French and preaching and Bible studies
Yesterday was good for reflecting on French. It began with great encouragement.
Mr Bixby said "You've been how long in France ? And you are doing what ?" He said that he generally tells people that it'll take four years before they can do much at all except converse one on one. Well, he really helped me to feel encouraged at the progress so far and to feel that it is worth while battling on.
I told him that I always preach from full notes in French and very seldom depart from my notes. Like that I can check the grammar and the genders, and I can eliminate most anglicisms.
Of course, the Thursday evening Bible Study is another matter. There it's the old Socratic questions and discussion format. (If Socrates were alive today he'd be ... well he'd be very old for a start..) However that does mean you can't have full notes.
And that you say coronation instead of couronnement, and entrônement, for which, apparently, no word exists - so I claim the royale right to invent new words in my bravitude, and proclaim the entrônement of Jésus.
Incidentally, one of the students is going to be a dentist, and couronnement led to an interesting little post-study discussion of whether one could say to one's dentist "Pouvez-vous me couronner, s'il vous plait". Perhaps "Pouvez-vous me couronner le dent, s'il vous plait" may work ?
Ah well, you win some, you lose some - but it shows how far we've come ..... and how far we have yet to go !
We are so thankful to God for his help and enabling. We are so thankful to God for a situation where we need to get working. And we are so thankful to God for gracious students who help me with my French while I help them with the Bible.
And we laugh a lot.
Mr Bixby said "You've been how long in France ? And you are doing what ?" He said that he generally tells people that it'll take four years before they can do much at all except converse one on one. Well, he really helped me to feel encouraged at the progress so far and to feel that it is worth while battling on.
I told him that I always preach from full notes in French and very seldom depart from my notes. Like that I can check the grammar and the genders, and I can eliminate most anglicisms.
Of course, the Thursday evening Bible Study is another matter. There it's the old Socratic questions and discussion format. (If Socrates were alive today he'd be ... well he'd be very old for a start..) However that does mean you can't have full notes.
And that you say coronation instead of couronnement, and entrônement, for which, apparently, no word exists - so I claim the royale right to invent new words in my bravitude, and proclaim the entrônement of Jésus.
Incidentally, one of the students is going to be a dentist, and couronnement led to an interesting little post-study discussion of whether one could say to one's dentist "Pouvez-vous me couronner, s'il vous plait". Perhaps "Pouvez-vous me couronner le dent, s'il vous plait" may work ?
Ah well, you win some, you lose some - but it shows how far we've come ..... and how far we have yet to go !
We are so thankful to God for his help and enabling. We are so thankful to God for a situation where we need to get working. And we are so thankful to God for gracious students who help me with my French while I help them with the Bible.
And we laugh a lot.
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