Dear friends
The most important item in this letter has to be the birth of a
new assembly in this area of France where evangelical churches are
so few and far between. After working 7 years with the assembly
at Gramat, and seeing it grow considerably, the time has come to
take another step of faith and see a new work develop. It hasn't
been so hard as when we left Istres, as this time we are starting
in Figeac, only 25 miles from Gramat, and the two churches will
work closely together. Figeac is strategically placed for reaching
into the counties Aveyron and Cantal.
We have been able to rent premises right in the centre of the
old town: the ground floor of a14th. century building which meets
our present needs perfectly, with only a few minor adjustments
to comply with security regulations. We have a nice window display
which has brought comments from many local people. We started
our Sunday morning meetings in August and have had an average
of 16 adults, which is encouraging. The Sunday afternoon meeting,
"Autour de la Bible", previously held in our home, has
moved to the new premises. It is geared to evangelism and basic
Bible teaching, with an open discussion time at the end. Our mid-week
Bible study and prayer meeting is on Wednesdays and each Saturday
morning (market day in Figeac) the hall is open to visitors. We
are preparing a library of good Christian books in French to help
feed the flock!
The end of July was perfect timing for our team of young folk
from N.Ireland as, with a massive distribution of literature and
a special "Irish evening", they were able to help in
the launching of this new assembly. One man in particular, who
has been a Christian for many years, discovered our existence
and found fellowship, of which he had been deprived for several
years. Jean-Pierre hasn't missed a meeting since! He travels to
the meetings with Pascal & Jacqueline. Pascal is a good help
in the meetings. Continue to pray for Jacqueline who still has
"ups & downs".
We have an increasing number of contacts, many of whom have
become good friends and some of whom have already come to various
special efforts. Pray for Bernard & Giselle, Adam & Janine,
Jean-Marie & Tanie, Jean-Michel & Anne-Marie, Pierre &
Annie, Geoff & Nicole, Chantal, Marina, and many more. Towards
the end of the year we will be giving 150 daily reading calendars
to friends and contacts. Do pray that this daily message will
work in hearts and change lives. Pray also for our "Fête
de Noël" which will be a joint effort with the church
at Gramat and will be held D.V. in a village hall between the
two towns.
We have had a young Christian German girl staying with us for
5 weeks. Maria, who is partially sighted, has been doing a course
in Figeac as part of her tri-lingual secretarial studies. This
is a European funded initiative to help handicapped young people
integrate into normal working situations. We have really enjoyed
having Maria and were touched by her attitude to her handicap.
We look forward to having Keith & Marion with us for Christmas
D.V. We thank the Lord for good health and encouragements in the
work, and we thank you for your prayerful interest in this part
of France.
In His love,
Ronnie & Heather
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