Mission FPC
Freien Evangelischen Gemeinden Schweiz or FEG-Schweiz is a grouping of 81 Free Evangelical Churches, all located in the German-speaking part of Switzerland. One of the goals of this association is to support the proclamation of the Gospel in Switzerland, in Europe and in the world. Vision-Europa is the branch created for Spain, Italy, Austria, Poland and France. For each country, a national manager is the liason between FEG-Schweiz and the missionaries.
My Swiss-French origins and the fact that I am a member of an FEG in central Switzerland contributed to my being asked to be the national manager for France. My wife, Sonja supports me in this task. We have 4 children and 4 grandchildren – another is planned for December. Sonja works part time in a Christian bookstore. I am employed in an aeronautical company.
Vision-Europa has a partnership with France Pour Christ. The advantage is that all administrative tasks are handled in France. So I don’t need to worry about allowance, tax or pension issues (Thanks Jeremy!). Currently, Vision-Europa supports Ruedi and Birgit Bänziger in Lens, Emmanuel and Nathalie Kessely, also in Lens, Marjorie and Stanley Okoro in Lille and, recently, Yannick and Simone Huguenin in Reims.
One part of the job of a national leader is to visit missionaries where they live. We first went to Reims to visit the Huguenin family. After the visit to the Cathedral, we had the privilege of meeting the whole team during a pizza night.
The next day, we visited Emmanuel and Nathalie Kessely in Eleu-dit-Leauwette, before going to the non-profit coffee-bar in Lens and then heading to Ruedi and Birgit Bänziger in Montigny-en-Gohelle.
On Sunday, we took part in the worship service at the Essen’Ciel church in Lens, to meet the members there. On Monday, we went to Lomme, to Marjorie and Stanley Okoro’s place by making a “small” detour to the beach of Zuydcoote. Yes, in Switzerland, we have mountains, lots of mountains, but we don’t have the sea … After our visit with the Okoros, we went to the headquarters of France Pour Christ in Drulingen, where we spent a pleasant evening.
The serious part of the journey consists of an interview with each missionary and with the leadership team of France Pour Christ.
The greatest encouragement was the revival among the young people of Lens. That evening, 16 young people met in the church, 11 of whom did not know the Lord. We are encouraged to see that God works in hearts. We are also encouraged to pray that the fire He kindled does not go out, but continues to grow. Speaking of the fire, we were also in awe of what the Lord accomplished after the Bänziger house burned down. He is the one who turns the curse into a blessing. All in all, it was an intense week with many impressions to digest. We have been blessed by all the discussions we had and by the welcome from each and every one. We were protected on the road. We leave encouraged for our own walk.
Mission FPC
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