Mission trip India - Sri Lanka - Nepal

On 1 June we set off again; this time we will travel to India, Sri Lanka and Nepal. Fellow travellers will share their motivation for coming and what they expect.

Marjan Vonk's motivation

I am Marjan and I love Jesus! He is wonderful and I love being His disciple! This means I make myself available for Him to work through me by His Holy Spirit. He gives direction in everything I do and in how I live. This often means that I obey Him in something He asks of me without knowing yet what the consequences will be. Yet it gives me a more carefree life than before, when I thought I had to stay in control myself. Above all it means I must receive and act on it. On the previous trip to the Dominican Republic in March this year I noticed that God loves to show Himself through us people, in such a way that Jesus becomes visible through us. I only had to be available. I did not really feel qualified. Yet many signs and wonders happened through our hands and mouths. I felt small and at the same time very big. I truly felt His daughter, a child of the Greatest King. I also saw how His Kingdom becomes visible on this earth, as we pray in the Lord's Prayer. To be able to do this among the poorest of the poor is a privilege, and so I am already looking forward to this trip to India, Sri Lanka and Nepal.

Arne's motivation

My motivation for going to India, Nepal and Sri Lanka is that even before the trips were announced, during an exercise on a course, the name of a country came to mind: Nepal. And when it became clear that a trip to India, Nepal and Sri Lanka was being prepared, I knew I had to go. And after a fantastic first trip to the Dominican Republic, I want to keep stepping out further in the Kingdom of God. So this seemed a great opportunity to carry on with that.

Lydia's motivation

On 7 October 2022 my boyfriend and I started our relationship. That evening we prayed together with a married couple. During the prayer Benjamin, my boyfriend, received a picture of all kinds of idols, and with it the word ‘India’, even though it was not on his radar at all. In the month that followed, India came up again and again in conversations with others, in teaching and in testimonies, while we had not said anything about India yet. A month later a missionary came to our youth group, which meets every Sunday. Benjamin got talking with this man, and it came up that we could come along to India, where he was planning to go in June. This missionary is Marien, and so God paved the way to Stichting Dienstbaar and eventually to India. I am going to India because I believe God has called me to proclaim His love and light to people, and not only in the Netherlands. I love seeing God's work happen through my hands and being able to make a difference in the world. Jesus is the truth, and the truth sets you free! Everyone needs to hear this message. I also believe I will come back changed after the mission trip to India. I believe God gives me courage to step out of my comfort zone and that I will see His work through my own hands. Signs and wonders shall follow them that believe, it says in Mark 16:17. God is for us and He will make the way. He will break in pieces the gates of brass and cut in sunder the bars of iron (Isaiah 45:2). God is our refuge and our fortress. He is our God, and in Him we trust (Psalm 91:2).

Benjamin's motivation

On 7 October 2022 I was praying with my future wife and 2 others. Towards the end of the prayer I spontaneously received a picture in which I saw all kinds of idols, and the word "India" was pressed on my heart. I found it rather random, since I had no particular desire to visit that country; it was not on my radar, so to speak. But God had other plans! I shared it briefly at the time with the 3 others I was with. The next day we had a kick-start weekend here in Renswoude, where a brother gave some teaching. At the end of his teaching he wanted to share a video he had made; it turned out to be about a woman who was set free in India, where he was at the time. I looked at my girlfriend and said something like 'that's a "coincidence" too, isn't it'. The following day there was more teaching, this time by another brother. Halfway through his teaching he spontaneously began to share part of his testimony, in which he told how he had come to faith through someone from India. India came up once again, and this time I realised it and said: 'this is no coincidence, I think God wants us to go to India'. Yes, probably in a few years, said my girlfriend. 😜 But consistently, wherever we went, people kept mentioning the word "India" almost every day. This went on for about a month, hearing this country come up almost daily. After about a month a brother from our group told us he had met a certain Marien while going door to door for his work. He invited him as a guest to our group, and we had a very good conversation that I got really excited about, because it turned out he was a missionary and there were plans to go to India. I knew straight away: God has prepared us for this for a whole month and we have to go! 😁 I am very excited about what I will learn on this trip and am really looking forward to growing further in my life of faith; you always come back from a trip like this different from how you left. And above all, given the way God has arranged this for us, I cannot wait to discover what His plans for us are and what this will change in us. My prayer is to become more like the Lord Jesus every day, and I believe this is part of how God is answering my prayer step by step. Not by changing me at the snap of a finger, but by bringing me into situations that lead to inner change of their own accord. There is a lot to learn from reading, but you cannot read experience; you have to live it. I am really looking forward to it! :)

Chris's motivation

My name is Chris and on 13 May 2023 I turn 21. Four years ago I came to faith and slowly came to know that God wants a personal relationship with every person. One evening in February 2019 I was scrolling through the internet and came across the page of a Christian from India, and the Bible verses on it spoke to me. Because of this I took a step of faith and accepted Jesus; over time my enthusiasm has grown, and God is now the ultimate goal I live for: to be with Him and enjoy His glory. Because it came about through an Indian Christian, I have always wanted to go to India one day and share the gospel there, to be a blessing to India. It is also the desire of my heart to travel for God and to do signs and wonders in His name (John 14:12). Even before I had that desire, someone received a picture of me sitting on a train, travelling for God, and so I am heading into the adventure in India, Nepal & Sri Lanka with great enthusiasm!