A Fruitful Year In France!

December 19, 2018 | Kenton and Sonya Becker

Merry Christmas everyone!

Dear praying friends,

As we wind down to the end of the year, we find ourselves breathing again. This year was one of the most fruitful we have ever experienced in our time in France. To see some fruit after years of sowing is so very encouraging. Thank you for watering the seeds with prayer.

In a couple days, the first of our family will be coming home for Christmas. We are just so very, very, very blessed! Stefan and Naomi will not be able to join us. We have shared a number of close and special times with Thomas and his sister Solange and their family. Thomas and Solange often thank the Lord for the meal and also thank the Lord that we can all spend time together as a family; they consider us family. They are a gift from God, please commit them to the Lord. They are so precious to us.

Thank you for praying for the Christmas program. The time leading up to the program was surrounded with great spiritual pressure. Some people said it was just stress, however, it was not what I would call stress. It was a feeling that you get when you stand up to take a breather, and you sense a very heavy, very heavy dark weight. The weight left as soon as the program was over.  Then Sonya and I were sick with fever for 2 days. There too, the Lord gave grace as there was a funeral to preside. The fever left right before the funeral and as soon as the funeral was over, I felt the fever coming back on, so I excused myself and went home. We are now healthy and happy!

The Friday before the program, I got a message from a young man who was in our youth group during out time in Villeneuve. Soon after we came to Bordeaux, 14 years ago, he began to follow the call of the world and we hadn’t had much contact with him since. His message thanked us for spending so much time with him when he was a teenager. He said that he always remembered the values we taught him and as he followed our kids on Facebook, he realized that what we said is true. He closed by saying he wanted to find a church to go to! Needless to say, Sonya and I became very emotional!

Here are some highlights from the program:

*There were fewer Christians from other churches that came this year, however there were still over a 100 people, which means a higher percentage of people who need to be reached with the love of Jesus.   Again, it is not necessarily the numbers that we are concerned about, however we use the program as a barometer to see how we are doing. Our goal is to have a good reputation in the community and to give our energies to the things that God has called us to do.

*In speaking with several of the Christians who were there, we were encouraged to see that God is at work. The youth and children threw themselves entirely into the program with great energy. Everyone remarked at how well they did. We encouraged the parents to prepare their children for the time by looking at the opportunity as a ministry and the quality of the program was for the glory of God. God was glorified and it was a privilege to participate with Him.

*There were a record 6 unsaved families that came from our town. We were able to connect with five of the families afterwards. Please commit these families to the Lord as they are very open to coming to the clubs.

*The mayor came again this year. His message was the best ever. He made allusion to the riots going on and basically said that what we had just presented was an alternative to what the country is going through. He said that it was important for people to take responsibility for their own lives and stop relying on the government so much. He ended by encouraging everyone to remember the essential truth of Christmas this year and wished everyone a very merry holiday. It was amazing; he did the whole thing without mentioning God!

*Our neighbor remarked that at our programs, everyone wants to stay and talk afterwards. This was true again this year. We count on the Holy Spirit to guide in these conversations. We had several talks with believers who have not made their spiritual lives a priority. As we renew friendships with them, we realize that God is giving them more chances to surrender to Him. We continue to pray.

We just cannot thank you enough for standing with us in this ministry over the years. Your prayers open doors of ministry for us. Your financial contributions allow us to remain on. We are very grateful for each and every one of you who receive these updates.

May God richly bless you,
Kent

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