Week One of Discipleship Training School

One week of Discipleship Training School (DTS) down, but if feels like I've been here forever. DTS is definitely intense. It reminds me of being at a conference, you know, where you sit under lots of good teaching everyday and take in more information than you can possibly absorb in a lifetime...except this one lasts for 3 months! Each week we have a different lecture topic, and this week's was The Nature & Character of God, taught by Daniel Schaerer. Daniel is the founder of YWAM France and loves the Lord soooo much. Here we are at the end of week one with Daniel:

Row 1 from L to R: Guess Who, Samantha, Daniel (this week's instructor), Mathias (a visitor for the day), Christelle.
Row 2 from L to R: Shea, Anna (DTS staff), Peter, Sophie.
Row 3 from L to R: Ruth (JEM supervisor), Alex, Tabea (DTS staff), Abigail, Florencia (our cook for the first two weeks).

A very basic breakdown of our weekday schedule is as follows:

Breakfast 7:00am
Personal Time with God 8:00am
Group Worship/Prayer (Depending on the Day) 9:00am
Lecture 10:00am-12:30pm
Lunch 12:30pm
Practical Work/Lecture/Free Time (Depending on the Day) 2:00pm
Meal Prep/Cleaning 4:30pm
Dinner 6:00pm
Lecture/Small Group (Depending on the Day) 7:30pm
Free Time 9:30-11:00pm

For the first four weeks of DTS Alex and I are responsible for cooking dinner each weeknight. I'm really enjoying the opportunity to sharpen my cooking skills!

Weekends are mostly free at present. So far I've done some hiking and running. But one of my favorite ways to use freetime is to ride one of the base bikes to St. Paul. So fun! I get to ride a bike through this small, French village with cobblestone streets, patisseries, and window flower boxes for the next three months, and technically call it home. Oh la la. C'est bon!

Don't get me wrong. I am homesick. I started feeling it by, well, Thursday. I knew going into this that missing my family and friends would be a very difficult aspect of the trip. But God is here with me, and he promises never to leave me (Deuteronomy 39:6). I will take comfort in the nearness of my God.