February - April 2017 in pictures

The last few months for our family have been full of experiences, emotions, learning and meeting new people.

From February 13th to 18th, we gathered with our colleagues and their families, from all over France, for Agapé France's annual Staff Conference. What a privilege to be part of such a great team!

This year, Carolyn was in the worship team, behind the keyboard. She did a great job rising to the challenge!

Julie, Anna and Claire were each in a group with children their own age. And this year Julie joined the teenagers for an excellent program, lead by three missionary kids (now adults) from different countries.

David's TIC team, usually split between two different cities, were able to pose for a "family photo" :-) .

A week later, David was about to fly to Berlin for the second part of his leadership program with Agapé Europe.

Before he left, we wanted to have some quality time as a family. We chose the nearby aquarium of Saint Malo.

Besides sharks rubbing shoulders with turtles in a big pool, our girls were able to stroke some goldfish and rays.

A few days later, end of February, David was contemplating the remains of the Berlin Wall. What are the walls in our lives which stop us from reaching the other side, where God has great plans for us?

What can we learn from Dietrich Bonhoeffer who preached in this church against Nazism before being deported and executed? His writings on "The Cost of Discipleship", where "costly grace" is set against "cheap grace", still give food for thought today.

Of course, visiting Wittenberg was a highlight of the week. This town, south of Berlin, is the cradle of the Protestant Reformation, triggered by Luther exactly 500 years ago, when he nailed his 95 theses to the door of the Castle Church.

Besides relevant and inspiring visits, we (20 young leaders from 10 European countries) also reflected deeply on the theme of "leading change" and on what it might mean for each of us personally today, for our ministry and for our country.

End of March, it was Carolyn's turn to leave for Malaga for a few days for a mums retreat.

This time offered a wealth of learning and sharing opportunities, together with about 50 other missionary mums from all over Europe.

The mums from France.

While Carolyn was away, Julie and Anna spent the week-end at a christian youth camp near Saint Malo.

David and Claire made the most of their time together to enjoy the Spring sunshine.

Beginning of April, David and his team received some colleagues from all over France who use technology one way or another to make Jesus known. The goal of this "digital committee" was to evaluate how we use technology and reflect on how we might collaborate better and use technology in an even more relevant way to share the gospel where many of the people around us spend a lot of their time: on websites and other mobile apps.

Finally, Carolyn's dream is coming true today: helping people with the Civil Protection. She was involved in an aid station as a volunteer trainee for the first time. A useful way to spend her free time!

We thank Jesus for all these opportunities to grow and serve others around us.