november prayermail update

Dear Friends,

As we look back at the events of our small church plant over the last 13 months, we are once again reminded of how difficult this year has been.  The start team is made up of seven people:  Ralf and Julia, Bjoern and Andrea, Kristi, and Sue and me.  Just over a year ago, Julia and Ralf were expecting their second child.  Little Louis was tragically stillborn at the end of September 2011.  In the months that followed Julia's father (age 60) and two other immediately family members also passed away.  When Julia and Ralf and then, Andrea and Bjoern, announced that they were expecting - the same due date in October! - we quietly rejoiced and were cautiously optimistic.  In July tiny Jonas was born very premature to Ralf and Julia and we all found ourselves praying earnestly for God's mercy to intervene in his fragile existence.  On September 30 Andrea and Bjoern were informed that their baby had suddenly died in the womb for unexplained reasons.  After 24 hours of very hard labor, Rebecca was still born.  She was full-term, 8 lbs, and looked beautiful. 

We have mourned as a church family with Ralf and Julia and Andrea and Bjoern.  With a start team of 7 and a church family core of only a dozen, you can imagine what an impact these things have had on us.  This has been a time testing for us veterans in the faith, not to mention those among us who are new in their faith or still seeking.  We realized that the hope of the Gospel is all we have in the end.  We have shared the Gospel with each other and with relatives, friends, neighbors and work associates as we have gone through this dark time together.  Many tears have been shed, but the hope of the Gospel and the resurrection are what we cling to and were the themes that were preached at both memorial services - ironically, some of our most well attended services.  Please pray with us that God would continue to comfort both families, filling them with hope, and that God would use the pain and loss we have shared to draw us closer to himself and to each other.

The Pastor's Atelier is really beginning to take shape. The last several weeks I have been very busy renovating. The dropped ceiling, insulation and 3+ layers of wallpaper are gone. The electrical system has been entirely replaced and paid for by the landlord and the walls and ceiling newly plastered and painted.  I am overwhelmed with the generosity of so many friends (many of them not yet believers) who have come and helped or are donating toward the cause. One friend, a lighting consultant in the hotel/restaurant market, recommended a professional commercial track lighting system which I never could have afforded but which he decided he would simply donate! Another neighbor has given me a high-end stereo system. Ralf, from our church plant and an architect, hasadvised me on how to design the space and has been able to get some of the materials for free or way below list price. Others have come to scrape wallpaper, clean, paint or make trips to the dump. I have already met many of my new neighbors. Even the Turkish locksmith across the street, who made a key for me, waved me off when I went to pay and said that I could just say an extra prayer for him. The conversations have started!

Please pray about the funding ($6000) still needed for the first year. Perhaps there are those who would like to make a year-end gift to support this project.

We are very excited to tell you that Roy, Sam and Heidi were finally able to clarify their schedules so that we could arrange for family time between Christmas and New Years.  The last time we were all in Cologne together was three years ago.

As we reflect on the year gone by and look ahead to the Thanksgiving and Christmas season, we are keenly aware of our dependence on God's mercy and grace and his of goodness in all that we do and are.

"He who sacrifices thank offerings honors me, and he prepares the way so that I may show him the salvation of God." Psalm 50:23

Thank you so much for faithfully standing with us.

Gratefully,

Sue and Jason

 

 

PS: Click here to see our current financial support needs. 

prayermail September 2012

Dear Friends,

Recently I had an encounter with a woman while doing our street outreach that was so intense and bizarre, it actually left me feeling physically sick afterwards. This woman was obviously intelligent - speaking a mix of both perfect british English and perfect German. She was also insane - spewing  a disjointed tirade of humor, anger, praise, blasphemy, hurt, spite, hate and indignation. Sometimes she was in my face. Sometimes she was on her knees in front of me. At one point she started singing parts of church hymns then she would switch and start cursing Jesus.

She did almost all the talking. She was so disjointed I never really could follow her and didn't know what to say. I just looked her in the eye and tried to show her respect and Christ's love. A couple of times I told her that I wish her everything good that God wants for her. The rest of the time I prayed for her (and me!) This is a very busy shopping street and there were lot's of people observing this whole thing. Kristi was standing nearby praying for me and Jim was in a nearby restaurant supporting us in prayer as well. When she finally moved on (it was so intense that I really don't know how long it lasted - 10, 15, maybe 20 minutes) I felt completely drained and queezy and broke off the outreach and went home to lie down.

I know we are in a battle. We pray every time before we start the outreach that God would send us the people He wants us to connect with. Maybe time will tell why He sent me that lady. Please pray for Kristi, Tobi and I as we continue our street outreach - that God would protect us and also break through barriers in a mighty way.

My search for a storefront to rent continues and the process of looking has been a great encouragement to me as I interact with realtors and property owners about my vision. I intend to call the shop "Pastor's Atelier". Besides getting my office and painting out into view I also can envision offering various workshops and discussion evenings and inviting area musicians to do mini concerts and even inviting other visual artists to display their work there. As I mentioned in our last update, to begin with, I would like to have a trial period of a year to see what God does and if we think it is worth continuing. To that end we need to raise an additional $7,000 for the rent and utilities for one year. If you would like to help us with this project, please let us know. Here is a link to a gallery of some of the things I have painted in the last few years.

Please pray for us as we pursue the vision of God expanding His Kingdom through all the peoples of Europe to the world! Here is a short new visual prayer request for Cologne.

Thank you for praying and supporting us.

Your servants,

Jason and Sue

Prayermail July 19, 2012

Dear Friends,
We arrived back from vacation on June 27 and hit the ground running with a busy ministry weekend. Worship musicians from Fellowship Bible Church in Roswell, GA put together a one-time Country and Blue Grass band to do outreach with us in Cologne. They were awesome. On the 29th they did a concert at our church location. Although we had advertised well, imagine how disappointed we were when only one guest showed up who was not a part of our church family. In spite of that, the band gave everything and we had a lot of fun with their music and line dancing.

On Sunday morning they played in our worship service after which I asked them if they would be willing to play at my impromptu birthday party that evening. We blew away our friends and neighbors with that. Here's a link to a short video of everyone singing "Country Roads" with them. (It is one of those quirks in the German culture that everyone seems to know that one!) At my request they also did a gospel song and got everyone singing along with "We worship you, hallelujah, hallelujah!" That was very cool. One of the band members gave a short but clear testimony. With 20+ people in our living room, it was truly a blessed evening.

Please pray for the upcoming outreach concert on August 4 in Cologne with Eurobrass: a Greater Europe Mission brass ensemble. The 12-member ensemble, whose members come from Germany and the United States, performs brass music at its highest level with impeccable technique and a beautiful sound. Brass music is not for everyone but is still very much loved by many Germans. Pray for good connections with the concert guests and that many would return the next day to the worship service where the group will also be playing.

I (Jason) have been thinking and praying about the possibility of renting a small office somewhere in our neighborhood where I can work and meet new people but also have more space to pursue my hobby of painting and see if  going public with it would open ministry doors for us. Hanging out a sign that "the Pastor-Painter is in" might provide us with new in-roads into the lives of the people in our neighborhood. To begin with, I would like to have a trial period of a year to see what God does and if we think it is worth continuing. To that end we need to raise an additional $7,000 for the rent and utilities for one year. If you would like to help us with this project, please let us know. Here is a link to a gallery of some of the things I have painted in the last few years.

In closing, we ask you to continue to pray for growth in our church plant. Pray that more and more people will come to faith and become disciples and fishers of men. Pray for creativity and boldness in reaching out to the people of Cologne and beyond. Pray for more workers to come and join in the harvest.

Thank you for your support and encouragement.

Jason and Sue

   

PS: Click here to see our current financial support needs. 

June Prayermail

Dear Friends,
Recently I met with a young German, Tim, at a restaurant and shared the Lord with him. He had been to a wedding in Iowa last year and had some discussions with an older cousin who is a believer. The cousin found me on the internet by googling Cologne/Christian/Church, etc. He wrote me last summer to ask me to contact Tim who he said was interested in spiritual things. I exchanged a few emails with Tim last summer but eventually he stopped responding. God has continued working in his heart and last month he contacted me again and said he would really like to meet. So we did. He is an art history major at the university and also involved in triathlon competition. His grandfather is a devout catholic and has had a spiritual impact on him. In fact, when I invited him to our church, he said he couldn't make it because he always picks up his grandfather and takes him to the catholic church. Tim has been reading the Bible and is full of questions. I have put him in touch with my intern, Tobi to follow up with him and get him involved in his new church plant. Pray for Tim to respond to the Spirit's tug on his life.

Last Sunday we had an official farewell and blessing for Tobi and Luci as they complete their one year internship with us this month. I choked up as I shared the words of Paul to the Collossians:  "And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light." (Col. 1:9-12)

It has been a very good year working with Tobi. As I invested in him I also was challenged and encouraged by him. He has already gathered a vibrant group of young people around him and has begun holding informational meetings with a view toward beginning services in the fall. I will continue to mentor him through the early stages of the church plant. We will continue working side by side each week out on the streets as we do our "contact person" outreach. Please pray for Tobi and Luci as they serve the Lord in this needy city.

Your servants,
Jason and Sue

   

PS: Click here to see our current financial support needs. 

April 18 prayermail

Dear Friends,
Please be in prayer for us this weekend as we gather with our GEM colleagues for our annual field retreat near Bonn. It is always a highlight for us as we spend the bulk of our time sharing and praying for one another. We try to create an atmosphere of openness and encouragement where everyone feels supported by people who face similar issues and challenges. Especially pray for Jason as field leader as he stands in the gap between the mission leadership and the field missionaries who sometimes struggle with the changes that are being implemented in the mission.

Immediately following, on Monday, April 23, we are looking forward to having a team of five people coming from Meadowbrook Church in Milwaukee to prayerwalk with us for a week. Meadowbrook has been a solid supporting church over the years and sending us a team like this is so encouraging. It will be an intense week as we prayerwalk through the city and talk about the history of Cologne and what the spiritual landscape looks like today. We will also be meeting with some of our local staff and national partners to hear their stories and pray for them and bless them. Please pray for safety, unity and physical strength for the team.

Immediately following that, on May 1, we will be meeting all day (it's a national holiday here) with our Cologne Project start team to talk about the vision and direction of our church plant and to tackle a couple of issues that we are facing. One of those issues is the subject of homosexuality. Cologne, with a population of 1 million, is home to 100,000 gays and lesbians. Pray that we would be Spirit led and fully unified as we formulate our approach as to how we share the good news of the gospel with everyone in this multi-faceted culture we live in. Pray that we would be wise and courageous and worthy messengers of God's love.

With thankfulness, we are pleased to report that to date $5000 has come in for our car fund. Previously we had asked you to give to this need by April 15. In the mean time, our old honda continues to limp along on 3 cylinders and, to be honest, we simply have not had time to shop for a new car or see about selling or trading in our old one. Additionally, our ministry schedule for the rest of April is quite full so we are extending our car fund raising until May first. If you could help us out by then, that would be great. Any funds that come in after that will be directly applied to the principle of the amount that we have financed, once we buy something. Click here  for a payment card to print out and mail in with your check. This will ensure that your gift gets credited to our car fund.

Your grateful servants,

Jason and Sue 

March prayermail

Dear Friends,

It was a delight to preach in both of the churches we planted in Cologne-Porz and in Bergisch Gladbach in the last few months. Bergisch Gladbach has been without a pastor for over a year and is still not in a financial situation to be able to afford one. However, the spirit there is encouraging. The members have pulled together and committed to the church in a new way. People have stepped into new leadership roles and a general sense of ownership of the church. The church in Cologne-Porz is gearing up for their 20 year anniversary in May 2013 to which I have been invited to speak. When I preached there a few weeks ago the man that led the service is a miracle story himself. Back when I was pastor he had nothing to do with the church. His wife and in-laws attended faithfully but he was far from God and though I tried, I couldn't get close to him. After learning that he had had an affair, his wife considered leaving him with their pre-school children. Instead, she persevered and kept praying. At some point after Sue and I had moved on to our next church plant, he came to faith and now is a shining witness to God's grace in that community.

During the Karneval weekend I was able to talk with with several friends of friends about the gospel and our church plant. In the process I gave away all the church contact cards that I had in my wallet during the course of one evening. There was genuine interest for a new expression of church among this group of professionals with State Church backgrounds. This was especially interesting to me as I was dressed in a wedding dress! (Hey - everyone else was in costume as well. Sue was dressed as my groom and we had discussions with a variety of clowns, pirates, aliens, etc.)

Frau Vrooman's Hootnanny was our last big event in March to broaden our network and gather people from several different spheres together. It was a blast! Kristi (Frau Vrooman) organized and led an evening of sing-along with a variety of German and English pop songs. We also had a small group prepare three Gospel songs that ended up being the highlight of the night. The band was hot. Kristi was dynamic. And everyone sang themselves horse. We were especially glad to see a several people from my (and Kristi's) volleyball group turn out. Please pray that our network will be broadened and deepened through this and that people would move one step closer toward a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.                     

URGENT NEED! "It's not worth fixing." When your trusted car mechanic utters those words, the problem is very serious. After all, he could stand to make a huge profit from the repair. Fortunately he honestly informed us that the repair cost would be much more expensive than the worth of the car. We have been saving for several years for the day when we would need to replace our 10 year old Honda Fit and that day came sooner than we expected. We need to buy something within the next month and really do not want to go into debt to do it. Taking into account what we have saved, we need to raise at least $16,000 in order to buy a late model VW Golf or equivalent. Our church planting ministry is dependent on having a reliable car. Please let us know by April 15 if you can help us with this pressing need. Click here for a payment card to print out and mail in with your check. This will ensure that your gift gets credited to our car fund.

Yours for Germany,

Jason and Sue

   

PS: Click here to see our current financial support needs. 

Prayermail "20 Years in Germany!" January 2012

Dear Friends,

20 years ago, on January 8, 1992, we left for Germany to serve Christ with Greater Europe Mission.  Sam was eight years old, Roy was four and we were both thirty-three.

Holm Family 1992

What an adventure that was for us. And to tell you the truth - it continues to be! - Seeing people come to faith, be baptized and then grow in their faith and commitment to the Lord; churches planted; training and mentoring church planters and their teams; directly leading three church plants ourselves and coaching another seven church plants in our region; influencing pastors and church leaders; casting vision among denominational leaders; modeling front line evangelism; seeking creative ways to share the Gospel. In a country where only 3-5% of the population attend any kind of church service regularly, there is still much work to be done. But it has been a great privilege for us to be a part of what God is doing in Germany.

The verse we chose 20 years ago is still our banner. "For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake. For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness, " made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us." 2 Corinthians 4,5-7

Heidi, Sam, Roy Sue, Jason - Christmas 2011

We are humbled and so very grateful for God's provision through you as his people over the years. Without our faithful supporters, we would not be where we are today. We look forward to the next 20 years as we pray for and work toward seeing a second reformation and a church planting movement sweep through Germany and Europe.

Our heartfelt thanks for standing with us,


Jason and Sue


PS: Click here to see our current financial support needs.