HELLANDS IN HOLLAND
Greetings from Holland
The Helland family.
When she was 13 years old, Femke cried uncontrollably while watching a documentary about street children in Brazil who had to sniff glue to survive. It was at that moment that she felt a divine calling to dedicate her life to helping the marginalized, the poor, the hurting, and the unseen — those often discarded by society.
I met and fell in love with Femke when we were reaching out to street children in New York City. Even then, I recall hearing her speak with passion about reaching the lost and the hurting. Now, nearly 20 years into our ministry in Amsterdam, I have seen how her passion to reach the lost continues to be one of our primary motivations for ministry.
For example, years ago she told me that she wanted to help people in prostitution. We prayed about it, and around nine years ago, God made a way for us to reach out and help people in prostitution. Our Spanish-speaking church, Iglesia Vida Nueva, in Amsterdam, was birthed out of this.
The Hellands outside the local prison where they do weekly Bible Studies.
Two years ago, Femke told me that she wanted to reach people in prisons. Her prayers have been answered. Weekly, we have gone into a local prison together for the last two months to deliver the Alpha Course. This course teaches the basics of the Christian faith over 10 weeks. This weekend, we preached to a room full of prisoners and prayed that every Alpha Course participant would be filled with the Holy Spirit. I always say that God speaks to me through the Holy Spirit and my wife, Femke. God has a way of working things out in amazing ways.
In July, I also had the opportunity to minister in the city where I was born, Concepción, Chile. While there, I was asked to pray for the mayor. Along with a prophetic team, I prayed for the mayor and the city of Concepción. I had printed out a blessing for Concepción, which I gave to the mayor and his leadership team. This divine encounter really blew me away. As we have focused on reaching out to the poor and lost, God has continued to open unexpected doors, enabling us to pray for leaders in positions of great influence and people in unexpected places.
The prophetic team meeting with the Mayor of Concepción, Chile.
Later that week, we held an amazing, three-day, RUAH Latin America Conference, with leaders from Brazil, Argentina, Chile, the USA, and the Netherlands. In August, we will be in Belize and Guatemala, holding RUAH prophetic conferences for churches and church leaders in those nations.
RUAH trainers from different countries all gathered in Chile.
A group shot from the RUAH Latin America Conference in Chile.
My life’s scripture is Acts 1:8, which says that when we are filled with the Holy Spirit, He will empower us to be witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and unto the ends of the earth. Because of people like you who faithfully pray for us and generously support us, we have been able to do this for nearly 20 years, and we look forward to many more decades of fruitful ministry reaching the lost. Thank you for being a part of our ministry.
Sincerely | Matthew & Femke Helland
