je suis arrive aux etats-unis...

i have so much to say, and yet very few words to express what is happening now that i'm back in the states...

i'm exhausted, both physically and emotionally, but i know deep in my heart - beneath this whirlwind of return - that God's purpose in sending me to Nantes was fulfilled.

and in that i am satisfied.

yes, i miss France. greatly so.
yes, i miss the dear friends i've made this summer.
yes, it's hard to imagine that i won't wake up tomorrow for a full day of sharing and a soiree at the Hippodrome.

but i have faith that God will complete in me the work He has begun, and with that comes the promise that nothing i gained this summer will be lost.

i know that whatever God taught me, whatever i discovered about Him and about myself, whatever friendships i made and wisdom i gained are good and lasting and are part of bringing me from glory to glory.

i also have hope that i will be back in my dear country of France again, and it is partly because of this hope that i can let go of what i've temporarily left behind, because i know it is not the end.

no, this is not the end - God is always doing more, and everything next is built on all what was before.

that is why we must be faithful in little, because after a while the small things become a great adventure, one for which God has thoroughly and completely prepared us through our diligent obedience.

i praise God for what He did before allowing me to journey to France, and i praise Him for all the ways in which He will use this summer to ready me for what is next.

how can something so simple have such overwhelming power?

The precious blood of Jesus Christ redeems
Forgiven I'm alive restored set free
Your majesty resides inside of me
Forever I believe
Forever I believe
Arrested by Your truth and righteousness
Your grace has overwhelmed my brokenness
Convicted by Your spirit led by Your word
Your love will never fail
Your love will never fail

I know You gave
The word Your only Son for us
To know Your name
To live within the Savior's love
He took my place
Knowing He'd be crucified
And You loved
You loved a people undeserving

[Hillsong - To Know Your Name]

running our race...

"However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me — the task of testifying to the gospel of God's grace." [Acts 20:24]

"Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize." [1 Corinthians 9:24-27]

"I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing." [2 Timothy 4:7-8]

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart." [Hebrews 12:1-3]

Franglais 101

How to speak well Frenglish…

1. Je te glare…
2. Ne glare pas!
3. Je creep!
4. What the qu’est ce que c’est?
5. I’m les tired
6. Tres oui!
7. …cheval?
8. Je ne parle pas English
9. Barn swallow!
10. Ar varr!
11. Mercy buckets!
12. Ne talk pas!
13. Bananas Anne et Café Anne
14. Ne moque me pas!
15. Je ne care pas
16. Je te smile

what I love about Nantes...

1. Playing a game of soccer with French students
2. The simple pleasure of eating cheese and bread
3. Jumping photos as the sun sets over the Hippodrome
4. The freshness of belief in young Christians
5. Drinking a petit café at a brasserie
6. Singing “En Jesus Seule” under banners that read “Jesus Christ – Notre Esperance”
7. The afternoon sun shining on the grass around the Chateau
8. Learning that Jesus is the only thing great enough to rescue me from myself
9. A rugby match at an Irish Pub with a pint of Guinness and a British friend
10. The adventure of traveling the world for Christ
11. Ordering a bon plan at Mie Caline – “Pain au chocolat, s’il vous plait!”
12. A pair of indoor soccer cleats for only 10 euros at GoSport
13. Studying 1st John
14. Art that is a pack of wolves, glowing circles, guitar-playing birds and a giant wall-bending whale
15. Laser game at Atlantis – “Same team! Same team!!”
16. Realizing that part of my destiny is now – sharing the Gospel of God’s love to anyone, anywhere
17. Worshiping in English and French
18. Moules, frites and vin along the waterfront
19. Meeting wonderful new friends from many countries
20. Riding the tram all over town
21. The fresh colors, light and shapes of French design
22. Growing in my confidence of the Truth I believe
23. Ameliorating my French by speaking it as much as possible
24. Brave warriors of the Nantes STINT team fighting for the hearts of the French
25. Students on vacation from school backpacking throughout Europe
26. Discussing apples with an elderly French lady at Marché U
27. Reading the Bible
28. Gelato from Amorino – une cornetto avec quatre parfums
29. Discovering back alleys, hidden store fronts and indoor malls
30. A tour of Musee des Beaux Arts on a lazy Saturday morning
31. The chance to grow and be stretched beyond my old self
32. Exploring the Jardin des Plantes
33. Midnight kebabs and frites (with Harissa sauce!)
34. The breathtaking majesty of ancient cathedrales
35. Learning to lead, learning to follow
36. Feux d’artifice over the Loire – “Joyeux Quatorze Juillet!”
37. Water droplets of light sprinkling the plaza around the fountain at night
38. Des Petites Ecoliers
39. Brioche avec Nutella
40. Wine tasting at a wine bar with two new French friends

Lamentations 3:22-33

My pastor read this at the end of his sermon this past Sunday...

"Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, “The Lord is portion; therefore I will wait for him.”

The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him; it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord. It is good for a man to bear the yoke when he is young.

Let him sit alone in silence, for the Lord has laid it on him. Let him bury his face in the dust – there may yet be hope. Let him offer his check to one who would strike him, and let him be filled with disgrace.

For men are not cast off by the Lord forever. Though he brings grief, he will show compassion, so great is his unfailing love. For he does not willingly bring affliction or grief to the children of men."

Your Love is Strong

Heavenly Father
You always amaze me
Let Your kingdom come in my world
And in my life

Give me the food I need
To live through today
Forgive me as I forgive
The people that wrong me

Lead me far from temptation
Deliver me from the evil one

I look out the window
The birds are composing
Not a note is out of tune
Or out of place

I walk to the meadow
And stare at the flowers
Better dressed than any girl
On her wedding day

So why should I worry?
Why do I freak out?
God knows what I need
You know what I need!

Your love is
Your love is
Your love is strong

The kingdom of the heavens
Is now advancing
Invade my heart
Invade this broken town

The kingdom of the heavens
Is buried treasure
Would you sell yourself
To buy the one you've found

Two things you told me
That you are strong
And you love me
Yes, you love me

Your love is
Your love is
Your love is strong
Your love is
Your love is
Your love is strong

Our God in Heaven
Hallowed be Thy name
Above all names
Your kingdom come
Your will be done
On earth as it is in Heaven
Give us, today, our daily bread
Forgive us weary sinners
Keep us far from our vices
And deliver us from these prisons

[Jon Foreman]

things I am learning...

1) God is Love
2) God loves me
3) God loves the French
4) Sometimes it’s okay to put down the camera
5) The internet is a luxury
6) Loving one another is not
7) I have nothing to fear
8) God made me to worship Him
9) Worship cannot exist except in being knit permanently with the Word
10) Nous pouvons louer notre Dieu en Anglais et en Francais
11) I cannot obtain anything good of my own
12) God created everything that is good and true and beautiful
13) “The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.”
14) “The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him; it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.”
15) Jesus allowed himself to be separated from God so that we would not have to be
16) I can’t imagine living a life without knowing who God is
17) There are many people in the world who don’t
18) We have been charged to proclaim the Gospel to all nations
19) Paul was a real person
20) So was Peter
21) I’d love to share the Gospel with them for a day
22) Acts is one of the most powerful books I have ever read
23) So is 1st John
24) It’s amazing how so much of my conversations confirmed and strengthened by what I am reading in 1st John
25) Everything in the Word is united
26) I am becoming increasingly global-minded
27) My wallet is much lighter (and less complicated) in another country
28) I am transient, I am temporary
29) I am easily adaptable, I am in constant motion
30) I am more than the sum of my strengths
31) I am also very weak
32) He is infinitely strong…
33) …but only when I admit my need for rescue
34) Don’t mock yourself, less others follow suit and miss who you really are
35) God is intangible, impossible to see, but one way He is made known in our lives is when we love one another – then His love (and his presence) is made complete in us
36) True love is unexplainable - “This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.”
37) We don’t need as much need to grasp the mystery of God as much as we need to be grasped by it – God will take hold of our hearts even when our minds cannot

a week's worth of sharing...

1. Monday w/ Abbey
a. Lady in the church – singing Ave Maria with the organ – talked with us a long time – sings to God and her husband can hear her – he died 5 years ago – loved her playing music while he was still alive – invited us to hear her sing at a wedding at 4pm on July 4th

2. Tuesday w/ Holly
a. Two homeless men – Cyrille et Niko – they gave us an ashtray they made out of soda cans – I bought them each a chausson aux pommes - promised to return w/ a gift
b. Two working young ladies – the memorial statue at 50 Otages – Cecile and Sophie – couldn’t talk long but arranged to meet us again next Wednesday
c. A young man named David – a 34-year old travel salesman – Swiss – traveled to Australia and New Zealand – talk about the place God has in his life and in religion, religion’s place in France
d. Three nautical engineering students, two of whom were swimming in the Loire with boats – took their photos and emailed them so their professor could see – one is staying around for the summer and said she’d love to tell us about places to see and provide us with helpful information – also told us about a friend she had named Virginia staying here during the summer who might want to meet new people
e. Two protestors who took our photo on the wall by the river – they were protesting a second airport in Nantes when Nantes really needs a hospital – they were really friendly

3. Wednesday w/ Seth
a. Had an awkward 7-minute conversation with a girl – found out she’s 19 and with a boyfriend – that made everything feel quite awkward so we ended it soon and left – talked briefly about the beach, what we’re studying…
b. We toured the Jardin des Plantes for a while and took photos, enjoying the incredible beauty of the trees and flowers and bushes and water and birds and clouds and buildings… As we were about to leave, we encountered a German couple (Seth’s first chance to speak German!) – the girl (Juliane) spoke excellent English – had been studying here in Nantes for half a year – Jan (the guy) barely spoke English – works with metal back home – he and Seth were able to connect over music interests – we talked lightly in the park until it began to rain – we sought shelter in a nearby café and Seth bought everyone coffee – the conversation soon became deeply spiritual – my heart breaks that Juliane is too scared to believe there is a God of love and hope instead of a religious group who coerce the masses into doing things they do not desire – she said (after sharing about Jesus and forgiveness and love) that she really likes hearing that, when I put it that way, but she just can’t make that decision – I told her my words will never persuade her, that I knew my purpose was not to win her with an argument, and that only God would truly be able to convict her of the truth – please pray for Juliane, that God could break through her years of religious suppression and fear

4. Thursday - nothing – it poured so we all stayed inside and caught up with messaging our contacts, uploading photos, calling home, etc – I spent an hour or so with Jake and Face chez ils – then Seth joined us and we took a trip to LU and spent a few hours there before it was time to come back and get ready for dinner/Bibou

5. Friday w/ Jake – Eric and Andreas – Jake and I had to leave sharing early today to clean our host church at 2:30, so we prayed that God would give us at least one conversation – we went to the park at Hotel Dieu (the very first place I prayed for Nantes when I prayer walked the campuses with Yan and Claire – also the same place where the Marche Pour Jesus ended) – we both spotted two guys sitting on a bench so we joined them and introduced ourselves – they both spoke English (what a relief!) – they were from Sweden and were backpacking for 18 days through Europe – they had been to two other countries before this and had just arrived by train this morning – we talked about light things until Jake directly asked them what they thought about God and God led the way from there. Eric talked more than Andreas, but Andreas still added to the conversation, and had a surprising understanding of truth – he said Jesus Christ was the son of God who died on the cross for us – I asked him if Jesus died because he had to or wanted to – Andreas said “wanted to” – we were able to explore in great depth all that it meant to be forgiven of sins undeservedly because God loved us deeply enough to send his son Jesus to die so that we would have to – we talked about Heaven and Hell, Hell being completely absent of God – we talked about love and having a spirit that lives after our bodies die – we talked about having a purpose to living, that we’re more than just evolution and accidental biology, that our spirits are eternal and we’re given thoughts + emotions + dreams + talents by God – I really felt that Eric was open to hearing what we believed, even though he presented us with his own theory to life and how humans interact with one another without a need for God – I know that our words had the power of God behind them (which I shared as well – the same verse in 1 Corinthians 2 about wanting them to believe by faith in God’s power and not in the arguments of our words – please pray for Eric and Andreas’ friendship – I think God can work between the two of them, with Eric’s active mind and passion for understanding life and Andrea’s quietness of spirit and grasp of deep spiritual truths

6. Sorry this became progressively longer as I went on. It’s because the more recent my sharing experiences are, the easier it is to relive them. It just shows that if I tried to blog about everything that’s happening here, I’d have millions of words to type and not enough time in the day to share them.

7. God is good, God is powerful and God is love. The world needs to know this.

The Lost Get Found...

Hello my friend
I remember when you were
So alive with your wide eyes
Then the light that you had in your heart was stolen
Now you say that it ain't worth stayin'
You wanna run but you're hesitatin'
I'm talkin' to me

Don't let your lights go down
Don't let your fire burn out
'Cause somewhere, somebody needs a reason to believe
Why don't you rise up now?
Don't be afraid to stand out
That's how the lost get found
The lost get found

So when you get the chance
Are you gonna take it?
There's a really big world at your fingertips
And you know you have the chance to change it
There's a girl on the streets, she's cryin'
There's a man whose faith is dyin'
Love is calling you

Don't let your lights go down
Don't let your fire burn out
'Cause somewhere, somebody needs a reason to believe
Why don't you rise up now?
Don't be afraid to stand out
That's how the lost get found
The lost get found

Why do we go with the flow
Or take an easier road?
Why are we playin' it safe?
Love came to show us the way
Love is a chance we should take
I'm movin' out of the way

Don't let your lights go down
Don't let your fire burn out
'Cause somewhere, somebody needs a reason to believe
(Stand out)
Don't let your lights go down
Don't let your fire burn out
(Stand out)
'Cause somewhere, somebody needs a reason to believe
Why don't you rise up now?
Don't be afraid to stand out
That's how the lost get found
The lost get found

So when you get the chance
Are you gonna take it?
There's a really big world at your fingertips
And you know you have the chance to change it

[Brit Nicole]

Something Beautiful...

In your ocean I’m ankle deep
I feel the waves crashing on my feet
It’s like I know where I need to be
But I can’t figure out, I can’t figure out…

Just how much air I will need to breathe
When your tide washes over me
There’s only one way to figure out
Will you let me drown, will you let me drown…

[needtobreathe]

words on my heart today...

After the words have all been said
After the songs are sung
I realize I've only but just begun
Trying to wrap my mind around
Extravagant love come down
Leaves me undone
Finds me with nothing to say

The reach of Your fame
The power in Your name
Your glory surrounds me
It's over my head
It's over my head
The shame of the cross
For all that it cost
This friendship astounds me
It's over my head
It's over my head

Unquenchable songs and endless praise
A million tongues poised to sing
Could still not convey
The worth that Your name deserves
Beauty for ashes
Joy for pain
Mercy instead of my blame
Ruins me for more
I'm lost in Your presence, Lord

Hallelujah…

Lost for the words to say
I'm left here in disarray
Waiting for You, waiting on truth
I've thrown reason overboard
Knowing that there's still more
I don't yet believe, I can't even perceive
I can't seem to understand
Can't seem to find my way
It's over my head, it’s over my head
Learning this mystery
Trust what I cannot see
It's over my head, it's over my head
The wonder of all You've made
Foundations Your hands have laid
Bringing me back to my knees, to my knees
I'm lost for the words to say
Lost for another way
Bringing me back to my knees, to my knees
I'm lost for the words to say
Lost for another way
Ruined for anything other than Your love
I'm desperate to know You, Lord
Desperate for what's in store
Finding my hope in only You, in only You
Take me beyond this door
Lead me to something more
Open my heart up for more of You, more of You
[Starfield - "Over My Head"]


"When I came to you, brothers, I did not come with eloquence or superior wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling. My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power."
[1 Corinthians 2:1-5]


"For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom his whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge — that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen."
[Ephesians 3:14-21]