OUR STORY
The Van Der Merwe family
Known by our friends, as the “Henty’s” - God put it on our hearts in 2019 to be part of starting something new in the Netherlands. We (Henty & Sophia) have been married for 6 years and we are blessed to be the parents of two boys.
Over the last ten years, Henty has served as a pastor in several churches, most recently as a church planter with the Risen Collective. He holds a Master of Divinity from Southern Seminary and a bachelor’s degree in Applied Theology from California Baptist University. Having grown up across several countries and cultures, much of his adult life and ministry has been spent in the United States.
Sophia is Dutch and has also spent significant parts of her life abroad. Throughout our ministry journey, she has served in student ministry, counseling, and hospitality. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Hospitality and Business Management and is currently at home with our boys, playing a vital role in the life and ministry of our family.
When not chasing our boys around, we are love to enjoy our time enjoying great coffee and great food, hopefully with some dear people.
Seeds planted in a garden
Our story began in a Garden in Hilversum in 2019. Henty was invited to preach at a local church gathering. Even at this time, God was stirring our hearts for the Netherlands. A friend after the sermon prayed that we would return to do ministry in the Netherlands. Looking back, it was the first seed planted in prayer for what God would do in us over the coming years.
In 2023, God began to move in our hearts and lives in undeniable ways to bring alignment, clarity and open doors of moving forward toward church planting in the Netherlands.
One of the steps of this journey was moving to Houston, TX to join Risen Church & the Risen Collective for a church planting residency. God used this season to heal, confirm and launch us to the Netherlands. In June of 2025, 7 years to the day of first meeting, we arrived in the Netherlands.
After a few months of settling in God led us to the place where we were to start a new church.
EINDHOVEN, the City of Light
As early as May of 2024, God had put Eindhoven on our hearts. While on a prayer and vision trip in Eindhoven in 2025, we asked God to confirm to us whether Eindhoven was were he was calling us. One of those confirmations came as we drove home one evening. We came across the seasonal display pictured above. It reminded us of Luke 10:2, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few…” We were asking “ God, is this where we should go?”
And we answered “yes” to his call.