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Greetings!
Please let me share a quick report of our recent trip to Paris, France.
Three faces of the church in France
Meet Cheri. She is a missionary sent by an American mission board to minister among Muslim women in Paris. Many of the Muslim immigrants have learned to speak French and are able to function in their communities, but cannot read or write. Cheri, along with another US missionary and some volunteers from local French churches are offering literacy classes three days a week. Many of the women who come have never held a pencil and have to be taught to hold it correctly. In their classes they learn to read the Bible and hear the great stories of the Old Testament and of the life of Jesus. It takes time to develop relationships with these Muslim women, but Cheri is beginning to see women become aware of Jesus' love for them.
Next I want you to meet Tim. He is the director of a major youth ministry in France. Tim feels that the Lord is moving among the young people of France. Many, many are searching for answers. He longs for the opportunity for every young person in his country to hear the message that Jesus loves them and wants a personal relationship with them. While there are several exciting youth ministries going on across the country, they need more help. They need volunteers to come and help repair and maintain their retreat center. They need college students to come for a semester and work in the office and help organize and coordinate ministries.
Lastly I want you to meet Annette. She has just started attending an evangelical church in Paris. She is 50 years old and has never been married. She has never really had any interest in the church and always heard that the evangelicals were actually a cult. But her neighbor invited her to church and she found that she really likes the people there. They are friendly to her and willing to listen. She also really likes the music. She feels better after she goes and hears the pastor talk about the love of Jesus and how he healed the sick and wants to heal us as well. They don't act like a cult to her and many of the people there seem to have a joy and peace that she wishes she had. The church Annette attends is reaching out to the people living near where they meet.
France has huge cultural influence on the world. It is a center of art, literature, cooking and fashion. Thirty three countries in the world speak French as their primary language. It is the third most frequently spoken language in the world. And it is the most secular nation on the most secular continent in the word. The French Revolution basically eliminated the church in France. Not surprisingly, the French take more anti-depressants per capita than any country in the world. The youth suicide rate is the highest in the world.
France has never experienced a national revival. Evangelical Christians make up less than 1% of the population. But the church in France is encouraged. The number of evangelicals has grown in the last 50 years from 100K to over 600K and there is an increasing spirit of unity among churches. Some people estimate that a new evangelical church is being planted in France every 10 days.
GO InterNational is developing relationships with churches and leaders in France. They have invited us to come and help them. Will you join us? Please pray about supporting this new ministry in France or coming with us on a mission team next summer. EMail or call if you are interested.
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