Salut!

On Sunday I was was aiming to explain to the congregation that we were having a exhabition of all the ministries in the church.  I unfortunatly told them we were going to have a striptease of all the ministries in the church!!!  Ha ha ha!!!  How do I do it?!!

On another note, I had another table full of people last night.  Was fun!  Although rather too much washing up this morning…

• Why do we press harder on a remote control when we know the batteries are getting weak? 

   

• Why does someone believe you when you say there are four billion stars, but check when you say the paint is wet? 

   

• Why doesn’t glue stick to the bottle?   

   

• Why doesn’t Tarzan have a beard? 

   

• Why does Superman stop bullets with his chest, but ducks when you throw a revolver at him?

   

• Why do Kamikaze pilots wear helmets? 

   

• Whose idea was it to put an "S" in the word "lisp"? 

   

• Why is it that no matter what color bubble bath you use the bubbles are always white? 

   

• Is there ever a day that mattresses are not on sale?

   

• Why do people constantly return to the refrigerator with hopes that something new to eat will have materialized?

   

• Why do people keep running over a string a dozen times with their vacuum cleaner, then reach down, pick it up, examine it, then put it down to give the vacuum one more chance?

   

• Why is it that no plastic bag will open from the end on your first try? 

   

• How do those dead bugs get into those enclosed light fixtures?

   

• Why is it that whenever you attempt to catch something that’s falling off the table you always manage to knock something else over?

   

Last night another church in Orelans organised a worship evening for the youth of the city.  It was a really great evening.  It was resonably arty with some dancing and an artist etc and I think the youth from our church had a bit of an eye opening experience - at least I hope they did!  Afterwards there was a huge table filled with the type of junk food that teenagers (and me!) love.  Good work!! 

I promised the pastor and his family they would be the first guests around my table.  They are a family of 5 and I’ve never been able to invite them round for 10 months!  Now there was room a-pleanty for us all!  hurah!  I made homemade pizza and jelly with strawberries and cream.  yum! 

Here’s some photos.  I thought I would add one of my lounge as it was particulary tidy last night ()and I don’t think you’ve seen it since I moved in in July last year.  Now you can imagine me in my little flat!

  (Spot the English addition to the meal!!…as always, you can click to enlarge.)

I’ve been in a really bad mood this week.  Last night someone prayed for me.  This morning 2 of my jasmine flowers have bloomed and already my kitchen is filled with their scent AND I have found a cheese that taste almost like Lancashire Cheese!  Can life get any better?!  Hurah for the power of prayer and a loving God! 

France - the land of food.  Can you believe we have made almost 200 euros by selling cakes twice after the Sunday service?!!  People were more than happy to pay 1 euro (70p) for a SLICE of homemade cake!  You live and learn!

Last weekend was seriously busy with an evangelism training day on Saturday, JEEP in the evening, cake sale at church on Sunday and then English service in the afternoon.  Phew. 

A lady who has been coming to church for the past few months gave her life to Christ last week!  Hurah!  (And she is a vergetarian - so she is twice as blessed! )  Anyway, I’m visiting her on Saturday.  (She is called Marie-Noel = Mary Christmas!!) 

I have a TABLE!! The most important part of the French house!! Hurah! I didn’t appriciate the cultural importance of a table when I arrived and spent most of my money on a sofa. But thanks to some very kind donations and Ikea I have been able to rectify my mistake.  (and I got a new bookshelf that actually holds my books!)

The table is where people talk.  Sit people on comfy chairs and they talk about the void between you.  Sit round a table and even the quietest person chats away.  It really is very different to the UK.  After a meal that was lively and relaxed, I would often move people onto the much comfier sofa for coffee.  Things went cold, conversation peatered out and people went home.   

Now people can come and talk to their hearts content!  My other TINY table sat 4 - at a squeeze.  This extending beauty sits up to 10!!  I am so excited about inviting families round!  Please pray that my new table would really be used to bless people and our conversations would be edifying and God honouring.

Here’s the transformation photos.  2 of the youth in the church came and helped.  (Well, actually they did it all on their own, they were wonderful!)

 Old tiny table

  Nicolas and Jean-Luc hard at work.  (and my cramped bookcase.)

 

  Hurahhh!!! 

At our young adults Bible study last night I asked people to write something they appriciated about each person in the group in order to encourage them.  Simona (a Romanian) wrote the following about Van (from Thialand):

"I think you are very pretty and you will have pretty children."  

Hmmmm.  Not quite what I had in mind!!! 

Sunday to Tuesday the French ECM team got together in a gite outside of Gien for our annual prayer days.  It was great to be together as a team and also to spend some time with people from the sending sections and from the international office.  Good to spend time in prayer and hear challenging messages.  (And eat Quality Streets!!!  Thanks to Ruby!)  It has given me a clearer focus and things to ponder on as I consider my future ministry in France after my training period is through.

  Steve Cox and Rosemary Gourley.  ECM missionaries in Chateauroux

  A quick photo before a meeting.  Folks from ECM Britain, International, Ireland…and France!

The sun is shining, the blossom is pink and I have an illegal (according to the silly rules of my building) flower basket of daffs on my balcony!  Hurah spring is here!!

Today Jean-Aime, Myriam and Elliette moved house.  I was quite sad because they are my closest French friends in terms of physical distance as well as friendliness!!  They moved out of the city into a TINY little village…which will be lovely for summer BBQs!

Apart from it being exhausting and a bit sad, it was a really great day.  About 25 people from the church turned up to help.  There was a real team spirit and we had a good time.  We stopped for lunch and ate sandwiches outside in the country.  Lovely.  Myriam even managed to find her accordian and we had a little dance!!  How French can it get?!