Pastor Paul Monclair reports from Montastruc-la-Conseillère, near Toulouse
A team made up of several families
We’re a team of several families living in the area. Some young families and young retirees with the same vision at heart: make the gospel of Jesus Christ known! I lead the project as Pastor-Church planter and, prior to this, was a travelling evangelist for around a decade in France. I firmly believe that church planting is the biblical model for evangelism, discipleship, and the training of new leaders. I see the establishment of local communities as the way forward to continue long-term gospel proclamation in a given locality and its surrounding area.
I’m married to Sophie, and we’re the happy parents of Leo (4) and Arthur (3). I was raised as a bi-national, with my mother being a British missionary from Scotland who married a French pastor (my father). I’m thankful for my upbringing as a “missionary kid” and have been deeply impacted both by the love and support from churches in the UK, as well as the needs in the field in France. I believe the Lord has used this to give me a heart for gospel work in France.
Why plant a new church in Montastruc?
Quite simply to allow everyone to live out the gospel where they live and to enable gospel witness. According to the National Council of French Evangelicals (CNEF), to experience a church-life without being disconnected from our place of residence, and have a permanent gospel witness, we’d need a local church for each area of 10,000 inhabitants… Well, around Montastruc, there is no Protestant church for more than 70,000 inhabitants!
Montastruc is located between the cities of Toulouse and Albi, in the south-west of France. It’s a fast-growing area, with new residents arriving every year, including many young families and young retirees. A new high school opened a year ago. We believe that the church has its role to play in this area.
The vision of the church plant
Imagine a community of disciples who love reading and reflecting on the Scriptures together to nourish their daily walk with Christ, while getting involved in local life. Disciples who develop authentic relationships with their neighbours and friends, and who can offer answers to their spiritual questions.
It’s our vision as a church plant to "let ourselves be transformed by the Gospel of Jesus Christ, in order to be a community of disciples that shines and bears witness for the glory of God.”
We believe in relational evangelism, so we encourage Christians to invest in relationships around them. With our association (similar to a UK charity) we participate in the town’s Christmas market, offering some free activities for children. We’ve also launched a “board games festival” which brought together nearly 300 people last time round. Through these opportunities, our desire is to bless and love our town by contributing to its dynamism and community life.
Our prayer requests
We’re thankful to see the Lord at work in and through our little community of believers. We’ re praying that the Lord will continue to help us build lasting friendships through our community events, and that He might direct our path to people who are seeking answers about life and spirituality. We’re praying to see people thirsty to read the Bible in order to discover Jesus Christ. We’d like to re-launch some gospel discovery groups to allow people to explore the Good News in a friendly setting.
Many thanks for your prayers!
