French friends!

Today was our first official day on campus doing what we came here to do.  I am just amazed by how welcoming and exciting the French students I met were to just talk and hang out with us.  Very different than what we usually hear or think about French people.  The students are taking exams right now, so it just boggles my mind that they will talk with us right up until the time to take an exam, where in America, we SO worry and think about ourselves and what we have to get done (not that it's always bad), that putting people first usually seems stressful and impossible.  I received an email this evening from a girl who I just me on the tram today.  She doesn't speak too much english, but wants to "get a drink with me" this week or next week, and said it would be nice if I could help fix her errors with her english speaking.  What an incredible opportunity to just get to know her and love her.  Please pray for her heart.  Just in the little bit we talked, she shared that she does not believe in God, because she only believes in what she can see around her.  She shared this without me specifically even asking!  Also pray that someone in our group would be able to help communicate French with her well.  Also, that she would be able to understand my english, considering all I can say in French is :  

Hello, my name is Katy.  I do not speak french, do you speak english?  

Very well.  

Very beautiful. Yes, no, thank you, please, and your welcome.

It's a good start though!  Is such a sweet language.  

This is all for now, if anyone wants to leave a comment, I think you just have to register for an account.  Thanks again for the prayers!  I pray that all is well for everyone back in the states and that you are experiencing God's LOVE and peace!!

Citadines Montpellier Antigone

588, Boulevard D'Antigone

34000 Montpellier

France

Bon Soir!

Hello friends! We are on day 3 in Montpellier...

wonderfully smooth flight and travels getting to where we are!

Day 1- came off an 8 hour flight and 4 hour train ride...some major jet lag trying to keep ourselves awake...so after a good 27 hours of awakeness, we finally got some sleep. It was a glorious night, except for the ceiling which fell on Hannah in our kitchen...HA...it was really only one large panel, something was leaking, but praise God that no one was hurt, we had help from the guys moving ALL of our things we had already completely unpacked, and were able to move into a new room. Our rooms are actually very nice...a little cramped, but 2 bedrooms and even a kitchenette!

Day 2- (yesterday) We began some more training, learning more about the culture and what it will be like as we meet and build relationship with French students. So much to share about the culture sometime, I'm afraid I will not want to return to America!

We will be spending time on 3 different campuses in Montpellier, meeting students and just trying to make French friends in hopes of learning from them and sharing our lives with them. The area we live in is beautiful! Everything is so laid back, there are people just everywhere, no cars right around this area, its kind of like the city center. Too much to describe right now! The cheese is wonderful, and I think I'll be eating lots of chocolate croissants!

Last night we went to "Agape Night", which is the college ministry of students that is already here in Montpellier. We met at a church, and the church was just incredible, so loving and serving! They cooked dinner for us...so hospitable...and so many kisses! It was absolutely amazing to worship God with French people, in French and English, and the choir even sang songs for us. They were so excited to hear why we would come all the way to their country. We shared why we were called to come here, which was traslated into French. So cool to experience our God...who is the God of every nation, tribe, and tongue. He is not the God of America....but he is the God of the universe!! I have never felt so much love. The pastor gave a sermon, which was tranlated into Enligsh for us- one of the most encouraging and loving messages I've heard! This whole service was just so intense, and we then had dessert and hung out with the people.

What a blessing that our first real one-on-one interactions with the people were with French believers. France is such a spiritually dark place. Even the people we talked with today just breifly had given really no thought to spiritual things. A Christian in France is a TRUE follower of Christ, so in love with the Lord...it's so real, and so humbling!

We soon will be regularly meeting students on campus and hopefully will be making some new friends. Please pray for people who are welcoming and excited to meet us and know us and share their lives with us! Because its such a spiritually dark place, and we are experiencing jet lag, please pray that we would find rest and not be discouraged, but continue trust God and turn to him with all we do. He has us here for a reason, and I absolutely can't wait to see what that is! I so appreciate your support!

chow!

p.s. a pigeon pooped on me today :)