We're pictured here with Denis Drugeau, the president of JEM France and our teacher for the week. Denis talked about how to determine what skills God has given each of us and how to use them in the future. Lots to think about!
Friday, October 25, 2013
Monday, October 21, 2013
Week Four
Week four came and went, and like every other week here thus far, it was good, but challenging. I'm continually faced with the realization that one, God is far greater than I can comprehend, and two, I don't know as much about him as I thought I did. Being humbled is painful!
That being said, I really enjoyed this week's lecture topic. Mark Provis taught on The Bible. Here is a sampling of the topics he covered:
-How to Study the Bible
-The Bible and Science
-Translation Categories/Differences
-The Authority of the Bible
Mark reminded us that every part of the Bible, from the first page of Genesis to the final page of Revelation, points to Jesus Christ (who he is and what he has done). As a result of this reminder I have a renewed desire to read my Bible with the intent of knowing Jesus better.
We also had the privilege of having some guest speakers from Wycliffe Bible Translators come share with us. It was so cool to hear about the work they are doing in Sénégal to translate portions of the Bible into some of the 36 languages spoken there. Especially since we'll be going there in January for our outreach trip. (Do you like how I slid that in there?) Yep, we're going to Sénégal! I don't know many details yet. The DTS staff will brief us more in the coming weeks, but for now it's just nice to know our destination!
That being said, I really enjoyed this week's lecture topic. Mark Provis taught on The Bible. Here is a sampling of the topics he covered:
-How to Study the Bible
-The Bible and Science
-Translation Categories/Differences
-The Authority of the Bible
Mark reminded us that every part of the Bible, from the first page of Genesis to the final page of Revelation, points to Jesus Christ (who he is and what he has done). As a result of this reminder I have a renewed desire to read my Bible with the intent of knowing Jesus better.
We also had the privilege of having some guest speakers from Wycliffe Bible Translators come share with us. It was so cool to hear about the work they are doing in Sénégal to translate portions of the Bible into some of the 36 languages spoken there. Especially since we'll be going there in January for our outreach trip. (Do you like how I slid that in there?) Yep, we're going to Sénégal! I don't know many details yet. The DTS staff will brief us more in the coming weeks, but for now it's just nice to know our destination!
Friday, October 18, 2013
Bon Appétit!
Tonight will be my last evening of cooking dinner with Alex. You know what that means? It means I've been in France for a whole month! WOW.
As you may have noticed, Alex is holding a bell. The ringing of the bell tells everyone that dinner is ready. It is then proceeded by one or both of us singing "AuhAuhAa" like Giselle does here in the movie Enchanted. We may or may not sound as good as Amy Adams. You'd have to come visit to find out.
Friday, October 11, 2013
A Tour of JEM St. Paul
I simply cannot believe I have been here for 3 weeks already! And for some strange reason, I've not yet posted pictures of where I'm living. Allow me to take you on a little tour...
La Maison! The kitchen, reception area/lobby, bathrooms, and dining room are all located on the main floor. The JEM offices and staff loft are on the upper level. The laundry room, classroom, and student bedrooms are located on the lower level. To the left you can see part of a smaller building jutting out. That's where our bedrooms are located. Five girls in one room and 3 boys in another room. It's squishy but we make it work!
The reception area is a popular hangout spot for us students. During breaks we'll often convene here for tea or coffee.
This is a tiny little phone booth where
we can make calls to family and friends. (Note to my parents: This is
where you can picture me when I call you on the weekends!)
Not wanting to leave out a single detail, I'm including a brief description of the bathroom, which is complete with one shower, two toilets, and one sink. You can imagine that with eight people it can get a little, well, interesting! At least once each day I find myself doing a little dance around the sink with the other students, as two or three of us try to brush our teeth at the same time.
Ah, the kitchen. This is where Alex and I have been busying ourselves each weeknight to prepare the evening meals. One more week to go! (we are assigned new practical duties every four weeks).
And here we have the backyard. All told I think JEM owns 15-20 acres of land, which gives us lots of space to enjoy! This place makes for some good flashlight tag, let me tell ya.
So there you have a little glimpse of where I'm living. I'm feeling less homesick than I did the first two weeks here, which is a kindness from the Lord. Although I certainly still look forward to returning home in March, I'm also enjoying what God has for me here. I have such a unique opportunity to spend extended time reading the Bible, praying, and getting to know God better. And I find that very exciting!
Saturday, October 5, 2013
The Provis Family, Lectures, and Ardèche
I have so much to write about, and so little time, so I'm dividing this blog entry into three separate sections. Here goes...
The Provis Family
Ruth and Mark Provis are our fearless base leaders here at JEM St. Paul. They each teach a full week of DTS, oversee and plan everything we do, and work closely with Anna and Tabea (the staff members who live on the base).
Ruth and Mark are British, and all of us American students are fascinated with their accents and sayings. We love it when they say "Rubbish!" or "That was brilliant!" or "Blimey!". Ruth and Mark have two boys, Eli and Noah, whose accents are equally as fascinating and who are both fluent in French. The Provis family lives in an apartment in St. Paul, which is a 2 minute drive from the base. We are very blessed to have such wonderfully fun people leading our team.
Lectures
I must say that I have found some of the lectures quite difficult to sit through. I've been learning a lot of things that are new to me and/or different from what I've been taught at home or in church. In addition this is one of the first times in my life that I don't have my pastors and parents around to help me process this information. I'm asking God to help me be discerning but not overly critical as I take everything in.
Over the past two weeks God has been showing me that I've been believing things about him that aren't true, things that are based more on my own opinions than on what the Bible says, and it's a hard realization to come to! But I set out on this journey wanting to know God better, and if that requires some humbling along the way, it's worth it!
Ardèche
Okay, it's time for some pictures folks. Today I have some gooders to share with you from our excursion to Ardèche. Ardèche is basically the Grand Canyon of France with a gorge running through it. This morning, we packed a picnic lunch, stuffed ourselves into two little cars, and headed down the winding roads leading to Ardèche. We stopped frequently to take pictures along the way.
The Provis Family
Ruth and Mark Provis are our fearless base leaders here at JEM St. Paul. They each teach a full week of DTS, oversee and plan everything we do, and work closely with Anna and Tabea (the staff members who live on the base).
Ruth and Mark are British, and all of us American students are fascinated with their accents and sayings. We love it when they say "Rubbish!" or "That was brilliant!" or "Blimey!". Ruth and Mark have two boys, Eli and Noah, whose accents are equally as fascinating and who are both fluent in French. The Provis family lives in an apartment in St. Paul, which is a 2 minute drive from the base. We are very blessed to have such wonderfully fun people leading our team.
Lectures
I must say that I have found some of the lectures quite difficult to sit through. I've been learning a lot of things that are new to me and/or different from what I've been taught at home or in church. In addition this is one of the first times in my life that I don't have my pastors and parents around to help me process this information. I'm asking God to help me be discerning but not overly critical as I take everything in.
Over the past two weeks God has been showing me that I've been believing things about him that aren't true, things that are based more on my own opinions than on what the Bible says, and it's a hard realization to come to! But I set out on this journey wanting to know God better, and if that requires some humbling along the way, it's worth it!
Ardèche
Okay, it's time for some pictures folks. Today I have some gooders to share with you from our excursion to Ardèche. Ardèche is basically the Grand Canyon of France with a gorge running through it. This morning, we packed a picnic lunch, stuffed ourselves into two little cars, and headed down the winding roads leading to Ardèche. We stopped frequently to take pictures along the way.
Oh man was it immense! Views like the one above were plenty and kept getting better and better with each overlook site we passed.
We also had the opportunity to make some new friends...
The highlight of today's excursion was Vallon Pont d'Arc, where we stopped to eat a picnic lunch and go swimming.
Pretty amazing, huh? We braved the frigid water to swim underneath the arc to the other side of the gorge. One member of our party started feeling ill, so we bummed a ride back from some super nice French guys who were kayaking near us. Unfortunately, they were a little too young for me.
Our last stop before returning to the base was a Roman wash house in Bourg-Saint-Andéol.
And with that, I will conclude my three-in-one post.
Friday, October 4, 2013
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