Walking French Fields
I love to take you with me as I walk through life here in the south of France! To be able to explain the many cultural differences and life experiences that we have had since moving here nearly twenty years ago has been a delight. I enjoy writing about the many area festivities we take part in, the local wildlife that we encounter, and walking French fields together, discovering new adventures at every turn!
For today however, there are no festivities on the docket to place a spotlight on. There are no wildlife anomalies to capture and communicate. But, there is a certain path through a French field that I thought I would walk you down.
It’s true that I have tried to hide this path from view. It’s not covered with bright foliage or the soothing sounds of nature. Instead, the way is rough, painful, and continual. Yet, the Lord is glorified by walking this French field and so I invite you to come with me.
Let’s take a trek down a more difficult road found in the journey called International Ministries.
Prepare for the Journey
Europeans love to hike. Full stop.
They love to experience the outdoors and enjoy walking for pleasure through the countryside. With this hobby, comes the need to:
- Purchase route maps for your trip;
- Acquire the proper footwear which is dependent on the difficulty of your trek; and
- Learn the meaning of various hiking signs that will be found along each path.
Without having the knowledge needed to read the path signs along the way, you can find yourself in very precarious situations.
Trust me. Because the French place a very high value on enjoying the beauty of nature in its natural state, the use of guardrails are a very rare occurrence!
Rougher Paths Ahead
We all love to explore, don’t we? To take in the beauty of nature is such a delight. And for me, to be able to take you along with me through this adventure called “expat living,” has been real a joy. But there is one “path” that I have chosen not to take you down.
It has not been for the lack of words, or even for the lack of material that I have chosen not to highlight this part of the journey.
In reality, it has been because it hurts too much. Yet, if the Lord is glorified by this path, then who am I to keep you from seeing it? So let’s push forward and I’ll show you what I mean.
Prepare yourself for a tougher climb.
The Underside of International Ministries
Most people love adventure! Even the third President of the United States, Thomas Jefferson, loved to explore and enjoy our area. It is documented that while he served as Minister to France back in the 1780’s, he toured around enjoying the local wines. In fact, in his personal wine cellar at his home in Monticello, there is reported to have been many wines from our area that he brought back with him from his service abroad.
We all love the thrill of the chase! It’s that wanderlust that has gripped so many and flung them to places around the world they could only dream about. And we have counted it such a privilege to welcome these 21st century explorers, who many are equipped with cellphone GPS’s and wristwatch phones!
As we serve at an international church in our city, we have sought to be a steady light to all those who come to our area with spiritual need. That has been John’s and my heart cry all these years!
However, there is a downside of serving in International Ministries and welcoming people from around the world. Most of these travelers are just passing through. They come with limited work contracts or for educational purposes. So, for us, some of our hardest moments is having to stop over and over again to say good bye to those who are leaving us to move on to another part of the world. In fact, I often joke that I wear outfits with pockets to church just for the fact that I seem to need to carry tissues with me at all times!
Our Vineyard Rows
Many of the local strolls in our area involve walking through or around the local vineyards.
Here in the spring, you can look at the pruned fields with their gnarly vines which are beginning to blossom with green leaves. In time, they will produce some luscious fruit.
As we look at “God’s field” here in the south of France, we can see the luscious fruit that He is developing in people’s lives. And it’s a beautiful sight.
People come for sometimes a shorter stint of stay. But if you look closely, sometimes you can see green shoots of belief beginning to sprout in people’s lives. For others, the abundant luscious fruit produced by their faithful life spills over, blessing all those standing nearby.
And yet, often in international ministries the good byes come.
People call these times “transition.” For those remaining, we just bluntly call it “pain.”
You see, we have found that amidst the joyous celebration of watching the fruit ripen, there are also days when we need to tearfully part ways with people from other countries & cultures who have become like “family” to us. It is a privilege to bless them and pray over them as they move on to another “field” somewhere else.
It’s during times like these that we cling to the “blessed hope” that is before us. For we know, “sans doute,” that one day we will see each other again in our heavenly home. I am pretty sure that we will have a very long conversation, over a very short strong cup of coffee, reflecting on all that God has done.
The Blessed Journey
It’s on days like today though, that we focus on what God has been doing in ripening His fruit in this field. He is being glorified.
So, we give our international family members a huge hug and say, “à bientôt” (we will see you soon), and through the tears we try and look straight ahead into the eyes of the Author and Finisher of our faith.
You see, this is His field and we just have the privilege of “tending” to it.
