My name is Jos Hillen and I was born in December1959. 

My childhood was pretty smooth. In that time I used to visit the Catholic church without knowing who God was.  When I was sixteen years old I left the church and walked my own way.  But life changed really when I got out of my parents` house. My first relation wasn't good and I was afraid to be alone (like a lot of people, it seems). After I had the guts to get out of this relation I started immediately an other relation. I was 27 years old. I started to smoke weed and swallow XTC within the new relation. This had also a negative influence in my work -I was not interested anymore - and after 8
years smoking weed and swallowing XTC I got fired.
But I am a positive man and after I was fired I tried to start my own business. A new challenge. I tried do this for 1 year. It didn't work out; the business went bankrupt , costing me lots of money. On top of all that, the woman I had a relation with left me.
I was really desperate. But I have always had a very strong sense of good and bad. Through everything I always tried to choose the good way. But I really didn't see the meaning of life at that moment. It was so bad, that I wanted to commit suicide.

One of my friends was a Christian - a 52 year old woman - and I went to her to say goodbye. There we started to talk about faith and at the end of the evening I gave my life to Jesus Christ. So, the 21st of October 1996 is a memorable day for me. After I gave my life to Jesus, she taught me the basics of Christian living and my life changed. I was set free and from that moment on Jesus blessed me a lot . I grew in my Christian life and I really can say that my life is now a real life. There is no emptiness anymore. I can talk all day about what Jesus already did in my life. So, before I became a Christian, I had a negative period in my past where everything went wrong. I do not say it is easy to be a Christian, but resisting anything else and focusing on our Lord, I succeeded. His road is narrow but fulfilling and the road to hell is wide and easy (Luke 7:13). I really see now that He is the way, the truth and the life. After I began to be a Christian, He was and still is, very good to me. I see and feel His love surrounding me, and He is the no.1 in my life.
After I became a Christian, I already started to be a missionary. In February 1998 I went for a month to Benin - West Africa to serve on a hospital ship, called the Anastasis. This is of the organisation Youth with a Mission. There I was a cook in the galley.

In the future I hope that God will give me the opportunity to be a long-term volunteer on the Anastasis., so that I may bring the good news and  see a lot of the world. Because His will is important for me I want to listen to His voice, and follow the way He will lead me. In preparation of what lies ahead of me, I studied for a period of 5 months on a  DTS (Discipleship Training School). I know that our Father will do miracles in my live when I will stay in His will. I believe that it is the
will of God for me to do this school so that I am well-trained in the basics of His Word. 

But, I am allowed to study even more because God sent me to go to the SBS (School of Biblical Study) also conveniently based in Lakeside,Montana. What this study is all about, you can read in my fifth newsletter. For this study I will be staying in Montana from September 2000 until July 2001. This is quite a challenge for me, but I`m looking forward to it, for with God`s guiding hand, I can do anything.

May God bless you , and thank you for your support.

Joshua 

servant of our Lord Jesus Christ.

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