Again this year on 30th April, the official birthday of the Queen of the Netherlands and a national holiday, the town of Utrecht was the venue of Mbuma-zending’s “Mission-day.” As last year the place of meeting was the Irenehal, and with some 7,000 persons assembled in the forenoon and around 200 more at the afternoon session numbers remain constant. As has been the trend over the years, the collection made for our mission work in Zimbabwe, — and exclusively for that work — showed an increase, and from 217,000 gilders in 1983 to 235,000 gilders in the present year.
Although now beyond the fourscore years, the indefatigable Chairman of Mbuma-zending, Ds. C. Smits presided and opened the proceedings with the singing of Psalm 89 v. 1. He then read from Ezekiel ch. 37 vv. 1-14 and, after prayer made, spoke on this subject with regard to Ezekiel’s Prophecy of the dry bones in the valley and what God by His Spirit wrought in them. There followed my address and the experiment of translating into the Dutch sentence by sentence which was done so ably by Mr H van Vliet seemed to be a marked success. For myself, I felt that I was now actually preaching to that vast congregation of immortal souls. In thanking me for my address Ds Smits wished me strength for my work and with particular reference to health and family trials over past months. Also, the Chairman at this stage had a special word of welcome for Rev B B Dube and Mr James Mpofu and assured them that all that was being done was for the Mission in Zimbabwe. Mr A D Muilwijk, Divinity Student, a new member of Committee, and new to speaking on these occasions then addressed us at some length on the subject of Lydia (Acts 16: 11-14) and it was time to stop for lunch.
The afternoon meeting began with the singing of two verses of the National Anthem for which all stood as a mark of respect to the Queen. Ds de Jong then spoke and took for his theme, “The true conversion of men,” from the Heidelberg Catechism 33 and with reference to the Ethiopian eunuch in Acts 8: 26f. Mr Scholten’s address which has, perhaps, a special interest for the many young people in the audience, dealt this year with the subject of “paradise” with which, as he noticed, the Bible begins and ends. Ds Mallan’s concluding address on the subject of Simeon in the Temple struck a chord with myself in his special reference to the words, “yea, a sword shall pierce through thy own soul also.”
These annual gatherings of the friends in Holland in connection with our Zimbabwe Mission are truly moving occasions and as Mr Dube said so properly in his brief address of greeting (as appended) and delivered before Ds Mallan concluded, “may . . . the Lord bless the kind and loving people of Holland who are helping us.” My special thanks this year to my young friends in Utrecht, Mr and Mrs K. Riutenberg with whom I stayed over the Sabbath and with whom I went to church by bicycle as I had done so very often in my youth.
Alex. Murray