The Tabernacle Community

De Craene Update, March 2009: Good Things with New Discoveries

Dear Friends,

I do believe in what Paul writes to Christians in Romans 8:28: "In all things God works for the good of those who love him..." Now I can look back at the past months and see God's hand working, sometimes in perturbing ways, but always for the good.

I haven't written since the end of October 2008. Some of you might be wondering about my silence. Well, I was involved in an experimental stage of a new ministry in our area. It was difficult to write about because all those involved were feeling their way hesitantly. Sometimes things happened which were confusing and exasperating. Yet our venture was never officially recognized so we could not talk about it openly. It was a very difficult time for me.

But now those in charge have decided to put the proposed ministry "on the shelf" for a while, and I feel a sense of relief and release. I can now consider other options.
Let me bring you up to date on some of the other events since my last Update-

Family Visits

My Dad, Johannes Weiss, left Belgium end of October and returned to Virginia. But we expect him to come back to see the tulips and spring flowers in mid-April. My sister, Judy, and her family came to Belgium to visit us for 3-4 days in February.

We continue to enjoy our adopted Chinese grandson, Daniel for now. His Chinese mother, Robin, married a Dutchman, Francis, in October. They are making plans to eventually move to Vlissingen in the Netherlands, and put Daniel in elementary school there. We will surely miss having them close by and being part of our daily lives.
New Outreach

During the Christmas season we announced an open invitation for a Christmas Eve party at our house. We thought there would be lonely single students around from the nearby university who would need a place to go. We were surprised at the response to our invitation and it opened our eyes to a contingent need. Not many single students responded, but foreigners who were in the area with young children. There seems to be very limited opportunities for international couples with young children to socialize and have Christian fellowship. Since that time, we have organized a few potluck parties where children are part of the invitation and planning.
Learning New Techniques

Some of the other new initiatives that I have been involved in include learning to make a string quilt, in a small class, with a few of the women in our church.
Another outlet for creativity has been with Facebook. After initial hesitancy to spend time on the internet by means of my laptop, I discovered the fun of sharing with friends through Facebook. I found it actually less intrusive and more worthwhile to share both pictures and news items through this medium. It seems easier to post pictures or share daily ups and downs through Facebook than to write a newsletter or keep up a blogspot or website. So since November, I have been writing and sharing photos through Facebook. If any of you would like to connect with me through this very popular modern media, then either send me an e-mail mentioning your interest, or if you already have a Facebook account (as many do these days) invite me to become one of your Facebook "friends." For those of you on my address list who have been to Leuven, there is also the possibility to join the Facebook group I have initiated as a facilitator called "ICEL near and far."
Wycliffe Belgium

Another thing I should mention before I end this update, is the Belgian Wycliffe office. Bob is phasing out formal Wycliffe representation in Belgium because it is not financially viable. The Wycliffe offices in the Netherlands and France will take over the supervision of Dutch speaking and French speaking members respectively. Bob plans to function as the liaison person and advisor as the fusion takes place, and continue in that role over the next few years.
Togo

Our Togolese sons and daughters continue to do well. I hope to be able to make a visit to Togo in the months to come. Abou and Cecile, who now have a beautiful little girl, Seriya, both successfully defended a Master's thesis in separate subjects in Anthropology research. The translation team is also making good progress under the supervision of our colleagues in Togo. Work on the gospels is being revised.
Wedding Photos

I have been putting many photos of past events on Facebook. This week I have some wedding photos of the Flemish wedding we attended on March 14. Bob's niece, Petra De Craene married Sebastiaan van der Jagt in Brussels. They had an Evangelical ceremony in a quaint Catholic church building. The bride and groom arrived in a horse-drawn cart. Petra is a member of a local folkdance group as well as a group of Christian praise singers. At one moment in the church service, the bride left her chair next to the groom and began to sing praises to the Lord with the singers and musicians. After the couple exited the church service, the dancers of the folkdance group surrounded the bride and groom. They formed a circle in the middle of the road in front of the church and performed circle dances, halting the traffic in the road on both sides. Later at the reception, the same folkdance group performed a dance with lights as they encircled the bride and groom. It was all very lovely and unique. We have never seen any of these elements before in the Belgian weddings we have attended over the years.
Well, this letter has already grown longer than usual so I'll stop here. I hope to see some of you via Facebook (or even Skype). Thank you for your prayers and for your support.

A final note:

Because some people receiving this e-mail have either slow connections or a slow computer, I have decided to send pictures illustrating some of the above mentioned items in a separate attachment. For those with difficulties: you can then read this news and delete the mail with the attachment containing the pictures.

In the attachment with the pictures:
5 Pictures from Petra's Flemish wedding: Cart & horse (2), inside the church with the praise team, dancers and flag dance (outside the church.)
3 Pictures from Judy's visit: Judy & Ina; Bob & Daniel (on Bob's shoulders) with Ross family Judy, Seth, Lew, Aaron) in Brussels; Daniel, Seth Ross, with Bob visiting the Atomium in Brussels.
1 Picture of Christmas Eve party: two African girls next to Robin & Daniel.
1 Picture of January potluck party: Bob, kids, and Francis.

Questions or comments are welcome!

Greetings in Jesus,
Ina
For Bob & Ina De Craene

Street address:
Zavelputstraat 38
B-3020 Herent, Belgium