. It would have normally been just a 2-day business trip, however since I hadn't been to the German capital for over 20 years, I decided to add a long weekend to my journey. It was a very nice experience, in spite of the cold weather. I would have appreciated a little more sunshine though, but that's the way it is. 

I got to take a boat cruise on the river Spree in the city centre, followed by a tour through the government district and the famous Reichstag building. What a view! And of course I got to stroll through one of the numerous Christmas markets. The work meeting was quite interesting. It helped me to widen my horizon a little bit, and I got to meet new people. We met in the Representation of the EU in Berlin, which is right by the Brandenburger Tor. Very nice location.

Other than that, these past few weeks have been quite eventful. I haven't blogged about my Thanksgiving dinner and Health Club meeting in November, but both events were very blessed, and I'm so grateful that I was able to do all this, in spite of the delays with my renovation. When I returned from my Germany trip in November, I came back to a huge mess in my apartment, and had to camp on the living room floor for two weeks! But I'm thankful that it's done and over with, and that my walls are looking so much nicer now! 

Now I'm wrapping things up here, before I travel to Germany again this Sunday, in order to be with friends and family for the year end. I'm definitely looking forward to this change of pace!

Me at the Brandenburger Tor

Famous "Schupfnudeln" (potato dumplings) with Sauerkraut

Government district

Famous tower on the Alexanderplatz - with a small church in front

Germany To And Fro

Wow - time flies so quickly! This past Monday, I came back from my Germany trip, and I'm thankful for all the blessings that came with it. 

So after my Back to School experience (see my previous blog), I enjoyed some more days with friends and family, while doing some "teleworking from abroad" as we call it. The weather was very mild all through my stay, in fact too warm for the season, but I definitely enjoyed it. 

The ASI Germany convention was a great blessing. Our planned Center of Influence in Brussels was shortlisted as one of the projects that would be sponsored through the proceeds of the offering; and as the only representative of our church, I was the one presenting it. The outcome was that we are going to receive the full amount requested! We hope and pray now that this will be really the kick-off to get started with this project. Of course we still need more funds, but I'm confident that the Lord will provide. I can't wait for the outcome!

After that, I travelled four hours north east to the Harz region, where the family from my father's side lives. I hadn't been there since my grandmother's funeral beginning of 2016, so it was high time to catch up. It was nice seeing them, and it was definitely the most relaxing part of my trip. My aunt and uncle's home is beautifully situated in the country, so the air is fantastic; and they also have an orchard and vegetable garden. This was a great opportunity to recharge my batteries. 

Now I'm back to a mess here at my home. I had some renovation going on during my absence, but due to some unforeseen circumstances, the works haven't been quite finished. But I look forward to enjoying a renewed apartment very soon!

At ASI Germany

The main speaker Conrad Vine

My second home in Germany

Walnut harvest

A hotel near my aunt and uncle's place

A stone saw

You have only really been where you have been by foot

Beautiful scenery in the Harz region

The reason why I'm sleeping in the living room right now...

Looking forward to a renewed guest room!