Tag Archives: patience

Healthy Ignorance & Healthy Desire…

April 25, 2015 By in Blog, Process Tags: , Leave a comment

Heya… good morning from France! This past week has been a bit more quiet than the past couple of weeks (not necessarily a bad thing)… but I’m thankful that you’re here to let me tell you about it.

International Work in Paris-Centre

United Pentecostal Church of Paris-Centre, international church, ivry-sur-seine

It was an early morning, high-speed train that took me from Châtellerault to Paris last Sunday morning for service at the international work in Paris-Centre.

Looking at the map to the right, Notre-Dame cathedral is located in the middle of the white circle (top left) and the church is located in Ivry-sur-Seine.  From the train station it’s only a few minutes by metro and bus to get to the church but since I had a bit of time to spare and given the beautiful morning… I walked rather than taking the bus from the final metro stop.  Never… I repeat never pass up an opportunity to walk in Paris – particularly in the early morning sunlight and when your route takes you along the Seine river… United Pentecostal Church, Paris Centre, Ivry

The Seine, in Ivry, is much more industrialized than right in the heart of Paris and less touristy in general… but in a building that houses a dance school at other times of the week you’ll find a multicultural group of apostolic believers delving into scripture and offering up enthusiastic worship.

This church recently celebrated its third anniversary and is normally under the leadership of Bro. & Sis. Brochu as well. Although it typically does not fall into our current mandate, we were invited to come minister this past Sunday as well as again on May 3rd, while they await the arrival of another AIM couple (Dean & Loreen Byfield) who will cover responsibilities there for the remainder of the Brochu’s deputation.  I was treated to a veritable Philippino feast following the service… skewers on the BBQ was the first thing that greeted me upon arrival!!Supper on the patio

The left-overs that came back to Châtellerault with me even provided for our first meal on the patio Monday evening. Daytime temperatures over the past week have been in the twenties (celcius) and even as high as 17-18 in the evenings. Hallelujah!

Pencils and Papers & Marks… Oh My!

A fair bit of my time this week has been spent marking papers for IBF (Institut Biblique de France).  I’m teaching on the Epistles and their first test covered the book of Romans.

Most students are in their twenties or older, few are freshly graduated from high school. Classes are held one Saturday each month (7:30am – 6:00pm) over a period of 3 years with one full week of classes each August – It’s a big commitment! …but it allows participation by many who work full-time.   

*NOTE* When I taught French at the University of New Brunswick, I had a student marker who looked after marking papers. I’ve regained an appreciation for student markers!  🙂  (I know that Liz would echo that as she spent time getting caught up on marking the kids’ work as well.)

7 Laws of the Learner, Bruce Wilkinson

While on academics… I started reading “The Seven Laws of the Learner” by Bruce Wilkinson. Bro. Brochu’s pastor told him he wished he’d read it earlier on in his ministry because of the impact it’s made on him… It is definitely full of meat!

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Drive in the Country

Quinçay, Colza, lavoir

Yesterday I had to drive down past Poitiers (45-min by car) to the small village of Quinçay to meet with a translator. In order to finalize our residency procedure, we had to have a few documents translated by a professional who’s already recognized by the regional law courts.

Needless to say, even the drive itself was enjoyable: The village has a lavoir (where you used to come to handwash your clothes), quaint church and a huge field of rapeseed (Colza, in French – it’s used to make oil).

Desire…

You know what… there is something stirring in me that I don’t quite know how to put into words. The thing that comes to mind, as I sit here at the keyboard is … “It’s like fire shut up in my bones.”

There’s a desire to do more, go farther, be braver, etc. I realize that there are obstacles… there always are, but how do we go beyond the obstacle to make it happen?  It’s a type of dissatisfaction… not with people or circumstances but with myself… not born out of a comparison made with others (which can be very unhealthy). I want to see growth in God’s kingdom, but on one hand I haven’t got a clue how. This is what I call “healthy ignorance” :

  • ignorance – because I haven’t got a clue
  • healthy – because that means I have to lean on the Lord

Have you ever been there? You’ve got lots of “tools in your toolbox” but you don’t want it to be something that “you” do… yet God uses your gifts, your personality, your “toolbox”. Lord… teach me to lean, to follow to be brave… to recognize your voice… that I might see your hand change lives… for real… for eternity.

Thanks…

Thanks for taking a bit of time to follow our goings-on… let it inform your prayers for us… we are partners in Mission.
God bless you today!

5 Weeks & Counting!

December 17, 2014 By in Blog, Process Tags: , , , Leave a comment

I’ve stated that the goal of AIMLong.ca, during the time leading up to our departure, is to keep you up to date on the progress of preparations. So for now… here’s how the hive has been humming!

Day to day

House & Car: The house is still for sale and while there is no firm offer, there is someone who wants it but they will have to sell their own house first & it goes on the market in January. That can cause us some anxiety if we focus on it, but we try simply to stand still, and trust in God’s faithfulness.

We’ve bought a storage shed & have a place to put it. We’ll store some furniture and other items that don’t require heat.  Liz has been doing a lot of the packing and sorting but I started a couple of my bookshelves and did a large part of the garage some weeks ago. (There’s waaaayyyyy more yet to do!)

We’re thankful to already have a buyer for our car.

Work:  My replacement as Assistant to the Pastor at Mission Point is now onsite. Pentecostal Messenger, Atlantic District UPCIMark Robertson (originally of Hatfield Point but most recently of Miramichi) and I have been working very closely in an attempt to get 8 years worth of stuff out of my mind and into his (poor guy!). I can tell that he is going to do an incredible job and is a credit to the pastoral leadership that has trained him to-date.

Pentecostal Messenger: For those unaware, I’m editor for a 12-page printed publication that goes out to our churches in the region, with a readership of roughly 750.  While in France, others will look after logistical details, but I’ll still look after editing and layout of the content.  I’ll be putting together the better part of both the January and February issues prior to my departure.

Missionary Lynne Jewett

Missionary to Guatemala, Lynne Jewett, with our #AIMKidsOn Monday we got to spend the afternoon with our friend and missionary to Guatemala, Lynne Jewett. What an inspiration!

She came for lunch and since she is synonymous with kids’ ministry, we wanted to chat with her about:
a) building a church through kids’ ministry &
b) doing all we can to set our own kids up to succeed on the mission field.

She had some GREAT advice!  Including preparing them for the effect that distance will have on their friendships… some will undoubtedly fade a bit over time, but the true ones will remain.  That’s straight-talk and she is bang on!  She also encouraged them to see themselves as missionaries…

Looking ahead

Departure: We’ve tentatively set our departure date as somewhere around January 25-27.
AC-Flight“Wait, what? …no specific date?” ….We’re going to fly stand-by, which means that, yes, we’ll save money on airfare but we’ll fly according to seat availability.  (If there are seats available, we’ll seat our seats on the plane, if not… we try again next flight). That may seem stressful to some, but it’s how we traveled the whole time Liz worked for the airline, so we’re used to it.

Final Mailout: We’re on the verge of doing our final mailout prior to departure. It’ll be an oversized postcard for Sunday School & Youth Staff, focusing on “adopting our kids as a “prayer project” and various way to pray for & connect with them / us. Look for the infographic in this Saturday’s post.

Thanks in advance!

It goes without saying that, with all of these things going on… we need your prayer. It all comes at a busy time of year and if I were to focus too much on it, I would be overwhelmed. We take one day at a time and rest in the assurance that, if the Lord tarries, we will be there in just over 5 weeks from now!

 

Afraid of Change

November 22, 2014 By in Blog Tags: , , , , 1 Comment

Some call it a fear, others a phobia. For some it’s a dilemma and for others, an outright disorder. But regardless of the setting… whether in the workplace, in relationships… even in personal style or habits, change is not easy!

Fear of the Unknown

I have stared change right in the face over the past two weeks and have survived to this point (we’ll see what tomorrow holds)… I updated the operating systems on both my iPhone and my MacBook Pro.

Don’t check-out just yet… I’ll get to the “meat” in a bit… I promise.

  • Why did I wait so long with my phone that the iOS went from 6.1 t0 8.1?
  • Why, on my MacBook, did I have to jump from Mountain Lion to Yosemite without even looking at Mavericks?

Because I dislike change. I’m uncomfortable with the unknown.

Have you ever heard the old classical musician’s quippy pun?
“If it’s not Baroque, don’t fix it!”  (word play on ‘broke’)

Dealing with Change, Afraid of Change, Uncertainty, Fog, Leap of FaithMy phone and laptop were working well enough for the most part, but then, in each case, there was an app that I wanted to use and was unable to because I’d so successfully resisted change. What if I did the update and it set off a domino effect, requiring me to update a never ending succession of programs and patterns?

Worst case scenario: Total system crash requires me to purchase new.
Definite scenario:  I might have to … ugh… learn to do things differently.

– and that takes time, which I don’t have enough of…
– and it takes effort, which I’d rather devote elsewhere…
– and it means accepting to become uncomfortable…

Dealing with Fear

Not only am I a Christian… I’m a pastor for heaven sake. So I am very familiar with the many times that Jesus commanded people to “Fear not!”, I’ve heard countless verses and messages that deal with putting things into the Lord’s hands and leaving them there, and I’m very familiar with Hebrews 11 that defines Faith as: the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

  • So why does fear still creep in from time to time?
  • Why will I avoid situations, actions or even people sometimes?

Because every day presents us with numerous opportunities to embrace change or to shrink back from it. Oh now I’m not just talking about updating an operating system… that’s just a lightweight example. This is the nitty gritty.

In short, I’d have to say that we don’t deal well with change because we’re still on the earthy side of heaven’s gate. You know, where weeds still grow in the garden and our flesh is not completely wiped out by our spiritual self. Our faith is still… being perfected.

Change-Related Stress

As I age I find I have less tolerance for change in general. Consequently, there are times when it amazes me that we are preparing to shove just about as much change into our life as can be imagined.

I did a quick tally on an interactive version of the Holmes & Rahe Stress Scale (try it out here) and scored 270. If you’re not familiar with the scale, the authors assign a numeric value to various life events, the combined total of which quantifies the level of stress that you are managing. It considers things like, in my case:

– Change of financial state
– Change of residence
– Change of responsibility at work

My 270 is not good. A score of 300+ generally indicates a high or very high risk of becoming ill in the near future and you must get below 150 to have a low risk.

Why on earth would someone who is increasingly averse to change consider willingly introducing so much change in their life?

Key to Embracing Change

I don’t know that you’ll be able to understand unless you experience it for yourself but in my mind the only reason that a sane person willingly introduces that much change in their life is that their minds are captivated by something that is worth much more than their personal comfort.

william barclayI call it being in the Will of God.

William Barclay put it this way:
“There are two great days in a person’s life; the day they are born and the day they understand why.”

When you know, beyond the shadow of a doubt that you are doing what you were created to do, it is much easier to embrace change and temporary discomfort.

That’s why we are preparing to leave a secure position in an established church, sell our house and move our family some 4,982km away to live in a new city, with a small church and depend on others for our livelihood.  Because we are in the will of God.

Expressing Faith

When momentary fear tries to raise its ugly head, we remind ourselves of this fact. We express, whether silently or outloud, that we trust the One who is trustworthy; the one who does all things well.

*God, I trust you for the big things…. and the little things too.*

Thank you for stopping by again today.
Be strong and courageous…. you’re in good hands!

A Hallelujah Moment!

November 8, 2014 By in People, Process Tags: , , 8 Comments

Well… it’s been quite a week!

Homefires

On Wednesday, a for sale sign went up on our front lawn.  After 17 years in the same neighbourhood, the same grocery store, the same traffic patterns & neighbours we are headed for change and put our house up for sale.

If you were to look at things from an economic point of view, it’s not a good time to put a house on the market, but we trust that as we do our utmost to get everything in place, God will do what is necessary to handle those things that we cannot control. We trust him!

It’s a great house (with tons of landscaping – shrubs & perennials!  I got rid of the menagerie of animals though!  🙂 ….you can take a look at the listing and photos of the house here.

Excitement

Email_Pref-Consul

Now though, we get to the best part of my week. I’d been somewhat apprehensive about the whole process of obtaining a Long Stay Visa for residency in France; not because it’s tough to get, but simply because everything had to be done by email & phone and they’re located in Montreal… the question of time constraints, getting an appointment, possibly having to make the 800 km trip more than once, etc. was a tiring prospect to me.

In an attempt to get the ball rolling, I emailed both the French Consulate in Montreal and the Regional Prefecture in France. Then they emailed back.

(I must admit, it was more than a bit exciting to receive an email from both the Consulate of France and the Prefecture within only a short time of one another!)

BUT…

Even more exciting than receiving the emails was that, after laying out our scenario – Liz is a European citizen and the kids as well – they indicated to me that in fact I don’t need a visa!!

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Hallelujah!

As the non-European spouse of a European citizen, I am able to bypass the visa process and go right to resident’s status by a very simple process. I simply arrive in France and make an appointment at the local Immigration office, present the necessary paperwork and it goes fairly quickly after that.

Email_Pref-Consul2

Folks… THAT is a MIRACLE!

…yet another indication that we are in the will of the Lord and that He has made provision for our every need.

Praise the Lord!

This weekend

IMG_5242After hosting the Atlantic District Kids Convention last night and today, we are excited to be heading to Fredericton tonight to hear from Bro. Lee Stoneking. He had a significant influence on my early time in Pentecost and so whenever I get a chance to sit under his ministry, I don’t pass it up.

I was at the altar praying one day and he asked me point blank if I’d ever been baptized in Jesus’ name for the remission of my sins.  When I responded that I hadn’t, he asked me, just as “point blank”… “Well, why not?”

When I responded that I feared that it would also be an admission that everything I’d done for God up to that point was wrong and without value, he immediately responded that that wasn’t so. I had simply been obedient to what I had been taught up to that point and now that he was showing me something new-to-me, how would I respond?

IMG_5244I’m so grateful for that conversation at the altar. It was both direct and balanced enough that I went home, looked up the 80+ verses that have a derivative of the word “baptize” in them and saw that with the exception of Matthew 28:19, every time we see people being baptized in the Book of Acts – it was either “In the name of Jesus” or “into Christ” etc.  …Either the apostles were accomplishing Mt. 28.19 when they baptized in Jesus’ name or they were completely disobedient to it; and if they were disobedient, then the foundation of our faith is severely eroded. There was no doubt in my mind that I needed to be baptized in Jesus’ name.   …and I was, on Dec. 14th, 1997.

Thank you Bro. Stoneking for being used by God as the tipping point!
Thank you for following our preparations and covering them in prayer. It makes all the difference!

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Timeline of The Call

October 18, 2014 By in Blog, Process Tags: , , , 2 Comments

Here is a look at the timeline detailing how God connected us to French-speaking Europe and eventually western France in particular… over time.
“He who began a good work is faithful to complete it!”
Philippians 1.6

 

Timeline (web)

 

 

What do you think?

Can you see the hand of the Lord at work, leading, guiding and preparing things in advance… leading us, over time, into the center of His will for our family?

If so, we are still in need of financial partners whose gifts will enable us to advance the Kingdom of Christ in the city of Châtellerault. Would you consider partnering with us?  Click here for a Partner Form and instructions on how to go about supporting our family.

Thank you for your prayers… by them, you too are par of #Revival_inFrance!

#$HealthCheck … ?

September 27, 2014 By in Blog, Process Tags: , , 1 Comment

As you can imagine, there are many things that need to be considered when planning a move like that which we are planning in less than 4 months!  In the context of dealing with some of those preparations, we found ourselves sitting across from a personal banking representative yesterday and I had a thought.

The Background

photoFor readers who don’t know us personally, Liz and I married in 1997 and have spent our entire married life in the same neighbourhood. Our house has been paid off for a couple of years and we have only limited debt, however there are still other financial preparations that need to be done, over and above simply raising financial support. One of the big questions has been, “What about your house?  Will you rent it or sell?” So, yesterday we went to the bank to examine our options in that area as well as when it comes to managing things like life insurance payments, pre-existing RRSPs (the Canadian equivalent of the American 401K), etc.

Near the outset of the meeting, our banker indicated that she had a few questions to ask as part of a general Financial Health Check, the answers to which would help her make suggestions that would be the right fit for us. The questions were straightforward enough: Tolerance for risk? Desired time of retirement? Investment knowledge? and so on… which leads me to the thought.

Experts

As she went through a lot of information I found myself, at one point, thinking: “Lord, help me to process what I’m hearing.” and, alternatively, “Lord, help her to help us in the best possible way.”  It caused me to draw the following parallel:

When we’re at a cross-roads in the area of our physical health, we often rely more heavily on the Lord or are at least more conscious of our need for his help. We also consult someone with greater knowledge of the normal functioning of the body and who, where readjustment is needed, is best suited to advise on how that readjustment can happen.

Similarly, when it came time to understanding multiple financial tools available, how each works on its own and how they interact when used together, we had come to seek counsel from someone with more knowledge than we have. …and I found myself praying.

It occurred to me… how often to we prepare for “average, everyday meetings” by praying?  Oh I know that when pastors or missionaries are going for a new building or a land-purchase, they’ll request prayer, but this is just “managing our everyday finances”… no biggie, right?   Wrong.

The End of the Matter

photoOver and above our banker’s very valuable counsel and advice, everything we possess is from the Lord and our dependence is ultimately on him. I was glad that I could call on Him for help to wade through the options and trust that he is guiding both our banker and ourselves.

Got questions? Pray. God’s as interested in seeing us succeed in the everyday things as he is in the big decisions. As for us and our house… well, now we wade through the options and trust that the Lord’s hand will guide us. He’s never failed us yet and we don’t expect him to anytime soon.

Thanks for stopping by… let it feed your prayers for us!
God bless you today!

Fundraising & Miracles

September 20, 2014 By in Churches, Places, Process Tags: , , 3 Comments

Neat things have happened since I last updated you on fundraising specifics… so today’s post will address some of those things.

#1:  half-way there!!!

photoWe are THRILLED to tell you that with only 4 months left, we have topped the 50% commitment level.

Thank you,
Thank you,
THANK YOU!!

One-time donations:
One-time donations total $24,450.00 (40% of the total commitment). Most of these have already been received however a portion of that total is based on a commitment to give.

Monthly Partner Commitments:
Monthly commitments total $36,000.00 (the equivalent of thirty $50/month partners). This total assumes two things:

a) that confirmed donors maintain their giving for the full 2-years that we expect to be in France and
b) that those who have given us a verbal commitment, though the paperwork has not yet been received, will proceed with the giving.

Given that we only announced our appointment in January and began fundraising in March, we are thrilled that, in just over 6 months, God has opened up this level of support through you… his partners in missions.  Thank you!

#2: Every little bit counts

TypicEarlier this week I spoke at Northeast Christian College, in Fredericton NB and presented our burden for France. At the end of our time together, Rev. Mel Calhoun asked the students if anyone wanted to contribute to our support as a one-time donation. The students responded:

There was one donation of $100, one of $50 and one of $40. The rest were commitments of $5, $10, $15 and $20, yet when all was said and done, these students had committed $780.

Thank you @NCC4Ministry!

#3: Baggage bigger than Carry-On

What!? That exists?

In 17 years of married life (with the exception of Liz’s move to Canada from Belgium) we have never traveled with anything but carry-on sized luggage. Consequently, we didn’t own large suitcases. THAT would have to change in preparation for France… and it has; we got six brand new huge suitcases. The price should’ve been $700, but we got them virtually for free!!

How’d we do it?

  • We began sorting stuff that has accumulated in 17 years of married life and we prepared to sell anything that had value.
  • Yard Sale: $400 kijiji
  • Kijiji (Canadian equivalent of Craigslist):  $300
  • Bargain Hunting: My wife had been keeping her eye on some suitcases at a local store. She waited until she they came out with a “buy 1, get one 1/2-price” sale… so the total came to $590, but the sale of our stuff paid for it, so the suitcases really cost us nothing out of pocket.

The bad news…  more expenses are coming.
The good news… we still have lots more stuff to sell!

#4: Inspired Reading

GodAskKindleIn discussion with Bro. Poitras this past weekend at our missions conference, he mentioned the book “The God Ask: A fresh biblical approach to fund raising” by Steve Shadrach. It discusses the process of raising funds for either a missions trip of some kind or a church or para-church ministry or organization. I’m currently only about 30% through it… but it’s a wonderful read and if you’re considering any kind of short-term missions involvement for which you need to raise your own support… I highly recommend this book!!

$19.99 on Amazon or $9.99 for the ebook*
(prices are from Amazon.ca and could vary slightly in the USA)

#5: Postcard Results

Just an update to say that we have already seen results from our postcard mailout back in August.  Although I plan, in the next two weeks, to touching base with many of these pastors by telephone, one pastor in Georgia didn’t wait to hear from me by phone, but sent us both a one-time offering as well as a monthly partner commitment. God is blessing us beyond measure through ordinary people and pastors just like you!  Thank you for your support!

This Weekend

That’s pretty much it for this morning folks. Please keep us in your prayers as we travel to Upper Kent and St. Anne-de-Madawaska this weekend, both in north-western New Brunswick, to present our burden for and call to France.  Two great churches which we’ve never been to before.

God bless you today!

The Power of One

June 5, 2014 By in People Tags: , , 1 Comment

I hesitated between entitling this post “The Power of One” and “Quiet Strength”… both of which describe Rosa Parks well. I was recently exposed to her story in incredible detail and left the experience deeply moved.

Her Story

Portrait (top) by Susan Tusa

Portrait (top) by Susan Tusa

On December 1, 1955, Mrs. Parks refused to give up her seat to white people, boarding a bus in Montgomery Alabama’s then-segregated municipal bus system. Although the particular seat she was in did not technically have to be yielded to whites, according to city by-laws, the over-zealous bus driver either forgot or disregarded that detail in order to make an example out of Parks. He had her arrested for “disorderly conduct.”

The exchange between Parks, who practiced peaceful disobedience, and the driver, James Blake, went something like this:

Blake: “You gonna give up that seat?”
Parks: “No.”
Blake: “You better give me that seat.”
Parks: “No.”
Blake: “I’ll have you arrested.”
Parks: “You may do that.”

Parks’ quiet refusal and subsequent arrest sparked a year-long boycott of the bus system, by 50,000 African-Americans; causing the company to lose some $3,ooo / day. Her actions resulted in the US Supreme Court ordering full integration of the public transportation system. Thus began the modern civil rights movement.

There were other battles fought as part of the overall war on race-equality in the United States, but this was a major one.

Moved

Of course the name Rosa Parks was not unfamiliar to me, but I came away from this experience of the story deeply moved for the first time.

In the 1990s, while honoring her, Bill Clinton referred to Mrs. Parks, who was sitting in the audience with then first-lady Hillary Clinton and he said something to the effect (as everyone around her was rising to give her a standing ovation)…

“Mrs. Parks may stand OR remain seated… as is her good pleasure.”

When I heard this, it took me several minutes to regain my composure.

What is the Power of One?

It is the power of one decision, made by one individual… the result of which is neither known at the time nor guaranteed to be favorable. It is a belief that the possible (though not guaranteed) outcome is worth the risk.

Though she new it would have ramifications, she probably didn’t realize just how far those ramifications would be felt and how many people they would impact. At the very least, it affected the 50,000 people who spent a year boycotting the Montgomery bus system… but we know it went further than that.

What about you… what about me?

Is it possible for us to make such a difference?

Is it possible for us to experience the power of one?

I hope so. I believe so. This is why I serve the Lord and seek to become more like Him… because, at the very least, the repercussions of that daily choice, will impact the four other lives with which I spend the most time… my family. Beyond that I desire to have this daily choice impact future generations in France.

  • Because John & Anne Nowacki chose to plant a church in Melun, France… some 400+ people worship God there each Sunday and communities around the nation are hearing the gospel as well.
  • Because Paul & Darla Brochu chose to establish a church in Châtellerault, western France back in 2000 there is an incredibly firm foundation and infrastructure upon which to watch the Lord take the next step in impacting a region.

Thank you, Lord, that we have the opportunity to be part of that next step!

Want to help us in this endeavour?
Click here

A Continental Singer

May 28, 2014 By in Blog, Process Tags: , , Leave a comment

Although I’d spent 2 years volunteering in Belgium, it was as a Continental Singer that I discovered a broader French-speaking Europe.

Behind the Audition

It was admittedly with a pang or two of nostalgia that I auditioned with the Continental Singers back in the mid 1990’s. I had lived in Europe for two years and had even seen the French Continentals come through the city of Liège, where I’d lived. This would be a chance to combine something I loved with something I missed… singing and Europe. I auditioned here in North America but had my information packed forwarded to the European office in Rotterdam, Holland.

On Tour

Europe_french-speaking-feathered_smIt was in July of the following year that I arrived, backpack and suitcase in hand for my first rehearsal camp in Dronten (Netherlands). We spent roughly two weeks learning the music and choreography before hitting the road for 3-4 weeks of touring through Belgium, France and Switzerland. Each night we sang in a different concert venue; mostly churches, but we had a couple of theatres and outdoor venues as well.

What I had experienced in Belgium, over the initial two years, was reinforced time and time again. People very much appreciated hearing the Gospel sung in their own language as opposed to being sung in English and understood either through translation before or after each song, or via overhead transparency as the song was sung (yes… you read that right. Those were the days of overhead transparencies).  While there were of course some local and national French-language musicians, the Christian music industry was very small in comparison to that of North America, so people enjoyed having the Continentals come through. (It was during this first tour that I met my wife Liz, an Italian who had been born and raised in Belgium, we would marry two years later.)

Touring again & again…

The following year I returned as Assistant Director for the French Tour. Another rehearsal camp in Holland, another repertoire and another pass through French-speaking Europe, but this time with a bit more responsibility.  Two years after that (1 year after Liz and I married), I returned for a third tour but this time as Tour Director.

With a total of three tours under my belt I had become both comfortable with Europe in general and very familiar with some areas in particular. There were several churches that had us back each year, so there were times when it was like coming back to visit friends.

Post-Tour

It’s been incredible also, to maintain contact with and watch from a distance as some of the people that I toured with have grown in their faith and ministry; serving in their local churches and being examples to us in various ways. We look forward to being closer to some of these and sharing what the Lord has done in our life since those days.

Patience

I’m reminded again, as I think back over these experiences, how God’s hand has been preparing us for not just months, but years!  When the perfect will of God begins to fall into place in your life, you will look back and see a string of experiences which, at the time, may have seemed unrelated, but in hind-sight… blow your mind!  If you’re currently in-the-process and not totally sure of where things are headed… be patient. Let God direct your steps now and you will see later where they lead!

Once again, French ministry and French-speaking Europe is not new to us… in one sense, it will be a bit like going home (almost literally for Liz), and we can’t wait to be there!

Thank you for your prayers and your support!
See you Saturday!

 

April in Review

May 3, 2014 By in Process Tags: , , , Leave a comment

Welcome to May!

As I sit down to write this first post for the month of May… we are on the verge of a very busy month! Before we get to that, however, let me give you a quick run-down of some of the things that happened in April.

Financial Update:

progress 14-05-01

Financial standing to-date
(graphic courtesy of iPhone app: GOTRAKiT)

This graphic gives you a general snapshot of where we are to date in terms of our financial support. It shows:

  • Monthly Partners in Mission pledges* and
  • One-time offerings

At this point, roughly 14% of funds needed for a 2-year stay in France have been pledged to, or received by, Global Missions in St. Louis.

This is VERY encouraging, thank you!

* Note: This amount…

  • assumes that PIMs maintain their support for the entire duration of our AIM term.
  • reflects only those pledges or gifts already received and processed by Global Missions – some may have been sent, but are still being processed.

Honour Roll!

A HUGE thank you to those pastors and churches whose support has already been received by Global Missions:

  • Rev. Stephen Tompkins – McAdam NB
  • Rev. David Ferrell – Perth-Andover NB
  • Rev. Scott Grant – Trois-Rivières & Greenfield QC
  • Rev. Dwayne Steeves – Corner Brook NF
  • Rev. Timothy Mitchell – Montgomery AL
  • Rev. Doug Davis – Old Westbury NY
  • Rev. Anthony Mangun – Alexandria LA
  • Rev. Gary Keller – Lancaster OH
  • Rev. Wayne Neyland – DeQuincy LA
  • Rev. David Reever – Baltimore MD
  • Rev. Jimmy Wallace – Elk City OK
  • Rev. Richard Flowers – Mesquite TX

Also… a HUGE thank you to those pastors who have supported us, to date, by scheduling services in the coming months (in order of calendar dates).

  • Rev. Stephen Tompkins – McAdam NB
  • Rev. Timothy Mitchell – Montgomery AL
  • Rev. Scott Grant – Trois-Rivières & Greenfield QC
  • Rev. Steve Schobert – Dallas TX
  • Rev. Dieudonné Kahozi – Montréal East
  • Rev. Kent Carter – Shediac NB
  • Rev. Trevor McGuire – Milleville NB
  • Rev. Donald Hood – Charlottetown PEI
  • Rev. Troy Wickett – Summerside PEI
  • Rev. Keith Carter – Ste-Anne de Madawaska NB
  • Rev. Ron Carroll – Doaktown NB
  • Rev. Allison Cromwell – McNamee NB
  • Rev. Raymond Woodward – Fredericton NB
  • Rev. Michael Trail – Taymouth NB

 For up-to-date details, please see our schedule.

(During the month of May, we will be driving through the Alabama, Florida, Texas & Missouri. If you would like to have us come to your church or know of someone who might like to have us come, please fill out the form below.)

More April-Highlights…

  • On April 3rd, I began some of the paperwork necessary to temporarily move to Europe.  Bureaucracy exists in every country and France specializes in it!  Starting early, though, should help alleviate some of the stress.

Our efforts… God’s credit

We are trying to be diligent in our attempts to raise financial and prayer support. We realize however that for whatever comes in, the credit belongs to God. This principle is portrayed in Proverbs 21.31:

The horse is prepared against the day of battle: but safety is of the LORD. (KJV)
The horse is made ready for the day of battle, but victory rests with the LORD. (NIV)

The assurance that “victory rests with the Lord” does not alleviate the necessity of the horsemen to prepare or make ready their horses for the battle. In the words of Duncan Campbell:

“…while God is sovereign in the affairs of men,
His sovereignty does not relieve men of responsibility.”

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Thank you for your support. Yes. You are showing support simply by the fact that you are coming back time and again to stay informed about our project and preparations. Let it inform your prayer time and be part of the work of God in France.

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