Derek & Jane French
Derek and Jane began serving with Grupos Bíblicos Unídos (GBU) in 2007. GBU is a Christian student organisation affiliated to the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students. They are based in Bilbao in northern Spain.
Latest mission report
Derek and Jane’s mission work
The work of GBU principally involves evangelism among students and the discipling of Christian students. GBU’s vision is to reach all non-Christian students with the gospel and to develop student leadership which, in the future, should contribute to the growth of evangelical churches in Spain. GBU also seeks to contribute to the transformation of Spanish society through evangelical graduates and professionals who have been helped by GBU.
Derek and Jane are excited to be actively involved in a new project with the publishing branch of GBU (Andamio Kids). The project aims to provide resources for Sunday school teachers, youth leaders and devotional materials for children and teenagers. These resources will have a huge impact in developing young disciples in the Spanish speaking world. Many of the books are translated from English however, recently, Andamio Kids were thrilled to publish their first book written by a Spanish person. It is a devotional book that emphasizes God’s plan of redemption throughout Scripture.
Currently they are also heading up the Bilbao Team Project and have a team of 6, including Neil and Jenny Stewart (and family), who are also global mission workers. The vision of the team is to reach out to the community and plant a church in the area they live in.
Derek and Jane are also involved in local church ministry in Bilbao, serving in the Bilbao International Church (BIC) and working alongside the local Spanish church. Derek serves as the pastor of BIC, and Jane is part of the team ministry. Derek’s role is to oversee ministry and mission at BIC and their other ministry roles include preaching, teaching, pastoral care, Bible study groups, 121s, outreach and other initiatives. They are encouraged by ministry in both churches. Many non-Christians attend and their prayer is that they will soon respond to the gospel.
Derek and Jane met and got married when they were studying at Belfast Bible College, they have two children. They were commissioned for service in Spain at a service held in Drumbo Presbyterian, their home congregation, in January 2001. They served firstly in Valencia, Spain from February 2001 to 2007, working with the Levante Presbytery of the Spanish Evangelical Church (IEE).
Prayer points
- Pray for the Bilbao Team Project as they reach out to their community and plan to plant a church.
- Pray for Christian students to catch the vision of being evangelists and making disciples at university and that this would continue as they enter the working world and for good relationships between the student work and the local churches.
- Pray for full time staff workers to lead the work of GBU in the seven cites in the north of Spain.
- Pray for the work of Andamio Kids and the valuable resources they are providing for kids and families in the Spanish speaking world.
- Pray for the French family, that they will be a good witness in their community. Pray too for their children, that they will grow up to have a vibrant personal relationship with God.
Derek and Jane have recorded a short film clip which can be downloaded and used in church services, prayer meetings or events to raise awareness and prayer for what God is doing across the world, as we seek to go deep and wide in global mission involvement.
Latest report May 2026
Neil and Jenny (fellow PCI global mission workers) have been in the Basque Country for a year now. Pray for them as they continue with language studies and as they become more involved in their community. Give thanks for the opportunities that God has opened up for them already to share about Christ. Pray for the children as they continue to settle in and form new friendships and get to grips with the language as well.
Pray for the Women’s Ministry in Bilbao International Church. Give thanks for a good number of women who are attending the discipleship group and for the encouragement of seeing them grow and mature in their faith. Pray for Jenny, Mahija and Jane as they lead the group and for wisdom as they plan for the academic year ahead. This year they have been studying 1, 2 and 3 John and learning what it means to abide in Christ.
After Easter, BIC introduced a new sermon series on Ephesians. As a way of involving all ages in the church in learning from Ephesians, BIC has produced a weekly devotional guide for parents and activity pages for the kids on the theme of each week’s sermon. Pray that this new venture would help families to worship God together in their family life during the week, as they pray, read and sing together, specifically looking at the theme of Ephesians.
Pray for the BIC students as many of them will be in the throes of exam season as you read this. Pray that God would help them to be diligent in their studies and that they would give God the glory in their student life. Pray that God would give wisdom and clear guidance to those who have major decisions to make with regards to further study in September.
Prayer points
- Neil and Jenny and the kids as they build relationships and continue with language studies.
- The Women’s Ministry in Bilbao that it would continue to grow.
- The BIC family devotions, that it would help families worship God together.
- BIC students as they study for exams and make decisions for the future.
Mission report archive
Download a printable PDF of this and other recent bulletins below.