I wanted to post a little bit about Holland before I take off tomorrow morning at 4:30am! So excited. My sister Stacia is taking me to the airport and from there I'll leave Denver and arrive in Dulles, Washington DC and then from there meet up with my team and leave for Amsterdam! I am really excited. Sad to lose communication with the ones I care about so much - but excited to experience new things and to be able to share them with everyone.
Here is a blurb my teammate Nick wrote in his last newsletter in regards to the Netherlands (aka Holland):
"Despite all the wonderful things this country has to offer, the Dutch have fallen from their traditionally strong Christian roots and college students are no exception. In a country where over 525,000 young adults are in universities and higher education, only 1% of them are involved in any kind of Christian ministry. On top of that, Dutch culture is extremely tolerant and many times completely accepts drug abuse, prostitution, and euthanasia. Needless to say, there is a huge need!
The good news is that God has used Dutch Navigators in a tremendous way. Because of their unique context they have been able to set up thriving ministries on college campuses throughout the country and are reaching students in very significant ways.
Our hope is to see how the gospel is advancing in a post-Christian and post-modern setting. The Dutch Navigators have done a great job ministering in that environment, so there is much to learn there. Also, their situation has let them set up their collegiate ministries as "city ministries" and not "campus ministries", which is something else we could learn from as we start more U.S. ministries in urban areas. They also have a visible focus on the role of the Holy Spirit in their ministries, which is very educational and developmental to observe and participate in.
During our time there we will be very busy! We'll be trained on reaching students in a post-modern / post-Christian context, helping the staff to reach college students, and going to Belgium to help with a week-long "summer camp" for the Dutch student leaders. It will be quite the opportunity to learn, lead, and serve! Please pray God would use this trip to form all of us more deeply in Christ, to show us His heart for reaching new types of people, and give us great insight and experiences to bring back to the U.S. as we seek to reach college students for Christ here." (thanks Nick!)
This is a photo of myself, John and Nick (two of the three guys on the Holland team)!
Here are some things to be praying:
- The relationships within our team and with the Dutch staff
- The country of the Netherlands, in all of its beauty and all of its despair
- That we would be open to what God wants to teach us in The Netherlands and Belgium
- That God would show us how He can do “far more than we can ask or imagine” (Ephesians 3:20)
Thank you all for your support! I cannot wait to update you on everything I learn.
Love you all - take care! (p.s. I return to Colorado July 31st and PA August 7th)
Maryn
