Missionaries Tell Their Stories of Faith

Mark Wiersma served for many years as a Christian Reformed World Missions missionary in Haiti.

When he left there, he taught in Christian schools and then last year went with CRWM to serve as an educational care specialist in Nigeria.

This year, he will be returning to Nigeria with his new wife, Anne, who will be working as the superintendent of Hillcrest Christian School in Jos, Nigeria.

“It has been an amazing ride so far, and we know that we are going by faith,” said Wiersma, one of the missionaries who told their story as part of CRWM’s Career & Partner Missionary Orientation 2015 that runs this week in the CRC’s Grand Rapids office.

“It was very interesting talking to our kids about doing this — we have nine between us,” said Anne.

CRWM’s orientation, which ends Friday with a commissioning service, involves training on such topics as Security Concerns, Conflict and Crucial Conversations, Living in the Reality of Spiritual Warfare, and Navigating the Unique Stresses of Being a Missionary.

Pablo and Sheryl Canche, who have been living in the U.S., will be traveling to Mexico City, Mexico, where Pablo will do leadership development work and bring together a collaboration of pastors and church leaders.

Pablo served as a missionary in Honduras and El Salvador and then was one of the pastors at a church in Grand Rapids, Mich.

“For the last 10 years, we have been in Grand Rapids, but we came to believe that God wanted us to move on,” he said. “We are thankful to God for this opportunity.”

Steve and Chris Van Zanen will be going to the LCC International University in Lithuania. He will teach theology at the university and his wife may be serving in multiple roles including service learning in which she has been involved for the last 12 years at Calvin College.

After serving for a time in Lithuania, the Van Zanens returned to the U.S. for family reasons, always with the hope of going back.

Steve Van Zanen has worked in the Grand Rapids office of CRWM for several years.

As they return, said Steve Van Zanen, he is excited to realize that some of his former students are now teaching at the university.

“We were always thinking that God might open the doors for us to go back again — and now we have the chance to do that,” said Steve Van Zanen.

Adam and Laura Rodeheaver-Van Gelder are also heading to Lithuania International University, where they will be serving as chaplains.

“I feel the call to work with college students,” said Laura. “I love to see them get to know God and grow in their faith.”

Her husband, who has been involved in ministry to immigrant families at a CRC congregation in Grand Rapids, said it “seems like a great fit for us to go to LCC. It will be exciting working with college students who are in such a transitional time in their lives.”

Lisa and Scott Neumann are also going to LCC, where he will teach history and serve as an administrator. Lisa will teach at LCC’s Summer School Language Institute for high school students.

Also telling their story was a couple who are now leaving to serve as missionaries in the Middle East.

Although they worked for many years planting a church in the U.S., they had gone on trips to the Middle East.

But it wasn’t until recently that it became clear God was calling them to serve as missionaries for Christian Reformed World Missions at a seminary in the Middle East.

“God has a sense of humor of putting things together in ways that you would never expect,” said the wife.

“There were so many amazing coincidences in making this happen.”

She said she will be  coordinating the English program and assisting with resource development at the seminary in the Middle East. Her husband will serve as a pastor developer at the seminary.

For instance, she said, she was in Florida at the same time the seminary president happened to be visiting. They got together for an interview during the only three-hour window that worked for both of them, she said.

Her husband said he has always loved Middle Eastern history and is pleased to make the transition from being a church planter and pastor to be working in the Middle East.

“This is so cool,” he said. “I never thought she would ever be willing to leave the grandkids to do something like this.”