Happy Birthday Timo!

Since the clocks have moved back and as the longer nights of winter approach, dark drives through sleepy villages are more and more frequent.

As you can see from today’s feature picture however…. sleepy little French villages have just as much charm after dark.

More than that however… we’ve had a birthday this week…

First things First

Recently, Timo celebrated another trip around the sun! This kid is loaded with personality, and while I suppose there’s always been traces of it, as he gets older, it’s increasingly evident.

To a certain extent, Timo has really come into his own over the past year and honestly, I don’t think that it can be dissociated from the fact that he’s taken his relationship with the Lord to a whole new level as well.

He’s both well liked and respected by his both his peers (both in church circles and in school) and his school teachers as well, so much so that his school principal showed Timo the brochure for the new program he’ll be involved with, before one of the other teachers in the program!

His intent is to continue, after high school, with a 2-year diploma in the optician-eyeware trade – what he’s been studying for the past 3 years in high school. As a matter of fact, he’s on another 1-month intership as I write, so he’s “at work” on a Saturday (to compensate for having Mondays off).

We are over the moon proud of this guy!

The Difference Church Tech Makes

Let’s be clear… we’re a small church and won’t be livestreaming services any time soon. That being said… technology still plays a role in building cohesion among our church family.

Let me give you two examples:

Friday Prayer: We have prayer meetings on alternative Friday nights and turned to ZOOM because for so long people could not attend in person because of distance, driving limitations and busy schedules. Last Friday night, I was late leaving Angers (where I teach, a 2h drive away) and knew I wouldn’t be home in time. The wonder of technology is such that I was able to use ZOOM on my phone (camera off, audio-only) and take part in prayer with everyone else.

Amazing!

Sunday Mornings: We have one family in Angers who is only able to attend once or twice per month in person and, the rest of the time, join via Whatsapp. We set our phone on a chair and they’re able to watch and engage with our service, teaching and worship.

Is it the same as being physically present? Not at all. Does it allow a connection? Yes.

Thank you Lord for technology!

Youth on Fire

It’s not always technology based however. Last Saturday, the youth met here at the house for some Bible study, prayer & fellowship and let me tell you… from upstairs where I was working… it was like the house was shaking when they went into prayer.

Just incredible… Thank you Lord!

As I mentioned at the beginning… there’s always a fair bit of driving, but whether in daytime or under cover of darkness, there are nice roads to be driven and thus far the Lord has really protected us from any mishaps, for which we’re thankful!