The 11th November is always a bank holiday here in France. Every town and village remembers those who died during world war one, and other conflicts. It is an interesting ritual with speeches from various people. Flowers are put at the foot of the war memorial. Before the ceremony, a mass is usually celebrated (but not everyone attends). There were a lot of people, mostly elderly.
Day: November 11, 2013
A visit to the Belgian Bible Institute
Last week, I visited the Belgian Bible Institute in Bruxelles. They hold a prayer day every semester, and I had been invited to lead the fall semester prayer day. I had met the director and some of the students at some conferences, and it was good to get to know that Bible institute better.
I was a bit anxious about the day. I had never led a prayer day, and the goal was to pray as much as possible from 9 am to 5 pm, with a lunch break. Would people pray? Would there be long times of silence? But everyone had come to pray, and we prayed. In the end, I didn’t have to do much apart from opening the word at the beginning, and announcing a hymn from time to time. It was a good day. There were about 30 people present. The day of prayer is the most important day of the semester, and it is compulsory for full-time students to attend.
I spoke on Colossians 2:6-15 on why we must keep Christ at the centre: because he is God fully and perfectly manifested, because in Him we have new life, and because in Him we have complete forgiveness.
On the following day, I sat in some lectures and chatted with students and staff in the morning, before going to Bruxelles town centre.