I know I have individualistic tendencies, perhaps this belongs to a pioneer ministry? To counter the negative sides of that I have always wanted an authority in my life, someone I could trust, who could disagree with what I wanted, or to support me.There was a spiritual atmosphere in our home, but I couldn’t talk much with my dad about theological skies, as he was quite a strong personality and I didn’t like a conflict with him. As I grew up and away from home I looked for this authority in my church. In the Netherlands in the late Fifties of the former Century, there was a rather volatile cultural theological change taking place. The traditional Theological  Pillars with their own culture and views on Truth, were shaking. Secularization was in full swing. More and more people left their peculiar Theological/Cultural bubbles. That was everywhere noticeable. The Roman Catholic Church was once a missionary sending Church, it crumbled in about 20 years into a shadow of former times. The Protestant Churches saw similar tendencies.

 

I was a baptismal member of the Re-reformed Church, a split off from the Reformed Church movement late 19th / early  20th century. At age 18 I was in the formation class to become an official church member when I had a personal encounter with Jesus. Now there was also the cultural arrangement in our church to organize a ‘two-times per year’ Communion service. The leadership denied my request for the privilege to be allowed to take part ‘at the Table of the Lord’ as I wasn’t yet officially a member and I was considered way-too-young. Hugely disappointed, while running out of the church into a November storm, God met me, as He spoke to me from Rev.3:20, and we both had a communion service together. I dropped membership classes and got in touch with Youth for Christ and slowly drifted toward free-churches. 

 

I went to a Bibleschool founded by Ds. Waardenburg, a former teacher of the Wiedenest Bible Institute in Switzerland.  In the fifties, the first signs of a Pentecostal/Charismatic development started to touch the Netherlands. The school was not favorable about charismatics. I didn’t know anyone of them either, except a Pentecostal preacher who lived in our town. I made jokes about him and his  speaking in tongues’. 

 

In the summer vacation of 1957, I had the idea that I should go evangelizing at the beach. I got permission from the Bibleschool to prepare me for this. So, I hammered a wooden carriage together. Hooked it up to my bike and off I went to the beach area near Haarlem. There I evangelized children, and they came to my tent, scores of them. I led them to Jesus. Rejoicing in this blessing and in the beaming faces of eager youngsters, I had the impression that the Lord told me: “your future could be like this… Now go home.” I protested: “Lord, these kids are responding so well. I need to stay.” The Lord was firm. I couldn’t do anything else but obey. When I came home, I told my mother what had happened: she said: “The devil could have stopped you as well, son.” I went upstairs and prayed. Later that day, Mom said, “you could go to Opa and Oma (her parents) in Zeeland.” So that is what I did the next day. As I left by bike, Mom added: “please meet Sister Krijger. That woman is Spirit-filled.” I got on my bike and after about 6 hours I met my grandparents. I went to visit this special lady. I told her about what the Lord had done, and “…then He jerked me out of it.” She smiled and explained that God had done something similar to her. He told her to come into this small village, St.Annaland on the island of Tholen.  How He had blessed her with His Spirit and how he had given her the ‘gift of tongues.’ I was too shy to ask her to let me hear her using this gift. Her testimony deeply impressed me.

 

My time had come to graduate and go forth in the world as a missionary. I was scared and had prayed a lot. That morning I told Him: “Lord, I need your help. Pour out your Spirit, give me all I need to do whatever you want me to do. Pour out your gifts, you know I am young and don’t know too much either. Lord please, even if it is the gift of tongues.” I still didn’t know what this gift was.  I had never heard anyone speaking in this language that God seems to give to some.

 

The high point of the Bibleschool Graduation ceremony was the moment that the leadership would lay hands on me ‘to send me forth in Gods vineyard.’ My parents were there as well as Sister Krijger. 

 

A few days before the Graduation time the director went into emergency surgery. Two other teachers were there to ‘lay hands on me.’ As they blessed me, a deep, overwhelming joy arose inside of me. I don’t know anymore, how I was able to escape all the congratulations. I only remember that I ran to my room, fell on my knees, and started to praise God. I think I stumbled over my words, and I kept blubbering words I didn’t understand. Observing my self as from the corner of the room what was happening: I thought: “never mind, continue what you are doing, think later.” After a time, I thought, “yes, this is the gift of tongues.” I was happy and shocked and went down again, smiling from ear to ear. I met Sister Krijger on the stairs and told her: “You know what happened? God gave me the ‘gift of speaking in tongues. She later told me, that I walked on, leaving her a bit bewildered.

 

I decided not to talk about this gift, it was all too precious, and I never liked controversies anyhow. As I didn’t know what I was saying,  I knew that I shouldn’t use this gift in public (1 Cor.14:28) as I didn’t know anybody who could interpret these sounds. I was still critical of the Pentecostal/Charismatic movement, and I questioned if any of that was real or not. I knew what I had received was “the right thing… “.  How brazen can a young man be?

 

I had received a call from the Pentecostal Church in Leeuwarden to come as a youth worker. They didn’t know about my experience, so how they heard about me was for me a mystery. I also got a draft notice. I didn’t like to go into the military, so through Ds. Waardenburg, I got the papers to get “freedom from military service due to a religious position.” I just had to sign them. I took my pen, and as I wanted to sign, there was an inner voice said: “No, don’t do that, I want you to go into the military, just like any other young men.” I was astounded, what is going on? I put my pen down and prayed it took some time, but then I said: “O.K. Lord” and discarded this precious paper and went into the military. I had already decided that God wanted me to go to Dutch Guyana (Surinam) as a full-time missionary, so I prayed that I could go there as a Dutch soldier.

 

 

I went to the Basic Training and found myself in a potential officer’s peloton. Soon we went to a selection center. I didn’t want to be an officer, as only Non-Commissioned soldiers could apply for the Surinam Company. We went through tests, and each of us saw a psychiatrist. I told him that I didn’t want to become an officer. He just listened and let me go. After an hour, I was called again and had to see another psychiatrist. He explained that his colleague had no religious upbringing and felt that I was out of his league. “I am Roman Catholic; please explain to me why you want to go to Surinam.” I told him, and he said: “I guess I get it. O.K. I will report this.” Coming back on Base, I got a call from the Base-commander.  He asked me also why I  wanted to go to Surinam. He heard my story, and he said: “well, I have two positions free to assign to the Surinam Company. One I have already given away. Do you want it?” I could have hugged the man. Thus I went to the Surinam Company, and Spring 1959  we left by boat to the country of my dreams. We arrived about three weeks later. I  got in touch with friends I knew from Holland and also met the Chairman of the West Indies Mission. Time flew, before I knew it, my one-year-assignment was nearly ended, and I could stay on year in Surinam on my own costs but return on Government costs, one year later home to the Netherlands. Friends offered me a room. The West Indies Mission needed me for a new church as a leader. I got that task, and a missionary was assigned to be my supervisor and coach.