It’s the end of a hectic work week for many of you, yet here you are… touching base to find out what the Lord’s been doing in France. Thanks for that!

IBF… a Bible School weekend

I ended off last week’s post telling you that I was headed to Melun for the first Bible School weekend of the 2015-2016 year. Here are a couple photos of the prayer & devotional time right before lunch. To the right of the top picture you can also see fellow AIMer Crystal Wallace who, along with her husband (both originally New Brunswickers) are furlough replacements for Bro. & Sis. Nowacki there in Melun (follow their AIM updates here, on Facebook).

Here’s what a typical IBF* Saturday looks like:

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p style=”padding-left:30px;”>7:30 – 9:15    Classes (then coffee break)
9:35 – 11:20  Classes
11:25 – 12:00 Prayer & Devotion
12:00 – 1:00  Lunch
1:00 – 2:45    Classes (then coffee break)
3:05 – 5:45    Classes

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p style=”padding-left:30px;”>* IBF = Institut Biblique de France
For Andy and I… this full day is followed by a 3.5hr drive home for services on Sunday!

Pray for these students that God will use them as trained workers in their local churches. That is their desire and is key to the growth of the work in France.

Partners in Local Ministry

I want to brag for a moment on co-labourers Christian & Vanessa Kabasele. While they’re not mentioned in every post, they are invaluable to the work in Châtellerault.

They’re an example of why it’s important to pray for Bible School students; both are IBF graduates. God used that time to train them before sending them from their home church in Melun to the mission field of western France.

Christian is a huge help with the preaching load and is great with youth. Vanessa is gifted in all things “Sunday School” (she was Asst. Sunday School Director in Melun) and leads worship periodically. They’re a well-grounded apostolic family that makes a difference!  Pray for them… coming here was a step of faith for them as it was for us and they currently have a pressing need.

School Daze

As of this week, all three kids are back to school. Sophie’s material arrived this week so she started on Wednesday (the boys began last week).

Here you can get a sense of the setup. Soph & Dominic share a work table on the upstairs mezzanine in the Brochu’s house (mezzanine may make it sound grander than it is… it’s just an open area at the top of the stairs).

Timo’s setup is a little different. We were able to tuck a desk in under the stairway (previously just a spot for a low bookshelf and shoe rack). It’s a cool spot really… like his own little cubby hole. It also means he’s close to the kitchen and the main living level, making it easier when he needs help from Liz.

Zip… swish… crackle!

Tomorrow we’re having an event to rally our few young people and create an opportunity for them to invite friends.  After church we’re going zip-lining nearby and then will come back to church for a bonfire. Pray for safety and for great connections among our youth. I’ll show you pics next week.

We appreciate your prayers. They are vital to what the Lord does here.

Finally…

On a cultural note… while driving someone home from church, last Sunday, I came across the gate house of the Château de Baudiment, about 10min away. I’d seen the towers from the main road many times and was curious. It’s privately owned and not open to the public so I couldn’t see much, but judging by the gate house… I bet it’d be nice.