Outreach Event on Friday!

Friday, June 30th (tomorrow!) I am part of an outreach event that we are puting on at the Shelter Jordan. I'm in a small group of staff that meet weekly to pray, encourage each other, and think of ways to do outreach at the hostel. We will be offering a free BBQ in the courtyard of the hostel and one of the girls in my small group will be performing a little skit to a song - very powerful, questioning who nailed Jesus to the cross - the point being that we all did because we are all sinners. The weather is supposed to be beautiful! Pray that many will come at 7 PM (10 AM California time!), that we would have a neat time connecting with the guests and that we may dialouge with them about our faith and their thoughts on it all. Thanks for taking the time to read this and pray - I really appreciate it!

The First Pictures!

At the San Fransisco airport with a very heavy backpack because I went over weight with my luggage!


Isn't it beautiful! At Tante (aunt) Gree and Oom Jaap's house - it's just so green here!


Welcome to Shelter Jordan - where I joyfully serve!

Day 2 and 3 at the Shelter

A couple of days have passed now and I am starting to feel pretty good around here! The weather is beautiful today, but before I go into today's events let me back up to yesterday. I had a morning shift in the cafe of the Hostel from 7:45 to 1ish. We spend the first 15 minutes praying together as staff which is really a neat priority - it focuses us and reminds us why we are serving, to see the name of Jesus preached in all ways. Then I started making and serving breakfast to the guests. This is a really neat to chance to talk to people from all over the world before they head off into the city for the day. After lunch in the hostel (gotta love that hagelslag. . .aka chocolate sprinkles on bread!) the staff team received emergency training. A lot can go wrong in a hostel with over 100 guests (it is full every night during the busy summer months) so it was very interesting and important to learn that the emergency number here is not 911 but 112! At this point is was about 5 and I really needs some fresh air so I went for a walk to try to familiarize myself with the streets around the hostel. There are so many neat little shops and restaurants, and of course the buildings and cannals are amazing. After dinner at the hostel I joined in on the Bible Discussion time that happens every night. It was a very encouraging and challenging time - two guests and a cleaner (who receives free room and board in the hostel in exchange for cleaning sheets, taking out trash, etc) were there, two are not Christians so it was neat to hear things from their perspective and then have the opportunity to explain the gospel to them. I really see God at work and am excited to see the fruits of our labor here. So that was one day - not to mention how fun it is to be with the staff, even though we're from the US, France, Canada, Germany, Portugal, Wales, South Korea, New Zealand, and the Netherlands we all have the common bond of Christ - it has been amazing to experience how unifying that really is!
This moring I had moring cafe duty again - now I can make a mean "2 eggs with ham and cheese" and soon I will head back over to the hostel for dinner, probably another interesting dish - good thing I'm not a picky eater! I met a Canadian guest named Andrea and had the chance to give her a Bible (Thanks Mr. and Mrs. Smith!), she's been traveling alone since March without one but has been wanted to get back into the Word so that was cool! Well, on that note I will end this post but another post with pictures will soon follow I hope. Pray for strength as this is very draining - good thing I'm enjoying it!

Doi, Arijaan

Welcome to Amsterdam!

Yay - I have arrived! Everything has gone very smoothly! Traveling was really fun, I sat next to two high school graduates who will be traveling around Europe so I had a neat chance to invite them to Amsterdam and I think that I will see them in a couple of weeks. I also had the chance to get over my jet lag at my aunt and uncle's house which was very nice. Everywhere I look I see green and it's simply amazing - so maybe (?) it's been worth it that I haven't seen the sun in 2 out of the 3 days I've been here. If I don't see the sun shine soon, very soon, I might feel differently! I arrived at the community house, after a train and bus ride from Hoofddorp, at 4 and have been going nonstop since then - my head is spinning! So many new people, places, and things to learn. Everyone is very friendly - I am currently talking with a girl from Germany and another from Oregon. The house we live in is huge, I have three other roommates - from Holland, Texas, and New Zealand. Good combination I hope! Tomorrow I have my first work shift in the cafe of the youth hostel. I already ate dinner there tonight ("Mexican Oven Dish" - not quite the same as the authentic Mexican food I love!) so I got a feel for things there. Too bad the Dutch are out of the World Cup now but it's still really fun to watch the games in this city full of tourists! They have been showing the games on a big screen in the hostel which is a neat chance to hang out and form relationships with the guests. Well, time to get going - more people to meet and things to discover. Hopefully soon I will be able to figure out how to get pictures on the blog - the internet is slow here so we'll see about that! Pray for good rest and strength, God is so faithful and I am so thankful to be here. I hope to write again soon!

With Love, Arijaan

Welcome to Amsterdam!

Yay - I have arrived! Everything has gone very smoothly! Traveling was really fun, I sat next to two high school graduates who will be traveling around Europe so I had a neat chance to invite them to Amsterdam and I think that I will see them in a couple of weeks. I also had the chance to get over my jet lag at my aunt and uncle's house which was very nice. Everywhere I look I see green and it's simply amazing - so maybe (?) it's been worth it that I haven't seen the sun in 2 out of the 3 days I've been here. If I don't see the sun shine soon, very soon, I might feel differently! I arrived at the community house, after a train and bus ride from Hoofddorp, at 4 and have been going nonstop since then - my head is spinning! So many new people, places, and things to learn. Everyone is very friendly - I am currently talking with a girl from Germany and another from Oregon. The house we live in is huge, I have three other roommates - from Holland, Texas, and New Zealand. Good combination I hope! Tomorrow I have my first work shift in the cafe of the youth hostel. I already ate dinner there tonight ("Mexican Oven Dish" - not quite the same as the authentic Mexican food I love!) so I got a feel for things there. Too bad the Dutch are out of the World Cup now but it's still really fun to watch the games in this city full of tourists! They have been showing the games on a big screen in the hostel which is a neat chance to hang out and form relationships with the guests. Well, time to get going - more people to meet and things to discover. Hopefully soon I will be able to figure out how to get pictures on the blog - the internet is slow here so we'll see about that! Pray for good rest and strength, God is so faithful and I am so thankful to be here. I hope to write again soon!

With Love, Arijaan

Less than a week!

Hello all! Time flies when you're having fun - I leave next Friday, June 23, for Amsterdam. I am so excited to go and do the work that God has prepared for me to do! Thanks for checking out the blog, I am really looking forward to keeping it up-to-date for you. I am reading through Acts right now and I've noticed that the Christians spent a lot of time telling each other what the Lord was doing in their midst - it is so important to share with others that we serve a God who is alive and super active around the globe. I look forward to doing just that for you! Also, I will have a mailing address so if you like writing please don't hesitate!

The Shelter Community House

Willemsstraat 33

1015 HW Amsterdam

The Netherlands

phone number: 0031-20-626-0055

If you write be sure to put my name somewhere on the envelope. Also, I listed my address within my profile as well - so if you ever need it that's where it will be waiting for you! One last thought, if you know of anyone who might enjoy reading this please pass on the link - the more the merrier! I promise that once I am in Holland I will post more frequently but until then I hope that you are well and enjoying these summer months!

Arijaan