Been M.I.A. For A Minute

It's been a little bit since my last post. Not much has changed really. I have two & a half weeks left at work and I've been really focusing on finishing strong. I have had a great time there & have a lot of favor with my co-workers & bosses. I want to leave there on great terms. I'm gonna miss it there. For those looking for a good company to work for, Solar Turbines is your place (when the economy turns around anyway).

I leave Solar on 12/23 then fly to Kansas City on 12/25 to spend a couple of weeks with my little bro & attend IHOP's Onething '09 Conference. I am super excited about that. It was such an amazing time of worship & teaching last year. I think it is going to be a great jump start for the things to come for me. I get back to San Diego on 01/05 & get to hit the ground running on my new adventure. The plan (as of 11:45PM on 12/06) is to attend Ministry Partnership Development (MPD) Training in Buffalo, NY in February and then start raising my support for Marseille, France. If all goes as planned, I will be going to Marseille in April for a week to scout out the land. Get this! I may be going there First Class for FREE! I have a co-worker who wants to bless me with a free buddy pass that his wife gets for working at Delta. He just wants to be a blessing to me. THAT IS HUGE!!! Thank you JESUS (and Sam)!!! It looks like I'll be spending most of my time doing MPD in San Diego.

I would REALLY like to have my funds raised by August 2010 so I can get to France ASAP, but hope it takes no longer than January 2011. Please stand with me in prayer (and if you wanna stand with me financially too, that'd be awesome!) & believe with me that God will open many doors & pour out His blessings on me in this coming season. I know God has amazing things planned for the city of Marseille & the entire nation of France (and North Africa). I know God is going to do great & mighty things in the hearts of the French. I am so grateful & amazed that He wants to use me in the process. I always felt this moment would come, it just didn't think it would be now. I always pictured myself as being 50+ for some reason. It seems sometimes like you wait & wait on the Lord & may think things are never going to change, then, like a mighty flood, God shows up & takes you on a white water adventure. This is all happening so fast, but feels so perfect & timely. God is ALWAYS on time! Well, it's midnight & I gotta work tomorrow, so I'm gonna have to say good night. Thank you all for your prayers & support! I love you!

In Christ,
~Clint James

“On earth as it is in heaven” ~Jesus Christ

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Merci pour Marseille

So, this whole "moving to Marseille, France" deal is kinda overwhelming.  When God started speaking to me about leaving San Diego & moving to Marseille, I knew it was a big deal, but only because it meant I'd be leaving home & those I love most here in the states to move half way around the world & start a church.  The full implications of this move have really only began to hit me.  Holy Moses!  This is HUGE!  I tend to be a "roll with the punches" kinda guy.  God told me over 11 years ago that I was gonna leave Austin & move to California to plant a church.  I just said okay & rolled with it.  I got to San Diego with next to nothing in my pocket, no job & nowhere to live.  God was faithful & within a week I had a job & an apartment.  You may have heard the saying "where God guides, He provides".  I believe this to be very true.  I've experienced it first hand... many times.  So, my immediate, natural response is to approach this in the same nonchalant manner.  *Ehhhng* Wrong answer!  I mean, I definitely know that God will still meet my needs & walk with me through this, but a little more is going to be required of me this time around.  A lot of decisions need to be made and, depending on what's decided, a lot of work will be needed to see that I get to France...  I need a plan!  Here are just a few things I need to accomplish before leaving for France (oh yeah, by now I guess you've figured out that I have determined I'm moving to Marseille):

1) Learn French, or at least get a good foundation.  I am using Rosetta Stone now & plan to take a community college French 101 class in the spring. I will attend language school in France until fluent. 
2) Travel to Buffalo, NY in February to take Ministry Partnership Development (MPD) Training.
3) Start raising my support from San Diego. 
4) Travel to Marseille in the Spring to meet up w/Matt to "scout out the land" & look at  housing. 
5) Get my financial accounts & records in order. 
6) Apply for a long-term Visa (which has to be done in person in LA... stupid).
7) Possibly travel to Kansas City, Texas & Arkansas to raise support.

There is a lot to be done, but it's worth it.  I've started doing research on Marseille & found that it is a city that desperately needs Jesus.  Though it is considered the "gateway to the French Riviera", it is not all paradise.  It is estimated that 40% of the population is at or below the poverty level & unemployment is higher than most of France.  Behind Catholicism, Islam is the largest & fastest growing religion in the city.  This is largely because Marseille is the primary port of immigration into France from North Africa.  Protestant Christianity accounts for only about 20,000 people of Marseille's  more than 1.6 million residents.  There is intense racial tension.  Just this past weekend there were riots in Marseille between the Algerian & Egyptian residents after a soccer match the Algerians lost to Egypt in Cairo.  Secular humanism dominates the universities of France.  You get the point.  Marseille needs Jesus.  Click here to see Matt Rasch's heart & plan for Marseille.  I'm so excited about what God is going to do.  I have had a heart for Europe & North Africa for years.  Now I will live in Europe at the doorway in to North Africa.  Even if I don't get to go to North Africa for a while, I don't have to.  They will come to me...  I forsee much evangelism to the Africans from the ports of Marseille.  That is all for now.  I'll keep you posted with more details as I figure them out.  Thank you all for your prayers & support! 

In Christ,
~Clint James
“On earth as it is in heaven”  ~Jesus Christ

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