Robin Prijs is a speaker, author, ICT teacher, radio DJ and the founder of LoveUnlimited Ministries (formerly Jaweh Ministries International). He has written several books, including a book entitled "Never Living A Lie Again". In this book he shares his personal story of struggles, depression and suicidal thoughts. Most famous, however, is his book “The Anointed Bride”, in which he gives a very extensive and Biblical explanation about the anointing and the use of anointing oil. This book is now on its way to becoming an international bestseller, although he does not want to classify it as such. His books have been published on platforms such as Amazon and Bol.com.
Particularly in recent years, he has faced challenges in his personal life, including being accused of welfare fraud and having to lose everything. He and his wife were homeless and without income for over four years, as a result of that. The homelessness has now come to an end. Robin and his wife Esther now have a home and income again.
Earlier this year it was announced that Robin would start as a radio DJ for the new national Christian broadcaster GOD Radio. There he now weekly presents the GOD Radio Top 33.
How are you and your wife doing at the moment?
You know, I like to make a distinction between what I feel and what I believe. For I have not come to feeling, but to faith. That being said, I want to answer this question with faith and say that we are doing well. But for those wondering, it certainly doesn't always feel that way. However, we do not want to be led by feelings.
Can you tell us how you got into the welfare affair?
We still wonder that too. Despite our efforts to get a job, we ended up on welfare for a period. That alone is terrible, but we resolved to do everything we could to get out and obey our government, just as the Bible tells us. In everything we always followed all instructions, we went to all mandatory meetings, we always actively applied for jobs, we always showed up on time for appointments, etc. In addition, however, we were under the assumption that we lived in a free country and had freedom of religion here. That turned out not to be the case. In that period I wrote two books and we organized meetings. Precisely to prevent a wrong impression about this, I have always reported all these activities. However, there was never any response.
In hindsight I think they deliberately ignored us because they were looking for a stick to hit with. Later, the Drechtsteden Social Service claimed in court that we had not reported anything to them and that I had falsified my e-mails to them. For a long time, the judges simply went along with this, without wanting to establish the truth at any point. Only when the television program De Monitor started to get involved and showed that all e-mails were genuine, did the court agree. However, that also had no effect. We have had an accountant investigate the administration of the LoveUnlimited Ministries foundation. This showed that we had not withdrawn any funds from the foundation and that all financial resources were always used for the purpose of the foundation. That too was ignored by the court. Suddenly, according to the Drechtsteden, it no longer mattered whether or not we had made money with it. No, we could have made money with it. You can hardly defend yourself against that. They are always coming up with something new.
The management team of the Drechtsteden Social Service told us that we should realize that you simply surrender certain rights when you are dependent on social assistance. Because “that's just how it works in the Netherlands.” I thank God that at this time we are no longer dependent on the terrible and inhuman assistance. It may be called the last safety net, but it seems more like that safety net is there to catch people instead of taking care of them.
How has this affair affected your personal and professional life?
Devastating everything. You know, I've been able to hold several positions, which I can't say anything about in terms of content, but where the highest forms of screening were required. I have had screenings from the AIVD, the MIVD and detective agencies that I have always passed with flying colours. And then suddenly an official says that you are a fraudster, you can hardly defend yourself against this, you are not listened to, evidence is ignored and your life is destroyed. This is not only unfair, but also very painful. You're put with your back against the wall and everything can just happen. I can hardly describe what that feels like and what it does to you.
The result was that all income was stopped, we could no longer meet our fixed costs, debts mounted at a rapid pace, ultimately resulting in the fact that we were evicted from our home. As icing on the cake, the Municipality of Dordrecht also decided to deregister us from the basic register, to the RNI (Registration of Non Residents) status. Then you no longer count in the Netherlands, you are no longer entitled to income and you are no longer entitled to health insurance. As if you are no longer human. That is very unreal. I never thought it possible that this could happen in the Netherlands and it showed me everything about our society.
How did you deal with becoming homeless?
Well, how should you deal with that? That was the moment where our life ended and survival began. We no longer had the luxury of living. Of course we immediately started asking for help, starting with social work in Dordrecht. There we were refused. We were told that social work was part of the Drechtsteden Social Service and that they had been instructed not to help us because of the lawsuits they had against us. Then we knocked on the door of the Salvation Army. The man who spoke to me clearly had other things to do and brushed us off. So there was no one within the Drechtsteden who wanted to help us.
The only option left was to look for help outside the Drechtsteden. Time and again we were told the term 'regional binding' and we were referred back to the Drechtsteden. That was the place where the homelessness started and we had to look for help there. The Drechtsteden knew this too, but they systematically refused to offer any form of help. And so you have to keep moving from place to place, hoping to find shelter, hoping to have food and survive. That is very heavy. All you can do is survive. We were never prepared for that.
What steps have you taken to find a home and work again?
The cruel thing about the situation was that the Municipality of Dordrecht had deregistered us to the RNI status and denied us any kind of help. As a result, you are no longer allowed to work in your own country. So, legally speaking, we were not allowed to accept any form of employment anywhere and were no longer entitled to benefits anywhere. All forms of income were therefore unattainable. Despite everything, we were determined to remain obedient to the government and therefore not to give in to undeclared work. However, we had to pay a very high price for that decision. In municipalities outside the Drechtsteden, we were therefore repeatedly referred back to the Drechtsteden, with the message that they were responsible for offering us help.
To be honest, there has been a period when I had given up hope and also stopped seeking help. At the beginning of 2021 I decided, albeit with lead in my shoes, to try again. This time in Doetinchem. For the first time I got a helpful person on the phone there. He was eventually able to arrange a postal address for us, so that we were registered again in the basic administration as of April 2021 and regained our rights as citizens. Two months later I found a job as an ICT teacher at WerkRaat. I still have that job.
At that time we stayed at a campsite in the municipality of Oude IJsselstreek. For the postal address I should have moved to the Municipality of Doetinchem, because that is the umbrella municipality in the region, but for practical help I also turned to the Municipality of Oude IJsselstreek. Their social service did everything they could to help and assist us. It felt almost unreal, after everything we had been through. Ultimately, this resulted in us getting a home again in November 2021 and homelessness and survival came to an end.
How have you kept your faith during this difficult time?
Let me be very honest about that. That went with peaks and deep valleys. Sometimes faith was hard to find and I couldn't see hope anywhere. At other times I realized again that faith is not a feeling but a choice. Then I made that choice again to stand in faith. It was a storm like never before. There were moments of falling, but especially of getting up again, crying and moving on. Fallen lying on the ground was of course possible, but then you know for sure that it will never be okay again. No matter how hard it was at times, we always got back up and tried to put our focus back on Jesus. He got us through this. Without His help we would not have survived this.
Can you tell us more about LoveUnlimited Ministries?
I can, but for that I refer to the website. To be honest, I didn't really feel like continuing and I wanted to pull the plug. Just then I was approached by someone who said the following: “The Lord has shown me that you are about to retire from the ministry. You can not do that. It's not your ministry, it's the Lord's. Do not touch it.” I obeyed that. What needs to happen further will have to be revealed by God. In addition, recovery will also be necessary. Lots of recovery.
How has the welfare affair affected this organization?
Well, this organization was from the beginning the subject of research by the Drechtsteden Social Service. However, the organization itself was never legally involved in the case and was therefore never allowed to defend itself. The investigation was never completed. Apparently the results were not what they had hoped for. The investigation should have focused on my wife and me, but it never did. The organization has therefore received the necessary blows. Let me leave it at that.
How do you plan to pick up this organization again?
First of all I must say that everything has stood still for too long. That cannot and must not continue to be the case. As for the how, I can only say that we seek the Lord to shape this. Based on what He reveals to us, we move forward.
How do you deal with the ongoing persecution of the Municipality of Dordrecht?
You mean the wage garnishment they made on my income? What can I say? It is exactly the same callous and inhumane way of working that we have seen in recent years. It often makes me angry and frustrated, but… I choose to keep forgiving them. That is not a choice of my feeling, but a choice of my will. I continue to surrender the matter to the Lord Jesus Christ and continue to proclaim and stand in faith that it is over. Jesus Christ reigns. Also over this case. What I see happening, feel and experience are not leading for my faith. I know I'm not the only one. In the Netherlands, 200,000 people have been duped by the welfare affair in the past 10 years. Hardly anyone has dared to share anything about this. So I do.
How important is it for you to share your story with others?
Let me start by saying that it is not fun to share the story, but I feel it is necessary. The Church in the Netherlands in particular needs to hear and see what is going on in our country. This is the chance for the Church, so for all of us, to show Who Jesus is and to reach out to people who are in this situation. We cannot stand on the sidelines. If the government does not want to change, then the Church will have to set a good example by helping where the government fails to do so. I would like to add right away that we must continue to bless our government and stand in the gap in prayer for them. As difficult as this is sometimes. I see it as an act of obedience.
What would you like to achieve by sharing your story?
Easy. What I want to achieve is awareness.
What are your future plans on a personal and professional level?
I don't make plans anymore. That makes little sense. Control is an illusion. All I want to do is be open to the way God has for me. He leads, I follow.
How do you see your role within LoveUnlimited Ministries in the future?
That's a very difficult one. I really have no idea.
What role does your faith play in the choices you make in life?
The main role. I've made enough choices of my own accord and it hasn't done me any good spiritually. Faith originates in the Word of God and on that basis I base my opinion and my choices. And yes, sometimes I make choices on my own insight and I have to come back to that later and still make a choice in faith. However, a Christian is not distinguished by the lack of mistakes, but by the way he deals with them.
What advice would you give to others dealing with similar challenges in life?
Never give up! Never! Never let giving up be an option! No matter how far you've fallen, no matter how bad your situation, get up! Turn your eyes back to Jesus. Seek Him in prayer and in His Word. Keep doing that and wait for what He's going to do, however long it takes. And if you fall again, get up again. Again and again and again. But never lie down. There is hope. God is faithful. And if you keep holding on to that, you're going to see it. The impossible will become possible. Closed doors will open. Open doors will be closed. For He is a rewarder of those who sincerely seek Him.
What was your motivation to get involved with GOD Radio and the GOD Radio Top 33?
Next year it will be 30 years since I started making radio. Since then it has always been a passion and a hobby of mine. When I saw that Bas Emons had started with GOD Radio, I contacted him and a nice contact was established. In addition, I also wanted to stop radio programs that featured 'worldly music'. Especially because of the many wrong lyrics and proclamations that you hear in contemporary music these days.
How do you think GOD Radio can contribute to the Christian music community in the Netherlands?
I think GOD Radio can play a very big role in that. We can show that things can be done differently. In addition, there is so much good to discover within Christian music and also so much more than other Christian broadcasters show. In that respect, GOD Radio is a nice addition and not even competition.
Can you tell us more about your role in the GOD Radio Top 33 and how you present the hit list?
Every week I can present the GOD Radio Top 33 on Friday between 4 and 7 PM. I do that in the same way as I have done all my other programs. Not in a strict religious straitjacket, but by just being myself and making it a fun program. Every week I make the top 33 based on sales figures, streaming figures and airplay figures. My goal is to ensure that people can still listen to nice music during the day, without having to listen to worldly music with wrong lyrics and proclamation. In this way they still get a positive sound, often with texts that make the gray masses think.
When will we hear how LoveUnlimited Ministries continues?
Once I know and receive direction from God. That looks like doing nothing, but it's not. It is active searching, being alert to what God is doing around us and what doors He is opening. That's what I would call active waiting. As the Word of God says in Isaiah 40: "But those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall soar with wings like eagles, they shall run swiftly and not be weary, they shall run and don't get tired."
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