Phase 2 Continued and beyond

     I forgot to mention previously that in celebration of our completing the lecture phase, we watched in order, the Lord of the Rings Trilogy, in the extended format. Friday to Sunday. It was awesome as many of the people watching had never seen the films before, and it reminded me of the first time I saw them in theaters.

     Monday was the official first day of the Practical phase, and it was presentation day. The nine of us were broken up into teams and given a different topic to present on. My group was focusing on the Wolof and Djola people groups (the two major ethnic groups in Senegal), and we talked about various parts of their culture. The other groups shared on Islam and on Animism.

These last couple of days have been focused on the several skits (or for our English readers, sketches) that we have been preparing for the open air evangelism we will be doing in Senegal.

     We have had more classes on culture and how as Westerners, and more importantly as white people, the way we behave has lasting effects on the mission effort in Senegal, so it was a warning against acting in a way that could hurt the way the church is viewed where we are working.

     Today was primarily cleaning and packing. Tomorrow afternoon, I along with Spencer ( a fellow American) will be flying to London to start our Christmas break. I ask that you be in prayer for us as we are going to be travelling a lot and are in a strange place. 

     This is going to be my last blog entry for awhile ( I don't know how long) and I look forward to writing to you again soon.

Phase 1 Complete; Commence with Phase 2

      So this is it. The final class of our DTS. Twelve weeks of intense teaching, intimate encounters with God, and moments when my life was just laid bare. It's both sad and exhilarating that I have reached this point, and in part it is thanks to you for the financial support and the prayer that you have offered on my behalf.
This weeks teaching was on the one topic that we haven't looked at yet; the Bible. It wasn't a in depth study of how the Bible came into being or how to read the original Greek and Hebrew, but it was a concise and simple teaching on the evolution from individual manuscripts into a comprehensive text. This was a class devoted more to getting us to think about the Bible, and pursue the answers within the text.
The topic that I really enjoyed and will take more time to study later is the inspired nature of the Bible and what to do when you see "contradictions". When you encounter a seeming contradiction, instead of just running off to tell the world that the Bible is a bunch of hooey, to think that maybe you are reading the particular passage out of context, or that you don't understand it. I realize this isn't the clearest way of saying this, but for me it doesn't just apply to the Bible but to other texts as well, and life in general. Think through something before jumping to conclusions. It was a nice way to wrap up the teaching by going back to basics.
     A bunch of people needed their immunizations for Senegal, primarily the Yellow Fever vaccine, so we all piled into the cars and made the trip to Avignon, the city of Popes. It's a bit weird that it's called that because the last time a pope lived in Avignon was in the 14th century. Seeing as the three American's were all set with  our shots, we decided to brave the French city on our own.
     It was really cool to see another French town and be able to explore, but it was sad to see the state of disrepair the city had fallen into. Graffiti and the like. All that couldn't take away from the beauty of the square. I took lots of photos which I will hopefully be uploading tomorrow before I leave for Christmas break.
     It was very cool to see the history of the place and visit the places that are talked about in history books, and and being a history nut, I soaked it all in. I saw the Pont d'Avignon, which is one of the most ridiculous looking pieces of architecture that I have ever seen. It is only half a bridge that just ends in the middle of the Rhone. We all took some time to mock this creation, and then took pictures in front of it! 
     Here is a  well know French rhyme that once you get in your head, never goes away.
Sur le pont d'Avignon
L'on y danse, l'on y danse
Sur le pont d'Avignon
L'on y danse tous en rond
Les beaux messieurs font comm' ça
Et puis encore comm' ça
     It was rather rainy and cold so we then went to Ikea. To get hot dogs. And they were awful. But I had two because I was starving. I thought that it was rather funny that an American was at a Swedish store in France. This made me laugh for quite some time. (Don't judge me.)
     Saturday was a go, go, go day. Everybody was rushing around preparing a Christmas feast. Roast potatoes, roast pork, Yorkshire puddings, spiced cider and mulled wine. I, true to form, volunteered for far to many things, and was running in three different directions. 
     It was a fantastic night, a great turnout and we even had a Secret Santa! It was a really great time, and it made me realize how much I really love my family and friends.
     (Phase 2 to follow)

Christmas Greetings

16 December, 2012

Chères amies et famille,

I’m not accustomed to writing Christmas letters, so this will be a combination of an update along with my thoughts on Christmas. It is my hope that this letter encourages you and is a blessing in this Christmas season.

Over the years, the meaning of Christmas has evolved for me. I knew that it was the birthday of Jesus, but it wasn’t always the focus. It used to be a time for looking through every catalog I could find and making a list of all the toys I wanted. And then it was a time for just being with family and eating a lot of good food. It has become so much more than that for me now. It is a time for being with family and remembering the coming of Jesus. Christ’s birth was the beginning of the end and the start of something new.

Probably the strangest thing is that this is the first time that I’m missing Christmas with my family. It doesn’t seem quite real, like I’m in a dream. In just a few short days, we will be on Christmas break and I will be off to see London, Paris and Switzerland and I’m blessed to have a travel companion. I’m a bit sad to be missing this time with my family, but God has blessed me with another family. We have our dysfunctional moments. Times when we’re annoyed with each other, and times like the other night where we just spend time together, talking and laughing.

This past week concluded our final week of teaching for the lecture phase. Twelve weeks of intense teaching, cover a variety of topics. Out of this time I have experience God. I found it really telling when during the base Christmas Party, the speaker from the first week approached me and said that there was something different about me, to which I replied “I feel different.”

Tradition dictates that I ask people what I want for Christmas, and the one thing that comes foremost to my mind is prayer for my time in Senegal. I ask that you give two months of prayer, whether that is once a day or once a week. I’m going into enemy territory, and will be living right next to a mosque.

1.       Pray that I and the team would be protected from both physical and spiritual harm.

2.       That I would continue to grow in my faith, and not be swayed by the enemy.

3.       That the hearts of the Senegalese would be receptive to the gospel.

            In closing, I would like to once again thank those you for being there to support me both financially and spiritually. It means a lot to me that I have you, and I want to bless you this Christmas season. That you would remember the reason for the season, and rejoice in our inheritance through Jesus Christ.

            Joyeux Noël, Bonne Année et la Bénédiction de Dieu.

            Sincèrement. 

   

                       Taylor

What is Islam? And other preparations...

So this was a different week. In every other class we have been allowed to take notes so on and so forth, but not this week. It was completely oral. It was explained that we were being taught this way because when we encountered objections from Muslims, we wouldn't be able to go to our notes and find how to respond. It needed to be in the forefront of our minds and in our own words.

Being from a western education system where it was required to take notes, it was a moment of shock and dismay for me because I'm not accustomed to this type of teaching. But it turned out really good, because it really made you think through stuff before asking questions and memorization is key.
I learned many new things about Islam: Abrogation, the Hadiths, how the Koran was compiled into a "single" text, how it is a sin for Muslims to question the Koran (and that if you question it, Muslims usually become angry) and more about the history of Muhammad.
One of the most interesting things about this week however had to be how they view Christians. They often know more about Christianity than about their own faith, but it has a twist to it. Many Muslims believe that when a Christian says Son of God, in reference to Jesus, they believe we are saying that God came down and had sex with Mary. But that is clearly not what we believe, so it is important to make sure that when talking to a Muslim, that you are using the same definition.
Another thing was the use of honor and shame. For Muslims, everything is honor and shame, and so it is important to make sure that you don't make them feel shame. In other words, don't make them feel inferior. This makes it very hard to use debating to convince a Muslim, because it is an attempt to prove them wrong, which puts them in a position of shame.
This can work in your favor however. If a Muslim is speaking against the Bible (which they believe is the word of God), then you can use shame to make them stop. Here's an example. A Muslim is saying that the Bible isn't true. My response could be. "What do you think about God? Do you think that man can change Gods word? What a shameful thing to say." This makes them stop because they are shaming them selves by speaking against God's word.
There are many more examples of how special care needs to be taken when witnessing to Muslims, but I think you get the idea.
It really opened my heart up to the Muslim world as well. They are just like any other lost people that God is heart broken over. The only way that we can come to a place of authentic witness is when we have God's heart, and that is where we can witness from.
This weekend was going out and buying some of the stuff we would need for Senegal. The list seemed to keep getting longer and longer. Thankfully, I have most of the stuff I will need and just need to order a few more things.
We also all went out and visited a Christian bookstore in the area. It was really cool to see (and I saw Wayne Grudem's Théologie Systématique. Really wanted it, but expensive) I was able to buy a really cheap French Bible, along with another journal. I now have three Bibles with me.
So I think that about sums it up. I only have another two weeks here at the school, and then for my grand tour of Europe. I will be going to London, and then Paris, and on to Switzerland. I need to leave France and the cheapest place to go is London ( Then going with some friends from the school here to Switzerland via Paris.) I really look forward to being able to see many of the places that you read about in history books. The craziest thing is that I will be spending Christmas in Paris! Who would have thought that I would have this opportunity. It makes me so thankful to you back home for your support, and for God's faithfulness in bringing me on this journey to know him.

A week of missions and 48 hours

Thank you for the birthday wishes! It is encouraging to hear from you, even a few short words. For my birthday, some of the staff here, Lucie and Tabea, made a fantastic dinner to celebrate me reaching 20 years! While I didn't get to spend time with my family and friends at home, God has blessed me with a third family here in France.

The teaching this week was focused on missions, and we were able to gain specific insight as to what we will encounter in Senegal. Our teacher's name was Moira. She's originally from Scotland, and lived for 8 years as a missionary in Senegal, and she shared some of her experiences from her time there.
She explained what missions is, and used one of the most well know commissioning verses in the bible, Matt. 28:18-20. It gives us very clear parameters for what we are to do, and where we are to go, and just looking at the life of Jesus gives us a model to follow. He chose men to disciple, and after he taught and guided them, he gave them his authority and then the disciples repeated the cycle. That makes us the great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great disciples of Jesus himself! (I think I missed a couple of greats in there, but I think you get the idea)
Back to Senegal, Moira explained just a few of the many cultural differences that exist, and how we as workers in their country need to model ourselves after their culture. Also, being a predominately Muslim country, it means that there are certain greetings and traditions that we must be aware of.

This weekend was called 48-hours of prayer. The class room was set up with multiple stations so that if you didn't know what to pray for, there would be some guidance. I took four hours from my weekend to spend in this prayer room. I didn't know what to do, but I came with a question. "God what do you have for me?"
I experienced an incredibly intimate time with God. It was really amazing at how much I felt God's presence, and how quickly time went by. The time was broken up; two, one hour sessions and then a two hour session. It felt like no time had passed before the next person came to the room.
It made me wonder about eternity. If several hours felt like minutes, then no wonder we need eternity to praise Good and get to know him!
I thoroughly enjoyed it and really look forward to spending more of my time in prayer.
God bless.

A story of two brothers

I've taken some extra time to analyze and decide what I want to write in this post. This was a week of more emotion than prior weeks which makes it hard to write so we shall see how it goes.
So this past week was another great week of teaching. We took an in depth look at Luke 15, and the parable of the Prodigal Son in particular. The first thing that our speaker, Pierre, said is that the title is wrong and that it makes it so that you miss a key fact of the story. There is not one prodigal son but two, along with a father. So the proper title should be two lost sons and their father, or something like that.
The title of the week was the father heart of God, and what it looks like. We looked at the three individuals in this story; the younger son, the father's reaction to the younger, the older son, and the father's reaction to the elder.
Starting with the younger, the beginning of the parable shows that he is bitter and angry with his father, and asks for his inheritance (essentially removing himself as his father's son). After he receives his portion, he leaves and spends it and is soon living in poverty. One of the questions asked, "was the portion when it says 'he came to his senses' a revelation of the Holy Spirit?" The was a partial yes, because it started off well. "Father I have sinned against heaven and you..." This is what was given by Holy Spirit as it shows repentance, but the younger doesn't stop there, and repeats what happened at the beginning of the parable, "I am unworthy to be called your son..." Since when does the loser (the younger) demand the terms? Just like in the beginning, he makes demands. "Give me my inheritance...", "Make me like one of your servants...". He thinks that he can redeem himself on his own, instead of waiting for the father's reaction.
I could spend the entire post on just the father, so I'll make it brief. This is the clearest portion of the parable, and the love that the father shows is tangible. Seeing how the father runs, embraces, kisses, and clothes his returned son shows how the father is willing and wanting to forgive and accept. We only need to turn to him, and confess.
Now onto the often overlooked person of this parable. The elder brother. He is commonly seen as the symbol of the scribes and pharisees that Jesus so often encountered during his ministry. We see that he stays home and works for his father, and he becomes angry when he comes and hears about the party that is being thrown for his brother that returned home.
The elder then begins to list all the ways that he is more worthy than his brother and why he deserves the party.
"But he was angry and refused to go in. His father came out and entreated him, but he answered his father, ‘Look, these many years I have served you, and I never disobeyed your command, yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours came, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him!" (vs. 28-30) He says that he has never disobeyed his father and yet he refuses to enter the home even when the father asks, making him a liar. Then he says that he was never given a goat, but again looking at the text shows that the father, "divided his property between them." (vs. 12) In reference to what's written in Deut. 21:17 shows that the elder would receive double of what the younger receives so when the elder asks for a goat, he is greedy. All he needs to do is go and take a goat for himself. He is being ungrateful and selfish.
To finish with, Pierre then drew some parallels between this parable and our own lives. It is quite easy to go from the where the younger is, living in very visible sin and rejecting the father, to where the elder is, rejecting the father and living in hidden sin. In the same way we as Christians must be aware of how we are living; that we don't live as the younger did, with outright rebellion, nor as the elder, with his harsh and cold religiosity. We need to be careful, coming from a church background, that we don't become jealous of new believers that seem to experience God more.
The way Jesus closes the parable is a blessing for us today. "... you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours." (vs. 31) This is a promise that we should repeat to ourselves daily. That all that is God's, is ours. An amazing promise.
I hope this makes sense. I wrote it as I understood it, so please feel free to ask questions and post comments.
Many thanks and blessings.

Leadership

Hi there everyone,

So this past week was probably one of my favorites, aside from the week on evangelism.
The title for this series was Leadership and Calling, and it was taught by the man that is the leader of YWAM for the entire country of France!
He is the epitome of what it means to be a servant-leader. Nearly every morning, he is here at the base doing maintenance, watering the plants, getting groceries, and so much more.
It was great to be able to hear from him how God develops the calls for certain people, but that there is one call that every Christian has. To be a disciple of Christ.
This topic has been one that has been near to my heart for the past several years, and I had an idea of where I saw God leading, but since I've been here, I've come to realize that some of those goals were my ideas and not of God. So I will trust in the plans that God has for me like he says in Jeremiah 29.
The recurring theme of this week was the five-fold ministry as seen in Ephesians 4:11, with the offices of apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers. (See 1 Corinthians 12:28, Romans 12:6-8) These are callings within the church, but what about in the outside world? We are called to be in the world but not of it (John 17:14-18) so that means that we are likely to be called to work out side of the church as well.
There are seven fields that each society must have in order to operate. I've already mentioned one, Religion. Economy, Politics, Education, Family, Arts/Media, Science/Technology all make up different aspects that makes a society function, and can be fields that one could be called to. For example, some of the people here feel called to bio-chemistry, teaching, acting, etc. Three different fields that they want to use for the glory of God. I'm not saying that you do one or the other, work in the church or outside the church, but use the gifts and talents that you have been given for the furtherance of the Kingdom.
The final day of teaching of the final day was devoted to leadership, and what makes a good leader. Matthew 20 was the basis for this as we can see Jesus taking on the role of servant, and washing the feet of his disciples.
We took time this week to look at what qualities we see in others and what others see in us, and while some of the stuff I saw I had been aware of, some other character traits and abilities I wasn't aware of and it really made me smile. Not because it made me feel good, but because I had a realization that those traits wouldn't be there without God.
That's it for now, and I apologize for the posting this update a bit late, but more to follow shortly.

Thank you and....

10 November, 2012

Chères amies et famille,

            Let me begin with a few words of thanks. First off, I would not be here if not for you. I am very blessed to have you supporting me in this mission. Thank you to my family, King of Grace family and friends. Covering nearly all of my tuition was completely unexpected and I thank God for you. To those reading my blog, and leaving comments, thank you for the encouragement. It means a lot to me.

            I’ve been here for close to two months, and so much has happened. As part of Discipleship Training School (DTS) I have had daily Bible classes and lectures on a variety of topics ranging from who God is and His characteristics to spiritual warfare. Just about every week I have either learned something completely new, or had something I thought I knew and have been challenged on it. Sometimes I realize I was mistaken in my point of view and other times I come away with stronger convictions.

            When I first arrived, my greatest concern was the language barrier. Thankfully, God provided. Our translator for the first two weeks decided to stay for the remainder of the school as a student. This, combined with my progress in speaking French, is making the language barrier a very slight bump in the road.

            Those of you that have been reading my blog are already aware of some of this, but I thought it would be a good idea to send out a hard copy letter so that those who don’t have easy access to a computer can receive updates.

            I have reached the halfway point for the lecture phase of DTS, and time has flown by. It’s hard to believe I’ve been here for more than a month already! Being able to communicate via email, Skype and phone have truly shortened the distance, and nearly eliminated any homesickness. For the outreach phase, it is confirmed that we will be in Senegal, near Ziguinchor (southern Senegal), working with local missionaries, and with orphans, and will be heading there in early January 2013.

            This is actually confirmation from God, because when I first received a vision to go to France, it was to work with orphans. And here I am, going to a French speaking country, to work with orphans! Every time I see this fulfillment, I get so excited. It just goes to show that what we have in mind might not be exactly what God has planned.

While my tuition expense has been covered, I do have additional living and travel expenses that are upcoming.  If you are so led, contributions would be greatly appreciated.

And if you get a chance, an old fashioned hard copy letter would be nice as well. Here’s my address again:

Jeunesse en Mission,

ATTN: Taylor Jacoby,

550 chemin des belles Jeannes,

26130 St. Paul Trois Chateaux, France

So again, thank you so much, and I relish your prayers and letters.

           

Sincèrement,

Taylor

A week of practicality ... and experimentation.

Bonjour!

This week was one devoted to what evangelism is and how easy it is to actually do it. We had several speakers this week sharing different facets of what makes up evangelism. The list is just about endless, because everything we do can be an example of (and should be). Here are just a few of the most common examples of evangelism that you may be familiar with. Baptism (Matt. 28:19), healing (Matt.10:1), preaching (Mark 16:15), praying (Ephesians 6:18), serving (John 13:5), casting out demons (10:7-9), and so many more.
The area that was the newest for me was the concept of healing (we already had gone over the casting out of demons during the week on spiritual warfare) I really didn't know what to make of the concept of healing at first, but then after taking a closer look at the times Jesus sent out disciples (not just the the Twelve, but the 70, and the others that went out in Jesus' name) they were called to heal.
I had always just glanced over this as something that just happened during biblical times, but the passages above, along with what Paul says in his letters about spiritual gifts, one of which is healing.
The other aspects serving, preaching, baptism, etc. are fairly familiar to me so I won't go into much detail with these.
The amazing thing is that I was present when one of my friends here was healed. One of her legs was shorter than the other causing her to have severe back pain that she's had for years. We prayed for healing. Her leg grew, and the pain in her back is gone.
In other news, yesterday (Sunday), we were invited by the pastor of the local church to come over for lunch. It was a really fun time and it was nice to get away from the base. He and his family live in the middle of vineyards, and it makes for a very beautiful countryside.
Here are just a few pictures (the rest are on Facebook)
Enjoy!

The last two weeks.....

Happy November! The month of football, leaves falling, unseasonably cold weather, and American Thanksgiving (I need to clarify this for the Canadians reading this.)
This has to be one of the hardest blog updates I've had to write. I really hate not having the writing spirit, and inspiration (I've been trying to get this up since Friday, whoops!)
 These past two weeks delved into very new territory for me; last week was on Spiritual Warfare, and this week was on the Holy Spirit.
The week on Spiritual Warfare took a look at the different aspects that are involved in fighting.There is a war going on and we need to decide whether or not we will exercise the authority that has been delegated to us. (Matt. 28:18-20) This was the point that really spoke to me, as I don't often act on the authority that I have been given. (Luke 10:17-19)
Last Saturday was a great day. We trekked to the Ardeche region (and by trekked, I mean that we drove), and explored some caves and then visited a Troglodyte village (cave houses). I got some really good pictures, which I've posted to Facebook (some of them are below as well)
This past week was on the Holy Spirit, and was really hard to comprehend at points. I thought it would explore more of who the Holy Spirit was, but it was more along the lines of how the teacher experienced the Spirit which was really confusing. So at this point this has to be my least favorite week , and yet I came out of it feeling refreshed, and feeling like I know God just a little bit better.
It was really fun on Friday because we spent time in prayer asking the Holy Spirit to give us a person that we should talk to. (We actually met the person, but didn't know what to say)
The last couple of days, Saturday and today, have been really relaxing and enjoyable. I was able to participate in playing for morning worship for church this morning, and even though I could only understand about half of what was being said, I still enjoyed church today.

That's about it for now. Hopefully I'll have more interesting stuff for next time




I took this shot while driving.










And this is from the village we visited.

And this is Frimousse. He was a stray that hung around until we just gave up trying to get rid of him!He's about 5-6 months old, and more like a dog that a cat!

A week (and then some) of reflection and change

So it's been about a week and a half since my last update. The reason for this is that I have been looking through my journal and trying to figure out how to best describe the experiences from the past week. And I've come to the realization that words can't even begin to grasp what happened.
The topic of teaching (if it can be called that) was on intimacy with God. Right at the beginning, it was made very clear that this wouldn't be a week of intellectual learning, but one of spiritual growth, and connecting with God's Spirit (the Holy Spirit).
With this in mind, I had several close encounters that I can't find the words to explain, other than to say that I was brought low, and then I was soaring through the heavens. I had moments of clarity as it related to my life and areas of sin were revealed to me that I didn't know existed.
It was extremely personal, so I won;t go into further detail than that. I will, however, give a summation of how God has worked in my life since I've been here. A softening of my conscience, a sensitizing of my spirit to what God wants in my life, and a humbling of my will to the awesome power of God.
Here is a poem that I wrote, drawing on Song of Solomon 5:2-7, and Psalm 91.

Who should I fear?
You have rescued me!
Why do I cower?
You have raised me up!
I wake from deep sleep.
Listening, I hear a gentle knock,
In the dead of night, I hear.
Who is it? Who comes?
Like the wind, I rush
Rush to the door.
I lift the latch, and pull
The door swings open, wide.
There he stands, the one I long for.
My Salvation, and Redeemer.

God bless you.

A week of worship and humility

Greetings,
Sadly, I have no new photos to post, but I've been compiling some of the pictures taken by my fellow classmates and will be able to upload those this coming week.
Last Sunday, I attempted to go to a local Catholic, but after waiting an hour and nothing happening, I walked back to the house. The good news was that I had a great quiet time (It also was quite fun to longboard to church.)

Like it says in the title, this weeks lectures were on Worship and Praise, and what it means to worship (and it's not just the music you play or listen to).
To start off with, we learned some Greek and Hebrew words that all mean either worship or praise, but there is a physical act that accompanies it. There were seven Hebrew words (which I spelled all wrong) but you can find the words and meanings here, and it will be a lot clearer than I could write it.

This was very important because when I worship I rarely raise my hands, never kneel, and never even thought about falling on my face. And yet this is all part of worship.  (The Hebrew word for worship, Shachah, literally means to bow down.)

This week was also one of the most humbling experiences in my life. I won't go into to much detail, but taking a physical position of vulnerability such as kneeling or lying on your face gives you a very different perspective, and for me at least was transforming. It's not a natural thing, at least in the American mindset to kneel and bow before anyone, as we are all equal. Well, when you enter into the presence of your creator, there's not much else we can do. It wasn't a pleasant experience, but it brought me another step closer to understanding God's love and sacrifice for me, and His bigness.

One phrase stuck out and really spoke to my heart. "You have a choice. You can either humble yourself before God willingly, or you will be humiliated before Him on the Day of Judgement." We looked at Philippians 2:10-11 and see a prophecy of what will happen. I found it difficult, physically painful to kneel. How much more so when it will it be for those that don't believe and yet still have to bow. Something to think about.

Finally, in closing, true worship requires sacrifice. Something that you really care about and will miss. Looking at the Passover for example, the Jews were told to take the spotless lamb and care for it. They were then to sacrifice it as atonement for their sins. In 2 Samuel 24:24, David won't sacrifice something that cost him nothing. We clearly don't sacrifice animals anymore today, so what are we to do then. Look to Psalm 51:17, and we see that a broken heart and spirit are what God wants as sacrifice. My pride was getting in the way of being able to worship, but God humbled me and brought me out new.

That's it for this week!

2 Weeks... And counting

Bonsoir!
I've now been here in France for two weeks, but it feels like months. Hard to believe that I have more than two months left, and then another couple months in Senegal!
It has been feeling very New England-ish, weather-wise, with lots of rain and chilly wind. I woke up this morning and the countryside was hidden in fog (sorry, no pictures). Later on, it turned into a gorgeous, southern France type of day. Lots of sun, and a gentle breeze. Made for a good reading environment.
Another week of classes is over, and same as last time, I have come away with a deeper understanding of the nature of God. When I have a small breakthrough, an ah-ha moment, I am filled with so much excitement, I grin like an idiot. The smallest thing can set me off laughing.
The topic covered was a deep one (again). Sin and Repentance. When I heard what the topic of discussion was, I had an uh-oh moment. Many Christians don't like to talk about how ugly our sin truly is, and whenever some talks about it, it can be difficult to swallow.
As I had guessed, it was hard hitting, but it drew every aspect of what makes sin so disgusting to God from Scripture.
We discussed the sacrifices made by the Jews in the Tabernacle and in the Temple. There was a lot of blood required to atone for the sins of Israel, so it should come as no surprise that the perfect sacrifice that would cover the sins of all the world, for all time, would be a nasty, horrible affair.
One of the topics discussed was on Jesus and the Cross. This is defining point for mankind and sin. With a little medical commentary, we broke down the suffering that Jesus likely went through. It was a sobering session. The amount of pain, both emotional and physical, that He suffered for mankind brought some in the class to tears, many others were choked up, myself included.
We covered a vast amount of ground, but the key point to remember is that Christ suffered and died, but He  rose from the grave!!! He conquered over death and gave those who believe in Him the ability to conquer sin in their lives, the sin in my life.
There is just to much for me to tell you all about unless you want to read an essay that I really have no interest in writing. I'll give you the key words, verses, and phrases from this week, in no particular order.
Rom 3:23, Rom. 6:23-24, Sin, Repentance (Matt. 4:17), Conversion, Falling short, Sin's beginning (Gen. 3),   Miss the target, Consequences, Condemnation, Suffering, Sacrifice, Death, Resurrection, Justification, Faith, Strength, 2 Cor. 5:17, Confession, 1 John 1:8-10, Temptation, Titus 2:11-15.
I think that's enough to give you a taste of what I learned this week.
Jouir et que Dieu bénisse.
Bonne nuit

A blessing and a nice long walk

Yesterday was the last lecture on the Attributes and Nature of God. Lots of points were put forward, many being very different perspectives. Some I found to be absolutely biblical some others made me cringe inside, and I could not find conclusive biblical evidence to support the particular point be made. I made note of this and the teacher said that there are some things that we need to wrestle with, and he appreciated me asking him about it.
He then spent some time in prayer for us and spoke words of blessing on us. The words he directed to me struck me and I got very emotional. He told us to confirm what he said to us through scripture and praying.

Today was the first day that we got to sleep in, and though I missed breakfast, it was worth it. With only a pear, and a cup of coffee, Spencer (one of my room mates) and I went on a hike into the area behind the house.
Here are the scenes from our walk...

Saint Paul

Hi there!

Yesterday, our group had the chance to go into town and see what an old town looks. Here are some of the pictures I was able to take. I will come back and caption when I have time, but in the mean time, enjoy!