37 Years of Humble Discipleship for Missionaries in France

Bethany DuVal • Jul 05, 2016

Most missionaries can look back at their former lives and see what God used to prepare them for the field. For Steve Niles, it was his father’s cows and life on the farm that prepared him for a life of discipling others and leading by example.

“I’m not an intellectual teaching in the Bible school,” Niles said. “I grew up on a farm, and I learned everything hands on. I just like to do that with other people.”

Steve’s first mentees were his own sons. As he and his wife, Donna, raised four boys, the couple focused on teaching them to follow God in a practical way, eventually seeing all four become missionaries and disciple others. From there, the Nileses have made it their mission to train and raise up young leaders in the church.

As Steve and Donna recount their 37 years in France, stories of current and former mentees spill out naturally: the young couple from Greater Europe Mission (GEM) , helping in their current church plant; one of the first couples the Nileses discipled in Lyon, now leading a church that started in their home; the couple that took over their church plant in Annecy, which now helps fund the Nileses’ current work.

For the Nileses, it’s all about making themselves unnecessary.

Working to be Replaced

“I’ll be real honest,” Steve said. “I would like to see France not need missionaries anymore, and my thing is training this French younger generation. I think we should be on our way out.

missionaries in france

With decades of discipleship experience, Steve looks forward to handing down what he learned to the next generation of church planters. Photo by TEAM


The co-leader of the Nileses’ current project in Aix-les-Bains perfectly reflects this philosophy. They met Thierry Mirone in the 1990s, when he came to work at the Christian ski camp they ran at the time. A recent convert, Mirone came fresh from a life of gangs, drugs and theft, but he was eager to let Christ change him.

“He was raw,” Steve said. “I mean this is a guy who in the morning, he would say, ‘You know, I was just reading my Bible, and I’m going to quit smoking.’ He’d wad up the cigarettes, throw them in the garbage. About four in the afternoon, I’d see him in the garbage, trying to put these things back together to smoke these broken cigarettes.”

But the Nileses worked with Mirone for two years, watching as he matured in his faith and married a Christian woman. The newlyweds became colleagues in camp ministry, then the national youth directors for France Mission and now are working with the Nileses to plant a church.

As the oldest members of the church-planting team, Steve and Donna are excited to hand down what they’ve learned. Yet, they maintain a posture of equality with even their youngest teammates.

GEM teammate Jordan Egli said Steve often illustrates his leadership style by talking about the farm. When Steve’s uncle would move the family’s cows, he’d twist their tails and yell at them. When Steve’s turn came, he went among the cows and walked with them.

“It’s not ‘I’m going to tell you how to do this,’” Egli said. “It’s ‘We’re going to do this together. We’re going to learn together. We’re going to serve together.’”

All Disciples

At the Aix-les-Bains church plant, everyone — from the oldest believer to the newborn saint — learns together, due to the team’s vision that everyone should be discipling someone and be in the process of being discipled.

Aix les Bains-blog

Aix les Bains is in southeast France and is known for its breathtaking mountains and the largest natural lake in the country. Photo by TEAM


The country’s strict focus on secularism means new believers come to Christ after years of deep spiritual deprivation. To make up for it, church members meet for worship services, house groups (eight to 10 people), growth groups (two to three people) and one-on-one discipleship. And the discipleship doesn’t always begin after salvation.

One new believer, Guillaume, realized through the discipleship process that it was wrong to live with his girlfriend, but he also believed that leaving her, after living as a married couple, would be the same as getting a divorce. So the team invited Guillaume’s girlfriend to join a growth group. At first reluctant, she gradually realized her need for a Savior, and in August, the church held a Christian wedding.

“Some people say the discipleship process is from when you become a Christian,” Steve said. “I personally, with the French setting, believe it begins even before that.”

As the Aix-les-Bains team members look to buy a building in the near future, they see many opportunities to continue discipling those who do not yet know Christ: tutoring kids after school, using their English language club to share Christ and whatever other ways God allows them to spend time with people.

“I think that’s what real discipleship is,” Steve said. “It’s not necessarily following any particular [method] … but letting the word of God work on a person’s life through the Holy Spirit to show them where they need to grow and seeing the fruit, then, from that.”


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By Suzanne Pearson 23 Feb, 2024
Justin Burkholder, pictured here with his wife Jenny and their daughters Isabella, Olivia, and Zoey, has recently been named as TEAM’s next International Director. On February 19, 2024, with much excitement and gratitude to the Lord, TEAM announced that Justin Burkholder will become our organization’s new International Director, effective July 1, 2024. Justin, who is currently TEAM’s Executive Director of Global Ministry, will assume his new role upon the retirement of the current International Director, Dave Hall. ( Read the full press release here. ) We sat down recently with Justin to learn a little more about his background, his family, and the journey that has led him to TEAM. Q: Tell us a little bit about your “origin story” - Where did you grow up? What was your family like? A: I grew up in Mexico City as a missionary kid. My parents were focused on church planting. We were very close as a family. Both of my parents are still alive, and my dad serves as a pastor in southern Florida. I have one brother who is a pastor in Wisconsin, and the most special individual in my family is my sister, Amber. She was born with a very severe case of cerebral palsy and is entirely dependent on my mother...who is extraordinary! The three most impactful forces that have shaped who I am (outside of God’s grace) are growing up in Mexico, having parents who loved and planted churches, and sharing life with someone with a severe disability. My parents belonged at the time to a church and denomination that came with quite a bit of legalism and performance-oriented Christianity. Grace was a challenging concept to grasp. While I had an awareness of my sin and need for redemption, it wasn’t until I attended Moody Bible Institute that I began to grasp the fullness of God’s grace and His delight in His children. I have continued learning and trusting in the Gospel through formal education, like completing my M.Div., and through spiritual practices in community. Learning the Gospel and believing the Gospel has been a daily exercise. The Gospel is as beautiful and multi-faceted as a diamond! At an individual level, it is simple enough for us to live convinced that “Jesus loves me, this I know.” At a corporate level, it becomes the foundation that forms and informs our life as a spiritual family. At a cosmic level, it is redemption that reaches as far as the curse is found. It is hard to even grasp the multiplicity of goodness found in the Good News. Q: Share a little bit about your family life now. What does a typical day look like in the Burkholder household? A: My wife Jenny is my high-school sweetheart! She brings joy and kindness wherever she goes. She’s the best listener I’ve ever met, and we love spending time together. We have three daughters. Isabella is ten, Olivia is seven, and Zoey is four. Each of the girls is unique and has taught us a lot in our process of following Jesus together. We like to go out on walks and go to the park together. Once a month I try to get some alone time with each of my daughters which usually includes bowling or trampolines. A typical day in the Burkholder house starts around 5:00am. Because of traffic here in Guatemala City, we have to leave early for school. After school, the girls come home to different activities - sometimes swimming class, sometimes piano lessons. Four or five nights a week we have dinner together where we usually talk about our high and low moments of the day. On weekends, we enjoy time together, playing outside, or watching sports together. Go Cubs and Go Buckeyes! Q: What are your interests and hobbies? If you have the day off, what are you likely to be up to? A: I enjoy physical activity, running, strength-training and following sports. I also love music and, truth be told, am a bit snobby about my taste in music! I also am a very curious person and love reading just about anything that passes through my hands. A day off is usually an opportunity for time with family. Jenny and I like to cook something interesting together on our days off. Often there is time for some reading and watching some type of athletic event. Q: How did God lead you to TEAM? A: My wife and I were working in the Chicago suburbs. I was a youth pastor and she was a Spanish teacher. When we got married, we had already sensed God’s direction to serve cross-culturally, but it was a matter of discerning when and where. There was a driving desire in me to see a church deeply love the Scriptures and at the same time, be deeply engaged in loving and serving their city and the most vulnerable among them. As God directed our paths, we visited a variety of places and made some friends in Guatemala who opened up the path for us to serve here. While we were exploring, we knew that the International Director of an organization called TEAM happened to go to our church, so I decided I should probably invite him out for breakfast - his name was Charlie Davis. Charlie was extremely thoughtful, passionate about disciple-making, and very gracious in creating space for us as we stepped into this endeavor. Charlie connected me with Steve Dresselhaus, a fellow TEAM global worker who was at that time serving as the Senior Director for the Americas. I cannot express the debt that I owe Steve. He walked closely with me in the transition, encouraged courageous thinking about the church and her role in society, and blasted open the doors for us to serve in Guatemala. After meeting Steve, we spent some days praying about joining TEAM. One thing I will never forget – one night during the process, I found myself wide awake in the middle of the night. A peace like I have seldom experienced passed over me confirming that we should join TEAM. There is no doubt in my mind that God tied all of these pieces together to bring us into the TEAM family and community. Q: What roles have you held in TEAM? What have been the milestones in those roles? A: The most important role I have held in TEAM is that of a global worker. God in His grace has allowed us to help plant two churches here in Guatemala, serve in leadership development, counseling, and discipleship. Our greatest joy has been found walking with those who are learning to follow Christ more deeply. I served as the Ministry Area Leader in Guatemala from 2016 to 2019. We helped to establish and lead this ministry area as it grew from just four global workers to over 15. I then served as Senior Director for Mexico and Central America from 2019 to 2021, Regional Executive Director for the Americas in 2021 and 2022, and then transitioned to the role of Executive Director of Global Ministry which I’ll continue in until the end of June. 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