3 month reflections on my sabbatical

Written April 4, 2024

My staff coordinator Renée sent me an email with some questions: Before we meet, it would be helpful for you to send me some of what you’ve been learning/experiencing on sabbatical as well as what you’re thinking is best for your post-sabbatical/post masters. Continue to work with Link? GBU? Full-time? Part-time? If so, where? What role?

Learning

I am learning a lot about my need for community. It’s the subject of my thesis, and I have come to the realization of how great a need I have for it. In March on a retreat at l’Abri, I had a good conversation about my longing for home and to be settled somewhere. Since being in the states, I have

experienced feelings of restless due to having my stuff in different places. I really desire a place to leave me stuff, but I also want this place to be shared space because people have modeled sharing their space with me. I really want to live somewhere and stay for a while, I’m tired of moving around.

Another thing I am learning is relationships are complicated and hard to keep. I don’t think I always understand people and I know they don’t always understand me, but I want to be intentional with the people that God has put on my path and love them as they are.

Experiencing

This has been a busy season despite the fact that I was hoping to rest. I planned to do much more than is possible. Working at an internship and writing a master’s thesis are a lot of work. Visiting my sister and her family has been nice but it’s tiring to go back and forth so I have tried to build community while living in Newburyport. I have experienced feeling like a foreigner in my own country. I feel the loneliness of not fitting in but I still desire to live in community.

I am very thankful for:

• My apartment with a view of the Merrimack River, it’s restful and peaceful
• The Makerspace, Mary the director and the people I get to see every week
• My niece Sloane, my sister and her husband, it’s nice to live near family and friends
• Old South Presbyterian church, I’m glad to have found a church in Newburyport
• Hilary who has been accompanying me through my Sabbatical

Thinking for post-sabbatical/post masters

I would like to continue working for the GBU/Link part time. I’m not sure about what I will be doing in the summer besides MPD and writing my thesis.

I enjoy the Makerspace culture, it’s an inviting place to create community and make connections. I would really love to set up a Makerspace in France, even if I just start to do art workshops in a borrowed space. I would love for this space to be a meeting place for people of all walks of life; a place where we can share our stories.

If so, where would you like to serve? 

I’m going to ask the GBU staff where I could be the most useful to serve. I really want to be in a place where I already know people, I really don’t think I have the energy to start again. I am not sure if I have enough deep ties to stay in Brittany, but I do love the region and the people. Ideally I prefer to be in a bigger city.

I have thought about going back to Nancy or maybe Nantes. Considering what I have been thinking, my only feasible options are Nancy, Nantes or a bigger city in Brittany. With what I know about the GBU there are needs in all those places but I want to talk to Marion and Yoh to have a better idea.

What role?

I want to be a person of resource to students and help them get new groups off the ground. I feel like I have done that without realizing it. I want to help where there are needs. I want to host and be hospitable. I want to welcome people outside the church “those on the outside looking in” and to be a friend to people on the margins. I want to work with artists and give them opportunities to grow and thrive in their art and spiritual life. I am really not sure what my role will look like, but I want to have more time and space to care for people.

Online meetings

Not too long ao, I was amazed recently to see a student show up to an online meeting. Since the beginning of not being able to meet in person, we have lost many students. She was quite adament to not go to online meetings. For her it was either meeting in person or not at all. I completey respected her choice. If I have the choice, I probably would have done the same.

When started to do outings in the park, more students came than to online meetings. This wasn't a surprise. However, I was surprised to see that new students came and the one who disappeared didn't.

I keep a file of pics of our online meetings and in person. Both are valuable. I enjoy every moment that we can meet especially when it comes to interacting with God's word and sharing our thoughts. There is so much to learn and I feel like I've been growing even in adveristy (or challenges of living in times of COVID).

Three Stories

 Jingjing

I met Jingjing a Chinese student through Elizabeth another student from Indonesia, who was involved in the GBU my first year living in Nancy. Even though Elizabeth was from a country where Christians are persecuted, she was excited to share her faith and love for life with everyone. After Elizabeth finished her masters, I stayed in contact with Jingjing and invited her to different events GBU. Sometimes we hung out and had meals together. Since I lived in Macau south east China, I have had a love for everything Chinese.

 

For the most part, Jingjing was mostly interested in coming to the GBU for language purposes. She wanted to learn French and she was already pretty strong in English so she came to the group we have for English speakers. She went to church with Elizabeth a couple times and once with me.

 

We never really read the Bible together but I tried to have conversations with her and other Christians she met did too. I bought her a Bible that I’m not even sure if she read unless she came to the group. I knew that she was skeptical about Christianity but that prevented me to build a friendship with her.

 

She came to one of our GBU Christmas parties, which for evangelistic purposes. She brought along with her some of her Chinese snacks to share. I worried what the students wouldn’t touch them because they aren’t always so open to new things. A student and her friend were standing near the food table near us and asked us who bought the snacks (which were Jingjing’s). We told them and they said they tried each kind! For me I thought that their testimony spoke loudly because she and her culture were accepted and appreciated. 

 

She left Nancy still not yet Christian but I believe that the Lord planted some deep seeds of his love and acceptance in her. I hope and pray that He keeps pursuing her and giving her opportunities to know him more.

 

Tommy

Léopaul a former student leader studies life science. His peers all knew he was a Christian and they would tease for it. He got to know one of his classmates Tommy and started having spiritual conversations with him. One time he asked me if I could arrive early to welcome people because he was going to have a beer with Tommy and his girlfriend and talk about God.

 

Then Tommy started to come to the GBU. He was quiet and timid but he came often. In March just before the first lockdown he came; there were a few of us. He talked a little but not much. I didn’t know then but God was doing something in him because Léo shared with us in September during our leaders’ weekend that Tommy became a Christian. I was amazed. And when I saw him again during at the group, he seemed so different. He was even interacting more with the passage and in the group. He shared more than I ever had seen. It was like seeing something awakened in him.

 

Wen

He’s a student doing his thesis. He faithfully comes to the group and it seems likes he absorbs the word of God like it’s food for his soul. He is either really close to becoming a Christian or has become a Christian without realizing it. He was involved with 2 GBU groups, one in Metz and the other in Nancy where he was doing his studies, but now he’s based in Nancy. I’ve been so encouraged to see how the Lord has used many different students to share the Gospel with him. His understanding of the text is astounding. Yet I can see his humble heart and almost child-like manner of being. We have been praying for Wen for a while to commit his life to Christ, I feel like it’s only a matter of time.

Easter giveaway

For a while, I’ve been frustrated with being stuck at home. I wanted to get out and meet students. So for Easter, we decided to pass out chocolate and tell students about Easter (and the GBU naturally). We had bags of chocolate eggs with bible verses from Luke 24. Amazingly, we went to 6 campuses with 3 different students (2 students were motivated to come out twice). Each day a student came and Sarah came a few day (she’s interning with the GBU). 

 

We had some good conversations and told many students where Easter comes from. There were very few students who could explain the meaning of Easter. Surprisingly some didn’t accept the free candy, but we talked to them anyway. Two students we talked to, who claimed to not be religious (most likely atheists), asked very good questions. Another guy told us he had heard of the GBU because he saw the posters on his campus. There were some students interested in the GBU so maybe they will join us.

One our last day I had a strange encouter with a guy. I was giving away candy on the engineering campus, and I offered a guy a bag of chocolate. He got really sad and put his head down. I continued talking to the girl sitting with him and she took a bag but he didn'tThere was something about the Bible or what I said that made him sad. Pray that Jesus heals his wounds. Pray that we would be more sensitive to students coming to our groups who have been hurt by religion and the church.

Outline for an Intercessory Prayer Meeting

Outline for an Intercessory Prayer Meeting

For a group of 3-20, for approx 1 hour. Gather in a comfortable circle, in a quiet place. One person should lead the meeting. That person should initiate all the transitions. 

Praise

Come to the Lord in a free spirit of praise and thanksgiving. Use guitar, acapella voices, worship music on a speaker, sentence prayers of praise, words of God’s attributes, a reading of a jubilant Psalm - essentially whatever works. 

Confession

Open up a time of confession. Offer the participants the freedom of speaking out loud or internally to the Lord, whichever is safe. A gentle nudge toward out loud, as a move towards freedom is encouraged, and can be modeled by the leader. It will enhance the vulnerability and honesty of the group. The leader can close with a blanket confession, “Lord we offer you the sins we know and those we don’t know, please have mercy as we come to pray.” Remember together that God is faithful to forgive if we confess our sin. (I John 1:9)

Protection

Pray prayers of protection such as “hide us in the shelter of your wings Lord  (Psalm 61:4)”. Ask that what happens in this prayer time would be only the Lord’s will and that together we would be kept far from the evil one.  

Prayer topic

Explain to the group what the prayer topic is. This has been discerned earlier by the leader. It should be clear and specific, so that one would know in the future whether or not there was an answer. 

Listening

Open up a time of silence to incline the members ears to the Lord regarding the prayer topic. The question here is “Lord how do you want us to pray for this?” or even, “How are you praying for this?” (given that Jesus is at the right hand of the father making intercession for us - Romans 8:34). Move into silence for at least five minutes. This can be uncomfortable at first, but press in. 

Individuals may “hear” God in many different ways. Some may have: a scripture come to mind, an image or picture form in their mind’s eye, a strong impression or idea, a memory, a bodily sensation (like a pain in the chest, or sinking feeling in the gut), or absolutely nothing. 

Reporting and Discerning

Go around the circle and share what each one received from God. The leader should encourage humility in sharing (“I thinkthis was from God”) as well as boldness for those who may be reluctant to speak. As each one shares, ask the group to listen for common themes, or for God to highlight a particular word. Discus together what it seems that God is saying and agree on a plan for prayer. 

Intercession

Pray into that specific area, as the group is led. Pray until you get a sense of “breakthrough” in the spiritual realm. Often you can denote breakthrough as the tone of prayer shifts from fervency to peace. Trust that a shift has been made in the spiritual realm and look forward to seeing the answers to the prayers offered in the natural realm. 

Closing

Close by thanking the Lord for leading and guiding you and giving you the chance to pray. Bless the participants. End at the agreed upon time, so as to honor those that came. 

Source: Connie Anderson adaption of Hallie Cowen’s adaptation of a YWAM prayer guide.

What happened?

Yesterday after having lunch with a student, I got really bad headache. I don’t get many headaches so it was strange. We had had a nice conversation and I mostly wanted to encourage her in her faith because she’s a young Christian facing many life challenges but her hunger for God’s word is inspiring. When I got home, the headache was so debilitating that I just laid on my couch and slept. I woke up and my head still hurt so I prayed and asked a friend to pray. In the evening, we planned to have a GBU group and I lead the study. I told God I was going and I was very firm on the decision. My head still hurt but I went. I thought there would be 3 of us, all Christians. Oh was I wrong! The 2 students invited: one is Muslim and the other abandoned his faith a while ago and is slowly coming back to Jesus. We met in a park so there were 3 people we met before we started. We shared our snacks with them and invited them to join us. We started and it was awesome because the 3 people came back during the discussion to join us. I don’t think any of them are Chrsitian but they were open. One student shared Gospel and another invited them to his church. I was so blessed to be there and participe in spite of my headache. When I got home I was even more pain than earlier, even lights were blinding. But I was so thankful and happy that I didn’t cancel because of some pain. God faithfully led our group to be witnesses. Praise Jesus!

A life transformed

I want to share about a student, who came seeking and a bit skeptical and who now is walking with the Lord. I'm keeping her name anonymous to protect her identity. If you want to know more about her, please feel free to ask. And if you come to France, I'll introduce you to her ☺️

She is a French student, who started coming to the GBU (InterVarsity France). She had so many questions about the Bible and about Christians. Her doubts led her to seek more and ask more questions. I believe that her openness and the love of the students in the group allowed her to be comfortable to keep seeking and going further with the Lord. I can see that God lead her closer to Jesus step by step. It started with a conversation with a Christian friend, then getting sick and being stuck in bed so she took it as an opportunity to read the Bible for herself. 

After her sickness, she started her school year and a friend's sister was in the same city as she was. So, she got invited to the GBU and come with all her curiosity and questions. Then she started coming to our group in English and started asking more questions not just about the Bible but also about our personal relationship with the Lord. When she went to church, she was touched by the faith of the people there and desired it for herself, so she kept going. 

At some point through this process, she committed herself to knowing Jesus more and going deeper. I have been able to read the Bible with her and she also has Christian friends with whom she can have discussions. She still has so much to learn and needs to build a stronger foundation, but I can see her already being transformed. She's not the same person she was before. Knowing her has given me hope. I have hope to believe that many students like her will encounter Jesus. In France, people are skeptical and opposed to the Gospel. I believe that I can have the opportunity so see more lives transformed by the love and grace of Jesus.