Highlights from Paris, Palaiseau, Versailles, Nanterre
A young sister received a Bible this afternoon and she and her sister came to their first Bible study with us that very same evening! They are originally from Peru and although there was some language barriers, the Lord broke through. We read John 12:1-11, a depiction of the reality of the church life and touched on the matter of Mary pouring out her love offering to Jesus. They really enjoyed their time with us and planned to come back again tomorrow. Then, the next night both sisters came to their 2nd Bible study with us! We used the Mystery of Human Life, MHL, to cover the matter of regeneration and baptism. They were baptized when they were 8 and 10, but they understood today that regeneration is not a matter of change of mind but a matter of receiving the life of God. God went through the process to become the life-giving Spirit to cleanse us from our sins and breathe Himself into us as the Spirit. We asked them if they wanted to be baptized now that they have an understanding of baptism. They had many concepts about how to prepare for their baptism. We told them that they can be baptized anytime they want as long as their heart is open and willing. They decided to be baptized tomorrow. Please pray for this baptism! Then for the third night, these two sisters from Peru came to the Bible study! We sang songs about baptism and spoke concerning baptism. We emphasized the fact that God, all of us, and the angels are witnessing their baptism and that their old man is buried and they will be transferred to the kingdom of God. We baptized them at the meeting hall, and it was glorious! There were many prayers and much singing. After their baptism, we spoke concerning their need to go on in the church life. They were filled with joy and peace, and they said they will continue to come to the Bible study after their vacation this weekend.
In the Bible study this evening we had a young mother from a previous gospel trip join us with her son. She saw us on our first day of our Bible distribution at the Antony station, they came to us, and told us that she had Recovery version Bible and will join us in one of the evening meetings. And she came! We enjoyed the matter of the Father’s house in John 14 and how the Father’s house is the Body of Christ and we are part of it. May she continue to seek fellowship with the saints.
We met a young man who had received a Bible from a previous OL trip. He was very kind and gave us his contact information and even offered to come and help us with translation on another day! We reached out to him later in the day and invited him to meet us on Friday, and he agreed!
We had a new one visit with us, coming for the 3rd time to dinner and the Bible study. The saints met this dear new Christian during the Torch Relay 9 outreach at the train station in Versailles last month. We enjoyed hearing her testimony and several of the saints shared their sweet testimonies of how they received the Lord. May God gain the glory in the church!
Today we were blessed with a handful of young ones who came to receive a Bible with great enthusiasm. One young man came to the table and couldn’t believe they were for free! He asked if it really was free and when we told him it was, a huge smile spread across his face. He then saw the QR codes for contact information and to follow our WhatsApp channel. He eagerly asked if he could scan the QR codes! He was so full of joy and excited to read the Bible, it refreshed us all!
On our first day of tabling at the La Défense area we met a number of seeking people. We were surprised by the openness of the French people. One particular young woman came to the table and was so happy to receive a Bible. After some fellowship, she was willing to have an appointment with us the next day!
In another instance, three of us on the team approached a man and asked him to read John 3:16 with us. He then opened up his faith and experience. He was so open, willing, and simple. We spoke to him about the , MHL, and he prayed with us. We had a few more extremely positive encounters and we set up appointments with these ones this week. We experienced much joy in blending with the local and visiting saints and being involved in the Lord’s move today.
Today many of us on the team had positive and encouraging interactions that led to contact information being exchanged and the scheduling of appointments. One young person was so happy to learn about the footnotes in the recovery version because he had been struggling to understand the Bible.
Five new ones were saved today, including a student traveling from Guadeloupe. This student read through the MHL with us and prayed to receive the Lord. We also had positive experiences of praying for fruit and having seeking ones come immediately afterwards.
We had a very positive seeking one who had received a Bible and has attended every gathering since Monday night. He prayed during dinner, shared his enjoyment of the hymns, had many questions about our experience reading the Bible, and told us that he read Matthew on his own for three hours. We are so encouraged by his openness.
We also had one come who was contacted during OL1 come to another evening gathering and brought dessert. He was very attentive and seeking while we were reading verses in John.
We met a girl from Germany who is traveling in France but was leaving the next day. She was so open to come to a meeting even on her last evening in France. She enjoyed the singing so much and saved the hymns on her phone. She wants to be connected to the saints in Germany.
Four new ones came to the evening meeting, tonight. One of the new ones had been coming every night and still plans to come again tomorrow! We are very encouraged by his pursuit and by the Lord’s operating in him. He said that he receives life from our sharing.
Another one from OL2 came again last night with her two kids as well. She loves to be with us. We spoke to her about how Nicodemus didn’t have God, and how God’s life is like wine to cheer us. She was very happy and was very at peace even to have her kids be taken care of by other saints so she could be in the meeting. She desires to have an English Bible in addition to the Sri Lankan Bible she has.
We met two very positive brothers both of whom made appointments with us. One is a young man who recently moved to Paris who is seeking to be connected to other Christian believers. The other is a student who will start at Nanterre University this fall and who recently became a Christian. He has a desire to get baptized as soon as possible and was very open to us.
This evening during our meeting, we had five new ones. We split into smaller groups to go over John 3, speaking about the need for regeneration. A mother and her two daughters who came were very happy to be with us. One of the daughters prayed to receive the Lord that night. One man who came for the first time also received the Lord and was so happy to be with us and he said that he wanted to be with us every day from this day onwards. Finally, our new one who had been coming every night since being saved and meeting us on Monday, made the decision that to be baptized. We are praying for his baptism to take place tomorrow. May the Lord gain these open and seeking ones as remaining fruit for His church.
We are particularly encouraged by the consistency of 3-4 new ones in every evening gathering and their openness. Not only have we had consistent attendance, but we also had several come every night to be with us. The Lord has been faithful to bless the labor here.
We had a woman from OL1 join us for dinner and our Bible study. She and her adult son were both baptized two weeks ago. After the meeting, through the joyous singing and supply from reading John Chapter 2, she felt relieved from her anxieties and said, “I feel good.” She also shared with us a dream she had and then we shared Revelation 19:11 about the white horse and the One sitting on it is the Faithful and True One. She looked at us, eyes wide open and said, “Look at my arms, I have goosebumps from reading this verse!” She was impressed at our knowledge of the Bible and how the Lord has really been speaking to her.
A family with two kids from OL1 joined us for dinner and the Bible study tonight. Ever since the OL1 harvest meeting, they’ve joined the Lord’s Table twice and several group meetings. The husband has been searching for a church for 4 years. He appreciates the footnotes and has been impressed with the saints sharing the high peak truths to him. They live near the distribution site. He has even participated in the Bible distribution as a sign holder. May the Lord gain this household for the church!
Two brothers shared at our seminar tonight and then we broke up into small groups for further fellowship. A new one mentioned that she’s heard of the tree of life and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. But she said she didn’t realize that doing good things can be apart from the tree of life. We then fellowshipped about how to practically enjoy Christ as the tree of life - through calling on the Lord, pray-reading, and singing. It was an opportunity to call on the Lord together which was very sweet. When we first met this new one, she said she had plenty of Bibles and only was interested in the seminar. By the end of the night, she took a study Bible home and said she wanted to come to the Lord’s Table meeting tomorrow!
One woman who came to the seminar brought her husband. When they introduced themselves, the woman shared that she met the saints passing out Bibles today and thought it was such a good Bible that she went home and shared about it with her husband. Her husband said that he had received a Bible a few weeks ago as well and got invited to the same seminar. He was thinking this was the same group and said they must come tonight. Both came and testified that it was the Lord who brought them. Apparently, the husband was an OL1 contact but forgot the information about the seminars. He was taking notes during the entire seminar. They both are interested in attending the Lord’s Table meeting tomorrow. This older couple enjoyed the Lord’s Day meeting in central Paris the next day!
Today, I went with three YP sisters to an appointment with a 19-year-old Christian girl. She first met one of our young sisters during OL1. During the meal, this new one shared with us that she had prayed to have companions and wanted to know the Lord more. Then, she met the saints at the distribution table! She wants to read the Bible regularly with the sisters. The sisters invited her to a home meeting. It is a real encouragement to see the True Shepherd shepherding us, young and less young, and to shepherd and nourish His seeking ones. We are now having a weekly prayer time with the local sisters for these young ones to be built up together and pursue with those who are pursuing the Lord
At the harvest meeting I met a young woman who had met the saints yesterday at the table. She is a Christian, but she has not been meeting regularly at a church. We had good fellowship together. We told her that she is welcome to join us on Lord’s Day as well as joining our Bibles studies during the week. She came on Lord’s Day and said that she really enjoyed it. Later that day she texted me and said that she would like to meet us again and asked if she can bring another sister with her who is also interest in attending Bible studies. She also came to a home Bible study on Tuesday. Now, the young woman is now connected with sisters living in Paris and she asked the sisters about regular meetings.
We have felt that it has been such a privilege to participate in the Lord’s special move in Paris. During these ten days our realization of the God Ordained Way has been enriched day by day by meeting with the saints house to house. We have been received by blended and coordinated saints and entered into their burden and care for the Lord’s move, their families, the international saints, and the new ones as well as all the practical matters of the Bible distribution.
