Light In A Dark Place

A MISSIONARY’S PERSPECTIVE ON LIVING FOR JESUS

Thanks to Google Meet, two of us members of Street Level Ministries USA got to sit down virtually with Annemieke Roering, a missionary through Youth with a Mission (YWAM) Amsterdam, Netherlands. Annemieke and her team build relationships with the men and women working in prostitution in the red-light district. With an afternoon coffee in our hands and an evening tea in hers, we chatted about life and what it’s like serving God an ocean apart. 

Before we get started, we want to make something clear (and we know Annemieke would agree with us): Annemieke is not special. Being a missionary is not a higher calling. Anyone truly seeking to follow God can (and ultimately will) live a grand adventure, a story worth telling at the end of your life. This is just one story of someone who discovered God and lets Him do whatever He wants with her life – and it has been good. The same can be true of you, whatever that might look like. We hope this article inspires you to stop and dream a little. 

Annemieke grew up with Christian parents, but over time began to question if God was real. She thought maybe if she was raised in a Muslim family, she would believe in Allah. She remembers praying and asking God if He existed and to let her know. She woke up the next morning with a confidence that He was there, but it took time to understand what it looked like to “have a relationship with Jesus.” She remembers being 19 and going through a difficult time, feeling like God loved everybody but her. But then she had a personal encounter with Him. 

“It was like I had always heard about Him and now finally I met Him in Person. The very next morning I was ready to go into missions. I wanted to share with everybody that God is not a God who is far away, but that He is close and involved in our lives and deeply cares about us. I very much felt I wanted to go out specifically to people who live on the edge of society, who might have a lot of lies about who they are and who God is.” 

Annemieke began her work in the red-light district in 2004 through YWAM Amsterdam, saying she doesn’t remember having any fears. “My room wasn’t ready when I arrived. It was used as storage, but I didn’t care! I was just happy to be there and serve Jesus. I had given up my apartment, my work, my car, everything, but I was so happy that I finally was able to work full-time in ministry, to do what I felt the Lord was calling me.” 

A typical day of outreach for the YWAM Amsterdam staff means going out in pairs with coffee and tea to connect with the prostitutes in the windows. “Usually, one of us is praying while the other person talks to the person behind the window. Sometimes we get offered to come inside, other times we don’t. Sometimes it’s only talking about what we did that weekend.” 

As one would imagine, Annemieke has had both highs and lows throughout her time in the red-light district. She’s been able to witness many wanting to know about Jesus after years of living this lifestyle, proving we are never too far gone for God to find, forgive, and use us. 

“My mountain-top moments have been the times where I have seen people understanding who Jesus really is and then seeing them taking one step closer to Him. I often pray for the revelation of Jesus for other people because when I encountered Him personally, it really changed my life.” 

There’s no way we could cover 20 years of ministry in one article, but that isn’t the reason we’re writing anyway. We’re here to say that God has a plan for your life, and it’s a good one. When asked what she wants to say to the next generation seeking to follow God, Annemieke said: 

“If you have questions or doubts, don’t hesitate to confront them and take them to the Lord. We all have no idea of how deeply we are loved by Him. When you are confronted with sin in your life, realize that He loves you in your sin. He still calls it sin and He wants it out of your life, not to punish you, but because He does not want your sin to harm you, which it always does in the end. If there is one thing that I learned in all my years in the red-light district, it is that sin is enormously destructive, yet we are all still loved by Him in our sin.” 

Even though God loves as we are, she says that our faith in Jesus will prompt us into action to physically serve Him. “It’s possible that you’re just showing up in church, but you’re not actually living with God. You can talk the talk and pretend to walk the walk, but in the end, we need to ask ourselves: Where are we really with God? And it’s not based on our actions; it’s based on our personal relationship with Him. If we say we believe in God and we walk with Him, but then there’s no outlet in our lives, what is really happening then?” 

Jesus told His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me” (Matthew 16:24, NKJV). We might read Annemieke’s story and think, “She’s a missionary. Of course she had to give up everything.” But here Jesus is saying that anyone who wants to follow Him is to give up how they want to live their life. If you want to follow God, it’s going to require you to be willing to give up everything. It might not be your car and your apartment (although it might be), but every decision you make is now run past God: Should I be in this major, God? Do you want me to date this person? Should I take this job? Not many live this way. But the ones who do are the ones that get to the end of their lives and say, “I would do it all again…” 

The reason so many of us don’t give up everything for God is because, deep down, we don’t believe that where He’s taking us is actually good or what we want. Annemieke was able to set her own plans aside because she trusted God. She knew He had her back. She loved Him and wanted to put herself in a position to see Him, be with Him, and serve Him. And because of that, she is living out what she was made for. 

If you’re scared about what He might ask you to do with your life, you’re in good company. We asked Annemieke what she would say to someone that is afraid to give up everything for God. 

“For me, moving and giving it all up wasn’t a sacrifice. It was a privilege. I had been waiting desperately for four years before I could finally move into missions. Some people are more aware of consequences. They’ll count the cost, then go through the process of saying yes to that. And Jesus asks us to do that! He said to the people, does anybody ever build a tower without thinking what are the costs [Luke 14:28]? What I do know is that God really honors sacrifice.” 

God’s plan for your life is good. That’s the truth, no matter how you feel about it. Do you love God? Do you want to follow Him? If so, you’ll give up anything so the people around you can know Him too.