- Newsletter -
The Shelter Youth Hostel Ministry Amsterdam
Content
New Articles1. Experiencing Gods Shelter2. Difficulties for Shelter Eilat3. Short News Facts4. Prayer Support |
General information |
|
|
|
" Things were happening in Amsterdam in the early seventies. The city was rapidly becoming the hippie capital of Europe. Young people were travelling around the continent, searching for the meaning of life, seeking for answers and new ideas."
Some of the stories might be familiar for the faithful readers of this
newsletter. Others have never been published before and were specially for this
booklet. Amongst these are testimonies of guests and the stories of Ans van
Rietschoten and Jim and Deborah King who served in the hostels in the seventies.
The booklet also makes clear that the vision for youth hostel evangelism is not
limited to Amsterdam but is also motivating people in other parts of the world.
" Experiencing God's Shelter" can be ordered at for € 5,- plus mailing costs. Your payment can be made by credit card or bank transfer. For details and Order Form see
www.theshelter.nl/news (Those who signed up for the booklet at the Shelter City reunion will receive it for free).
Difficulties for Shelter Eilat Back_to_content
As many of you might know, Amsterdam is not the only place with a Shelter hostel. In Eilat, Israel, John and Judy Pex are running a hostel with the same name. Because we share the same vision for evangelism through youth hostel work, there is a mutually supportive friendship between the Amsterdam hostels and the one in Eilat. Over the years, a number of staff members have even worked in both places. As a result of these bonds we were concerned when we heard that the Shelter Eilat currently has problems with its hostel-permit and might have to close.
The hostel opened in December 1984. It was the next step after John and Judy's house got too small for their ministry of hospitality and evangelism. With room for only 50 guests at a time, the hostel still feels like a big house with a warm and family like atmosphere. The Pex family followed the example of the apostle Paul, as he wrote to the Thessalonians: " we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God, but our lives as well." In this setting many travellers have come to a living relationship with Christ. Please pray that this ministry will be able to continue. Judy Pex wrote us the following about their current difficulties.
" We have had a license to run the hostel and usually had to renew it every 5 years. Sometimes this was difficult, but in the end we always got it. But the answer we received on our application this time wasn’t positive. The license was denied. We always knew that this could happen and that the municipality is against us because of our faith. However when the letter came we were quite shocked that after having run the Shelter for 18 years, now we would be denied permission to continue.
We were given the option to appeal before a higher committee in Beer Sheva, which we did. We took the same lawyer, David Shor, who represented John and Seth two years ago when they had problems connected with evangelism. He felt that we had a good chance, because in his research he found that for the past 40 years the premises of the Shelter have always been used for some kind of guest house, not as a private dwelling. This is our opposition’s contention, that we are a hostel operating in an area that is zoned for private houses. The lawyer saw it as a case of religious discrimination, because we believe in Jesus.
The hearing in Beer Sheva was on June 27. To make a long story short, the result is that we have been given another year to get our case in order to change the zoning of the hostel permanently. Until now they have simply given us a temporary permit for " exceptional use" . Previously we had been told not to even try for this permanent change because it is unlikely we would receive it. There are a lot of things entailed in getting the zoning changed, but we do not plan on giving up. On the contrary, we just continue to trust in the Lord that His perfect will be done. If He wants us to continue with the ministry of the Shelter, we will be happy to do so. If not, we know that He has something better for us. In any case, the building is ours, and that they cannot take away. They can only deny us permission to use it for a hostel. So please continue to pray with us about the future of the hostel and our future too.
At the end of December our architect has to bring all our papers to the municipality. John says it will only be a miracle if we are given the permission that we ask for. We do have the option of going higher up, though of course as you can imagine, everything costs money, including the architect, lawyer, and each office we turn to! Thanks for your prayers and for enlisting prayer for us. With love in the Lord, John and Judy Pex" (The hostel can be found at
http://www.shelterhostel.com)
Short News Facts Back_to_content
Prayer Support Back_to_content
Back_to_content
More than 30,000 travellers are staying in our hostels each year. This means, for us, 30,000 opportunities to bring someone in contact with the gospel. To be able to use these witnessing opportunities we need more than 60 workers each year. Would you like to become a youth hostel missionary or do you know someone who would?
We are looking for Christians between 18 and 30 years of age, willing to commit for a period of 6 to12 months. During this time you will be part of our international staff team and you will be involved in both practical work and evangelism. The Youth Hostel Ministry provides unique opportunities to serve the Lord and to share the gospel in words and deeds. Go into the world, in a place where the world actually comes to you!
Get more information from our web site:
http://www.theshelter.nl/ministry On this site you will also find information about the application procedure, permit requirements, and about when we have need for new staff members.Contact for the Newsletter
: Auke Algera, newsletter@shelter.nlPersonnel Department YHM: Tot Heil des Volks, Youth Hostel Ministry, O.Z. Voorburgwal 241, 1012 EZ Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Tel: **31-(0)20-6246151 Fax: **31-(0)20-4202394. E-mail:
personnel@shelter.nlThe Shelter City, Barndesteeg 21, 1012 BV Amsterdam, The Netherlands, Tel: **31-(0)20-6253230, Fax: **31-(0)20-6232282. Management:
pieter@city.shelter.nl (general manager), hennie@city.shelter.nl, johanna@city.shelter.nl, jaap@city.shelter.nl, martijn@city.shelter.nl, jan@city.shelter.nl , lynn@city.shelter.nlThe Shelter Jordan, Bloemstraat 179, 1016 LA Amsterdam, The Netherlands, Tel: **31-(0)20-6244717, Fax: **31-(0)20-6276137. Management:
jacob@jordan.shelter.nl (general manager), rosemary@jordan.shelter.nl, bertine@jordan.shelter.nl, anneke@jordan.shelter.nl , hans@jordan.shelter.nlThe ministry is part of the association Tot Heil des Volks, Central Office, O.Z. Voorburgwal 241, 1012 EZ Amsterdam, The Netherlands, Tel: **31-(0)20-6246151, Fax: **31-(0)20-4202394, E-mail:
info@totheildesvolks.nl , web site: http://www.totheildesvolks.nlDonations
, Money transefers to: Postbank Amsterdam, SWIFT-address INGBNL2A, Accountnumber 104944, from: Tot Heil des Volks, O.Z. Voorburgwal 241, 1012 EZ Amsterdam, (please mention ‘Hostels’)