Message from Tim - 1 of 3
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A request has been made that I provide information on our ministry in France. My first thought--in the flesh of course--was to simply dredge up a brochure used in the past. However, pouring over my old material merely confirmed what I already knew in my heart: I simply could not regurgitate well-hashed idioms. By God's grace, we are all growing. That progression is admittedly slight; but, Lord willing, as we look back we can see some "moving forward". Lord willing also, the time spent studying the language, history, and culture and the time spent as missionaries in France have brought us greater discernment.
I used to be quite concerned that I present strikingly the desperate need for missionaries in France. There is a desperate need. With a population of 60 million, far less than 1/2 % is what could be termed “evangelical”. One doesn’t drive down the road to find a Baptist church on one corner, a Brethren on the other. There are not numerous Baptist churches of various stripes in one town, nor are there a combination of Baptist, Presbyterian, Methodist, etc. In many communities there is not a single evangelical witness. Muslims outnumber believers in France at least sixteen to one. Most French people are existentialists (atheistic) in their worldview. As a culture, they have so worshipped man as to become vain in their imaginations. The resurrection of the Christ and the biblical accounts are dismissed a priori as implausible. Illicit relationships are the rule and not the exception. All this is straightforwardly stated by way of illustration and for information. For as intimated, there need be no “impressive”, humanly-contrived apologetic for sending missionaries to France. Christ's churches need but one apologetic: that which is set forth by the authoritative, infallible Word of God. The apostle John in Revelation 5 and 7 pictures a blood bought congregation of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, clothed in white robes, worshipping the Lamb. And other sheep I have, says Christ, which are not of this fold (Jewish decent): them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd. (John 10:16) John goes on to further describe that divine work the Son will accomplish: And not for that nation only, but that also he should gather together in one the children of God that were scattered abroad. (John 11:52) Regardless of how resistant or how “open” a culture may be, ours is not to dictate to Christ where or when He calls. We are not “fabricating” disciples; we are gathering sheep that belong to the Shepherd. The responsibility of gathering devolves on each generation. He has given us the privilege of being laborers with Him; it is Christ who calls efficaciously through the proclamation of the gospel (Romans 10). Christ has a people (cf. Acts 18, especially verse 18) of every race, tongue, and nation. Ours is to faithfully proclaim the gospel.
The question then arises as to our particular qualifications for ministry, and specifically ministry in France. Through God's gracious providence, I grew up in a Christian home. God worked through this wonderful heritage to show me my rebellious heart and to bring me to Christ as a young man. However, being redeemed by Christ is not the only requirement for ministering in a full-time, leadership capacity. The additional criterion to be met is that of a divine call. God gives us the desires for ministry (If a man desire the office of a bishop, he desireth a good work. 1 Timothy 3:1); but it is not our desire that places us in ministry. Paul states in his letter to the Ephesians (4:11) that Christ gave ministers to His Church. Those ministers are called by God and recognized by the Christ's Church as having been gifted for the ministry (Acts 6; 14). I have received both that divine vocation and subsequent recognition of a Church.
The Lord led me to ministry in France in a way I never could have imagined. In 1981 I returned home after a year at Bible College. Having a strong interest in history, I set about work on a B.A., not far from home in Southern California. Since a foreign language was part of the undergraduate requirements, I signed up for French. Why not? Strangely enough, the next thing I knew I was getting good grades! More importantly, the Lord had taken an interest I had and turned it into a passion. What had been a one-course requirement now became a second major. By this time I knew I would have to spend time in a French-speaking environment if ever I were to attain a certain fluency. I saved up and prepared. For the summer of 1984 I was able to earn enough cash for airfare. I was also able to acquire a vital, short-term working permit. I spent that summer working in Paris—any job I could find—and witnessing the gracious provision of God. I had to go back! In 1985 when my University asked me if I would be interested in participating in a work/study program, they didn't have to ask twice. A one-year program turned into two years. During this time God allowed me to be active in the Eglise Biblique Baptiste de Champigny in the suburbs of Paris. God gave me a heart for the people. In France, God showed me the vast areas untouched by His grace. God showed me the desperate need for those who would proclaim the Gospel. By the end of my stay in France, the Lord had called me to return to plant churches.
It was in France also that I first met Valerie. Valerie is the daughter of Paul and Alexis Dedeyan who pioneered the work in Champigny over thirty years ago. Valerie had grown up in France, but during my stay in France she was in Sherman, Texas attending Austin College. We met initially in 1984, but renewed our acquaintance during a visit Valerie made over the Christmas holidays (1985). When I returned to the States in 1987 I made a detour by the way of Sherman. Valerie had just completed her B.A in Mathematics. To make a long story short: the rest is history!
As previously mentioned, I returned to the United States in 1987. Since I had a double major, I had a semester to finish at California State University, Fullerton. I knew where I was headed, but further preparation lay ahead. Valerie and I were married in April of 1988. We established a home in Southern California, and set about saving so I could acquire theological training.
We left for Lynchburg, Virginia in the fall of 1989. Having neither the requisite tuition for the three-year Master of Divinity program at Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary nor the necessary means to provide for our mere subsistence, we placed our trust in our God. Unworthy though it may be, for sake of time I must pass over those three years. It seems trite to state that God graciously provided; it is decidedly not insignificant in our hearts. We arrived in Virginia with a child on the way. (We had committed that Valerie would not work when our children were born.) We arrived with but a fraction of the needed tuition. We arrived with a couple of school loans to reimburse. We arrived in an area, the local economy of which gave no hope of meeting our objectives. God provided. He did so time and again. He did so miraculously.
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