We have been here in the Cévennes for eight years now and it was a big change to come here from that time we had in Lens in the north of France. We are trying to be implicated in the village and this has meant going to games nights and being involved with folks here in doing jobs just to help them out. It is an area where people are very welcoming if you make the effort to go to them and they will also leave you alone if that is what you have come here for. It is true that there are a number who have been here all their lives and some who went away in other times in order to find a job have come back to retire. SO there are a good number of people who are older than we are!! Some in their eighties. There is a veneer of Protestantism which is not always easy to get through in order to touch the heart of the person. Others are allergic to Christianity as it was an obligation in their youth. A wee bit the same attitude as you might find in the area of New Life where people are C of E. We have a house that is rented to us by a Christian lady who is a widow and it allows us to have a place to come back too. When we are moving around it is often that when we come back we need to be in a place where we can just settle our things.
For we are what might be called “out” and that is most week-ends. There are various types of churches that we visit and sometimes to teach in bible school. The majority of the places we go too are ones where we have built up a relationship over the years. In some of these situations we come in, not even to preach but, to be able to advise or just to be able to listen and then share what we feel the Lord wants to say in the situation. This is not always easy yet there is a need for this type of sharing as sometimes things are too heavy to carry for the folks concerned. In other situations we have been invited as they have heard a preaching or met up with us in some place. There are a number of people as well who will telephone just to share and want me to be able to speak into their situations. This is without me having any direct authority position in relation to the place or the persons concerned. It is more a role of accompaniment. This is more and more the type of intervention that we have in situations. There is a prophetic side to things in preaching and in sharing which seems to be appreciated.
Most of the time we are moving out for week-ends and in some cases we are in an area and they try to make it that we get two or even three week-ends in that same area. This is a big country and the distances are more than twice those that you might have to travel when you live in Britain. The situations are all d=different and it means that we need to be sensitive to the place where we are. Also the churches are at different levels of growth and different organisation of the life of the church.
In the family we don’t have too much the chance of meeting up but there are communications between us all. As for our girls Myriam the younger of our daughters is now in Australia near to Brisbane and Emmanuelle the older daughter lives in Spain at Grenada and these two are often in contact through Skype The boys who live in Ashford have houses relatively near to each other and see one another often. We manage to contact through internet courier and telephone. Some times when we are in a place where there is skype we arrange to talk with our girls. Emmanuelle is mum of Claudia (our first granddaughter) who is now 14 months old and moving around on her own and learning to close the doors in the house. We have been able most times to visit them for a week or so around the end of the year.
If I can sum up things that you might feel are subjects of prayer for us here is a wee list.
Living for Jesus in the village as a testimony and being able to share individually with others here.
Worshipping & intercession for many people and situations mostly here in France but also for you there in the north of England. With the need to be listening to the Lord
Responding to invitations to different churches & groups largely through long standing relationships with the leaders.
Knowing how to listen , pray and speak into each situation.
Contact by telephone & E mail with people at crossroads big decisions in their lives or that of the works and churches they are leading. Peaceful handling over of authority to the younger generations.
Keeping in touch with our scattered family.
Praying for France and other nations.
May the Lord be with you in the leading of His people and in the lives that you have with your children.
Yours in His service
Drew and Joy
Drew & Joy Wilkinson.
