Gifts

First picture- garedens at the Revolution museum... how much more picturesque can you get?
Second- Fantastic mural- this took up a whole wall in the museum
Third- Museum of the Revolution
Fourth- The Chateau the Revolution museum was in
Fifth- chatting it up with Calvin at the Reformation museum

Looking back at this week, it has been one of simple and beautiful gifts. Let me count the ways:

-Last weekend I had the wonderful opportunity to go to Geneva and stay with good friends parents. They provided a wonderful taste of Switzerland (that included a visit to the Reformation Museum!) and made me feel special. It was a gift to have a piece of familiar in the unfamiliar, like a nice shower or praying out loud before meals.

-Also this week, I got to visit the art museum that is across the street from my residence hall. It was simply beautiful, with beautiful time of conversation over ice cream afterward. The director of the program I am in is an artist and has been giving me sketching lessons, so it was great to have him their to give us fantastic tidbits of information.

-Came across a French old bookstore, and came across one of my favorites- The Chronicles of Narnia, in French!

-Had dinner with the church I have been visiting and was able to communicate with them better than usual. After dinner I got to listen to them preach on Mark for two hours.

-Yesterday I got to visit what has been my favorite museum thus far- the museum of the French Revolution. It had the most picturesque and breathtaking gardens I have ever seen.

Listing these things out does not seem to do any of them justice, I think what made them all so special was that each of these things was just what I needed, though I did not know I needed them at the time. Looking back in gratitude also helps me see my ungratefulness for the Lord’s continuous provision. Both now and in the hard times he has continually provided enough for each day, though I often doubt that He will or that He has.

I started reading John in French this week, which has provided both a challenge and a fun adventure. I feel as though every word looks so much different (not just literally) as I read it in French. Next Saturday I leave with the three other girls in my group to have our own “tour de France”. We will start in Paris, then visit the Loire Valley, then Bordeaux, and finish in Nice. This will provide a lot of together time, so please pray for the non believers in our group- that the Lord will draw them to himself, and that light will shine in the shadows and the shadows will not accommodate the light (as translated from French in John). Please pray also that I will not give way to the selfish desires of my flesh, but remember who I am in Christ as I seek to serve the other girls.