Personal information
I was born on March 6th 1963 at Maarn. My parents begot eleven children. I am the oldest of them. We soon moved to Maarsbergen. I attended the reformed primary school at Scherpenzeel. As young boy I was used to travel by bike. After the primary school I attended the reformed Lodenstein-College in Amersfoort. I liked the exact sciences. Mathemathics and physics were the subjects in which I have always been strong. At the age of 18 I left home for the study of Technical Physics at Delft University. Because I finished this study in a shorter time than was planned, I asked the mission to work for them. In 1984 I went for three months to Zimbabwe to work at a solar energy equipment at the Thembiso Children Home near Bulawayo.
When I came back I stopped my study at Delft and started the theological course at Utrecht University. It was a great change in my life, because as a little child I had always been of opinion to work in the firm of my father. My father started a small firm in the metal-industry in 1959. During the decades the business grew. At the moment the Van Vlastuin Groep consists of 5 firms; Vlastuin Metaalconstructie (supply industry for heavy metal parts), Marver (supply industry for light metal parts), Comar (garage test equipment), D-Tec (container-trailers) and Jörg (building machines). Ca. 130 people are working for the Groep. It is very sad that my father died very suddenly at January 21th 1997. Two brothers are now running the business.
In 1988 I passed the MT and in 1990 the church course. For one year I worked as a teacher physics and religion at the Udemans-school at Hoevelaken for two days a week. The practical lessons for the ministry I had at The Hague and at Elspeet. At May 24 I was installed in the congregation of Wouterswoude (near Dokkum) by Rev. D.J. Budding. I had there a very good time and felt myself at home.
| The period in Wouterswoude was also a special time because I met my wife Wilma Wiersma. She was one of the people in the catechism-class. In dependence on the Lord we agreed to marry. At June 17th 1993 we became a couple. We got three children; Tonny (1994), Hennie (1995), Jan (1998). By God's grace, we are a very happy family. | Our family: |
When I went to Wouterswoude, I had the thought to spend the rest of my life there, but God decided otherwise. When the call of Opheusden came, I felt the responsibility for this congregation and so I was installed at Opheusden at January 4th 1995 by Rev. P. de Vries. This is a big congregation with about 2500 souls. It is a very good to preach the gospel. Many times we experience the presence of the Spirit, working in the congregation. The congregation is too big to give the pastoral care that is necessary.
At the beginning of 1999 I could be called again. I got two calls from oversee. Because I am very much interested in the worldwide kingdom of the Lord, I thought that it may be His way to go to Canada. But it became clear that this was not the way of the Lord. I had also to decline the call of Putten, but the call of Katwijk was so impressed in my soul that I could not decline. So I was installed there on August 14 1999 by Rev. J. Vroegindeweij, my predecessor, who worked there for 27 years.
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