trimonthly magazine - Issue 79 P2745429
December - February 2020
R LPH Road journal
?
?
?
?
?
WHY
Eric Zander Director of Strategy
While we are all carried towards an uncertain future, we cannot rely on yesterday’s benchmarks. In this world that never ceases to change, and in our constantly jostled lives, God joins us on the path. En route towards the unknown, He precedes us, always anew. Our God is the God of renewal. His loving kindnesses toward us are not a “rewarming” but a “renewing” each morning 1 . It’s He who announces these new things 2, who opens in Jesus a new way3 and adopts us as newborn babes 4. Then He transforms us into new men and women 5, a re-creation such that in Christ all things have become new 6. And He continually renews us in His image7 until the end of the process, until all is renewed 8, even the heavens and the earth 9.
It’s this dynamic of renewal that must mark our lives and our Mission, not by rejecting the heritage of the past (the former things), but by exceeding it (the new things) 10. The hope for our world cannot stop at our old way of doing things, in the maintenance of a system of another era, because “it was better before” (still a false Bible verse). Not obsessed with the latest trend, we want to be bearers of the Gospel of Jesus, the true Good News, a new wine that constantly requires new wineskins. As such, we will be able to join those around us in their hectic lives, and above all we will reflect this God whom we represent. VIANOVA—Our world, our churches, and each one of us, we need a new way. This is what Jesus proposes to us. Let’s follow Him on this new path.
Lam. 3:23 - 2 Isa. 42:8; 48:6 - 3 Heb. 10:20 - 4 1 Pet. 2:2 - 5 Eph. 4:24 - 6 2 Cor. 5:17 - 7 Col. 3:10 - 8 Rev. 21:5 - 9 1 Pet. 3:13 - 10 Matt. 13:52 1
Editor Jan Wisse Pictures & illustrations
Contact Romboutsstraat 7 1932 Zaventem BELGIUM
Pixabay, Unsplash, Pexels, Freepik, Eunice Parodi (Cover) Subscription Trimonthly magazine - free Subscribe/unsubscribe: info@vianova.be Production Quality Dots B.V.
Tel: +32(0)2/241.30.15. E-mail: info@vianova.be • ralph@vianova.be www.vianova.be • facebook.com/vianova.be • vianova.be/youtube Privacy We protect our subscribers’ privacy: www.vianova.be/fr/declarationvieprivee (FR)
? Question ? & Answer ? A Q F ? A Q ? A ?F Q ? A ? F ? Q? A? F?
? ? ?? ?? ?? ??? ? ? ? ? ?A F Q ? ??QQ???A F?F? ??? ??? ?? ?? ? ??
WHY DID I NOT RECEIVE A RALPH IN SEPTEMBER?
WHY DOES VIANOVA HAVE SUCH A LARGE BUILDING?
Due to a combination of factors, including COVID-19, we had already decided before the summer not to produce RALPH in September.
We are very grateful for the opportunity God has given us to purchase this beautiful building after the sale of the Norton Houses. We want this building to be more than just an office.
Of course, we have not been idle; we have started a process in which we’re thinking about how we can communicate more effectively with different target groups. We are pleased that we can again offer this slightly shortened edition of RALPH.
We want the VIANOVA Center to be of service to others, and to be a place of training, equipping and spiritual growth. We also offer the possibility of renting our meeting rooms and other spaces.
3D GROUPS, BUT WHY?
We Christians in Belgium dream of seeing the Kingdom of God gain ground in our country, don’t we? So, when we have the joy of welcoming new arrivals into our community, regardless of the stage of their personal journey with Christ, we pray for a strong Church that includes each one in his own diversity. And if you are a “committed Christian”, you can be sure that you are a blessing to your spiritual leaders.
But does the Kingdom of God then consist of only two categories: the collective community (i.e., the local community, the Christian assembly, the Church at large) and the individual (the Christian)? In this configuration, the individual benefits from the community and lessons learned from the collective community, and indeed, commits to it. While the internet allows us to communicate today with our brothers and sisters from around the world, the connection isn’t always automatic with
our neighbor sitting next to us in the Sunday service or the Tuesday evening Bible study.
Between individuality and collectivity is born a third category: a mini-collection of three people who walk spiritually on three levels (individually, collectively and in a small group). If one considers each community as an “army division” of the Kingdom, let’s imagine the 3D groups as work groups where the real spiritual identity develops for this “division”. By way of example, even if their function is identical, a 3D group in Antwerp would not have the same “color” as that of a group in Liège. In parallel, the entire community grows into the image of Christ, maintained by the bonds of love cultivated in the intimacy and the confidence of the 3D groups. “In this way [those outside the group of believers] will know that you are my disciples” …and the Kingdom will gain ground.
Do you have questions for us, or comments? We write this section with you!
ralph@vianova.be
RALPH | 3
Why are our COMMUNITIES
Jan Wisse
”on the move”? I wonder every now and then whether we are stuck as a church community? It’s a good question to ask regularly! We read in Acts that our brothers and sisters met daily in the temple—and they grew in number. That’s logical because they really came together in the center of where daily life took place—you could almost say: in the market square! Later things got more difficult because persecution came, so they ended up in the living room with the door locked. Later still they went underground and really disappeared from view. What lessons can we learn from this? We can learn that change is a constant factor, or rather, innovation is a constant factor. We as communities need to constantly innovate to stay relevant. You could say that we are in a constant crisis and in order to face that crisis we have to innovate, but if we don’t realize that we are in a crisis, we will not make any effort to change, hence my starting question. We must realize that an adjustment that was made for a very good reason does not last for-
Director of Ministries
ever. It is normal to go into hiding when there is persecution; it is no longer normal to stay in hiding afterwards. Take our current corona crisis, for example. It requires us to offer all kinds of solutions so that people are able to continue to grow. Many churches have switched to live streaming, so this meets a need that prevails today, but is this something that will meet our needs after corona, or should we then stop the live streaming? Circumstances can change, but community principles do not change. Love abides, service abides, meekness abides and so on. The work of the Holy Spirit does not change. Actually, these are the things we should focus on, and these should be the things that drive change. In this way we stay on the path where Jesus teaches us, and Jesus becomes visible through us. We can conclude that we are constantly on the move if we want to keep growing and thriving. We always have to be open to new things to meet today’s challenges. We must remain vigilant that today’s solutions do not become an obstacle for tomorrow. Above all, it is the Holy Spirit who must guide us through change.
Romboutsstraat 7 | 1932 Zaventem www.vianova.be “The Belgian Evangelical Mission – UK is a registered charity n°247192 and a registered data user” United Kingdom Belgian Evangelical Mission UK PO Box 617 Epsom, Surrey KT17 9JQ
Bank account: CAF Bank, 25 Kings Hill Avenue Kings Hill, West Malling, Kent ME19 4JQ - Sort code: 40 52 40 Account Number: 00008831
donation@vianova.be
United States BEM Inc PO Box 2255 Buford , GA 30515 Tel: 001 404.248.7868
Lisa_rob_clark@bellsouth.net USBEM@bellsouth.net Bank info: Routing: 061000227 Account: 2000127122209