Grenoble: A City in Need of Christ’s Peace

We officially arrived in Grenoble on Saturday, July 22nd.  We lived for a month  in a one room residential hotel, while we searched for housing, tried to set up a bank account, and attempted to get settled in France.  We had a baptism in French culture and language that stretched the limits of our ability and our patience.  But we are now settled in a home in a small suburb of Grenoble that is a short tram ride from the university and also close to Emma’s school.  We are so grateful for the privilege of living in this beautiful city and finding a place to live that will be convenient for students to visit.

The day before we arrived, there was violence in an area of the city where 100 cars were burned by angry youth in protest over police actions taken against some Muslims.  A few weeks later, many gypsies were uprooted from their shanty town near the expressway and taken to be deported.  There are many immigrants, minorities and internationals in this city.  We see Maghrebis every day here, and are anxious for the chance to be able to speak with them in French and make friendships. Their needs and grievances are real and a prominent topic of conversation among just about everyone. God has brought us here for such a time as this.

This month, students from all over France and around the world begin pouring into this metroplex of 600,000 people.  We will be studying French on the university 5 days a week right in the midst of them.  We have been praying for divine appointments.  God has already answered that prayer.  A Chi Alpha campus missionary from Valence France who spent the last five years in the US in training is now back in France and has a heart to begin ministry on Grenoble university.  An electrical engineering major from a leadership background in Students For Christ Germany is studying for a year in Grenoble. Also an MK from Chad is also studying here.  There is already a nucleus of people who love Jesus and want to see a Kingdom community built on campus.  God has been preparing in advance and we know He has great plans to do something significant here.

Thank you for your prayers and support that has gotten us here and keeps us here. This is all a team effort, and if you have invested in prayer, encouragement, or finances, we say many thanks for being a star player.