France Archives - TEAM Christian Missions Blog

I Could Have Killed a Ministry Moment — Without Cross-Cultural Training

Muslim woman stands in French park, representing a situation in which cross-cultural training would be vital

When you minister to immigrants in a foreign country, cultural blunders are easy to make. You need the right cross-cultural training to give you a strong foundation for service.

Feb 11 2021

Without cross-cultural training, it’s easy for a new missionary to make costly mistakes. Mine could have been losing a friendship over a bowl of couscous. When my husband and I sensed God calling us to serve overseas, we weren’t seminary educated. We had traveled to over 15 countries together, but that was just enough for us to know we weren’t equipped to sustain a successful career as missionaries. Then we heard about Launch, a two-year, intensive internship in southern France. While living amongst North African immigrants, interns are trained in three areas: How to be a living testimony in a…

Celebrate Christmas like the French with this traditional Yule log cake! With creamy almond filling and chocolate ganache, it's sure to delight any Christmas gathering.

Dec 21 2018

We’ve been TEAM missionaries in France for 13 years, and my husband also spent the first 18 years of his life here. So, Christmas in our home has become a unique blend of American and French traditions. We put out stockings like our American family and friends, not slippers like our French friends. We open our gifts the morning of the 25th, whereas most French children open theirs late into the evening of the 24th. We make American Christmas cookies — but we also always have a good supply of French candies, including chocolate papillotes and pâte de fruit. And…

A true picture of hospitality: watch how TEAM missionaries use their resources in Paris to provide member care for other missionaries.

Nov 09 2017

The Robelots work as regional member care coordinators for TEAM in Europe and Chad. The couple became missionaries in 1987 and have since developed a heart to help their fellow missionaries through difficult seasons. The Robelots prayerfully decided to purchase the studio apartment located above their house, which has become known as The Upper Room. Now missionaries come there for rest, renewal, recreation and restoration. Video Transcript: Missy says, “When we moved into this house, we noticed that there was an apartment. We began praying that maybe this would become an apartment that would serve to just allow missionaries to come…

Cross-cultural evangelism is a process. Read how seasoned missionaries have learned to evangelize in unique cultures around the world. Photo by TEAM

Jul 25 2017

If anyone should have been ready for Muslim ministry, it was Felicity*. She grew up in the Middle East and had discussed the Quran with Muslim friends since elementary school. When she moved to a new Muslim-majority country as a missionary, she thought she would have similar discussions. There was just one problem: “I’ve tried doing that with my neighbors, especially the ladies, and they have no idea what the Quran says.” No matter how prepared you are, cross-cultural evangelism will always be full of surprises. That’s why we asked seasoned missionaries from four countries about the lessons they’ve learned…

After many closed doors, Kristine wondered if she would ever make it to the mission field to fulfill her missionary calling. Until the right door opened. Photo by TEAM

Jun 27 2017

In November 2014, I was in a classroom that had a piano with a wooden cutout of a sheep leaning against it. It was as if the sheep was cautiously peering around the corner of the piano. In that moment, I thought, I don’t want to be like that sheep. I want to be the kind of sheep that goes charging around the corner if I think I hear my Shepherd’s voice. Have you ever been that sheep, longing to follow the Shepherd, thinking you heard His voice, but hesitating because you’re not quite sure? I have — many times….

The majority of Europeans identify with the Christian faith. So why is there a need for missionaries there? Photo by TEAM.

Jan 25 2017

When you think of mission work, what comes to mind probably isn’t someone in France discussing theology with a neighbor over cappuccinos. But the reality is, Europe critically needs more Christian missionaries to make disciples. There are several reasons we leave Europe off the map when we think of spreading the gospel “to the ends of the earth.” The most glaring one being that the gospel has already been spread there. In the New Testament, we read about the gospel’s early adoption in Europe through Paul’s letters to the church in modern-day Greece, Italy and Turkey. Marble statues, massive cathedrals…

Missionaries often live between two continents and consider both to be home. One missionary records his reflections on the transition between the two. Photo by TEAM

Sep 06 2016

The day started normally enough. Our two oldest children woke us up by crawling into our bed. My wife wearily got up when she heard our third through the baby monitor. I took advantage of a few extra minutes of sleep until the kids’ questions and requests forced me to greet the land of the living. As usual, lots of coffee was consumed at my in-laws’ house where we were staying. But always behind the coffee, or along with it, was a sadness mixed with a little excitement. Today we were leaving the United States to return to our ministry in…

When Jennifer Hylton asked God for peace about her future, she got far more than she could have imagined. Photos by TEAM.

Jul 07 2016

When TEAM missionary Jennifer Hylton shares how God called her to France, she gets straight to the point, with no effort to impress: “I felt God speak right to my heart: ‘You have a future in missions.’ And I was like, ‘I don’t even know what that means.’” As a first-generation Christian in her 20s, Hylton didn’t know a single missionary, much less how God would call one. She had been praying for peace about her future, thinking she might go to medical school or relocate, but mission work was nowhere on her list. When she sensed God speaking to…

Steve and Donna Niles have served for 37 years in France, with one constant theme to their work. Photo by TEAM.

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…

The Eifel Tower in Paris, France. Photo by Taylor Nesse

Nov 16 2015

I wake up Saturday morning to the news. Paris has been the target of a coordinated terrorist attack. Paris is certainly not the first and already not the last, but like so many of my students at Black Forest Academy, this to me was not just something to read about in the news. This feels close and personal. This is the city and country I called home for most of my childhood. Both of my sisters were born there. This is a country that is currently only a 20-minute drive from my apartment. Several of my students commute daily from France….

Tag - France

I Could Have Killed a Ministry Moment — Without Cross-Cultural Training

TEAM Eats: Recipe for Bûche de Noël

A Tiny Apartment That Restores Hearts [VIDEO]

The Art of Cross-Cultural Evangelism

When Your Missionary Calling Hits a Dead End

Does Europe Need Missionaries?

Leaving Home to Go Home

Finding Out What a Future in Missions Means

37 Years of Humble Discipleship for Missionaries in France

Reflections on the Paris Terrorist Attacks