Newsletter 1

In the period I worked at LEEF! I was active in helping to build Missionary Communities, one of them a beautiful Persian speaking community. Inspired by this and the examples of others, a dream of diverse communities from diverse cultural backgrounds arises in my heart for Rotterdam. In praying, speaking with people, the vision of Reaching Rotterdam is born. Not to do this all ourselves, but to work together, to mobilize people, churches and various organizations for this purpose. This is how the vision of Reaching Rotterdam is born. Reaching Rotterdam sees new blossoming communities of faith rising among the unreached people groups in Rotterdam in collaboration with the church in Rotterdam. The first steps are then to map out the various unreached groups in Rotterdam and, by extension, which organizations are already working among these groups. We are now beginning to get a good picture of the different groups and their needs. The needs and our vision are clear, but how do you turn that into an organization and into action? The start is prayer. God gives desire, He gives encounters and he gives direction. We are encouraged that at our start evening, we were able to receive more than 80 people to pray together for different language groups in the city. Our joint prayer hour on the 2nd Wednesday of the month at 10.00 in the 24/7 prayerroom is really a time to take a deep breath. To praise God for what he does, but also to pray for a breakthrough. The approval of the visa of our ShortTerm worker Jonathan Dinovo was a direct response to our prayer. He now works with 2 of our partner organizations to support them in Gods mission. The Cornerstone week was another highlight. We really enjoyed receiving the group at the Terphuis and seeing them fly out to the various projects in Rotterdam. At the moment we are working on a collaboration for outreach among Turkish speakers, a very encouraging initiative! These are just some examples to show that the work has started. As expressed in our mission, we pray together, work together and learn together. We are curious about what God is going to do in Rotterdam!

Now, I say none of this to discourage missionary work. In fact, I’d say it’s an incredibly blessed calling and one that easily puts an individual in touch with some of the most overlooked parts of Christ’s ministry. With any important job or calling, however, it’s important that the individual in question understand what it is they’re getting into. Preparedness is huge and has a great deal of influence on the effectiveness of the missionary in question. It’s for this reason that men and women within the Church have created missionary schools for the purpose of getting said preparedness accomplished. Reaching Rotterdam’s missionary organization, Worldwide Evangelization for Christ (WEC), did just that with the establishment of Cornerstone Bible College for Mission Training in Beugen, the Netherlands. Cornerstone offers missionary training that encapsulates the academic, practical, and experiential sides of the ministry. Students have the option to complete either a one or two-year program in order to gain a certificate or diploma in intercultural studies. Studies focus on theological applications in the mission field, communication of the Gospel across different cultures, standard, yet ever essential, biblical knowledge, and even spiritual and personal formation (so not only one’s mind but character is trained as well). Studies aren’t purely in the classroom either and students are given opportunities to travel and serve in different settings in order to gain that foundational firsthand experience. In fact, one of those opportunities just so happens to involve a trip for first-year students to Rotterdam. And it was this past November that we at Reaching Rotterdam had the pleasure of hosting said students. From November 14th to 17th, the RR team took the students around the city, introducing them to our various partners and giving them the chance to see their ministries and help where they could. In between all that, the students attended a few lectures from some ministry leaders in Rotterdam, most of which related to the theme of discipleship in missions. There was also plenty of time to fellowship and get to know the students. I enjoyed hearing the stories of these young men and women. Many have previous mission experience and are taking their time at Cornerstone to further what they already know. Some have beautiful plans of beginning ministries in parts of the world where the Gospel hasn’t taken much root. Others still are discerning their path forward but, knowing it will be on the global mission field, are doing what they can to be well prepared. With a wide array of backgrounds and nationalities, I found it enriching to hear from the students and was grateful to spend a week getting to know these brothers and sisters.Now the students are back in Beugen continuing with their studies. More trips are to come for them and with those trips more experiences. Constant guidance from the Holy Spirit is necessary for them. My hope is that in reading this you can be encouraged knowing that the brothers and sisters in this corner of the Church are doing what they can to be well prepared to fulfill that Great Commission. The ministry continues from generation to generation, some go far, and others stay, regardless we could all do with the encouragement to know that the Kingdom continues to produce faithful and brave servants of Christ.

Many leave their mission country within this period for several reasons. For WEC and many other mission organizations this is not a reason to stop the mission or to be discouraged. We do everything to reach the unreached. We try to prepare our missionaries as well as possible and we support them as best as we can when they are there, but even then some countries we would love to enter stay closed for our western workers. Knowing all that I am surprised about the mission in Europe. Large numbers of these same unreached people groups come to us. Some from countries we can’t enter. Why is mission among these unreached people groups who migrated to our doorstep not more developed? The churches do what they can but we need a missionary mindset to reach those people. We need mission organizations to come and work together with churches. We need special attention to those groups who make up 20% to 50% of the population in our neighborhoods. We need specialists, people who speak the language and understand the culture. But above all that we need passion and kindness and people making the first step. We have all these beloved people coming to us, becoming our new neighbors, living close to our church and next to our church members but still being as unreached as in their home countries. We are calling out for vision to be shaped, prayers to rise, and people to be called to develop this mission among the unreached at our doorstep. Let’s do both, Let’s do missions far where needed, despite difficulties, but let’s also not just pass what is begging for our attention at our doorstep.

It was a morning where individuals from diverse backgrounds came together by their shared love of Christ and His will for the people of the city. In singing, fellowship, and prayer, our bonds were deepened and a great start to the season was set. Our second prayer meeting was just as fantastic with some new faces showing up as well. The momentum from meeting one continued and further intercession was made. Each one of us prayed for an unreached person in our lives. It was great to see the genuine care poured out for so many and just how wide a scope there is for Rotterdam’s unreached. A very important moment from the last two months took place on the evening of Thursday, October 20th at Adriaen Janzkerk. This was our Startavond, a community event where the Reaching Rotterdam mission was officially shared with the public. With around 80 in attendance, the church was packed with men and women interested in reaching the unreached of their city. The evening began with a time of fellowship before transitioning into multicultural worship. Daniel van Saane then shared the vision of Reaching Rotterdam and encouraged all those interested to join in. The evening was further illuminated by testimonies from formerly unreached communities and a message from local Pastor Nico van Splunter of Geloven in Spangen. What was shared that evening was incredibly inspirational and moving, showing that not only does God equip His people for His mission but that an abundant harvest is ever at work. As the evening wrapped up, the congregation split into four different prayer groups. In that old church, on that rainy night, so many different prayers were being given for the unreached peoples of Rotterdam. It was awe-inspiring. The devotion of each man and woman was clear and the Holy Spirit’s presence was undeniable in the actions and attitudes of His faithful followers. It was truly something to behold and the best possible start for Reaching Rotterdam’s public ministry. The past couple of months haven’t been without their struggles, such is the reality of ministry. However, despite what may or may not come our way, so long as we’re fueled by proper prayer we will have our eyes set on the right place and the right One. We could not have asked for a better time and are immensely grateful to the Lord for His kindness in it all. And grateful to each man and woman who has taken the time to pray alongside us. But our prayers don’t end here. We’ll continue to be faithful in coming to God with the work He has so graciously given us. And we extend a continual invitation to all those willing to participate and listen. So, as we look to the future, with faithfulness to our present, we ask for your intercession. There’s much more to do, we’re only getting started but what a wonderful start it is. In continued prayer and continued love for God and others.