Betje brings a smile to the blogosphere

Liesbeth Middendorp (a.k.a. BETJE) started blogging here recently. Just have a look at her weblog and laugh at her funny cartoons. You can also visit this site if you want to find out more about her. Keep on smiling and keep on blogging, Betje!


Two funny little gift books I made together with Betje under my "Panda" pseudonym: Lach eens! (= Have a Smile!) and Kop op! (= Cheer up!)

More statues from sculptor Karel Gomes

I wrote about my visits to the beautiful serene garden behind the Roman Catholic Church in Hoofddorp (read this). I almost bumped into sculptor Karel Gomes last Saturday, but didn't recognise him... Good news, Martin - one of my brothers and a gifted sculptor himself (check this out!) has made an appointment. I am looking forward to meeting the man who made these beautiful statues!

-click pics to enlarge-

Just look at this statue of Joseph the carpenter...

...and the same statue from a different angle with Mary, her aunt Elisabeth and her little baby boy Saint Johnny the Baptist

(just my guess...)

Jacob fighting with the angel

Father embracing his prodigal son

St Franciscus

Jesus carrying the cross with Simon

(part of the Way of the Cross - fourteen small bronzes)

Walking on Water

"There are two kinds of ice: thick and thin. You can have very little faith in thick ice and it will hold you up just fine; you can have enormous faith in thin ice and you can drown. It's not the amount of faith you can muster that matters up front. It may be tiny, like a mustard seed. But your faith must be invested in something solid."

Lynn Anderson, quoted by Lee Strobel in "The Case for Faith", page 334

Come to Me

The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit... Romans 8:16
Why doesn’t God reveal Himself to you? He cannot. It is not that He will not, but He cannot, because you are in the way as long as you won’t abandon yourself to Him in total surrender. Yet once you do, immediately God witnesses to Himself— He cannot witness to you, but He instantly witnesses to His own nature in you. If you received the witness of the Spirit before the reality and truth that comes from obedience, it would simply result in sentimental emotion. But when you act on the basis of redemption, and stop the disrespectfulness of debating with God, He immediately gives His witness. As soon as you abandon your own reasoning and arguing, God witnesses to what He has done, and you are amazed at your total disrespect in having kept Him waiting. If you are debating as to whether or not God can deliver from sin, then either let Him do it or tell Him that He cannot. Do not quote this or that person to Him. Simply obey Matthew 11:28, "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden . . . ." Come, if you are weary, and ask, if you know you are evil (see Luke 11:9-13).

My Utmost for His Highest, Oswald Chambers

Worthless Blog

Very encouraging indeed... ;-)

Wandering Baptist meets Sculptor in Hidden Garden

Today I went to a beautiful garden behind St John the Baptist's Church in the place where I live... Yes this is a Roman Catholic Church, but St John was a Baptist just like me, so I feel very relaxed about my visits to this beautiful, tranquil place :-)

I guess this quiet garden is Hoofddorp's best kept secret and maybe I shouldn't write about this at all... But if you know where to find this hidden place, you can see some magnificent statues. This pietas is just one of them. You can also admire a fantastic series of sculptures - the 14 stations of the cross - Jesus' traditional passage along the Via Dolorosa.

These statues are made by sculptor Karel Gomes. And guess what? Today I met this sculptor in this hidden garden, but I didn't recognise him! No, I didn't mistake him for the gardener... I only thought he was the pastor. When I asked him if he was the pastor of this Roman Catholic Church, he just laughed and said: "No, I'm not".

Later I saw this picture (left) on the internet and now I know who this friendly grey bearded man was! I would have loved to talk with him about his statues. Maybe next time!

Note for my Dutch blog readers: please read this and this!

The Beauty of Sadness

- click on pictures to enlarge -

I went outside this morning for a walk and some fresh air.
And I took my photo camera with me.

I looked at the beauty down on the ground...

...and floating on the water surface.

a

Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me?

Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Saviour and my God. (Psalm 42:11)

A little bit orderly?

My son Robin (13) noticed this hand-written request on a shop window in Dordrecht. It is still possible to read this text: 'Dear Customers... Could you please be so kind as to keep our shop a little bit orderly? Thank you!' The right part of the picture gives you an impression of the shop interior as seen through the window...

Visit to Dordrecht with Robin

Today I went to Dordrecht with my son Robin (13). I had an appointment with Eddy Boevink - a publishing partner at De Hoop. De Hoop is a Christian psychiatric hospital where drug-, alcohol-, medication- and gambling addicts can receive help. Robin had a holiday from school and I asked him to join me today. In the afternoon we had some time left to climb the church tower and to do some sight seeing in this beautiful old city. It was nice to have this pleasent day together after all the sadness we went through as a family last week.

Canal in Dordrecht

Street / canal in Dordrecht

Robin near canal

Dordrecht church tower

Looking straight down from the church tower

View over the city from the church tower

View over the river Merwe from the church tower

Do you believe this?

My father with Talitha - one of his great grandchildren

Believe it or not, but my father's funeral today was a celebration... Of course we are all grieving because it is hard to let my father go - but we rejoice in the fact that he is with his Lord and Saviour now and for ever!

Together with some of my brothers and my eldest nephew, I carried the coffin with my father's body to his grave. While walking slowly, we started to sing and we didn't stop singing until we arrived at the grave. All the while the sun was shining above us on this beautiful autumn day.

At the grave I told the family and friends about my father's business trip to the USA - many years ago. I was just a little boy back then and couldn't understand what was going on. All I knew was that a KLM airplane carried my father away to a far away place. I was sad because my father was out of sight, but even as a little boy I trusted that I would see him again soon. While I was telling this, I pointed at an airplane that was flying high in the sky above us...

Then I told the people that I unexpectedly had to return from Frankfurt to Amsterdam by airplane last week. I was attending the Frankfurt Book Fair when Lydia, my wife, called me while I was in the middle of my business meetings. Lydia told me that our father was taken to hospital after another heart failure (10 years ago the same thing happened to him). I knew that this could happen one day, but just couldn't believe that it happened today: October 19, 2005... This was my father's 81st birthday and my parent's 57th wedding anniversary!

All I could think was: I have to go home as soon as possible! At Frankfurt Airport I bought a ticket for the first flight to Amsterdam by KLM City Hopper. I didn't care about the ticket price - but while I was waiting at the gate I noticed that they had sold me a business class ticket for more than 300 euros. Maybe they sold me this so called 'Select Class' ticket because I was wearing a business suit? Anyway, I was treated as an important traveller and they offered me the best treatment I could imagine.


At my father's grave I told the people that a similar thing has happened to my father the moment he passed away. I trust he was treated as a Select Class customer by the Royal Heavenly Airlines. Not because my father was an important man devoted to earthly business matters - he was not. But because he was a precious child of God completely devoted to heavenly Kingdom matters! My father knew that he was saved by God's grace alone. He knew that he didn't deserve any special treatment. But his big Boss paid the price for his one way ticket to Eternity and I'm sure my father was carried away by a heavenly City Hopper - travelling at the speed of light!

We are happy for him, because my father was looking forward to meeting his Lord and Saviour. But at the same time we are all very sad because of our loss. My father is loved by many people and the church sermon was attended by approx. 250 visitors - some of them had never been to a church service before!

When his friend Lazarus died, Jesus was also very sad. I read out loud this piece of Scripture to the people attending my father's funeral.

I repeated Jesus's question to all the people standing around my father's grave: DO YOU BELIEVE THIS? I praise God for the fact that my question was answered affirmatively by most of them!

Then I told the people that I now knew that it was not easy to carry a coffin with the body of just one man - even if you share this load with 7 strong guys. Just imagine how much strength is needed to lift an airplane off the ground! It is hard to believe that this is possible at all, but this miracle happens again and again all around the world. Just go to the nearest airport and see for yourself what invisible strength can accomplish!

At this point I handed a chestnut and an acorn to my grieving mother and I read out this piece of Scripture...

Father of Compassion

My email message to Heartlight:

Dear friends at Heartlight!

Please read today’s post on Monday Boosters.

I write encouraging texts for each Monday. I distribute them via email to my friends and family and via the Internet I share them with the rest of the world. This is something the Lord inspired me to do a couple of weeks ago.

I just want to let you know that last Friday’s text is such an encouragement to me. “It just so happens” that 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 are exactly the same verses that I had written about last Friday - the day my father went to heaven. Because of the time difference between Europe and the USA, I was able to read this VOTD Bible quotation just after midnight (so after writing and uploading my ‘Monday Boosters’ text!) God is so good!

Keep up the good work, brothers and sisters! May the Lord bless you!
In His service,
Paul

Oppeppers (Dutch)
Monday Boosters (English)

Thank You

My Dad is Home

In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you.
(John 14:2)

Today, 21 October 2005, my dear father Simon Jacobus 'Bob' Abspoel (81) peacefully went to be with His Lord.

Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope. We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. According to the Lord's own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage each other with these words.
(1 Thessalonians 4:13-18)

Thank You, Lord Jesus. Thank You for giving me my dear father. Thank You for all the love that he showed me. Thank You for the great example he is and always will be - to me and to many others. Thank You for the hope that lives in me. Thank You for the peace and strength that you have given us all. I am sure that we will meet my dad again in the place that You have prepared for us. Yes - I will see him again in the Father's House. Thank You, Lord Jesus!

Scanning the skies for signs

“Did you see the movie Contact?”
“Sure,” I said. “It was based on Carl Sagan’s book.”
“That’s right,” he replied. “In the movie, scientists are scanning the skies for signs of intelligent life in space. Their radiotelescopes just receive static – random sounds from space. It’s reasonable to assume there’s no intelligence behind that. Then one day they begin receiving a transmission of prime numbers, which are numbers divisible only by themselves and one.
“The scientists reason that it’s too improbable that there would be a natural cause behind a string of numbers like that. This wasn’t merely unorganized static; if was information, a message with content. From that, they concluded there was an intelligent cause behind it. As Sagan himself once said, ‘The receipt of a single message from space’ would be enough to know there’s an intelligence out there. That’s reasoning by analogy- we know that where there’s intelligent communication, there’s an intelligent cause.”
Bradley’s eyes bored in on me as he delivered his conclusion. “And if a single message from space is enough for us to conclude there’s an intelligence behind it, then what about the vast amounts of information contained in the DNA of every living plant and animal?” he said, his voice rising in emphasis.
“Each cell in the human body contains more information than in all thirty volumes of the Encyclopaedia Britanica. It’s certainly reasonable to make the inference that this isn’t the random product of unguided nature, but it’s the unmistakable sign of an Intelligent Designer.”
It was an argument without an answer. “Then,” I said, “the origin of life is the Achilles heel of evolution.”
“That’s right. As Philip Johnson said, ‘If Darwinist are to keep the Creator out of the picture, they have to provide a naturalistic explanation for the origin of life.’
“Lee, they haven’t been able to do it. Despite all their efforts, they haven’t even come up with a single possibility that even remotely makes sense. And there’s no prospect they will. In fact, everything is pointing the other way – in the unmistakable direction of God. Today it takes a great deal of faith to be an honest scientist who is an atheist.”

Lee Strobel, The Case for Faith – A Journalist Investigates the Toughest Objections to Christianity. Zondervan ISBN 0-310-23528-6 Also read: The Case for Christ - A Journalist's Personal Investigation of the Evidence for Jesus. Zondervan ISBN 0-310-20930-7

Both books are highly recommended!

Click here if you want to visit the official SETI site (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence). The mission of the SETI Institute is to explore, understand and explain the origin, nature and prevalence of life in the universe.

But of course you can also look here for some fascinating answers... Two examples:

For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse. Romans 1:20

By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God's command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible. Hebrews 11:3

My Utmost for His Highest

If you can afford to buy just one book, buy a Bible.

If you can afford to buy another book, buy My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers.

But what if you only want to read text from a screen? Lucky you! You can also read the Bible and My Utmost for His Highest online!

Walk away from your own preoccupations...

I pray that Gospel for Asia will become like a bridge, giving you the opportunity to walk away from your own preoccupations to the harvest fields of Asia--and see the perishing multitudes through the eyes of Jesus.
May you allow God to use your life to change the destiny of millions through your prayers and partnership with our native brothers and sisters.

K.P. Yohannan, Gospel For Asia.

Without law, no freedom

Alas, we often think that freedom exists and that it is law which binds freedom. Yet it is just the opposite; without law, freedom does not exist at all, and it is law which gives freedom.
Søren Kierkegaard

Oppeppers / Boosters - looking for a volunteer!

I have re-designed my Oppeppers blog... Sorry guys, it's all in Dutch. I do want to publish these weekly Bible verses with 'devotional prayers' on Monday Boosters, but writing AND translating these texts will cost me too much time.

Looking for a volunteer!
I need somebody who is Dutch (or knows the Dutch language), writes flawless English and is willing to translate these short meditations every week for FREE (it's Dutch, remember?) It is not a big job, but your help will be highly appreciated!

By the way, I send out the Dutch Oppeppers each Monday morning by email. I want to inspire and encourage people with my writings at the start of their working week.

Every knee will bow

Together with thousands of Christians around the world I am praying for the persecuted church in North Korea. Wait and see: the idols will be toppled, the statues will fall and God's people will be released! Not because of our efforts, but because of the Lord's faithfulness.

The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their cry; the face of the LORD is against those who do evil, to cut off the memory of them from the earth. The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles. The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. Psalm 34:15-18

It's official: I'm an alien!

Everybody is a foreigner in most parts of the world,
but followers of Jesus are strangers everywhere.



They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth. People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.
(Hebrews 11:13-16)

Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it.
(Hebrews 13:2)

Since you call on a Father who judges each man's work impartially, live your lives as strangers here in reverent fear.
(1 Peter 1:17)

Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul.
(1 Peter 2:11)

Click here and start reading a book that is truly out of this world! Warning: a very spooky sound and a strange voice will come out of your speakers if you click here... Hey, forget the sounds! Pay attention to the message! May God bless you with his Word.

The kind of religion God likes

Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. (James 1:27)

No fear in love

There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. (1 John 3:14)

50 ways to help persecuted Christians

Following yesterday's entry... You can download a PDF brochure by clicking here. This brochure - 50 Ways to Help Persecuted Christians - is published by an organisation called Christian Freedom International.


So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples. (John 13:34-35)

Whenever we have the opportunity, we should do good to everyone, especially to our Christian brothers and sisters. (Galatians 6:10)

Don’t forget about those in prison. Suffer with them as though you were there yourself. Share the sorrow of those being mistreated, as though you feel their pain in your own bodies. (Hebrews 13:3)

If one part suffers, every part suffers with it

"Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you." (Jesus in Matthew 5:10-12)



"Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it." (1 Corinthians 12:27)

If you are a follower of Jesus - and a member of his world-wide body - you must feel the pain of millions of persecuted believers around the globe. If you don't feel their pain - please ask yourself which part of the body is numb or not functioning properly...

PLEASE DON'T IGNORE THE SUFFERING OF YOUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS IN CHRIST AROUND THE GLOBE !



Do you feel powerless? Overwhelmed? Guilty? That will not change a thing. So, what CAN you do? Start reading about persecuted Christians! Find out what is going on world-wide by visiting the websites from organisations such as Voice of the Martyrs and Open Doors. Be informed, get involved, stay connected, share your knowledge and let your brothers and sisters know that you care. And don't forget to pray, pray, pray!

"For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their prayer, but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil." (1 Peter 3:12)

Please also read this post

Return to your God

Sculptured by Ruth Beloe (beautiful art!)

In the womb he grasped his brother's heel;
as a man he struggled with God.
He struggled with the angel and overcame him;
he wept and begged for his favor.
He found him at Bethel
and talked with him there-
the LORD God Almighty,
the LORD is his name of renown!
But you must return to your God;
maintain love and justice,
and wait for your God always.
Hosea 12:3-6

Pondering around the world

According to my site meter I now have blog readers from almost every continent. I guess I have to write more about Antartica ;-)

Avifauna

Autumn has come to the Netherlands...

...but we still had some sunshine today...

...and we saw this "ordinary" duck...

...and many birds of other feathers - like this colorful parrot in a cage. We went to Avifauna in Alphen aan den Rijn today with family and friends. It was just great! Click on my FLICKR badge (above right) or click on this link to see all the other pictures. Enjoy!

Where is your God?

Thousands of people may have died yesterday in yet another part of this globe because of a powerful earthquake. My thoughts and prayers are with the people from Pakistan, northern India and Afghanistan.

Lord have mercy on us - vulnerable people living in this broken, suffering world.
My tears have been my food day and night, while men say to me all day long, "Where is your God?" Psalm 42 (you can also listen to God's Word here.)

Jesus told us:
"When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places, and famines. These are the beginning of birth pains." Read this in context (or listen here.)

I wrote about these birth pangs a couple of months ago - click here if you want to read that post.