Visit Netanya, Israel

During our stay in Israel we not only visited the women's home in Arad, but the new food pantry in Netanya as well. We also volunteered at the existing soup kitchen in Netanya, which takes place every Monday at Beit-Asaph Congregation. When they open their doors many people (some elderly, some single moms, some low income) can come in for a free hot meal, groceries and clothes. Below are some pics we took:

Collecting donated food for the soup kitchen

Lunch with Brian Slater and the volunteers of that day

Sorting, folding and displaying 2-hand clothes

New, to be opened, food pantry in Netanya

Presenting the cheque from Traveling Light

Many thanks, also from Brian Slater, for giving generously for this project. Oh yes, there is another cool photo we want to share with you... in the soup kitchen and food pantry there is always a book table with bibles and other mateial. Since it is forbidden in Israel to evangelize to Jewish/Muslim people, there is a sign at the book table that says 'free to take'. In that way material is not being hand out, but people take it home by choice and that is okay! We found some beautiful bibles there, like this one:

Old and New Testament in Hebrew and Arabic!

While Jan served the people their meal, I had the opportunity to pray with several older people for physical ailments. So much joy was released that two elderly ladies started to shout and sing. It was awesome, God is so good!

Project Spetse Hoeve, Groningen

In the first months since the founding of our non profit organisation, we have been able to financially, practically and/or spiritually support projects/churches in Ukraine, Germany, Israel and Slovenia. It is our goal to stay in contact with the people behind these projects as much as we can.

Stephan & Marianne Barendse

The next project we would like to introduce to you is one in our own country, Holland! As some of you may know, we have good contacts with Stephan and Marianne Barendse from the Spetse Hoeve. A home where men with all kinds of life controlling problems are welcome. The Spetse Hoeve operates under the flag of Teen Challenge and they offer personal as well as group studies and work projects. Stephan & Marianne exchanged their city life in the heart of Amsterdam for a life in rural Groningen, the north eastern corner of Holland. We greatly admire their choice and courage. The Spetse Hoeve has a wood workshop, a vegetable garden, a green house, a  second hand store and a bicycle repair shop.

Teen Challenge Spetse Hoeve

While we were in Israel we had a pleasant talk via Skype with Stephan, the director of Teen Challenge Netherlands, and a few things surfaced that are of interest for our organisation. After a recent visit from the fire department the Spetse Hoeve received a list of things to do in order to keep up with the current regulations. They will need to purchase new fire extinguishers, fire alarms, camera's and cables, an AID and some other emergency equipment. A hefty bill of 6000 euro's! The day Stephan contacted us through Skype was a good day, because they had just received a 3500 euro gift from World Challenge. So... where does that put us? We believe we can raise the other 2,500 euro needed to pay this fire safety bill. We hope you will believe with us.

Is there a better investment than the investment in human lives? What it it were your brother, son, father or husband who needed the help of a rehabilitation program like Teen Challenge? Every life is important, every life counts, every life is valuable. Men's lives will be forever changed in the Spetse Hoeve, and so their families will be forever changed. There is no greater joy!

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

[Matthew 6:19-21]

2,250 euro for Teen Challenge, Slovenia!

It's time to celebrate again here at Traveling Light. Oh, how we love to bring good news: the 2,250 euro (3,000 dollars) for Teen Challenge Izhod, Slovenia came in, thanks to your generosity.

The money will mainly be used to purchase a good chainsaw as well as heating fuel for the coming winter. It is just awesome that we are able to help our friends in Slovenia in this simple and practical way. Let's pray that this coming winter there will be homeless and addicted men who decide to seriously turn away from the lifestyle that is slowly destroying their future and that they will enter through the doors of Teen Challenge.

A heartfelt thanks to everyone who has made this possible!

Visit to Arad, Israel

Women's home Ark of the Negev

While on vacation in Israel, we visited the women's home, Ark in the Negev, In Arad, Israel. Our organisation has been able to donate 1,500 euro's (7,500 NIS) towards this project in Israel and we were honored to visit the house last weekend.

Arad is a desert town, high above the Dead Sea, not too far from Be'er Sheeva. The house is tucked away in a quiet street overlooking the Negev desert. We met with several of the volunteers who are living there at the moment and who will be functioning as house mothers once the first guests will arrive. How wonderful it is to be able to provide a safe house for women and children!

New patio furniture

We were shown around the house, which looks cute as a button. All walls are freshly painted, the rooms clean and orderly with new beds and furniture (a gift from Operation Blessing, the 700 club). Others donated a washing machine and some potted plants for the front yard. 

We shared a wonderful meal together and talked and talked.... We also prayed together for the future of this house and everyone who will enter through the doors. And you know what was so great about the meal we had? Here we were, Jew, Arab and Christian, all with different backgrounds, but united in the name of Jesus!

PS: the gifts thermometer for Teen Challenge Izhod, Slovenia has risen to 2,100 euro's!

Update on Slovenia project

Last Monday we announced our new project: Teen Challenge Izhod, Slovenia. We will be raising 3,000 dollars (or approx. 2,250 euro's)  for the men's center in Nova Vas. They will need this for heating fuel and the purchase of a chain saw (600 euro's).

The gifts thermometer rose this week from zero to 1,300 euro's, which is awesome! We transferred the money for the chain saw, so they can get to work, chopping trees,  before winter comes. Thanks everyone, for helping others, your gifts are greatly appreciated.

Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.

[2 Corinthians 9:7]

Project Teen Challenge Izhod, Slovenia

MS 280-L

You may wonder... what in the world is a chain saw doing on this weblog?

Well, you may remember our friends Matjaz & Magdalena Horjak in Slovenia. We have written about their work among the drugs addicts in Slovenia on this weblog and we have visited them on several occasions. After years of preparation and waiting they opened the Dennis Griffith House in Nova Vas, Slovenia, a rental home where men who sincerely want to break their destructive habits can come and enter a year long program, as offered worldwide through Teen Challenge. There are currently three men in the program and Matjaz has been blessed with full time staff member Dejan & Renata Berginc!

The Horjak family

Recently we asked them if they could give us a list of current needs. As many other Teen Challenge programs they largely depend on donations as well as on any income they can make through operating small businesses. In Slovenia the men have a moving company and quite regularly they are asked to remove trees from people's property. In order to do this they have an immediate need for a good chain saw. Matjaz emailed me the page from a tools catalogue to show us the one they want to buy. They will need 3,000 dollars for the coming winter, which is about 2250 euros. Part is for heating fuel and about 600 euro's is for the chain saw.

This is a project Traveling Light would like to take on. Why? Because lives are being changed here, forever! Because we just love small projects like this where people are really working hard to make a difference in this world!

Who wants to join us in raising the needed funds?

For those in the USA, you can donate HERE, make sure to select TC Slovenia at step 2!

1500 euro for women's home Arad, Israel

Hooray! We're happy again here at Traveling Light. We're happy because we can bring you good news. The 1,500 euro's for Ark in the Negev, a women's home in Arad, Israel, came in.

A heartfelt thanks for everyone who donated for this cause. How awesome that we can support and help Polly Sigulim this way, from Holland. The home was officially opened September 20th and the money we are going to send will be used for the purchase of sturdy deck furniture and much needed repairs of the patio cover.

Polly had the dream to open a home for abused women in Israel for years and now her dream has come true. Within a few weeks we are hoping to visit the new home. We will then post a report and some photo's on this weblog!

In days to come Jacob will take root, Israel will bud and blossom and fill all the world with fruit!

Isaiah 27:6

Weekend Conference Ludwigslust, Germany

Fels in der Brandung

We just came back from a great weekend in Ludwigslust, Germany. Pastor Gerhard from Fels in der Brandung, a small and active evangelical church in the North Eastern corner of Germany, had invited us to come and speak at his church. We gladly accepted his invitation to come and encourage the believers in Ludwigslust and surrounding areas. The last few times we visited were as much a blessing for us as for them! So, we packed the camper and headed east.

Family of God

We picked as theme for this conference: Building Better Relationships. We spoke on the importance and relevance of a relationship with Jesus, who came to communicate grace and truth, with the Holy Spirit who communicates power and with the Father who communicates love. Except for these spiritual relationships, we also spoke about natural relationships, as in husband and wife. Saturday afternoon we watched the movie Fireproof, a very powerful movie when it comes to the marriage relationship. It was subtitled in German, so most people were able to understand what it was all about.

Relaxing and fun afternoon stroll

We were super blessed with a sunny and warm autumn weekend. We took time for a long walk through the castle gardens, an absolute beautiful place to visit! It gave us time to enjoy the outdoors, to stretch our legs and to talk with many people who attended the conference. Pastor Gerhard has a way of inviting people from all over the place, and this time we were blessed to have among us a group of men from Afghanistan and Iran, currently seeking asylum in Germany. They attended the whole conference and heard the message of grace, love and salvation. What an honor to have them in our midst!

New friends from Afghanistan

We were also very happy to have spiritual and practical support from our home town, Papendrecht. Matthijs Goedegebuure came with us and took care of all the praise and worship sessions. Wow, can he sing or what? His songs brought many people to tears, especially when he dug up some old favorites like The old rugged cross and Don Franciso's  He's alive. Piet & Anneke Stehouwer came as well, their presence is always the icing on the cake as their love and kindness is evident in everything they do.

Powerful praise & worship

Sunday afternoon we headed to the Evangelisch Freikirchliche Gmeinde in Putlitz, a small baptist church about an hour away. Jan had the honor to speak there as well. After the service we were invited for a traditional kaffee & kuche fest! Wow, what a hospitality, what a kindness and love and what a great delight for our taste buds :)

We can look back at a great weekend, many people were touched by the love of our heavenly Father. The international fellowship was awesome and the kindness and love with which we were received and welcomed was again outstanding. All the ladies that took care of the food are such a blessing, they made us feel right at home. Special thanks are in place for our translators, we just LOVE working with Julie, Christoph and Thomas! 

Update Womens Home Arad, Israel

Arad, Israel

Today we received an email from Polly Sigulim in Israel that we would like to (partially) share with you all.

Dear Friends, Shalom from ARAD! 

We are thrilled to finally be able to announce to those who have stood with us in Prayer and encouragement that the ''ARK IN THE NEGEV'' is actually OPEN! We are ready to receive our first 'trainees' ! The 'ARK IN THE NEGEV' is a home style, live-in center for Israeli women who are in need of spiritual guidance, disciplining and practical vocational training. This Is a life changing, 'learning program' based on the WHOLE Bible and it's principles. We are happy to invite ALL who wish to join us in blessing this Home, to a 'Dedication to the Lord' evening. We will have an Open House, with a Pot Blessing Dinner and we invite all who come to bring either food or drink. Please join us in celebrating the birth of this new program and adventure that the Lord has put together. For those who wish to bring a 'house warming gift' an indoor house plant would add much and be wonderful for that final 'perfect touch'.

Yes! Things are moving and slowly taking shape. We pray and hope to be able to present Polly and her staff with a gift as well. The gifts thermometer is steadily rising, we have received 1.000 euro's already, so we need 500 more in order to reach the desired goal. The best thing is that within a few more weeks we will be able to see the house for ourselves when we visit Israel.

PS: Please, click on the link below for an interesting article and film about Polly's work in Israel.

http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/insideisrael/2011/March/Ultra-Orthodox-Demonstrate-against-Israeli-Believers/

Ark in the Negev project

Well, today we transferred the 3.000 euro's for the soup kitchen in Netanya, Israel. With that done, the project didn't come to an end, it's just getting started. We will continue to follow Brian Slater's efforts, who manages the soup kitchens in  Israel. He is ALWAYS in dire need for volunteers, so if you're thinking about visiting Israel, make sure to sign up for a couple of days or weeks of volunteer work. You can email us about details.

The next project we would like to sponsor is also in Israel. May we introduce to you Polly Sigulim. Jan met Polly in 2009 during a seminar in Israel and later that year we both met her during Spiritual Emphasize in Riverside CA, an annual event organized by Teen Challenge Southern California. She then stayed with us in Ventura for a week or so and during that time she shared her dream with us: the opening of a home for battered and abused women in Israel. A safe place for women from all backgrounds (Jewish, Arab, Bedouin, Russian etc.) where they can experience the love of Yeshua (Jesus).

Polly grew up in the USA but has lived in Israel for more than 20 years. She became a widow at a young age and was left with the care for her three small children. She also took in many foster children. Now that her children are adults she really wants to give meaning to her life by helping others in need. We believe in Polly's dream and are happy that now we are able to help her 'officially'. A few weeks ago she e-mailed us that she finally was able to rent a house that would serve as a womens' home. Yes, we are so happy and excited that Polly's plans are beginning to take shape. We asked her for immediate needs and she told us she is getting a lot of help from all over, even from the 700club, which is awesome. However, they still need money to fix the roof of the porch and to purchase patio furniture, so they can have a livingroom outside. Arad is in the Negev desert, so it's always warm. They will need 1,500 euro's for this.

We think that is just the right amount for Traveling Light. We will start fundraising this week for this small scale project that will have a huge impact on the lives of women, mothers, & children in the land of Israel. We are hoping to visit the new home next month.