Update no.3

Well we are now back in the UK. So much has happened since leaving France.

The short story is that we are now church leaders at Lynton United Reformed Church.

Psalm 23:2

"He lets me rest in green meadows, He leads me beside peaceful streams."

Psalm 23:1

Packing up and moving from Southampton and coming to live at Le Vay in France has required us to live with less stuff. This in turn has meant clearing out loads of stuff.

Stuff I had held on to:
... In case I needed it like craft materials, sewing fabrics and wool. Fellow crafters, knitters and sew-ers ( not sewers!) will understand. I hadn't used my sewing machine in years and the leftover wool was not being used up. 

... which helped me feel of value - increasing my self-worth. Those things were all in boxes and bags in cupboards and not accessible. When I started clearing through I realised that they didn't actually make me feel valued nor increased my self -worth. I had bought them for a reason and I couldn't now remember why... 

The process of clearing out and getting rid of stuff - letting go - was painful at times.

The hoarding of stuff was not helpful to me and had held me in bondage to the past ( of any and every era in my life). It bogged me down with unfilled wishes and dreams. 

God worked in me so that I was able to clear out so much excess stuff in my life, which I hadn't been able to do a year previously. It has got easier and I have learned lessons. I have been able to move on and I feel lighter in my spirit. 

I have been here nearly two months living in a smaller personal space and I am not missing any of those things. 

I can truly say that - 

"The Lord is my Shepherd, I have everything I need." 

Moonscape - Faithful witness

The moon looked phenomenal last night, It was a waxing gibbous moon on the way to the Full Moon which is on 22nd February. 

Psalm 89:35-37

"Once for all, I have sworn by my holiness - that I will not lie to David - 
that his line will continue forever and his throne endure before me like the sun;
it will be established forever like the moon, the faithful witness in the sky."


My camera is a Nikon CoolPix P900 and I was able to take this photo without a tripod. 

Ramblings

It has been a tough month in some respects, but lovely in lots of other ways. 
The tough parts have been being away from family and friends and familiarity. To be in a country away from all of those, highlights the other issues I have that God is resolving in me.

I have a strong need to be understood and to understand. This usually shows itself me being the one who reads the instruction manuals or asks questions like " How does that work?" or "Why do we do it that way?" etc. So to be in a country that I don't know the language of (only basic schoolgirl french) is challenging. I am comfortable going to the supermarket as I have done that many times before here. But to go to the vets or answer the phone has highlighted my fear of not being understood nor understanding others. It all came to a head one day with Roger and I arguing in the car and me realising that my fear was the underlying cause. In the dark moments of the night when I am fearfully awake, when the boiler is making noises that I don't know, when the wood-burning stove is making lots of noises then it is when fear is easiest to overcome me. 

God points out to me that "Perfect love casts out fear" 1 John 4:18. 

So He is working in me to remove the fear - His perfect love in which I can trust casts out fear. So I have been answering the phone every time it rings, and I was able to recall a phrase to tell the telesales person - "Je ne parle pas francais." he understood and said "Pardon" and hung up. We have also been to the vets and booked an appointment for the removal of Archie's cyst and I had written down my sentence requesting an appointment, and Praise God, the receptionist spoke some English to me and we made the appointment. Archie has had his small operation and is recovering well. Though he looks comical with a lampshade on his head!

Over the last two days the sun has shined all day long. So Roger and I took the day off and went for a walk around Vire and Chateau Donjon and the valley below. Here is a photo of the garderobe, the toilet shute on the castle - a simple hole discharging to the outside. I wouldn't have wanted to be down wind of this corner...

Garderobe

When we returned home the sun was still shining brightly, and although it had been -2 overnight, it was warm in the front of the house. We sat drinking tea and reading our books. It was lovely and decadent. 

Buzzard

In a previous post there is a picture of Bernie the Buzzard, the dark gray backed one. 

Now here is Bernina the Buzzard, she is much paler and has quite a pale under-body. 

She was sitting on a pile of rocks in the field behind us and I got some lovely photos

Good night from us all here at Le Vay 

Mist and snowdrops

Today started out very misty


and it has taken all day for it to burn off, but the sun is shining now at 16:32 in the afternoon. 

I have just read all morning and now finished my novel "Christmas at Rosie Hopkins' Sweet Shop" by Jenny Colgan. A great light read. 

Then had a lovely wander around the land taking photos of what is up and about. 

Snowdrops with drops of rain

Archie among the snowdrops smelling something on the breeze

Purple Sprouting Broccoli, nearly ready for eating

Birds at Le Vay

Eleventh January 2016

As the snow lay on the ground we were able to see with ease some of the bird life here. 

Karen the Kestrel was hanging around and watching for food under the snow. Here she is on the boundary fence with Eliane.

Then she would drop down into the snow looking for food.

However it only ever looked to me like she was eating snow.... look carefully !!

Then she would shelter from the whistling wind basking in the sun up on the edge of the old stones in the broken down barn.

As we watched she left her mark!

You can see her orange feet in this one.

And went about hunting,  using the electricity pole as her look out post.

My new camera is excellent at taking some of these long distance shots. I have a Nikon Coolpix P900 well worth the money. 

Later we saw  Bernie the Buzzard on the same pole, though the light was not so good.

And a Thrush in the tops of the Hazel bushes.

 So not all the birds have been eaten by the French! 

PS Sorry for the comments not correctly against the photos.... still learning howto adjust them. But I thought it would be best to post anyway. 

Sunrise

Arise, 

Shine, 

for your light has come, 

and the glory of the Lord 

rises upon you.

Isaiah 60:1

Sunday's word

Today we went to a new small church in Larchamp. 
The singing and the word were in French so I only understood a few words - those bible verses that were used. 

These ones stood out to me today:

Luke 14:33
So you cannot become my disciples without giving up everything you own. 

Matthew 6:33 
Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. 

Psalm 127:2
It is useless for you to work so hard
from early morning until late at night,
anxiously working for food to eat; 
for God gives rest to his loved ones. 

https://www.biblegateway.com

All we like sheep have gone astray - Handel's Messiah

Fungi

Fantastic fungi

Growing on wood and other rotting material

Stereum hirsutum

Sulfur Tuft (Hypholoma fasciculare)

Turkey Tail

Waking up on the first day

This morning was damp, windy and cold. The sun shone through breaks in the cloud and the clouds bounded along in the sky. 

Young Archie 

Update on our adventures (2)

During this 2015 we have been on quite a journey.

I went on "Dare to Dream": an interactive course which helped me discover and fulfill more of God's dream for my life, allowing plenty of space for reflection and listening to God which has enabled me to give voice to my deepest desires, to listen more closely to His "still small voice" within me, to be inspired by the lives of others and to take concrete steps towards achieving my revealed goals. 

Also Roger and I joined Richard and Kathy Pitt at Aldermoor Farm and together we formed a new Connect Group (house group). We have met and shared life's journey with some lovely people; the group growing from four to seven members.

We have been on holiday to Wales in early June with Roger's brother John; helped out at Le Vay, Maisoncelles La Jourdan, France in July; to Ireland on a Mission trip to Kilorglin, Co Kerry with 5 other people from church and to Gibraltar to see my old school friend and her family.

I left the University of Southampton in June and had 3 months not working in the summer and started a new job at Fareshare in September.

The 23rd December was the last day at work for us both. We plan to spend up to a year in France at LeVay, the house that our Church owns. It's a 7 bed-roomed farmhouse, with 3 acres and animals etc and guests throughout the year. We will be living in community with another Michael & Amanda and journeying together. 

So now we are off to France on the overnight ferry on Tuesday 5th January 2016. 

We have let out our house for the long term covering our mortgage and house expenses.

Meanwhile since we made our decision to help out there, the church has decided to sell the house with the last booking for people to stay being early August. So we will be returning to England to we don't know where or what to..... exciting ....homeless and jobless.

Our address in France will be:

Le Vay, 

14500 MAISONCELLES LA JOURDAN, 

France. 

Tel: 02 31 68 90 93.