Good news: Early this morning, we hit the road on our way to Melun for the National Youth convention. The bad news… you’ll have to wait until next weekend’s post to hear about it except for some sneak-peak snippets on Twitter:
Work and Fellowship
Wanting to have a lot of last minute things tidied up and in good shape for Bro. Brochu’s arrival, the entire church congregation stayed last Sunday after church and spent the afternoon together.
We started off by having dinner (Domino’s Pizza – How French is that!?) then proceeded to work. One team tackled the inside of the building while the other went after the outside, and everyone helped; even the kids hauled branches, whipper-snipped grass, etc.
The expression “Many hands make light work” was once again proven right! We had a pile of work to do, but were done shortly after 5pm… early!
Bonfire Ministry
I joked to someone afterward about our bonfire ministry… because this was now the 5th time since Spring that we all gathered ’round a bonfire to finish off the day… roasting marshmallows and making smores (unknown to the French). In fact… there is some legitimacy to what I said in jest; there really is an element of ministry there, because it brings people together to relax after sharing a common accomplishment.
Not only is there an aspect of fellowship, but working together fosters a shared sense of ownership with regard to the church building & property. We had a wonderful afternoon together and accomplished a great deal!
Pastor Brochu’s arrival
On Tuesday afternoon, Bro. Brochu arrived after several days of meetings in the Paris region, but even his days in Châtellerault were far from restful. There were a number of files to get caught up on, people to catch up with and he spoke in our mid-week service on Wednesday.
You know, sometimes you wonder what missionary life is like and suppose that it’s all Bible study and preaching. The reality is that there are many practical questions to manage just as there would be in a North American setting with this difference: French bureaucracy.
For example: there is some painting to be done on the front of one of our buildings but due to zoning requirements, a project plan needs to be drawn up including photos & paint samples. It must be submitted to a committee of the Architects of France who will take 2-3 months to grant permission to PAINT the front of your building. Such mundane details are also part of missionary life (I’m SO glad the Bro. Brochu is here to work through that file).
It was good for the church to hear the voice of their pastor. We’re thankful that the Lord allowed him to come back, if only for a short visit. It’s good to reconnect face-to-face.
Looking Ahead
One of the other things I’ve been working on this week is a 4-page PDF document entitled Top15 in 2015: highlights the top 15 moments of ministry involvement and family life during our first eleven months as AIMers in France.
It’s something that will be available later in December to those who follow the blog via email. If you’re interested in receiving it simply click on the link below & you’ll receive one when it’s launched:
Prayer…
This weekend, you can support us by praying for the youth convention happening today & tomorrow. There will be 5 from our church that are hungry to receive the baptism of the Holy Ghost and grow in Christ.
Thanks for stopping by to visit.
God bless your day!
It was their first time to visit us here in Western France and the first time that we’d had a bit more of a prolonged visit since our arrival in Europe last January. We visited Châtellerault, walked through Île Cognet and shared Thanksgiving dinner last Saturday.
While Liz’s parents were here, we also tried out a special little restaurant for the first time: Le Caribou Café.
Sunday afternoon we attended a local chocolate festival.
My involvement in IBF, gives me a chance to get out of Châtellerault each month; to see other places and spend time with different people. Pastors can relate to this and particularly home-missions pastors… sometimes you need to connect with people outside of your local congregation.
Since we now had an abundance of 4′ logs, branches & brush, we thought it’d be fun to have our midweek service by the fire and make it a time of extended fellowship as well.
Thursday night we spent the evening counseling a young couple who were in need of a nudge in the right direction. It was a positive time and opens the door a little bit wider for the Lord to work in their life. Following our time with them, we stopped by a local restaurant to put into practice some of what we’d advised them to do… take time together.
Last Sunday after service, we embarked on a much anticipated afternoon! We’d planned a youth outing which included 4 hours of ziplining, followed by a bonfire back at the church for roasting marshmallows and hot-dogs
Our midweek service is typically a Bible Study format. This week, however, we did something a little different:
That Thursday night service was incredible. I caught the livestream which, with a 7hr time difference, meant that church for me began at 1:30am and went until after 4:00am 
Last week you’ll recall that l’Île Cognet is what put “exploration” into the 
Remember back in July when we were excited to welcome a Beagle pup, named 
On Thursday, Liz spent a few hours at the church with one of our ladies who regularly cleans the building. Afterwards this sister came to the house and joined us for supper.
AIM Long 