Rez-de-chaussée

Yesterday and today have both been orientation days for us. The team here is slowly introducing us to the different daily tasks as well as to information about the institute/ministry itself. So far, we have done well with handling the tasks and information, however there is more to come! We'll see how it goes! :-)

Amber and I are going to be taking dance lessons from a professional dancer who is a friend of our French "maman" (mom), who cooks, as well as does a bunch of other things, here at the institute. We met with our instructor yesterday, and we have our first dance class tomorrow. We're pretty excited! She's a very sweet lady who lives to dance. Yesterday she said, "c'est mon drogue." (It's my drug.) So I think we'll enjoy our time with her.

One of the programs of this ministry is a summer program where students come to study abroad in a Christian program. Not only are they exposed to the language and take classes here, they also participate in community service projects, travel to different places in Normandy and to Paris, attend a local church on Sundays and are encouraged in their spiritual walks through daily group devotionals and worship. The students here are currently finishing up their first class. As I type, I can hear them downstairs studying for their final tomorrow morning. Amber and I commented earlier that we're glad we aren't them this time. It's nice to be able to be here to serve and to help and not to study.

Tonight we helped with dinner preparation and clean up, which was a little overwhelming, but that's as it should be when you're cooking a mostly French 4-course dinner for a large group of hungry students. This will get easier as we get used to what we are doing, hopefully. :-)

Please pray that our bodies continue to adjust to the time. (I had a difficult time staying awake today!) Please pray for our team - that as we get to know each other better and start dividing up the tasks, our hearts and minds would become more in sync as we serve Christ. Also pray that Amber and I are able to help relieve some of the stress of the full time staff while we are here. Pray for the students as they finish their first class and move into the second class with a new professor. Pray that they would see Christ through our work and service and that He would draw them to a deeper relationship with Him. Also pray that our French would continue to improve as we interact more frequently with people in the community!

Also, here's our address in case you need/want it.

Domaine L'Estuaire

c/o (Amber or Katie or both)

44, avenue de la mer

14810 Merville-Franceville

FRANCE

We love you all and are praying for you!

Katie

enfin

We are here! safe and sound. The day started out magnifique with an upgrade to first class for our first flight which included a wonderful meal and hot towels! Minor hiccups in Canada with bad weather, circling the airport for about an hour and then running through the entire toronto airport after they made us check our bags at the door to the plane...luckily our flight to paris had also been delayed so we were able to hop right on and take off which was pleasant despite the aching legs and sweat dripping down our foreheads!!

Tommorrow, they have given us a chance to rest some more and catch up on the sleep we didn't get before we left.

God has watched over our travels and made things work out in ways that seemed impossible at the time. Please keep us in your prayers that we can use tomorrow to fully relax and prepare for the coming work they have planned for us.

we love you all and will start trying to post pictures soon!

à bientôt

katie and amber

chouette

I wanted to do a quick post to start out this lovely blog idea. I spoke with Katie on the phone earlier and I think she may be less stressed than I, but that's okay because we start our journey tomorrow no matter if I finish packing my house or not.


As we commence, I would just like to ask for prayer for us in safety, peace of mind for flying and I need help releasing control to God this week. He watches our every move and knows better than us and it's easy to forget all this when life gets hectic and crazy. 


I hope our blog postings will be filled with interesting and funny stories of the things we may encounter or God will teach us along the way!


love you all whoever you may be!


Amber