When I first started bringing groups to Amsterdam almost 25 years, we had no local church contacts. Over the course of time it has been a blessing to watch the development of two really good churches here.

One is Crossroads International where we attended this morning. We first went to Crossroads when the church was only a few years old and met in a different place. The leadership team at that time was international and contained several Americans. Today, the presence of Americans in leadership is minimal (the executive pastor, for example, is American) and I rejoice in how this remarkable team has cultivated solid Dutch leadership and involvement. Crossroads has become a remarkably diversified church that has a healthy balance between Dutch and the many expatriates who live here. Only half of the inhabitants of Amsterdam are Dutch – think New York City!

Pray for Crossroads. They are in transition, looking for a new lead pastor. They have had some marvelous communicators, yet none has been more than four years or so in the position. Irishman Jerad Kelly recently transitioned to a ministry in France.

I think a good question we can ask of ourselves is if our church disappeared, would anyone in the greater community notice or care? I can truly say that Crossroads has made an impact in Amsterdam and would be both missed and noticed were they to disappear.  I thank God for this ministry. About 1500 people attend Crossroads each week in three Sunday services held in a university.

Another community of believers with whom we interact is Zolder 50. KCBT has been blessed to play a small part in support of some key individuals and we have a prayer team for them as well. This church was begun almost 8 years ago by a team of over 30 Americans, mostly college students. They are part of a denomination based in Orlando, Florida called Great Commission Ministries (our good friends at Lee’s Summit Christian Community Church are part of this group). As in the case of Crossroads, Zolder has now successfully transitioned their leadership and is no longer an “American church,” as only 7 Americans remain. Lead pastor Eric is American, but the other American pastor working with him has returned to the States. Though greatly missed, his absence has opened the door for other men in the church to step forward into positions of ministry leadership and this is thrilling to see. This evening we heard a young man deliver his first sermon and it was powerfully good and most authentic and sincere.

Zolder (attic in Dutch) is no longer in an attic, but a basement! They are transitioning to Amsterdam 50 with the goal of reproducing 50 other faith communities in this city. This is also a ministry that correctly reflects the tremendous diversity of the city.  Zolder is not really a Dutch ministry as much as it is a ministry targeting post-modern youth culture so prominent in Western Europe.

Over dinner tonight we had a great time discussing what we saw, experienced and learned from having attended these two churches today. This is always a highlight of our time here in Amsterdam, to be able to interact with other believers here.

Well, while you finishing watching the Chiefs lose, I need to get some sleep!

It’s now one in the morning here in Amsterdam, so I’ll keep this short.

This morning we began the teaching portion of this trip as I taught about our mission to make disciples of all peoples. We discussed what makes a people group and how many of there are in the world (over 16,000 and over 40% have no access to the Gospel). We also learned about culture, what it is and how to use it as a vehicle for communication.

This afternoon several wanted to see a replica Dutch village only about a 15 minute train ride away so they could explore Dutch culture as it used to be, complete with romantic-looking windmills, cheese and wooden shoes.

Concertbebouw

When many people hear the word culture, they think of art, music and literature. That’s not really the whole picture of what we were talking about this morning, but we decided we needed some of that culture, too. So we all headed for a short walk from our hotel to the world famous Concertgebouw for a symphony concert. We had great seats and I think even those who are not classical music fans enjoyed the evening.

One fun thing happened today. Gina E is a flight attendant and discovered just yesterday that she was working a flight to Amsterdam. She popped up on my Face Book asking if she could hang out with us today during her 24 hours here. Of course! We had a blast and it was great to see her. It really is a small world, isn’t it?

Schipol Airport in Amsterdam

Donna, Reba and I awoke this morning to discover that our Amsterdam team’s flight was going to be two hours delayed. That almost meant that Reba’s return flight to the US today was going to be equally delayed. Actually, the extra time enabled us to be a bit better prepared and get Reba to the airport in plenty of time. We hated to see her go, but her responsibilities were completed and she will be preparing a report on the potentiality of student mission work in Eastern Europe.

Two hours late but in good spirits, fourteen people emerged from customs ready to explore and discover all that awaits them here in Amsterdam. The later arrival meant that their hotel rooms were ready by the time we got there a bit before noon. They all dropped their luggage off and we headed out to give them a basic orientation to the city core, walking to the Anne Frank house and stopping along the way for a quick but tasty lunch.

I have been bringing groups of people here for well over twenty years and am always amazed at what God does in individual lives. Each morning I will be teaching topics ranging from a biblical foundation of missions, culture, people groups, art history, history of baptist and other separatist groups in this part of Europe and the history of several key missionary movements in history. We will also talk about what all this means to each of our lives.

Some of this is material offered in our Shepherd School of Ministry, but some is unique because of our location here in Holland. Those who have had the same material in Shepherd School always comment that there is something about hearing it in the context of another culture that causes them to hear it from a totally different perspective as though it were for the first time – like the light goes on!

Looking back over these many years I believe that this time here in Amsterdam has been one of the more fruitful endeavors in which I have been involved. People have found their place in God’s mission, others have understood the mission for the first time. Still others have learned to see their own lives and their own cultures from a totally different perspective. Missionaries, pastors and other leaders have been revitalized, stretched and challenged.

Wednesday I was meditating on this simple but eloquent passage.

LORD, my heart is not haughty, nor mine eyes lofty: neither do I exercise myself in great matters, or in things too high for me. Surely I have behaved and quieted myself, as a child that is weaned of his mother: my soul is even as a weaned child. Let Israel hope in the LORD from henceforth and for ever. (Psalms 131:1-3)

What I saw in this psalm was a sense of awe at who God is and a realization that he is the one who does it all. As I reflect on some of the wonderful things he has done on this Amsterdam trip over time, I realize that I don’t have to figure it out or analyze it – that would be too great or too high for me. I just realize that God is the one who does what he ordains to do.

Like a weaned child, I don’t have to clamor constantly to get God’s attention or get what I think I want or need from him. I have learned to quietly trust in him, to put my hope in him and know that he will bring to pass what he wants to bring to pass. I’m just blessed to be a small part of the process and want to savor every moment of it.

I am very excited to see what God does in our lives during these next few days. I’ll let you know.

This was a day for catching up with friends. We had lunch today with Linda K of Zolder 50. What a wonderful lady! I was very encouraged to hear her speak of the ministry here and all that God is doing to grow up this young church. Linda has been at KCBT and we have the joy to support the ministry of Zolder 50 a bit. Each year we have the tradition of meeting at an Irish pub not far from the hotel.

This evening I had dinner with my friend Nabil. Anyone who has been with me on this trip in the last 10 to 14 years or so knows and loves Nabil. I have never met a man who exemplifies servanthood more than Nabil. For years he served our group with all his heart and did it with pure love from his heart. During the ownership change in the hotel he lost his job not long before retirement. Read between the lines. I understand that this things happen, but I certainly miss not having him here at the hotel.

Nabil is Egyptian and a Muslim by birth, though he has lived here in the Netherlands for many, many years. Over the years I and many others have shared with him the good news of Jesus. He is very open, though definitely not religious. He would love to come and visit our church. We would love to have him.

Every time I am with Nabil I long to have him share my faith and grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ.  Every time I am reminded that I can convert no one, but only bear witness of Jesus Christ himself. Pray for my dear friend Nabil and he struggles to determine the path of his life for the years ahead. Pray that if he does not yet understand the grace of God that he will very soon.

As I write these words, our group from KCBT is in the air headed toward Newark. We will pick them up in the morning at the airport here in Amsterdam.

I love Amsterdam. I guess there’s no secret about that. My love affair with this city began in 1983 when I spent a week here during a Billy Graham event. I’ve been coming back almost every year since. I have lost track of how many people I’ve brought here and could tell story after story of lives touched by the times we have shared.

Memphis Hotel - Elvis is NOT in the building

I caught the ICE train at the Frankfurt airport this morning Donna and Reba were already on board, having left Munich very early. By 1:30 this afternoon we pulling into Amsterdam Central Station. We took the tram to our hotel and discovered a lot of changes!

For well over a decade I have been bringing groups to this hotel and some of the staff have become good friends in the process. Last year while we were here the hotel changed ownership and big changes were in the air. As is inevitable, changes in personnel occurred, but some old friends are still here and it was great to see them, talk with them and even spend some time with them. They are moving things around on the first floor and I think it is going to look very nice. We will be the first to eat in the new breakfast room tomorrow, and we will be the first to use the new conference room on Saturday when the group arrives.

Reba has been here twice and Donna spent a couple of days here briefly many years ago. So, after we settled in a bit and I caught up with friends, I took them on a walking tour of the city core. We didn’t even mind too much that it was raining a bit and we got wet – this IS Amsterdam in the Fall. Then, I took them to one of my favorite little restaurants here for a fabulous Italian dinner.

Most of all I am excited to share this beautiful city with the group of 16 arriving Friday morning. There is so much history, art, culture, and lessons to learn about the kingdom God is building. I an hardly wait. Tomorrow we will be busy getting things ready for the group. I’ll let you now how it goes.