Hello Friends! It has been a crazy first 11 days of the World Race, but it has also been so good and so amazing to see God already on the move in such a short amount of time. Since being in Paris, we have been blessed to be a part of a few opportunities in the city, all of them stretching, all of them about 100 miles outside of my comfort zone, but all of them also working to grow my heart for God’s children here in Paris and around the world.
The majority of our time here in Paris has been in an area of the city known as Porte de la Chapelle, where refugees from Afghanistan, Eritrea, Sudan, Kenya, and many more places have been living on the streets anywhere from 1 week to 1 year. We have passed out food and drinks, passed out clothes, played volleyball and soccer with them, but the most memorable parts of my time there have been the conversations.
“I don’t like ocean. It can kill you.”
“I held onto the bottom of a truck for six hours.”
“Everyone back home says, ‘go to Europe, things are better there,’ but they don’t tell us that it is like this”
“No one cares here.”
And yet, despite the tragedies many of them have faced. Despite the ordeals they went through to leave. Despite the state of their country at home. Despite the state of where they live now, these men still find ways to laugh. They love playing volleyball and soccer. They try to teach me handshakes which usually end up with me looking incredibly awkward, so we end up laughing together. When they see us carrying something, they want to help us. They like to sit and talk with us and introduce us to their friends. They encourage me when I play soccer and utterly fail at it (or they just give me the ball because it makes them laugh at what I do with it). These men may come from a different culture and background. I could never in any way relate to their situation, but they are beautiful people with a lot to offer. And God is after them. He is recklessly pursuing them, and it has been such a joy to be a part of that.
To be honest, at first it was difficult going to Porte de la Chapelle. I was overwhelmed by it all. But I’m glad I kept going back with my team. Each time, God revealed his hope and his grace in the midst of the darkness surrounding that part of the city.
Last Thursday, my entire squad and I all helped prepare a new refugee center to be opened. We spent the night, and we were the ones to welcome them into their temporary new home, where they will be staying until they find housing elsewhere in the country.
Please be in prayer for these men and the seeds that were planted and continue to be planted. We still have a few days left in Paris and are continuing to seek the Lord in how He wants us to finish our time here.
?? for continued safety as you spread the word of our Lord Jesus.
Great job loving and serving! Thank you!!! Love and prayers!
Love what ya’ll have done. The love you have shared with all you have come in contact with and the seeds planted is amazing. We will be praying for everyone you have met and ministered to and of course for all of you!
Love you!
I love reading how hospitable they have been to you and your team.
I imagine that if they were writing blogs, they would talk about you and your team, telling the world about how you left home to come and be a friend to them and love them…the very thing much of the world has refused to give them.
Thanks for sharing!