Lindsay Blake
For Roeland, Anna, and their daughter Diana, missions wasn’t just a personal calling.
It became a shared “yes.”
After participating in several short-term mission trips, the family from the Netherlands began sensing God leading them into something deeper. They wanted to go beyond a brief outreach experience and spend a longer season serving wherever God opened the door.
That journey eventually led them to Zimbabwe through Christ For the City International’s Global Ambassador program.
“We were convinced that we had to go to Zimbabwe,” they shared. “And because of that, we had complete confidence that God would show us what we were supposed to do there.”
What began as online research and conversations with CFCI slowly became confirmation after confirmation that Zimbabwe was where they were meant to go. The doors kept opening. God kept guiding.
And eventually, they stepped through those doors together.
Missions as a Family
For many people, the idea of serving on a mission trip as a family can feel intimidating.
What about the logistics?
What about finances?
What about comfort zones, schedules, or uncertainty?
But for Roeland, Anna, and Diana, serving together became one of the most meaningful parts of the experience.
“It was a wonderful opportunity to serve and to be able to do so together as a family,” they said.
And while Diana is an adult with previous experience doing development work in Africa, their story still reflects something powerful: family mission trips matter at every stage of life.
Families don’t have to look one specific way to serve together.
Sometimes it’s parents and young children.
Sometimes it’s siblings.
Sometimes it’s adult children joining their parents in ministry.
Sometimes it’s an entire church family stepping into missions side by side.
What matters most is simply being willing to say yes together.
Their family even launched a project called Source of Hope, making themselves available for months at a time to bring practical help, encouragement, and hope to people in Zimbabwe.
Learning Patience and Trust
Like many missionaries and short-term teams experience, the beginning wasn’t about jumping immediately into projects and activity.
It was about slowing down.
Listening.
Learning.
Adjusting.
“For Diana, the beginning took some getting used to,” they shared. “There was first a period of discovery and visiting all the projects. Her patience was put to the test.”
But in that waiting, clarity came.
Diana eventually found herself deeply involved at a boys’ orphanage, serving through her background as a social worker and investing personally in the lives of the children there.
For the entire family, one of the greatest lessons God has been teaching them is patience and dependence on Him.
“You want to get started and get to work right away,” they said. “But first we had to take time to settle in and get our bearings.”
They also shared that one of the hardest parts of becoming Global Ambassadors was trusting God financially.
“It was quite a big step to choose something while not having the full finances for it.”
Yet even there, God has continued to provide.
The Moments That Change You
Mission trips are rarely remembered because of itineraries or schedules.
They’re remembered because of people.
For Roeland, one unforgettable moment happened after inviting two boys from an orphanage to a men’s breakfast gathering.
One of the boys later said:
“I feel alive.”
“That really resonated with me,” Roeland shared. “He experienced the Holy Spirit within him, and he can carry that with him despite his circumstances.”
For Anna, it was serving at a ministry called Healing with Horses, where children with physical and intellectual disabilities are given the opportunity to ride horses.
“There was a girl there who was so enthusiastic about being allowed to ride again,” Anna said. “Her eyes sparkled with joy.”
For Diana, one of the most impactful moments came during a home visit in the slums of Bulawayo, where they met a mother raising her four children while also caring for two adopted children — including one child abandoned because of severe disabilities.
“A harrowing situation,” Diana shared, “but also a miraculous choice by a mother who can barely make ends meet in poverty, yet still takes on the care of another person’s child.”
These are the kinds of moments where you don’t just see the needs of the world — you encounter the heart of Jesus in a way that leaves fingerprints on your heart forever.
You Don’t Have to Do Everything Alone
One of the beautiful things their family discovered is that missions together doesn’t mean everyone has to do the exact same thing.
“You don’t have to do everything together,” they explained. “It’s important to let each other play to your strengths.”
That’s true for families.
It’s true for teams.
It’s true for churches.
Every person brings something unique.
Some teach.
Some build relationships.
Some organize.
Some pray.
Some lead worship.
Some encourage.
Some simply show up willing to serve.
And God uses all of it.
A Shared Mission
When asked what they would say to families or teams considering missions together, their answer was simple: “It starts with opening yourself up to the Lord.”
They encouraged people not to wait until they feel perfectly prepared, but to simply begin somewhere — even with a short-term trip.
“It brings you closer together because you have a shared goal and build memories together. It is a unique experience.”
That’s the beauty of missions.
Whether you go as a family, a group of friends, a church team, a youth group, or as an individual joining others on the field, God uses shared experiences to transform hearts.
Not just the people being served.
But the people serving too.
Because sometimes the greatest transformation happens when ordinary people simply make themselves available to God.
And then watch what He does next.
Interested in serving on a mission trip, Urban Plunge, or becoming a Global Ambassador?
