He is the founder of Open Doors. He started out in 1955 as a young Dutch missionary. He went on a group tour to Poland where he discovered a remnant church behind the Iron Curtain, desperately in need of the Word of God.
Brother Andrew (as he would later be known around the world) distributed a suitcase full of Christian literature marking the humble beginnings of Open Doors with Brother Andrew.
Today Open Doors is working in more than 60 countries to strengthen the Persecuted Church, sustaining indigenous Christians in hostile lands so they can continue to spread the Gospel to the unsaved majority around them.
His autobiography, an international bestseller, God's Smuggler, details his early experiences of dangerous border crossings, KGB pursuits, and Brother Andrew's courageous journey toward living radically for Jesus Christ.
His 11th book, The Calling, spans another 30 years of ministry highlights to communist China, war-torn Sudan, and the Middle East.
His recent book, Light Force, looks at the church in the Middle East and Andrew's involvement with both Muslims and Christians there.
In 1997, Brother Andrew was the recipient of the World Evangelical Fellowship's Religious Liberty Award, recognising his lifetime of service to the persecuted church and passion for spreading the Gospel.
Referring to Mathew 25, he says, "You cannot give a person something to eat unless you are there. You cannot provide drink or clothes, or visit the sick and imprisoned, unless you are there."
Currently in his 70s, Brother Andrew and his wife, Corrie, live in Holland and have 5 children and 4 grandchildren.
Brother Andrew, the founder of Open Doors, lives in the Netherlands, and he is still going where faith costs the most. He travels extensively around the world, ministering to persecuted Christians and sharing the Gospel with those who do not know Christ.
Our Trinitarian faith is enshrined and expressed in the historic creeds of the Church.
We believe in God the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth;
and in Jesus Christ His only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit;
born of the Virgin Mary;
suffered under Pontius Pilate;
was crucified, died and was buried;
He descended into hell,
the third day he rose again from the dead;
He ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty,
from where He will come to judge the living and the dead.
We believe in the Holy Spirit;
the holy Christian Church;
the communion of saints;
the forgiveness of sins;
the resurrection of the body;
and the life everlasting.
We produce an annual budget which is approved by our Board of Trustees and Open Doors International, and we report our progress to both groups monthly.
The accounts of Open Doors Australia are audited annually by an independent firm of auditors.
Our Annual review and full audited accounts are available on request.
Because Open Doors works with indigenous Christians, and as a result of our longstanding underground network, the sources of our information are almost always directly from the field, based on eyewitness accounts from our contacts.
We have developed personal relationships with the churches we serve, and have often worked with the pastors of these congregations for years. This is partly why we are so careful to protect the identity of persecuted Christians and why we often cannot disclose the nature or location of the assistance we are providing in full detail.
In addition, we refer to news reports published in the countries where the events have taken place, and news services including Compass Direct News Service, which reports on Christian persecution exclusively.
A major area of intense persecution today is in the 10/40 window where 97 per cent of the world's least evangelised people live. This rectangular area extends from West Africa across Asia, between the 10th and 40th parallels north of the equator.
The Christian population in the 10/40 Window is less than 2 per cent, a small but precious minority.
We believe that all doors are open and that God enables His Body to go into all the world and preach the Gospel.
We therefore define our ministry as follows:
Strengthening the Body of Christ living under restriction or persecution by providing and delivering Bibles, materials, training and other helps, and encouraging the Body to become involved in world evangelism.
Training and encouraging the Body of Christ in threatened or unstable areas, preparing believers to face persecution and suffering, and equipping them to maintain a witness to the Gospel of Christ.
Motivating, mobilising and educating the Church in the free world to identify with and become more involved in assisting the Persecuted Church, with the belief that "when one member suffers, all members suffer with it" (1 Corinthians 12:26).
Our Charter of Human Rights declares:
Every person in the world has the right to hear the Gospel
Everyone who suffers for their Faith in Jesus has the right to expect assistance from other parts of the Body of Christ.
All Christians living in free countries have a right to know how their brothers and sisters are doing under persecution.