A busy time ahead

I'm not blogging much these days, I realise, and I'm sorry about that. I'll explain the reasons.

Firstly it's a fairly busy but routine time. This week is the Evangelical Council's week of prayer and we hosted the prayer meeting last night. When we agreed to do that Dik thought he'd be here but he's in Holland so it fell to me to sort out accompanist, projection of hymns and songs, welcome folk, chair the meeting etc. In fact I didn't have to chair the meeting because our elder was unexpectedly able to be present so I asked him to chair and work the videoprojector so I could help the accompanist. An evening like that is very stressful, but of great benefit. One of the ADD pastors was speaking and he spoke warmly and enthusiastically, though I am not sure now what he said as such. Lots of people prayed.

On Wednesday I have to speak at the prayer meeting, so I need to get my preparation sorted. One of the problems with the week of prayer is that they suggest themes for our reflection and prayer, and you risk getting five messages which all say more or less the same thing about the same subject... We'll see.

Thursday the English Classes restart. Also we have a parents' meeting at Gwilym's school at 17h30, so timing will be of the essence.

This week the outreach on campus restarts, though it's exam time for most of the students. It'll be good to get back out amongst folk and the weather here is very mild.

Sunday I am preaching for the Chinese on Saturday evening (Mark) and then in French at Anglade on Sunday morning and in English in the evening.

Whatever happens it seems that over the next few months I'll be preaching more in French on Sunday mornings and I also hope to do systematic visiting of church folk. This will entail freeing up at least one evening a week and I don't yet know how to do that, though I have one or two ideas that might work. Watch this space... On Sunday mornings I plan a series on Philippians.

We also need special prayer for this weekend - we have a visit from the Comission Générale de l'Evangélisation to discuss the way ahead for the church here in the light of Dik leaving us in June. This will involve the church council meeting with the commission on Saturday, then a church lunch and afternoon prayer and discussion time on Sunday.

Lots of folks are asking us about Grenoble, we haven't heard anything since mid-December. There's been illness in the church there, then Christmas holidays intervened and now David Vaughn is in Burkina Faso teaching pastors there, so I don't expect to hear anything till February. However, as we used to say at Honeywell, "till you see the ticket in your hand you're going nowhere". And there's work to get on with here !

Comments

Chris Pegington said…
We continue to pray fro you and the future.I was doing some clearing out yesterday in my study and shredding old letters. I found about a dozen from you in the 1980s when you were in Cardiff and also about to move to Deeside! What a spiritual chap you were! Many of them start with words such as "I have some news for you ... no I haven't met anyone and aren't getting married...." A man's mind plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps".
Alan said…
Ah Chris those were good days we were so young now I am no longer so young, you are retired and even Geoff has been talking about retirement...
Alan said…
and we are still thankful for the God who directs our steps, may he give us grace and strength to march them boldly

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