Praying, Packing, and Paperwork

So much for writing every Monday...

The last couple of weeks have been an absolute whirlwind.

We needed to find a place to host the church in Normandy. Our air BNB, that has been our home for the last year, is really too small and not conducive for weekly gatherings. We also needed a permanent address to form the association, which is a legal requirement in France. After a flash-pan prayer weekend, we knew it was time to move into something more permanent.

The problem was, where and when and how? It seemed everything was stacked against us. We have no furniture, limited funds, and of course, limited time, as our lease was getting ready to expire.

So, without going into too many details, you may or may not find interesting, we found a place, that is perfectly suited for the specific needs we have. It was vacant, newly remodeled, and ready for us as soon as we were available. It is in the nearby town of Vernon, which houses a train station, and is, in all respects, a proper city.

Jeff has been attacking the paperwork, night and day, for the association as well as the drivers license paperwork we need. I've been on deep cleaning and packing duty. And to top it all off, we are going through an epic heat wave right now.

I may sound like I'm complaining, but I'm really not. There have been so many miraculous provisions in this transition.

First, I have been worried about the lack of furniture we have. We have our friend's daughter living with us for the next three months, and I just imagined us all sitting on the floor and eating, and sleeping on air mattresses.

But nope. Our amazing friends here, our air BNB host family and our other friends, have all contributed to helping us, with end tables, mattresses, dressers, and other incidentals. Then to top it all off, our new landlord is letting us use the 10 person table and chairs for the month of august until it can be removed from our apartment! I am so thankful! It's so fun to watch my worries turn into thankfulness.

We kept saying, God, this is your church. The pressure isn't on us. You have to do it. We don't want to scheme or manipulate to make everything work. And God just opened doors that we couldn't. It's not what we expected. The timing of our church plant. The place where we are going to live. I imagined a house in the country. With animals nearby and birds and flowers. But we are going to be in a city. Surrounded by people. No garden. No nearby animals. And really just pigeons. But we are going to be around people. People that God loves. People that he wants us to reach. We still get to stay in contact with our friends in the village. God is just moving us and expanding our borders.

Pray for the church in Normandy. We covet your prayers. We get sad and homesick and fight the battles, but we know there is peace and joy we can find rest in.

Further up. Further in!