It's hard to believe that I've already been living in Belgium for over a month. It's been an adventure getting used to a new place. It took a while, but I think I finally have the metro and transit system figured out... well enough anyway!

What's been most exciting has been going deeper with the relationships we're building here. Some of you may have seen the photo a couple weeks ago on Facebook of us having dinner with a family from the Middle East. We met them at one of the centers for asylum seekers and they invited us to share their iftar meal with them. Since we're in the middle of Ramadan, Mus1ims are fasting during the day and breaking their fast with iftar at sunset—which is around 10pm in Belgium right now. We've been invited twice to share this meal with them. It's an incredible and delicious spread of food. And spending that special time with the family has been such an honor. I wish that everyone could experience this incredibly generous hospitality. My heart is forever changed.

After living in the crowded shelter for months, this family has been able to move into their own home. It's a temporary location, but you can sense their relief to finally have a place of their own. On Sunday I visited them again and began teaching English to the kids. The mom joined in as well which was great because she's learned quite a bit of English and was able to explain in Arabic the grammar I was teaching them. She's a teacher herself so it was fun to work and learn together. I also mixed in some French with the lessons because when they're finally able to attend school again in September they will be taught in French.

Can you imagine uprooting your whole family and having to learn another language (or two) just to be able to live and be productive in a completely different society from what you've been used to your whole life?! This family has shared with us one horror story after another about what it's been like for them the past several years. The father has been injured so severely that it is truly a miracle he's alive. He lost two of his brothers in the war. They've had many threats against their family and finally made the decision to attempt the risky journey to flee and start over. There are still more challenges ahead, but they're feeling a bit more hopeful each day. They shared with us that our friendship has brought them a tremendous amount of encouragement.

I'm glad we still have several more weeks to share Christ's love with them in meaningful ways. On Friday we were able to tell them the story of Jesus. It was the first time anyone had told them why Jesus died on the cross. Please continue to pray for this family as they begin a new life in Belgium. And pray for us as we go deeper in our relationship with them.


During the week our team is spread out across the city doing outreach. Sometimes we'll meet people in a coffee shop or through a service project. Other times we'll just introduce ourselves to people we meet on the street. We've been able to encourage and pray for so many people! We've also seen people being physically healed from injuries and ailments. One woman my team members met who was walking with a cane received healing. She took a step after they prayed for her and yelled, "This is impossible!" The team told her that they prayed in the name of Jesus and the woman asked, "Can I pray in the name of Jesus?" Of course our team said yes! The lady invited them to her house for dinner and they were able to share more about God's power and love.

Pray for Stela 

I met Stela a few weeks ago—June 6th to be exact. It was her birthday. I didn't know it was her birthday at the time. I only knew that it was a rough day in the middle of a challenging year since moving to Belgium from Romania. When I passed her that day I had noticed her protruding belly and her sweet face and sat down to learn more about her story. The details are too complex to mention right now, but please pray for this young mother-to-be (only 19) and the difficult journey ahead as she attempts to start a new life here. She and her boyfriend will be evicted from their home in a few weeks because the building is being demolished. They have little money and nowhere else to go. I spent a few hours yesterday trying to find out what services are available in the city for their situation. Will you please pray for them as they admitted they are running out of hope? Pray for me also that I will have wisdom to know how to help. And that God would open the doors that need to be opened for them. The odds of being able to start a new and good life here are sadly not in their favor. But I want to try to do what I can to see what help can be found for them. Thank you for praying for Stela and the baby girl that we will be welcoming into the world some time around July 13th!

Thank you for your prayers! We are seeing and feeling the effects of them!