I took today’s feature image Thursday while waiting for the boys to finish school. The day had been cloudy and damp but the setting sun caught the top of a cold, stone building, against a cool grey sky and set it ablaze with light and warmth.  Regardless of how your week’s been… even grey, bleak & damp (spiritually speaking), today you have another opportunity for “the Son” to shine on you and make you radiant: an unmistakable source of warmth & inspiration to those around you.  Be light in a dark world!

Let’s take a look at the week that was in Châtellerault!

 

Shout out to the Clown!

This photo of Dominic & Timo, performing a skit in last Sunday’s service, may see, quite banal… “What child hasn’t done a skit before?” … Indeed, you’ve even seen photos in here before, showing our kids’ involvement in one special presentation or another. But this one is different.

Last Sunday, it was only the two boys and they both had speaking parts that they’d memorized in advance. This was a milestone for Timo. Up to this point he’d typically rely on his older siblings to carry the ‘heavy weight’ of speaking… but his time in school is paying big dividends. We thank God for the way his hands are on the kids.

 

Great Sunday!

Last Sunday was my first “normal” Sunday since returning from Canada and it was a tremendous day from start to finish.

Church: Although there were a few folks missing due to sickness (the change of seasons is taking its toll), there were two other families present, one of which is only able to attend once monthly and the other who was visiting for the first time. What a great presence of God!

Bike Ride: We live only a couple hundred meters from an old railway line that’s been repurposed as a walking / cycling trail. Sunday after lunch the kids & I did roughly a 10km ride through forest & field and Christmas carols may or may not have been sung at full volume.

 

Community

We’ve had a couple of neat opportunities, this week, to get a few steps deeper into our community:

1. School: We had a meeting Thursday night with Dominic’s school; looking at the reforms in French schools and the impact on students moving ahead. It was another opportunity to get to know school personnel.
2. Neighbourhood: Last night I attended the general meeting of our local neighbourhood association: this is both the  neighbourhood where we live and where our church is located. Come to find out I’d already met the president while walking our dog last week.

It’s all about connection with people… and this week gave us two great opportunities to connect!

As Paul exhorted the Colossians, pray that every connection eventually become an open door for us to proclaim the mystery of Christ to all men. (Col. 4:2)

 

French Worship Album

If you’re looking for hot-off-the-press French worship music… here’s an album I picked up this week on iTunes: Deeper (click album cover for iTunes preview)

My friend Mercioni Martorano is one of the vocalists. We toured through French-speaking Europe, with the French Continental Singers, in 1998.

This young man is a worshiper… I could listen to & worship with him for hours!

(you can also hear & download songs from his 2008 album
“Marche devant moi” here on Amazon)

 

Extended!

We received unexpected good news yesterday. Our residency papers (5 months coming) were not given the 1-year renewal that is typical for new residents like us, rather, they were made valid until 2021 (an administrative miracle).

NOW… before jumping to conclusions… we didn’t request, nor were we expecting it.  We are still very much seeking the Lord’s will for the future… this is simply one more thing to put into the mix as we seek his will. The next few months are critical in that process, we covet your prayers!

 

Extension

That’s it for today. It bears repeating that we consider ourselves simply an extension of your ministry and the ministries of your churches. We are your hands and feet in western France. Any victories we experience here are your victories as well.

God bless you today!