Thursday, February 5, 2009

Hello from Maubeuge, France!

Since my last letter, I have watched the dollar go up and down versus the Euro, I have heard about the collapse of major banks, and I have watched America usher in our 44th president. It is interesting to see the U.S. go through changes while I am here in France. Thank you for your faithful prayer and financial support even during a financial crunch. I wouldn't be here serving at BLF if it wasn't for you. It's in times like these that we can know our hope is inChrist alone and not in money.

Manga Frenzy
Our most popular book at the moment are the Gospels in a Japanese comic format called Manga, le Messie. The English title is Manga Messiah. The word Manga means ''quick sketch'' in Japanese. The book was edited and translated here at BLF Europe and printed in Japan. We have already ordered a second shipment because we've sold over 6,000 copies of the 10,000 we received in November. This is exciting because Manga le Messie has found its way into Catholic and secular bookstores in France.

We have also recently published French editions of The Treasure Principle and The Purity Principle by Randy Alcorn.

My R19
I am very thankful for the car that Nico, our press operator, gave me when I got here. It is a bronze 1989 Renault R19. One morning, I went down to my car and found my passenger window smashed out. During the night someone broke my window and took the nice CD player/radio. This type of thing isn't covered by my insurance so I was glad that a repair place could put in a new window quickly and for only 100 euros. A month later I came home to see a car, parked three spaces from mine, completely burnt. There were police, firemen, and a crowd watching as the fire was put out. I am glad it was only my radio that was taken!

Sophie Kapitaniuk
October 11th, we celebrated the 80th birthday of Bill Kapitaniuk, my director's dad and the founder of BLF Europe. Peope came from all over to thank Bill and his wife, Sophie, for their years of service to our Lord. It was only a month later, November 11th, that we gathered again to remember Sophie Kapitaniuk. After several years of poor health she went home to be with the Lord. We know she is glad to be in Heaven with Jesus, but she left a big hole no one can fill.

Prayer & Praise
- My church just started a new series on 1 Thessalonians. Please pray for us as we study together.
- I have been running weekly but I haven't been sleeping well.
- Praise God, my support level is at 96%.
- Praise God that I am able to speak French as well as I can! I will be taking classes this Spring to fix my mistakes. This will also be a great way to meet people outside the print shop.

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