Our week in Switzerland...

After some rainy days at the beginning of the week, we were blessed with crisp sunny weather today in Switzerland. I began the week staying at friends' home near Yverdon; then the four of us in the KKI European leadership team drove into the mountains for two days of meetings in a little Swiss chalet with a stunning view over the valley and down to Lake Neuchâtel. Now we're in our third home of the week - in a local church property consisting of a small conference centre and old people's home in the historic centre of Yverdon. 

We'll be here until next Tuesday for the annual meetings of our KKI international leadership team. One of our tasks this week is to consider some refinements that we're making in our international purpose statement - some rewordings that reflect the things God has been saying to us about the importance of our families, our generations and our lifestyle in the way that we express the Kingdom of God and serve Him together. We're also looking at some of our current strategies for mobilising young people in making God known and being a blessing to the nations - such as the Gateway strategy in Asia and Africa, and our new Planting Together (tree project) vision partnering Europe with Africa. One evening we took time just to listen to God in prayer and to write down the things He spoke to us about ourselves and our ministry in the years to come, and this evening we had a time of praying for each other and for our different needs.
Today I had a trip down memory lane, when a few of us took a short drive to see the YWAM training centre in Lausanne - the place where I did a school of evangelism in the 1980s before going with an outreach team on my first trip to West Africa. Tomorrow, after another morning of meetings and prayer, we'll be taking time out for an outing together. Although rain has been forecast, we're trusting the day will be nice enough for us to enjoy the beautiful Swiss scenery. We'll be visiting a chocolate factory, going to the "cheese" village of Gruyere, and then ending the day with a meal of Swiss cheese fondue.