Nantes GO Team

I have been a member on three GO Teams to Nantes over the past four years, and as such I have been asked to write about what it is that has taken me back there each year.

I first applied to the team in 1996, when as yet I had no experience of doing mission teams, or even such projects as literature distribution. At that time, France was certainly one of the more 'exotic' mission teams on offer, which certainly appealed to me, as did the opportunity to use my GCSE French. I was also under the conviction that it was about time I started to do something practical for God, and at this period I was taking communicant classes with the aim of joining the Church a few weeks later. The GO Team provided the ideal opportunity to support the work of the denomination as a whole.

I started off quite nervously on that first trip to Nantes, as I had never really done any of the activities before, and the prospect of having to say more than "bonjour" or "merci" to anyone was quite daunting. However, the warm encouragement of the workers in Nantes, together with the sense of unity in the team meant that all fears quickly went, and I was soon loving it. This has been a factor of each GO Team that I have been on. You are always conscious that you are a member of a team, and that the others need you just as much as you need them.

There is also the sense of satisfaction to know that you are helping the workers in Nantes. The number of Reflexions to be distributed is constantly growing, and while this is often to the detriment of the legs of team members, at the same time it means that more and more people are being given the chance to hear the gospel. It is a joy to realise that with each copy you distribute, one more household could come to know Christ. This joy also comes with the humbling recognition that it is only God who can actually save those people, and it is our privilege to be used by Him in His work.

Although I have applied for the team each time with the idea of helping others, I have always come home personally blessed. Part of this comes from having been part of a team, from working with them and getting to know them better. Much of it comes, however, from drawing close to the Lord during the week, as each time we are made to realise how utterly dependent we are upon Him, and how even the smallest details are under His control. This is strengthened by the daily Bible studies during the week, when the whole team and the workers come together to discuss the day's activities and commit it all to God.

Another appealing factor of going to Nantes is the warmth of the fellowship there amongst the church members. Each time the GO Team is there, we are always given a genuinely warm welcome, and it is especially rewarding to meet those that we have read about in the various letters that the workers send back to Ireland. Since I first went to Nantes, the congregation has grown considerably, and each time I go back I see new faces, as well as those that I have met before. When I was there this past Easter, I met up with Alexandra, who is studying at Nantes University, and whom I first met last summer during the Galway GO Team!

Although each year the team members change so that the Nantes experience is always slightly different, the enjoyment that I get out of going there has never waned. Each time you have the satisfaction of serving others as well as personal blessing. Those who have gone before will, I am sure, share my sentiments and I would really encourage them to go again. No matter what age you are, or how far distant your GCSE French, you will be more than welcome.

Helen McMahon