More News about Tony Anthony's recent visit to the Netherlands

The tour with Tony Anthony is over... and what an exciting experience it was! Since my last update we've been visiting the city of Rotterdam, where Tony gave his testimony in Evangelical Centre Europoort - a multicultural Pentecostal church where we also enjoyed the great Caribbean praise and worship music, gospel, rap and break dancing. Yes, this is Church 2006! The music, the audience, people we've met - it was just great!! It was also nice to meet Hans (a.k.a. Supergans - see his comment on my last posting) - and Eddy and his wife Debby who asked us to come to their church. (If you want to know more about Eddy Boevink, just watch this TV documentary - sorry only in Dutch... Eddy used to be a heroin addict - he is a walking, talking testimony of God's changing power!)

Unfortunately we couldn't stay at this church, because we had a next appointment in prison 'De IJssel' (Krimpen aan den IJssel). This was our first visit to a Dutch prison together and it was an impressive experience. I've been visiting prisons before, but this time it was quite different... having a guy like Tony with me!

Tony--a former three times world champion Kung Fu, top body guard and ex-prisoner now working as a full time Evangelist-- brings a radical message and of course I was wondering how the Roman Catholic priest, a very friendly man, would react. He gave Tony the opportunity to tell his story to the prisoners and every one of them received a free copy of Tony's award wining autobiography Taming the Tiger. (Dutch title: Getemde tijger). Several inmates responded to Tony's invitation to a) be willing to turn away from everything that is wrong in their lives and b) surrender to Jesus Christ (accept Him as God and Saviour). All reactions were very positive.

In the evening we visited Thug's Church, a Youth for Christ initiative in one of the more problematic neighbourhoods of Rotterdam (Millinxbuurt). A nice guy, his name is Daniel de Wolf (pic left), is doing some impressive work as a modern day's urban missionary among the unchurched. Also in this meeting several visitors decided to turn away from bad things and accept Christ as their Saviour! Hopefully this will prevent some of them from ending up in prison too... I pray that the Lord will bless Daniel and his friends!

On Monday morning we went to prison again, this time to Boschpoort Breda (so called 'koepelgevangenis' - see pic below). We arrived very late, due to traffic jams... and I was tired and stressed-up. Tony's radical presentation of the Gospel was well-received by the inmates. They asked great questions, looked very interested and some of them decided to respond to Tony's invitation by raising a hand while praying. I think these guys are very courageous, because in a place like this it is very hard to be vulnerable or to show emotions. I had friendly discussions with some prison volunteers and inmates. I also talked and prayed with the prison ministers (some of them clearly couldn't relate to Tony's radical way of presenting the Gospel - but all of them were really very nice and caring...)
I was exhausted by lack of sleep and an overdoses of stress... and everybody tried to help and encourage me. One guy, a volunteer, kindly offered to drive us back to Hoofddorp in my car. I called this young man (his name is David), an angel of God. This was the second time that somebody spontaneously offered to help us in this way, last Saturday a brother from our church, his name is Hans, brought us to Drachten and Gouda in his Renault Espace... this was a VIP treatment and I am sure God will bless these guys for helping us in this practical way!! It is truly amazing to see how God is providing. He really showed us His fatherly love, protected us and encouraged us when we really needed it!
All in all I can only say that the meeting in Breda went very well. I highly appreciate all the good work that is being done by prison ministers. I guess some of them are actually social workers - they don't share the Gospel like Tony did - in such an explicit, radical way. But they are truly representing God by showing love to broken people and by listening to their stories! But I have to say that I am afraid that only love and care will ultimately be insufficient to change sinfull lives. In order to radically change your life, you first have to ask God for forgiveness. I am personally convinced that there is no alternative route - you need to bow down at the cross of Christ! (see here and here!) This message has always been radical and provocative, but I don't know what else could change lives in such a dramatic way. Tony is living proof of this, there's no denying.

I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God
for the salvation of everyone who believes!
Romans 1:16

In the afternoon we had a special meeting with sex offenders in the same prison. I can assure you: these people are the same as you and I, but they have made some terrible mistakes / done some horrible crimes. The same thing can be said about 'normal' criminals, but the sex offenders are marginalised by society and by the other inmates. I talked and prayed with one of them and I was moved by his honesty, openness and vulnerability. Please pray for these guys. They are hard to forgive, but still God asks us to do so... We did the crime, Jesus did the time!
In the evening Tony had diner with Bart & Cateleijn Schenk - a young couple from Ede that has volunteered to help us with starting a department of Avanti Ministries in the Netherlands! Tony was also interviewed by EO Visie (TV magazine), while I took some rest at home. Later that night, Wigle Tamboer, our pastor from De Meerkerk, visited us at my place to listen to our stories, encourage us and pray with us. Praise and thanks be to God for his good shepherds!

On Tuesday we had a great breakfast meeting with church leaders in Hoog Brabant, Utrecht. Tony explained his vision for an ongoing evangelisation campaign in the Netherlands. I trust that this meeting with 13 people is the kick-off of something really special. Please pray!

On the same day we also had a completely different meeting within prison walls. This time we were invited in Amsterdam's so called Grenshospitium. This is a special prison for foreigners with visa problems - there only crime is that they left their home and families to find a better life / some safety. Who can blame them? I really feel sorry for these people, they don't deserve to be behind bars! The cynical thing is: their 'house' is build on 'no man's land' between a luxurious golf court and some ugly fast food restaurants. It is sickening! The rich people from the Netherlands are filling their stomachs with too much food and too much fat and some of them are having a good time hitting little white balls on beautiful green lawns. Who cares about refugees and prisoners!? It is an outcry, a national shame!!

I was touched by the reactions of the hospitium guests, the friendly imam and the prison minister. Most prisoners are from African countries and they all speak English. During Tony's testimony I constantly heard them whisper: 'Amen!', 'praise God' and 'hallelujah'. One of them thanked us for the visit on behalf of this special group of people. The pastor also reacted in a touching way by singing 'Were you there when they crucified my Lord' - after Tony finished his story. All guests joined in - it was a moment I will never forget!
I talked for a while with Freeman (!) a young man from Liberia. He is a Pentecostal Christian and - even though he is in prison now - he truly is a free man on the inside! Please pray that God will help him and that he will be released from prison soon. Please also pray for all the other, anonymous prisoners.

But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him. For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life. And who is equal to such a task? Unlike so many, we do not peddle the word of God for profit. On the contrary, in Christ we speak before God with sincerity, like men sent from God.
2 Corinthians 2:14-17

Our last meeting was in Ede at Christengemeente Adelaarsnest. This was like playing a 'home game', everybody was very positive and again several men and women decided to surrender to Christ. On Wednesday I brought Tony to Schiphol Airport. Now I am very tired, but I am truly thankful for this special experience. Please pray for Tony, for his wife Sara and their two boys Ethan and Jacob. Please also pray for all the teenagers, the street youth, the prisoners, the refugees and all other special people we've met over the last couple of days. I trust that God will bless them, because He always finishes what He has started!

I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—
the task of testifying to the gospel of God's grace.
Acts 20:24

If you want to watch the TV documentary about Tony's life, you can go to this page. You have to select Windows Media Player or Real Player and band width! Please let me know if you have any queries.