Wittling Away the Weekend

So I haven't posted in a few days for the simple reason that there hasn't been much to say. I have spent the last several days just walking around Angers and getting used to the town. I have walked more in the last few days than probably the entire last month. I'm hoping that I will be able to rent a bike within the next week or so; there is a really cool business here that rents them out to students for free as long as you can provide certain information.

So I have been taking very, very long walks for several hours a day in weather that rivals a Michigan spring. I'm serious--it is absolutely beautiful here! Madame Picherit keeps on telling me to bundle up, as "il fait tres froid", but I have been able to trade my heavy coat and gloves for my lighter leather jacket. It still gets rather cold at night, but even so, it is a very nice break from a frigid Michigan winter!

Last night, to take a break from cooking, Madame decided to order pizzas for dinner. Let me tell you, the French version of this Italian dish is much different than I expected. Rather than toppings like pepperoni and mushrooms, I found myself chowing down on a ham and potato pizza and a salmon, onion and potato pizza. It was...weird, to say the least.

This morning I woke up early for the sole reason of finding a church to go to. The difficulty of this was, of course, that many of the churches in France are Catholic...and I am not. In fact, on the maps that I have, there is only one church listed that is not Catholic. Fortunately, this church also looked as though it was within walking distance, so I decided to give it a try. So at nine o'clock this morning, I started walking with my Bible under my arm. Twenty minutes later, I congratulated myself for arriving safely and on time at l'Eglise Protestante Baptiste.

My congratulations did not last long. You may have found the flaw that I completely overlooked: in my zeal to find a church, I momentarily forgot about the fact that I was in France. Meaning--of course--that the entire service would be in French. This occurred to me mere moments before I walked through the doors.

I now offer proof that sometimes God answers prayers immediately. I walked into the foyer, and the first person who greeted me was able to speak fluent English! She told me that today was an "Invite your Friend" service, and 'adopted' me as her friend. I was invited to sit next to her and her husband and between the two of them, the entire service was translated for me into English. The service included a short skit where people held up pieces of cardboard with writing on both sides. On one side was a description of their life before Christ, and the other side explained how they were changed for the better with Him as their Savior. It was very moving and I was able to understand everything since I could read what was written on the cardboard.

Something that I didn't need to have translated were the songs. Most if not all of the music was familiar to me, and included several originally English songs translated into French such as Every Day and Lord, I Lift Your Name on High. It was a very comfortable experience for me, as everyone was very welcoming. Praise God for His blessings!