WE ARE HERE!!!!!!!! How great it is to be here. The time change is a bit crazy, 6 hours ahead of you folks in the Eastern timezone, however we began the first day of our construction project and got a lot accomplished. Our project is insulating and drywalling a brand new apartment for the missionary hosts here in France. Their home is a bed and breakfast with the intention of using it to minister to traveling missionaries and pastors. They have a beautiful home here in Arcy-Sur-Cure.

The team is doing great and God is doing very much in and through our team. Tomorrow, Sunday, we are heading to a small church of about 45 people to worship with them and share with them who we are.  It will be a great time for the team to be able to influence others with what God has done in their lives. We'll check back in on Monday.  We got here safely and soundly, and the team members still have incredible smiles on their faces.

Thursday, July 13

Well, work things are going well, and we are still doing great. We have spent our time doing much insulation work, and quite a bit of sheetrock work as well. All of that work is being done in the same housing unit where we are staying (the bed & breakfast).

Today we had an incredible oppurtunity. We traveled from Arcy-Sur-Cure (where we are staying) to Avallon. Avallon is the city where our hosts attend church. We went there to assist in some construction efforts that are being done to remodel the church. Today we took down some plaster diving walls and opened up the whole 1st floor where it used to be spilt into two sides. We also sanded down some window frames, and then stained and painted them, as well as doing some spackling on a newly framed bathroom. We will be going back to this church on Sunday for worship, and it will be exciting to see our work make a difference first hand and to see how the people appreciate it (or not).

While we were in Avallon, we took an extended long lunch break 1130-230 to watch the Tour de France come through the center of the city, right around the corner from the church. It was really neat to see something of that extreme nature pass right before our eyes.

For the rest of the week we will be continuing our construction work at the B&B and continue to spend time together as a team letting God continue to do the great and marevlous work He has been doing. Praise God for health thus far - it has been an extreme blessing.

Monday, July 16

And the work goes on! It was a very busy weekend. We worked hard on Friday, although the heat was a bit uncomfortable.That afternoon one of our host's friend graciously opened his home to us. We enjoyed taking a tour of the farm and swimming in his resevoir.

Saturday was yet another hard day's work. It was hotter than the day before, but we managed to get a tremendous amount of work done. The upstairs is coming along well, though it is truly tedious work.

Sunday was outstanding! We went to the church in Avallon for Sunday worship. We were asked to perform at the service, so we put on two dramas, sang two songs, did painting ministry, and Keith spoke. The truly powerful experience of our being there came after the service, when everyone was talking and having snacks. A woman by the name of Lydia told us she was touched by one of our dramas because it reminded her of the hardships she faced in the past. It was the first time she had been to church in years because she gave up on God as a result of an abusive relationship she had with her ex-husband who is a pastor. Within the next half-hour, she opened up to us about all of her issues and heartaches, and we eventually put our hands on her and prayed. She took Christ back into her life! It was a moving experience that we all will never forget.

Sunday afternoon we went to the Basilica in Vezelay. It was beautiful! The remains of Mary Magdalene lay in a crypt below the church. On the way home from Vezelay, we stopped at the Grottes de Arcy-sur-Cure, which are the ancient caves formed by rivers thousands of years ago. We saw prehistoric paintings that were uncovered after cleaning the stone, but unfortunately we could not take any pictures.

Today we are nearly completely done with insulating and drywalling. We will be ready to start spackling by tomorrow. Except for a few cuts and bruises, we are all in excellent health and just as eager to work as we were when we arrived.

Wednesday, July 18

Today has been a great day!

We are done with all of the drywalling and insullation, and have moved on to spackling/plastering as well as doing a bunch of other odds and ends around the house for our final days here. We have gotten so much done, more than the host`s expectations, so that is a wonderful praise.

It`s hard to believe that we are only here for a few more days, but we are still very excited to be here, but I think that the team is getting just about ready to return home in a few days Our visit and stay here has been absolutely incredible, andGod has really blessed the work that He has done through us thus far on our adventure.

We will try to get some more pictures up soon, will try to show you our progress of work we have done as well. We had dinner with another missionary couple tonight, plus another couple from the village, and we had a very enjoyable time sharing about our lives and our faith with everyone. I think it was an encouragement to us just as much as them.

Thats all for now. Check back again soon for updates.

Friday, July 20

Well, we are just about finished here in France. We finished our work, and got everything done that the hosts expected us to get done, plus more. It has been a true blessing being in this place, and although we are sad about leaving, we know that God worked mightily in our hearts and through us to minister to others. What an awesome God we serve, and what a wonderful place to be at - amazed and humbled by the Lord of lords and the Kig of kings.

We go to Paris tomorrow for a day of debreifing and fun, and then we are taking off early Sunday morning for the long trek home.