Dear Family and Friends,
Over the years here in France, we’ve come to anticipate that September will be one of our busiest months. This year exceeded expectation. In addition to the start of the school year and all the associations and regular ministry rhythms, we’ve had the joy of beginning some new things like Alpha Couple and beginning to work together with the Druense family. Tom also had some unanticipated travel, and we made a big purchase! In all of this, we’re feeling grateful for God’s provision and timing. He is sustaining us and giving us grace to enjoy the beautiful life and work He has prepared for us to do.
Answered Prayers
Thank you for praying with us, we’ve seen God at work answering prayer for all that we requested in our last update – amazing! We asked you pray for a good trip for Tom who went to the UK for the funeral of a friend and mentor. Not only was the travel smooth but Tom felt so encouraged by his brief time there. It was a wonderful, celebratory service honoring a person who walked faithfully with the Lord during a long and happy life. Not only was the celebration moving, but it was also a reminder of the gracious way that God has knit us together with dear friends in England over many years now. What a joy to connect with families of young people who were part of the youth group I led 20 years ago, and to hear about how God is continuing His work in their lives.
We also asked you to pray with us about the purchase of a van for our family. The Lord has provided! It was not an easy thing to find a van that fit our needs and was in our budget. The process here in France is a lot more difficult when purchasing a vehicle. It often includes the need to act quickly, travel to another part of the country, and then even once the vehicle is purchased, you have to wait a few weeks to get it. We are so thankful that we found a used vehicle just 40 minutes away and we only had to wait a week, and plus the salesman was a kind, joyful, person who is going to help us sell our little car! We really felt like God has gone ahead of us. This is very timely as we’re driving to the other side of the country next week for our GEM France annual gathering. This is the first time since Aaron was born that we can all leave the house together in one vehicle.
Alpha Couple
One of the new things we began this month is leading an Alpha Couple group in our home. For some time now we’ve been praying and feeling a burden about marriages in our community. We’ve seen several people both in and out of the church go through divorce and it just feels like a place where the enemy is having victory. We were participants on the British version of Alpha Couple (the Marriage Course) during our first year of marriage while we were living in the UK and we found it very helpful. We wanted to start this new ministry project with a small group of close friends – sort of a pilot project. It’s gone so well! We are thrilled about the way the couples are engaging with the material – and speaking of engagement, one of the couples did get engaged after the first week of the course! (I don’t believe this was directly related but it’s a lot of fun!) The kids are getting involved as well with Eli acting as barista for the couples and Elodie has been able to contribute with helpful crafts (book covers, listening sticks and issue monsters for example) which give a great flare to the course. The feedback from the participants is very positive and we think this is a hugely important work. Please continue to pray with us as the course goes forward.
Integrating New Team
We are so thankful for the help and partnership of the Druesne family as we’ve launched Alpha Couple. We asked them if they would be willing to serve on this course by leading hospitality and helping with childcare. They stepped up in big way to this helping provide an amazing environment for the course. We feel like extravagant hospitality is a key part of the work God has for us here and it is great to have team who really gets this value. In Mid-September, we had a visit from our GEM France team supervisors and we were able to meet together and prayer walk in the city. Our kids continue to grow in relationship and that is great to see. They enjoy having other missionary kids around who can relate to life here. Please continue to pray for the Druesne family as they settle into life in Normandie. They are making a very good start. Please pray for us as we build relationship together and seek the Lord for how best to partner in work and how best to encourage one another.
Prayer Requests
Here are some ways you can continue to pray with us:
Please continue to pray for the Alpha Couple group. We’re excited about the way God is working in this. Please pray with us as well as we consider whether this might be something to lead again.
We are grateful for the arrival of the Druense family and we’re in the process of getting to know each other and praying about how we can partner together in ministry work. Please pray with us for wisdom about ministry projects and an ease in building relationship together.
Our kids have had a good start at school this year. Please pray with us for Reuben who has had a recurrence of migraine a couple of times. He has generally been in much better health during the past 6-8 months.
We are traveling to GEM France’s annual gathering. Please pray for the team of missionaries who serve across France as we seek the Lord for strategy and take time to pray with and encourage one another.
Thanksgiving is coming up and we are prayerfully considering our invitees and the scale of our annual meal with friends and neighbors. Please pray for us as we discern what He has for this outreach event.
Protests in France are winding down. Many of you have reached out to us about what you have seen on the news about the protests in France in relation to education, the state of high-schools in particular. Our kids have not been affected by the protests, but there have been large protests in Caen and they have been mostly peaceful. Below is a photo on over three-thousand protestors, mostly students, parents and teachers, sitting in a central square in Caen. The French are taught to protest to instigate needed change and much of it is how the system actually does change! There has been violence and property damage, mostly in Paris as the movement continues, but for the majority of the protests it is peaceful. Please pray that there would be a positive shift in the government to support the future generations and that there would be a peaceful end to these protests.
Thank you for taking the time to read our updates! We so value the prayer and community we have at a distance even as we live our lives and do our work here in France.
Every Blessing,
The Appels
