Leigh Family Prayer Newsletter - December 2003

November 30, 2003

Thanksgiving

We just finished an exhausting but rewarding week (long naps for everyone this Sunday afternoon). Heading the week was the Thanksgiving meal that Angela prepared for nearly 40 people! It was a blessing to be able to lead everyone in a time of being thankful and to celebrate some our American heritage in a foreign land (where everyone seems to be very curious about this most American of holidays and the strange foods we eat!)

To finish the week we had the opportunity to lead the worship at church this morning. This is always a challenge (especially in French) but always a joy as we know that worship is such a key to what God wants to do in France and one of the primary reasons we're here.

Another one of the reasons we're here is to sow into marriages and families. Angela and I we're blessed to speak at a dinner for about 15 couples. We gave our testimony and spoke on roles in the marriage relationship, with an emphasis on the masculine and feminine as God created them to be. This was well-received and helped us break the ice in speaking together in French.

Angela was blessed to be able to sit in on a week of lectures by Gus Hunter on identity and the masculine and feminine. It was good for her to be able to receive some of the same blessing that I receive each week of the Reconciliation School. Of even more importance is how it helped us as a couple see where our understanding and expression of masculinity and femininity have been distorted and how that has affected our marriage. This was a very healing time for us and gave us more of a base that we can pass on to others as well.

Prayer Requests

I'm attempting to make this a bit shorter this month so on to prayer requests!

• House - We're still living at the Oasis Center. I feel like God has been telling me to "Seek first His Kingdom, and all else will be added unto you." Consequently, I'm trying to let Him direct us more with respect to the right house and the way in which to find it. The two verses prior to that (Matt 6:31-32) indicate that God may have some different ways of providing for His children than the customary methods. We want to be open to those ways and we're very interested in God getting the glory for finding the right house at the right time at the right price and that the process of waiting and finding will accomplish His purposes. Please let that be your prayer.
• Health - I'm recovering from a cold, as is Noah and Rachel is in the worst part of hers right now. The weather is turning cold and wet so pray for protection in our physical bodies and quick recoveries. Ex 15:26 ...I the Lord am your healer.
• Parent's Visit - My (David's) parents are paying us a visit here in France from mid-December into early January. It is a much welcomed and anticipated visit. Please pray for good health and safety of travel for them and for us as we take several excursions with them during the Christmas break. Pray also for clarity and wisdom when they arrive and leave as they have to make some public transportation changes without the benefit of knowing much French. Pray for strengthened heart ties for all of us during this time. Trans-Atlantic relationships can be difficult, especially for grandchildren and grandparents. This is one of those precious times to forge good foundations.
• Ministry - This Tuesday, I (David) will be leading an evening of intercession for The Family in France...an institution under great attack and in need of much prayer. Pray for wisdom as I lead this that we would join with Jesus who is continually interceding for us (Heb 7:25). Tuesday morning I'll be leading a morning worship/meditation time focusing on the Body of Christ. It's one of my hot topics right now in my heart and I want to be able to really facilitate the students understanding God's heart for His Body right now. For the week of Dec 8-12, I'll be leading the worship for the School again. We'll be trying to do some more English songs as well to continue to bridge the Anglo-French gap. Pray for God's heart to bring unity in worship.
• Car - Still no success on exactly how to fix our transmission problem and the car is still quite drivable. When my parents are here, we're taking a trip up to Alsace in France and back in the car (Dec 20-22). Pray for safety and mechanical protection during that time and for wisdom as we explore the foggy world of fixing American automatic transmissions in Europe.

Happy Thanksgiving and Merry (or Happy) Christmas!
David and Angela and kids