Sunday February 21
Our group attended church downstairs of the facility. We were warned upon entering that everyone would speak French and would be overly delighted to see us. We were all so nervous. As soon as the doors opened, we were greeted by a younger colored girl, about 16 or 17, as she said “bonjour” and greeted every one of us with a cheek-to-cheek- hello. Mallory, Becca, and I separated from the whole group and sat closer to the front of the room. We tried out the little bit of French that we knew and introduced ourselves to two older gentlemen and they appreciated our effort. The congregation was so welcoming and there was a very special beating in my heart hearing so many in a whole other country worship the same God we know and love. (Though we didn’t understand any words they were saying) it was so inspirational. It was obvious how passionate the men were as they stood and offered prayer and we all tried to sing along even if we were unsure of the translation. The congregation was very small and mostly colored men and women. At the end, they brought forth a newborn and prayed for her while in her mother’s arms. It was clear just how close knit this church family was. It took nearly 30 minutes to get out of there due to everyone visiting with one another.
Everyone was very welcoming however and next Sunday we will be worshipping at an Italian church right in the heart of Italy! It is great to see God’s word being spread hear. We also agree that it is somewhat easier to feel His presence here. It may be because of all of the young Christians we are with every day but it is a great feeling.
Yesterday, February 22, Mallory and I went out in the afternoon to Aachen Germany again just to catch some fresh air (and fresh croissants). As soon as we walked out the door, it was raining. Not a pouring rain but more than a sprinkle, it was just enough to be annoying. We decided to be a little more adventurous and try the closer train stop, it is not really a station like Verviers-Central but it is much, much closer. We found our way safely and easily. Upon arriving in Aachen, it was freezing. We were shaking before we even exited the train station there. Not many people were out so we thought we would make our way around and into a café somewhere for a coffee and maybe a quick dinner before catching the 7 PM train. A mere 5 minutes into walking, we were dripping wet. Both of us were getting ill and did not want to be out anymore. It took us 20 minutes to walk down the streets and into Starbucks where we sat to dry off. After agreeing we were done with Aachen, we headed back to the station, thinking we would just wait an hour and a half for our train. But something pretty cool happened. We were walking back knowing there was a train at 6:04. We knew we would miss it but we kept talking about how nice it would be if we made that train. We stepped into the train station at 6:01. We quickly found the platform and…… the 6:04 train was still there waiting and we immediately boarded. So what’s so amazing about that? Well the first walk from the front of the train station to Starbucks took 20 minutes. We made it from Starbucks to the inside of the train on the very last platform in under 12 minutes. Once we sat down and let out a huge sigh of relief and even a giggle,
Mallory turned to me, “God is good all the time.”
And I replied, “All the time, God is good.”
And we safely made it back to the facility where Ms Connie had us out some of the best mac-n-cheese for dinner. We were guided so strongly by Him. And it is everyday that we should thank Him. Not just when He helps us in our times of distress.
(if you look close you can see snow on the vehicles and the wet streets)
G > ^ v (God is greater than the highs and the lows)
kenznl 