Project soup kitchen, Israel

Brian shares food and tender loving care

For our next project we will go again to the soup kitchen in Netanya, Israel. Do you remember Brian Slater? He works for Chosen People Ministries and every Tuesday he opens up a soup kitchen in Netanya. About 150 people gather there each week to receive a good home cooked meal, prayer and free clothing. Of course Brian makes sure they will hear about the love of Yeshua too! Each week this crowd is waiting for the doors of the soup kitchen to open.

New food bank in the center of Netanya

Last year Traveling Light donated 3,000 euro for a new to open foodbank in the center of Netanya. This is not a place where meals are being served, but a place where packages of dry food are being distributed to the poor and needy. As you can see at the picture we took last October the brand new shelves were waiting to be filled!

We have contact with Brian on a regular basis because we translate his news letters into Dutch and distribute them among his supporters in Holland. Besides that we like to think and brainstorm with Brian about  ideas that will generate some income for the soup kitchen and food bank. He is always trying to come up with creative ways to fundraise. It is one of his ideas he shared with us lately, that we would like to take on as our next project: the designing and printing of t-shirts that can be purchased as a souvenir by volunteers.

The t-shirts will carry a slogan about the soup kitchen. Traveling Light wants to donate 1,000 euro for the purchase of these t-shirts. We expect that Brian would be able to buy about 200 shirts (made in Israel) for this amount. He will then sell them at the soup kitchen for about 15 or 20 euro a piece, where hundreds of volunteers from all over the world come each year to help. This should bring in a few thousand euro's. Money that will be used again to buy supplies for his work. Simple idea, great result!

Project soup kitchen is more than just financing the t-shirts. We would also like to donate 500 euro to sponsor a dinner for Holocaust survivors. Brian has done this recently, he invites about 10 elderly Holocaust survivors for a nice dinner. These are people who have escaped the horrors of WWII and have often lost many family members. The purpose of the dinners is to offer them a special meal, to listen to their stories and to share the love of Yeshua with them. We can make that love practical by sharing a meal.

We need 1,500 euro in total to bless the people in Israel. We are planning to go to Israel in October and we will certainly help in the soup kitchen again. Hopefully we will be able to attend this special dinner as well and have a chance to let our light shine in the lives of these people who are often way up in age and do not know God. If you want to join in blessing Israel, do not hesitate and send your gift to;

Rabobank number 1185 82 275, St. Traveling Light, Papendrecht, the Netherlands
IBAN: NL91RABO0118582275
BIC: RABONL2U

More information about Brian's work in Israel can be found by clicking on the label Netanya in the sidebar at the right or by visiting Brian's blog Yeshua's Fresh Bread.

How can you let your light shine?

Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter, when you see the naked, to clothe them, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? Then your light will break forth like the dawn...

[Jesaja 58:7]

3,500 euro for Spetse Hoeve!

Hooray, at Traveling Light we have a reason to party again :)

Thanks to your generous gifts we are able to donate 3,500 euro to Teen Challenge Netherlands for the mens home The Spetse Hoeve in Groningen. Beginning of next month we will go there for a weekend visit and we will officially hand them the cheque. However, our project passenger van isn't finished yet, it still needs some practical help.

Jan has put the van, they currently use, up for sale on the internet. The money they will receive for that van + our donation + a small amount already set apart, will hopefully be enough to purchase a decent new (2nd hand van) with low mileage. Jan is searching the internet for just the right passenger van. As soon as a deal has been made, we will announce it on this blog.

Thank you very much everyone, from us and also from the staff and students at The Spetse Hoeve.

Don't forget: September 8h, 2012 OPEN HOUSE at The Spetse Hoeve.

Project Teeth for Marjan

May we introduce someone special to you? This is Marjan, and it is possible that his face looks familiar to you... because we have posted his picture on this weblog before. In the report about our visit to Teen Challenge Slovenia last April we mentioned him.

Marjan did not live the average comfortable life. Traumatic experiences, addictions, homelessness, psychiatric  hospitals... Marjan has seen it all. According to the world's standard he would be considered a hopeless case. But according to God's standard he was just a person in dire need of salvation and a new life. So, 18 months ago he came to the Dennis Griffith House in Nova Vas, Slovenia, and entered the program of Teen Challenge. It was there that he experienced the love of the Father, the grace of Jesus and the fellowship with the Holy Spirit. He is a new creation now and has hope for a future. This is very much visible in the picture Jan took a few weeks back: he shines!

During the visit of Jan and Steven to Slovenia Marjan told them he was getting  ready to graduate the program, which is a big deal. Together with Matjaz (the director of Izhod Teen Challenge Slovenia) he went to see his former employer who offered him a job, hallelujah! They are also helping him finding a place to live and going to church and Bible study.

Marjan would love to have new teeth before he starts his job. The cost for his dental work will be around 420 euro. And you know what is so cool? The other men in the program have scraped together their money and offered him 140 euro, a true love offering. So, there is still 280 euro needed. We would love to help him and encourage him, we hope you will do so too!

Donations can be send to:

Rabo bank nr. 1185 82 275 St. Traveling Light, Papendrecht, The Netherlands

IBAN: NL91RABO0118582275

BIC: RABONL2U

Make sure to mention: TEETH MARJAN

PS: As soon as we have received the required amount we will announce it on this blog. Any money that will come in after we have reached the goal will be kept for upcoming projects... and they are all good, so don't worry :)

Visit to Serbia and Slovenia

Men from different Balkan countries, changed by God

As we have mentioned before on this blog, Traveling Light received an invitation from ICF (International Christian Fellowship) in Ljublijana, Slovenia, to attend a very special conference: the My Brother's Keeper Conference in Subotica, Serbia. About 350 men from all Balkan countries (former Yugoslavia) came together for Bible education which often results in reconciliation and forgiveness.

Once divided by war, now united by faith

Such a request is always a good reason for us to plan a short mission trip. So, Jan headed for Slovenia together with Steven Bakker (a youth leader from our church in Holland who has a great desire to get out of his seat). They stayed overnight at the Dennis Griffith House in Nova Vas. The next day they met with pastor Steve Telzerow and they left with a group of 27 people for Serbia. During the conference they witnessed a move of God as He broke down the walls, there were many tears of joy. A band of Christian Roma gypsies took care of the music during the conference, which was awesome!

After the conference Jan and Steven went back to Slovenia and stayed another two days in the men's home. They had lots of opportunities to further build friendships, to encourage the men, to pray with them and to soak up some much needed sunshine :) It is really encouraging for us to see that the center is very well maintained, the vegetable garden well watered and the men working hard. Their small moving business brings in some income that helps them pay for the rent of the house, which is a blessing!

Staff and students Teen Challenge Slovenia

On their way back to Holland Jan and Steven stopped by Teen Challenge Gutes Land in Germany. They always have a bed and some food ready for visitors. Jan had the opportunity to share the Word during the evening service and morning Bible study. It is always a joy to see the staff and students at Gutes Land and to encourage them.

Making personal visits and encouraging people in ministry to keep going, that is really the heart of our non profit. 

Sponsoring summer camp Ukraine

A few weeks ago we announced our project summer camp Ukraine 2012 on this blog. Each year the camp is being organized by Teen Challenge Ukraine in cooperation with a Messianic Jewish congregation. A gift of 20 euro (about $25) was enough to pay for one person to attend the summer camp.

We are delighted to announce that we were able to donate 240 euro towards this camp. It may not seem like a large amount according to western standards, but when converted to human lives.... it means that, thanks to your help and generosity, we were able to pay for 12 people to attend summer camp.

Most of them are men and women who are currently living in Christian drugs- and alcohol rehabilitation homes all over the Ukraine. They have never been on vacation before and having fun and fellowship is a real blessing for them.

The photo's show how much fun they are having this week and how the love of Christ is able to change any man or woman! Maybe this was not a grand, earth chattering project, but it was certainly one with eternal impact. Wow, just seeing these pictures makes us very happy. Thank you so much for helping us.

PS: In August there will be another summer camp in Ukraine, so it is still possible to donate. Please make your gift payable to:

St. Traveling Light, Papendrecht, The Netherlands
Rabobank nr. 1185 82 275
IBAN: NL91RABO0118582275
BIC: RABONL2U
Make sure to mention: UKRAINE SUMMER CAMP

TC Netherlands, De Spetse Hoeve

Information stand Teen Challenge Netherlands

Traveling Light offers more than financial support to ministries in need. We will also try to offer practical help, but most of all spiritual encouragement. 

A few weeks back we celebrated Pentecost, which is a public holiday in Holland, with more than 50.000 people during a four day festival. We took turns volunteering at the Teen Challenge stand, which could be found in the world expo tent where hundreds of non-profits and organisations presented their work. Hundreds, if not thousands, of people came by to ask information, to pick up the news letter from Teen Challenge Netherlands or just to share their testimony. Many young people asked interesting questions, like: 'can I get addicted to my phone or the internet?' and 'How do I know when I am addicted?' etc.

Jan talks with a young boy about the danger of addiction

The questions were not only about alcohol and drugs, but often about gaming, chatting and messaging. We had many good conversations, sometimes quite moving... as with the little boy you see in the picture.

Saturday September 8th, 2012 the Spetse Hoeve is organizing an open house. Everyone is welcome. From 11 am until 5 pm you will be able to see the property, to enjoy a good bbq, to browse our info stand and sales stands and talk with many friends and supporters. There will be games for kids as well, so bring the family!

It would be great if we were able to hand them a cheque for 3,500 euro for the purchase of a new (second hand) passenger van. We still need about 2,000 euro to reach that goal. We have received the question why De Spetse Hoeve doesn't get more financial support from the government. Well, the answer is simple: because evangelism & dicipleship is part of their program, the government cannot support it. They do get a subsidized amount per student, but that is not enough to keep the program running., so please help!

Result of your gifts

Last April Traveling Light was able to donate 2,500 euro to Teen Challenge Ukraine. The money was used for the organization of their annual conference in Kiev. Leaders, staff, students, volunteers, pastors and counselors... anyone connected with Christian rehabilitation programs was welcome. About 200 people from Ukraine, Russia, Kazachstan, USA and Holland (that was us!) attended the conference. How awesome that we were able to support this important work.

The Teen Challenge team made a short video about the conference, so you all can see what your donations have accomplished. Thank you very much everyone for your faithful support and prayers.

News & Prayer

Poster Serbia Conference

Next week Jan is planning to go to Slovenia and Serbia. Pastor Steve Telzerow from Ljublijana invited him to come to the My Brother's Keeper Conference which will be held in Serbia this year. Hundreds of men from all former Yugoslavian countries will come together for prayer, forgiveness and reconciliation.  This will certainly be an interesting event. Please, pray for a safe journey, but most of all that people will be touched by the love of God. We found a short message on Youtube about the upcoming conference, by  Nik Vujičić. You will find it at the end of this post, click to watch.

Last week there was a nice article in our local newspaper about  Teen Challenge Serbia and our efforts to help them. You can find the article HERE, try Google translate and see if you can make sense of it :) We hope that local media coverage like this will bring in new supporters!

Bible study group at summer camp

From June 25-29 2012, Teen Challenge Ukraine, together with a local Jewish Messianic Congregation, organizes their annual summer camp for people from rehab centers all over Ukraine. Men, women, children, everyone is welcome. For many of them it will be the first time to go on a summer camp and have fun. They offer Bible studies, music, games, sports and good, safe fellowship. Let us pray that many hearts will be touched during this week and that many wounds from the past will be healed. For a gift of $25 you can send one person to the summer camp where they will have the time of their life.You can send your donation to:

Rabo bank nr. 1185 82 275 St. Traveling Light, Papendrecht, the Netherlands

IBAN: NL91RABO0118582275

BIC: RABONL2U

For those in the USA, you can donate HERE.

Make sure to mention: Ukraine summer camp

Last week we heard that the two mini vans that belong to Teen Challenge, the Spetse Hoeve in Groningen (Netherlands) broke down. Ouch! That makes our Project Passenger Van all the more urgent. There simply is no extra money to pay for new vans. That is why they have asked for our help. The gifts thermometer currently stands at 1,300 euro. We want to bless them with a gift of 3,500 euro. Without your faithful and generous support we cannot do this.

New beds for Teen Challenge Slovenia

Dejan & Renata

This past April we visited Teen Challenge Slovenia, we went to see the Dennis Griffith House in Nova Vas, a residential program for men with life controlling issues. When the house opened in October 2010 they received some military cots along with blankets from the Red Cross, which was great. But as time passed, some of the cots fell apart and the guys were in need of new beds. Staff member Dejan, who used to struggle with addiction himself, contacted his family. His father and brother own and operate a small wood work shop in the Slovenian Alps.

By the way, if you take a look at the picture of Dejan and his wife Renata and daughter Bianca, it is hard to believe that at some point he had lost hope. It is hard to believe that most people did not believe he had a future. He is living proof that with God all things are possible! His life is one of the many reasons why we sponsor Teen Challenge programs. Each human life is precious and it gives us great joy to see lives restored.

Jan & Dejan at the wood workshop

Anyway, Dejan's dad and brother made new beds for the Dennis Griffith House. We drove up to the mountain village where they live to visit them and to see the work shop. The beds are custom made, beautiful old fashioned quality that is hard to find nowadays. They will last a long time, no doubt. We decided to help Teen Challenge Slovenia to pay the bill for the new beds. They were 650 euro short of the total bill. We have donated that amount last week. Thank you everyone for your faithful gifts. By the way, Jan is planning to go to Slovenia again later this month.

Dorm room with the new beds!

We just LOVE practical projects such as this one. It is even better when local businesses can benefit as well. The men in the program (who sometimes slept on the streets for years) are happy with the new beds and Dejan's family did a great job.

Don't forget our current projects:
* We need 3,500 euro for the purchase of a passenger van for Teen Challenge Netherlands
* For 20 euro (25 dollar) you can send someone in Ukraine to summer camp

Project summer camp Ukraine 2012

Bible studies for new believers

Greetings from Sergey and Mariana Glushko from Teen Challenge Ukraine. Last month, when we were at their house in Kiev, they asked us if we were willing to help them raise finances for their summer camp 2012.

Each year they organize a summer camp for people from rehabilitation centers all over Ukraine. Staff and students alike will be able to enjoy a week of fun, camping, friendship, Bible study, games and music. The cost to go on this summer camp is about 20 euro (or $25) per person, for the whole week! 

Games and fun!

We looked at the photo's from last year's camp and were touched... what an opportunity for men and women from all walks of life to come together and experience fellowship. Most of them have never been on vacation, have never been to a summer camp and have never played games. Of course we want to help!

The camp is for people who are in drugs and alcohol rehabilitation, who have already, seriously decided to start a new life. This summer camp will be the time of their life. For 20 euro (25 dollar) you can send one person to the upcoming summer camp. Just imagine how much joy that will bring! If you want to help, please send in your gift as soon as possible, the camp will be from June 25-29 2012.

Feeding more than 170 people

You can send your donation to

Rabo bank nr. 1185 82 275 St. Traveling Light, Papendrecht, the Netherlands

IBAN: NL91RABO0118582275

BIC: RABONL2U

For those of you in the USA, you can donate HERE.

Make sure to mention: Ukraine summer camp

You can read more on the Facebook page.

By the way, make sure to watch this short video about last year's camp. It is spoken in Russian, sorry, no translation available. But just looking at the film will give you a pretty good idea about this camp. Click on the little red video picture for the film to start.

We just LOVE this initiative! We hope you love it too.