Project Study Grant Teen Challenge, Slovenia

Magdalena Horjak

The 5,000 euro for project casa Shalom in Italy came in, thank you all very much for your generosity. If you read any German, HERE is more information about the therapeutic community that we are sponsoring with this money.

Alright, time for a new project. The beautiful lady in this picture is Magdalena Horjak. A few years back she and her husband Matjaz started the Izhod Teen Challenge men's home in Nova Vas, Slovenia. As in many European countries the requirements and regulations to run a rehabilitation home are getting more and more complicated. It is now necessary for one of the staff members to have a degree in health & social studies.

Magdalena is currently studying to get her degree. Quite an undertaking, since she is also the mother of three young daughters. Even more so, such a study is a financial burden. The Horjaks have borrowed the money for this study and are making payments of 750 euro. Traveling Light wants to help them by taking care of (at least) one of these payments.

Horjak family

Many of our projects involve the sponsoring of Christian / Bible based rehabilitation work. We figure it is no more than logical that you want to see the fruit of that work as well. 'Are people staying clean?' is a question we often hear. That is why, every now and then, we like to zoom in on people whose lives have been transformed in an amazing way. Believe it or not, but Magdalena used to be a heroin addict at some point in her younger life.

We are very proud of her now, she is a good wife and mother and an excellent student!

We want the work among the homeless and addicts in Slovenia to continue, and we are grateful that Magdalena is doing the necessary studies.

Will you help us help her?

News items & prayer

Cora Donk

A non-profit organisation can only operate with the help of supporters and volunteers. Every now and then we put one of our volunteers in the spotlight on this blog. This time it is Cora Donk (who is also one of our board members). Cora is quite handy with garden tools and painting brush and she often helps family, friends and neighbors with their chores. She doesn't do this to make money, but to collect money for Traveling Light. Recently she surprised us with a generous gift from which she wanted 2,500 euro  to donate to the Teen Challenge women's home Ark in the Negev, in Israel. Wow, we are so grateful, what a generous gift and what a blessing for the work in Israel. We have sponsored the Ark in the Negev several times over the past few years and we are planning to visit them again this fall. Thank you Cora for your hard work and generosity. Let's pray the money will be used where needed most.

Visiting Joran Stoilov in Tetovo

Jan and volunteer Krijn Donk are currently traveling in Macedonia. The idea to travel to Macedonia together came after Krijn's ice skating fundraiser that resulted in a gift of 1,450 euro for the Saraj church in Skopje. It is a blessing to give, but that is not the end of a project, it is the start. Visiting the people behind the projects is part of our vision too. Such visits, we call them encouragement trips, strengthen relationships and are very inspiring (for all parties involved). Of course such visits will often result in new project ideas. Jan will speak in several evangelical churches over the weekend as well. Please pray for good travels and for the effective spreading of the gospel in this country.

Creative workshops at ZIP 2012

The 500 euro for project sponsoring ZIP festival in the Netherlands came in. To our great surprise we even received a gift from a couple in California. These dear people have Dutch forefathers and gladly wanted to invest in the spreading of the gospel in the Netherlands. They were happy to hear that such events are being organised in our small country. We hope that our sponsoring project will inspire others to do so as well: non profits, churches, businesses, families. If ten give 500 euro it will make 5,000 euro. If twenty give 500 euro it will make 10,000 euro. If we put our hands together we can do so much more! Will you pray for the organisation of this festival and of course for nice weather and many people with hungry hearts for God's love?

The 5,000 euro for project Casa Shalom in Italy is almost there (still 150 euro short). Who helps us out?

This means we have room to announce the next two projects: 1) project study grant Teen Challenge Slovenia and 2) follow-up project chapel Teen Challenge Slovakia.

Thank you very much for all your help, donations, support, kind words and emails. Together, we can do so much more to change Europe and the Middle east for God's glory!

My Brother's Keeper conference, Serbia

About 300 men attended the conference

Like last year we received an invitation from pastor Steve Telzerow (ICF, International Christian Fellowship) in Ljublijana, to attend a special conference: the My Brother's Keeper Conference in Beograd, Serbia. That is a church conference for men (spiritual leaders and pastors) from all Balkan nations. Traveling Light has good connections in most of these countries and it is an honor to be part of such an event. And again a volunteer, from the Hoeksteen Church in Etten-Leur, came with Jan. His name is Jim Hayes.

City centre Beograd

At first they drove to Slovenia where they slept at the Teen Challenge men's home. The next day they all left for Beograd. During the conference a group of six men was set apart (Jan being one of them) for confession purposes. Many men took the opportunity to confess their sins and to pray with a man from this group for forgiveness and healing. Wow, a wave of forgiveness, reconciliation, deliverance and healing came forth. What a blessing for Traveling Light to be able to participate, and be of service, at such an historic event, as personal and international relationships were being restored.

All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations will bow down before him (Psalm 22:28).

Fixing the Teen Challenge moving van

At night Jan, Jim and the Teen Challenge Slovenia team went into the streets to talk with the homeless and addicts. They actually were able to take one desperate guy with them to the center in Slovenia, where he has the opportunity to start a new life, with the help of God. For Jan there was no time to relax, the Teen Challenge moving van needed repairs. The perfect job for a good mechanic, offering practical help when possible :) The blond lady in the middle is Bianca, she obviously has an eye for technical stuff and cool guys.

On the way back to Holland Jan and Jim stopped at Teen Challenge Gutes Land in Germany. There is always room for one more person there. The theme of forgiveness and reconciliation came up again during prayer and Bible study. It turned out Jim (an English men by birth) still had some unresolved anger towards the German people, deep down in his heart.

Jim & Markus, one in Jesus Christ

The Holy Spirit prompted one of the staff members of Gutes Land to do something very special and precious. Early in the morning of Wednesday June 12th, 2013 he bowed down and washed the feet of Jan and Jim. While doing that he asked the English people and the Dutch people for forgiveness on behalf of the German people. Again, a very special historic and symbolic moment, needless to say that tears flowed and emotions could no longer be kept inside. And what a confirmation that the work of Traveling Light can and will impact the nations... changing hearts, one person at the time..

He makes wars cease to the ends of the earth. He breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the shields with fire. He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” (Psalm 46:9-10)

If you desire to support our work in Europe... please, do so!

Make your gifts payable to:

Rabo bank nr. 1185 82 275 St. Traveling Light

IBAN: NL91RABO0118582275

BIC: RABONL2U

PS: We ALWAYS travel at our own expense. ALL gifts go towards our current projects.

Project sponsoring ZIP festival, The Netherlands

If you have been following the activities of Traveling Light for a while, you must have noticed that many of the projects we support are somehow related to Christian drugs- and alcohol rehabilitation programs. Pulling people out of the pit of darkness into the light and giving them new hope. But, that is not all we do...

There are basically two pillars for all projects we sponsor, 1) they have to be small-scale and 2) they must somehow connect people with the love of Jesus. It can be a food bank in Israel, a gypsy church in Macedonia or a summer camp in the Ukraine. We are currently raising 5,000 euro for Casa Shalom in Italy, a therapeutic community in the Tuscan hills. This week we also want to ask your attention for a local initiative in The Netherlands: the ZIP festival (Sing in the Polder) that will be held July 5-7th, 2013 in Lopik.

A few years ago several churches in that area decided to work together in organizing local events, sing-inns, youth evenings and an annual festival. Their goals was, and still is, to bring people from all walks of life together and share the message of the Bible with them. It is also their goal to further improve relationships between different churches and denominations.The ZIP festival is a family festival being organized by a large group of faithful volunteers. Traveling Light would love to sponsor this initiative with a gift of 500 euro. We hope more non profits, businesses, organisations, churches and families will follow our example and become sponsors of this outreach event.

During the summer time, every week some kind of special event is being organized in The Netherlands: a summer fair, a music festival, a market ... Lots of money is being pumped into this kind of worldly entertainment. It is no more than logical that we support our Christian events; as an encouragement and as an investment in human lives. Good causes can be found everywhere as the need for God is huge. If you have a heart for outreach events in rural areas, please support the ZIP festival.

Send your gift to Rabobank nr. 1185 82 275, St. Traveling Light, IBAN: NL91RABO0118582275

BIC: RABONL2U  Make sure to mention. ZIP 2013.

PS: We will participate in the program as well. We will speak, give a workshop and be present with a Traveling Light stand.