Praise and Prayer August 29 2012

Summer is grinding to a halt and the “Rentrée” (pronounced “rawntray”, meaning the return to school) begins this next week with elementary and secondary schools starting classes.  Attendance is picking up again at church as folks return after summer travels.  There were a number of visitors in church on Sunday including a family with 3 children.  It was great to have 8 children in our Junior Church! 

We had our second English Encounter outreach Sunday afternoon.  Although I was hoping for more present we were happy to have 9 present including a lady who had not been present for the first one, besides several children who did not participate.  Everyone was encouraged to invite others to come next time and left with new invitations.

Praise for:

- the way God is blessing the adult Bible study Sunday mornings as Jonathan teaches through the attributes of God. 

- the family with 3 children that was in church Sunday and the return of two other children that have not been coming.  Praise for attentiveness in Junior Church.

- our second English Encounter last Sunday.

- a working landline telephone as of last Thursday!

- the Lord helping us as Adrianna and I met the local Inspector of education last week for him to evaluate our last year of homeschooling.  Other than needing a little help with French vocabulary and fluency, he seemed pleased overall with the curriculum (BJU Press) and with Adrianna’s level.

Pray for:

- those travelling and returning after summer vacation, and for attendance to continue to be good.  Pray that the family and the other two children will return next Sunday.

- good contacts this month concerning the English Encounter and that God will bless and grow this effort for His glory.

- our teammates, the Christys, as Sylvia and Jana return this week from the USA in time for the Rentrée.  Pray for Ed as meetings continue until his scheduled return September 26.

- Mr. and Mrs. C. and for the Lord to bless our time of helping and sharing with them.

- our 10-year residency cards to be approved and granted soon.

Praise and Prayer August 22, 2012

After six months of waiting, we finally have Internet service at the house and the landline telephone should soon be activated.  When we moved here we never imagined it would take this long to get hooked up.  The Lord helped us through this time by providing cell phone service, including limited Internet through which we have been able to keep up with email and this blog. 

Summertime usually brings transition at church, both activity-wise and through arrivals and departures.  We have been blessed to have a number of Hispanic young people attending church during the past year, from Central and South America.  There was a special fellowship dinner on August 12 as a farewell to one of the young ladies who was returning home after a year of working and studying in France.  P. will be missed by all as she had attended and participated in the services faithfully.  Adrianna and Lydia, the pastor’s daughter, are always eager and ready to help serve.  Others are beginning to return after summer trips, and soon students will be arriving for the new school year.  There have been new visitors several times, and some continue to return each week. 

Praise for:

- fairly good attendance continuing through the summer. 

- the good response to the adult class that Jonathan has been teaching Sunday mornings.

- the Lord’s help in preparing a website for the English Encounter.

- the Lord’s help for our elderly friends through a very hot spell and for the opportunities that we have had to visit them and take them grocery shopping.

- the new weekly meeting that Jonathan and Pastor Christian have set up to discuss church matters and to pray, and for the pastors’ prayer meeting that Jonathan took part in for the area pastors (5 of us present).

- that we now have Internet service in our house as of Monday of this week.

Pray for:

- God to continue His work in hearts through the teaching and preaching of His Word, and for the return of visitors, including children and men.

- Jonathan as he helps the church in developing a needed church website as a tool to reach the lost in Bordeaux.

- Cherith as she prepares for the Ladies’ Bible Study beginning this fall and for both of us as we study and prepare for the Adult Bible study and the children’s Sunday school class each week.  Pray as we prepare for our second English encounter this Sunday afternoon, and pray for the group that will gather for it.

- our land-line telephone to be activated and usable.

- our 10-year residency cards to be approved and granted soon.

Praise and Prayer August 7, 2012

Thank you for your prayers for us during these past few weeks.  This update has been on our minds and it is past time that we share with you.  These have been full weeks and we have seen God’s blessings and answers to prayer.  A couple of the highlights have been our first English service on July 29 and the visit of our dear friends, Frank and Joel Leslie, from our home church in Springville, PA.  There were 14 of us at our English service, including at least two that are unsaved.  We were encouraged by the response and ask you to be praying for our next English service on August 26.  The Leslies were with us just a few very full days and we enjoyed introducing them to our ministry as well as to French history and culture.  We enjoyed a bus tour of Bordeaux together that also helped us to further our knowledge of this beautiful city.  Frank taught our adult Sunday School class and shared his testimony in both the morning service and in the English service.  He gave a great challenge regarding obedience to the Master and shared a report of what they had accomplished in Greece as part of Operation Joshua.  It was good to see increased burden for world missions among our folks.

Praise for:

- a good response to our first English service outreach. 

- the Leslies’ visit and the encouragement and impact that they had on us and in our church here.

- that our temporary residency cards have been granted and our request for 10-year cards is now being considered.

- unsaved visitors who continue to come back to church.

- our daughter Adrianna celebrating her 9^th Birthday July 23, and for her growth this year, physically and spiritually.

- Jonathan’s one-month post-op visit with the surgeon on July 27 and for a clean bill of health.

- the installation of our telephone line last Friday nearly 6 months after we requested it.

Pray for:

- God’s work in hearts through the teaching and preaching ministries in church, and for the Lord to bring visitors, including children and men.

- Jonathan as he helps the church in developing a needed church website as a tool to reach the lost in Bordeaux (technology is not one of our strong points).

- the planning and preparation for women’s ministries for this fall.

- Jonathan as he continues to teach the adult class this month.

- us as we try to help and encourage the elderly couple who have had a vision for a work in Merignac for over 20 years, as their health declines.

- our 10-year residency cards to be approved and granted soon.

Praise and Prayer July 17, 2012

The Lord has given me nearly complete recovery since my surgery on June 22.  Cherith and the kids did a great job nursing me, and I was able to take advantage of some of my down time to read, study, and later, unpack a few more boxes of books from our shed.  Two weeks and two days after my surgery, the Lord had given me sufficient healing so that I was able to teach the Adult Bible study and preach in the morning service.  I am scheduled to teach the Adult Bible study throughout this month and the month of August.  It is a rewarding study as we go through the attributes of our wonderful, awesome God. 

The Lord has given us some opportunities to connect with some of our church family through hospitality.  On July 1, we were privileged to have Pastor Corenthin’s family and another brother from church join us at our home after church for dinner and an afternoon of good fellowship and encouragement.  Last Saturday, our song leader came over for lunch and a visit.  While helping him to practice his English, we learned of how the Lord has worked in his life and the life of his family, and we even brainstormed together about future ministry opportunities. 

Although the distance from our home in the USA had us far from family, patriotic parades and fireworks, we did have a very special opportunity to celebrate our country’s birth and our physical freedom and the spiritual freedom we have in Christ with nearly 25 other Americans at the home of some of our teammates (the Bixbys). 

Praise for:

- Jonathan’s good recovery from surgery. 

- God working in hearts at church, including some who have been visiting regularly.

- the Lord helping us to connect with people in the church and for those who have been in our home.

- more contacts with two of our neighbors and for opportunities to witness.

Pray for:

- the Lord’s help for Jonathan as he teaches the adult class each Sunday, and that truths we study will have a profound effect in our lives.

- the children’s ministry, that the Lord will continue to bring children, and that the Lord will help us communicate His Word clearly to these children.

- preparations for our first English outreach service on July 29.

- the renewal of our residency papers and for the installation of a telephone line.

- for the upcoming visit of friends from our sending church who are currently on a missions trip in Greece.

Praise and Prayer June 27, 2012

It was before 7 A.M. on Friday morning when Jonathan and I were standing in front of the outpatient door at the hospital, waiting for the door to be unlocked.  By 8 A.M., he was taken from his day room to the surgery ward.  By 11:30, he was once again back in his room, slowly waking from the general anesthesia.  He was in and out of sleep for the next several hours and finally after a visit from the surgeon and anesthesiologist, we were free to go.

Thank you for all your prayers for this operation.  God answered our prayers in giving safety, even though we found out afterwards that there had been a complication in inserting the breathing tube.  This explained the sore throat and cough Jonathan woke up with!  It also reminded us of how much we are dependent on God in every situation.  We were released from the hospital by 6 P.M.

The doctor instructed Jonathan to wait for two weeks before again engaging in regular activities (including lifting our 40 lb Josiah)!  Healing seems to be progressing well.  The pain is lessening each day.  He is appreciating our couch and the extra time to read.

Praise for:

- Jonathan’s successful surgery and God’s protection. 

- the fun-filled Friday our kids had here at home with Esther.

- Esther’s safe return trip home to Maryland this past weekend.

- our Pastor’s wife and family taking our three kids for the day on Saturday in order to give Jonathan some quiet rest time.

- the two unsaved girls who were in S.S. for the first time in quite a while, and that I was able to clearly present the Gospel to them.

Pray for:

- the complete and quick healing of Jonathan’s body from his surgery.

- open hearts in the unsaved children the Lord brings to us.

- preparations for beginning an English outreach toward the end of July.

- the renewal of our residency papers and for the installation of a telephone line.

Praise and Prayer June 20, 2012

Sunday was a big day with the morning service and Junior church, a fellowship dinner and the semi-annual business meeting for the members in the afternoon.  We were saddened to say goodbye to two of the children and their mother who return to Martinique this week after being in Bordeaux for their Mother’s education these past 9 months.  They have been in church nearly every Sunday since we arrived in Bordeaux, and their absence will be sorely felt next Sunday morning.  It was encouraging to have two of the small children and their mothers in church again, who have been visiting for a few weeks.  Please pray that the Lord will bring more families out to church and that God will continue to grow this work.  We also need prayer for workers!

This Friday, I will be having outpatient surgery for a hernia at the Jean Villar Polyclinique in Bruges, a suburb of Bordeaux.  The Lord’s timing in allowing Esther S. to be with us at this time is evidence of His grace and provision for us.  Cherith will need to be with me for checking in at 7:20 a.m. and then to take me home later in the day.  Pray for Esther too as she will have her hands full with three active children during the time that Cherith is with me.  She leaves Saturday to return home to the USA, the day after my surgery.  Her presence with us and with several others of our French team has been a blessing and help in many ways.  She certainly will be missed.

Praise for:

- the return of one of the first-time visitors Sunday morning and for others who continue to come. 

- the services Sunday, for the fellowship dinner and for the annual business meeting.  Praise for the way God is leading and blessing in the church.

- Esther’s safe trip to Algrange and back, and for the way that God used her there.  Praise for God sending her to us at such a critical time and for all of her help.

- Adrianna and Caleb finishing school this week, and for the Lord helping Mama and Papa to make it through the year of teaching along with our other responsibilities!

Pray for:

- the family that is returning to Martinique this week, and for God to bring new children to church.

- preparations for beginning an English outreach toward the end of July.

- Jonathan’s surgery Friday and for a quick recovery.  Pray for Cherith as she has double duty with the children during this time.

- Esther as she finishes up her time in France this week and as she returns to the USA this weekend to a busy summer schedule ahead of her.

- the renewal of our residency papers and for the installation of a telephone line.

Praise and Prayer June 12, 2012

God is at work in France!  We are also aware of the evil one’s desire to keep people from Christ and are reminded of the vital importance of God’s people praying for this work.  The Musical Missions Team from BJU was a great blessing as they ministered in various ways, including full concerts in two sister churches here in Bordeaux, impromptu mini-concerts at tramway stops and handing out Gospel tracts and invitations to the concerts in downtown Bordeaux.  

Our family enjoyed having three of the team members stay with us, a special delight to our children.  One of our neighbors had told us that they planned to attend one of the concerts and we prayed that there would be no obstacles.  However, as we drove toward the concert on Saturday afternoon, we hit nearly stopped traffic along Bordeaux’s outer highway ring.  The traffic filed down to one lane over the huge bridge over the Aquitaine River where we saw the accident that caused the backup.  The cell phone rang as we pulled up to the church.  Our neighbors en route with their 5-year-old granddaughter were several miles back in the stopped traffic and had decided to turn around.  While disappointed that they were unable to attend, we were encouraged to know that our God is in control, and that even this accident did not take Him by surprise.  We could see that our neighbors were certainly willing to attend and would have if it were possible.  Other neighbors and our landlord also indicated interest though they already had other plans.  We continue to pray for other opportunities.  The Team’s ministry did bear fruit and we know of at least one decision for salvation that was made at one of the concerts. 

The Lord has sent us special help and encouragement this past week through this year’s FOFer, Esther S.  FOF stands for Focus On France, and is a program that has been set up for College students (and others perhaps too) to come and experience missions first-hand as they spend time with various servants in this country.  She is with us for several days now before she leaves on the TGV train Wednesday for Algrange to visit the Bible Institute ministry there.  Her servant’s heart has been a blessing to our family, as she gets involved in various areas of our life and ministry.  Last week she helped us organize several boxes of Sunday school resources at the church, sort and classify flannelgraph, prepare several songs on poster board for Sunday School (all of our others in Reims were left for the church there and its Sunday School program).  On Saturday, Esther helped Cherith prepare some desserts for our Sunday picnic with the Corenthin family and the family of a visiting pastor.  

Between prayer meeting Friday evening and the Sunday services, she met and encouraged many of our people.  She shared her testimony in church Sunday morning and helped Cherith with Children’s church.  She has been a huge help with the children and they have enjoyed every minute she has had to spend with them.  Yesterday, Cherith and I were able to make a couple trips to the local government office regarding our residency papers, while Esther watched the kids at home.  Last night we took her up on her offer to babysit the children so we could go out on a long overdue date, the first one in six months!  What a special blessing that was to us. 

Praise for:

- God’s blessings of the Musical Missions Team’s ministry in Bordeaux and for all of those who heard the Gospel clearly through their ministry.  Praise for at least one man’s salvation!

- God’s help for our full weekends of preaching and teaching in the absence of Pastor Christian, and for his ministry in Algrange for graduation and in a church nearby that Sunday morning.

- a visitor in church Sunday morning who had attended the church’s children’s program as a child years ago.

- the opportunity to attend the monthly English service at the church in Pessac, another suburb of Bordeaux, and to fellowship with other believers.  We were all challenged by the message on forgiveness that was shared by a Pastor from the USA who is here visiting a family whom their church helps to support.

- the help and encouragement that Esther has been to us and to many others in France this month.

- our celebrating eleven adventurous years of marriage with God’s marvelous blessings and faithful care.

Pray for:

- the visitor last Sunday to return this next Sunday and that God will work in his life.  Pray too for the mother and 6-year-old child that came for several weeks to come back to church this Sunday.

- the spiritual growth of the man who accepted Christ at the concert by the BJU Team.  Pray for the Musical Missions Team as they continue their very full travel/concert schedule around France, Switzerland, Germany, and Czech Republic.

- Esther’s train trip to and from Algrange and for her ministry there.

- continued opportunities to reach out to our neighbors.

- the renewal of our residency papers and for the installation of a telephone line.

- Jonathan’s hernia surgery June 22.