Bixby Bulletin--Fall 2008

Dear Friends,

We are coming to the end of a whirlwind fall. We turned on the heat this weekend so our cold weather is officially here.

The tract distribution in the university dorms has been strung out over several weeks this year. We had new tracts printed in Spain. Our friend Andy Bonikowsky was gracious to work with us at the last minute and reproduce an updated brochure. The students have folded the tracts and slid them under a couple thousand doors. At this point, there is only one village left to do. (You can see a picture of the students at www.bixbys.blogspot.com.) We have had several students come already from the distribution. In fact, in that picture there are at least four new students who helped last Friday night!

Our biggest effort this fall has been preparing for the Three Church Retreat. This year it was our turn to pull it off--that means you do everything! Our theme was "More than Conquerors." Our guest speaker, Jeff Abbett, did a great job and people were really blessed by his messages. There were 74 who attended, and we were grateful that the Lord answered so many prayers. Our major concern was that there would be a warm spirit and fellowship with everyone. God answered in such a marvellous way. In fact, our people feel that it was the best retreat ever. (For some pictures, look at the blog!)

After the retreat, we had the privilege of having the Andy Bonikowsky family here for a couple of days and tonight we are waiting for Roy and Lou Ann Keiser to arrive. Both of these families are dear friends and missionaries in Spain. Actually, Roy is coming to do some much needed work in my kitchen. I have one burner out of five that work and with all my company, that is sometimes tricky. We will post a picture when it is done!

Our big news is that we will be going to the States next summer for a 5-6 month furlough. Tim and his family are going to come out to replace us. They will take over the work here, plus squeeze in some French study. We have two major prayer requests for this:

1. That Tim and Ruth will be able to raise a significant amount of support before June. They would love to be at 100% so they can just stay on! We would love that, too.
2. Our traveling schedule. Please contact us right away if you have any special dates that you would like us to visit. This is the first time since 2000 that we will be in the States in the fall, and we are looking forward to it. We want to visit all of you, so we have to start scheduling now.

Thank you all for your love and support. Please don't forget to check out the blog for up to date news.

In Christ,

Bob and Bonnie Bixby

Distribution Continues...

Tonight we put the students to work, instead of having games...they folded some more tracts and left to slip them under the doors at Village 1. Please continue to pray that the Lord will use these little brochures to bring students to church and to know Him.

Don't worry--I am sure they are having fun doing it and will be back soon for dessert!

Three Church Retreat--2008

We just got home from the retreat. Thank you so much for praying. We were thrilled at how the Lord answered prayer in many areas. There were 74 people in all and everyone seemed to enjoy himself. The preaching (Jeff Abbett) was excellent and the children loved his wife as their teacher. Our theme was "More than Conquerers" and we had "olympic" teams named after cities in the Bible. The Colossians won the "candy" medals!

Retreat Preparation!

Preparation for the "Three Church Retreat" is under full swing here. It is our church's turn to plan the retreat so there is a lot of things going on here this week! The theme is "More than Conquerors" and we are going to have some "Olympic games," as well as three Christian sports heroes from the past who are going to visit us!
Please pray for Jeff Abbett, our speaker and for all the different aspects of the retreat. We want it to be a blessing to all who attend. We are expecting about 70 people. It starts Friday, Oct. 17 and ends on Sunday afternoon.

Swiss Visitors!

This week our "Swiss son" has come home for a visit. Some of you might remember that in 1999-2000, Nati came to live with us. Since then, he has gone back home, finished Bible School and is a full time worker in the mission where he grew up. We always love it when he comes back for a visit. It is exciting to see how the Lord is continuing to work in his life. Another young man, Markus, came with him. (For those who don't know him, Nati is the one with the camera!)

A short hospital stay!

I just got home this afternoon from the hospital. There is nothing like spending a couple of days in a hospital to make you appreciate the comforts of home! Wednesday I had gall bladder surgery. I know most of you did not know but for those of you who did, thank you so much for your prayers. All went well and now it is just the recovery process! While I was there, I could not help but reflect on how good God has been to us over the years concerning our health. The last time I was in the hospital was 25 years ago when we left Africa and I had Hepititis B. The last time I had an operation was when Daniel was born Cesarean--and he is 37 years old.

Baptism Day !

Today was a very special day for us here in Pessac. Corine Oulai was baptized. She has been saved for several years, even before her marriage but had never been baptized. She really wanted to be here before they leave for Ivory Coast because this is where she was saved. We had our regular Sunday and then had a special meeting in the afternoon. Several of her unsaved friends came.