Bon
jour Cherished of God,
We have an icy cold glass of water for you! Proverbs
25:25-As cold waters to a thirsty soul, so is good news
from a far country.
We bring greetings and love
to you from the beloved saints of France. We visited the
believers in the greater Paris area from April 5-9. Closely
affiliated with our Christian Family Fellowship Ministry,
their organization is called Ministere Chretien de la
Reconciliation, or the Christian Ministry of Reconciliation.
Reverend and Mrs. Victor
Bikwaku (Victor and Severine) were the primary hosts for
our exciting time together. At various times during our
visit, we were also lovingly hosted by Joseph and Nadege
Wissa, Andre and Gisele Mananga, Franck Jouvellier, Melanie
Gaba-Beccari, and many others. We were witnesses of great
dedication and service-mindedness in the lives of the
believers there. They also exhibited a deep personal commitment
to the Word of God living alt over the world. Our thanks
again go out to all that we met for their loving and gracious
hospitality.
Besides many joyful meals
and some site-seeing with God's people there, we enjoyed
an open meeting, with approximately 110 believers in attendance,
on Resurrection Sunday, during which we focused on the
resurrection-power of God. At that four-hour get-together,
we were blessed by music and singing, a children's performance,
teachings and a healing service. We were also honored
to share at another meeting with approximately 20 servant-leaders
of home fellowships, during which I (Kevin) exhorted the
attendees to lovingly monitor the "spiritual pulse"
of their homechurches by the "3R359 Principle:"
3R = Receive, Retain,
Release- As overseers of homechurches. we make
sure that all of those involved have consistent opportunity
to hear the Scriptures taught, to preserve its practical
and personal meaning in their fives for faith-filled longevity,
and to "overflow" to those within their sphere
of influence with an enthusiastic testimony of what they
are learning and applying.
3 = The Big Three:
Faith, Hope & Love- At times, our homechurches
will become so focused on a limited number of biblical
principles and promises that they become starved for the
benefits of the comprehensive nature of God's whole Word.
All of these three are intertwined and inseparable.
5 = The Fabulous
Five: Pray, Study, Fellowship, Give, Witness-
Our homechurch families are built upon worship of God,
growing in understanding His Word, regular/local/intimate
association with the saints, freely giving from every
part of our lives (including financial), and "teaching
everything we know until we hear a trumpet."
9 = The Nine Manifestations
of the Spirit-They're EACH given for EACH believer
to simply and freely operate, in order to bring God's
will, promises and deliverance into the lives of His people,
all in love.
In our homechurches, there's
no substitute for fundamentals. We never outrun them;
we never replace them; we're never "bored" with
them; we never master them to the point of setting them
aside, even though we want to make them as habitual as
breathing. Every additional aspect of truth that we acquire
during our lives ties back into those rooted essentials.
Let's be diligent and vigilant to maintain the spiritually
healthiest environment possible for the daily growth of
God's people in our homechurches.
Quo Dieu vous benisse au nom de Jesus-Christ!
(God bless you in the name of Jesus Christ!),
Kevin & Sara Guigou
|
