LETTER FROM LINDA GUEST
May 2012
Cast-Off!
Some of my favorite childhood memories are weekends with my family sailing on Lake Tehoma. "Cast-off" is a nautical term my dad would often use when he wanted me to remove
the mooring lines that held the boat to the dock. Well, I have a WHOLE new appreciation for that expression. On April 28th, after 3 months in a corset type body cast and no driving,
the doctor finally said "cast off." Well, not those words exactly since it was in French... but the meaning was the same. I cannot begin to express my elation. Remember the old "Best
Buy" commericial that introduced laptop wireless technology with the marionette puppet? Suddenly we see the puppet freed from its strings and twirling in a field to music lyrics "I'm
Free". Well... that's a close comparison.
At this point I will continue to meet with a physical therapist to "re-educate" my back muscles which haven't been used. I'm driving again - yipee! The biggest challenge now is not to
overdue. The cast prevented movement but now I must use discipline to minimize activity which is ...umm the REAL challenge. My therapist keeps reminding me that I don't need to
accomplish in 3 days what I had to put off doing for 3 months.
Answered Prayers & Ministry Opp's
At the onset of my broken back ordeal I prayed that God would use it mightily to help me deepen friendships with both Christian and non-Christian French friends and that my ability
to speak with them in French would improve. God has not disappointed me. There are positive and negative aspects to everyone knowing you are stuck at home. Basically, you can’
t hide from answering the door when you just don’t feel social. The upside is that I have been blessed with countless sporatic visits which kept me always in a state of readiness to
receive people. French visits are radically different from American visits. Americans tend to be "project oriented" but the French place an emphasis on relationships which I admire.
A French visit can easily surpass 2-3 hours – with lots of coffee, tea and cookies/crackers. Something else I've noticed is that French people are remarkably comfortable with lulls and
can peacefully sit in the void for quite a while until something else arrives to be discussed. In silence, I normally feel the overwhelming urge to say or do anything to break the
awkwardness - which I also do in prayer. God is so patient to lovingly remind me to shut up and wait in the silence so He can actually reveal something to me!
Coffee House Outreach Soon to Open (sort of...)
Again, God never ceases to surprise me. Here I've been stuck in my little apartment, too small to entertain a group of people. but wait! Such is not a challenge for God! With help
from my neighbors, a few 20-something guys from church and others we built a small courtyard in front of my door to support a metal table and 4 bistro chairs that I brought with me
from the US. They partially enclosed the area with a wood fence and voila! As the movie “Field of Dreams” said… “If you build it they will come”… suddenly young adults started
randomly appearing to hang out and have coffee. It’s one of those really odd things that cannot be explained except to say “only God!” Additionally, we have been renovating the
wood barn garage next to my apartment that my landlord is letting me use. I'll send pictures in another update but if all goes well... this could really turn into the ministry I've been
dreaming to do for nearly 10 years. Stay tuned...
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In His PEACE,
Linda
And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:7