Days 6, 7 & 8--Mixtures

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. - Eph. 2:10

These have been eventful days back in the capital city. Bob and I checked into the guest rooms at the Baltic Pastoral Institute. They are more than comfortable--newly renovated. We got settled in and went to buy some groceries for breakfast the next morning in that we have a kitchen to prepare simple meals. Bob would begin the next morning teaching a group of men in the BPI. He was a little apprehensive, not knowing what to expect, realizing also that they did not know what to expect of him. He was also concerned about how he would handle everything being translated into the Latvian language. I sat in on a bit of Bob's first session and it was easy to see that he had both a good translator and that he was going to do great! Bob teaches from the heart and teaching about shepherding is his heart. What could be better? 

Bob was off and going and I had plans of my own. I was going to be meeting an old Latvian friend that I had not seen in years. I'm not exactly sure when we last visited. Aivis Ilsteris is his name. When I lived here, Aivis had a regular day when we would meet just to talk and pray. Sometimes that meant sitting in a coffee shop, sometimes it meant nice long walks through park areas and the streets of Riga, and sometimes it meant sitting in the living room of his flat. Our prayers were ernest as we prayed over each other's lives and ministries. My prayer for Aivis had been that God would send a godly woman into his life, for he had so much love to give. God answered this prayer, wonderfully. He brought Sarah into Aivis' life. She is from the UK here working with the Salvation Army. Aivis' ministry has always been through The Navigators. They have now been married nearly 10 years and have a beautiful 6-year-old son, Josh. 

Aivis came to BPI to meet me at 11:00 and we struck out just like we used to do. We walked into the old city of Riga and into the art deco district, just catching up with one another's lives, snapping pictures, telling stories, and doing a lot of laughing. At one point I turned to Aivis and said, "This has been such a joy. The true test of a friendship is that after many years we can just pick up where we left off as if no time had ever passed." We sat in a quaint little restaurant and Aivis shared with me a beautiful story about a man he and his wife had known and ministered to. He had been a poor "ragamuffin" as Aivis described him. He had struggled with alcoholism, but through the course his struggle and their ministry this man, Ivars, had come to know Christ in a profound and deep way. After the profession of his faith, Ivars lived a life of poverty, but a life of joy and that joy was exuberant. Ivars died this winter. Just a few weeks ago, in fact. Aivis relayed the day of his funeral. It had snowed the night before so there was fresh snow blanketing the cemetery and the sun was also shining. Aivis said that this was not a sad occasion, but a joyful one, just as Ivars had lived his last days and months. Aivis knew that Ivars was finally home where he belonged and where he wanted to be--in the arms of Jesus. I sat and listened to Aivis weave his story with tears in my eyes. Aivis is a gentle man with a deep, resonant, but peaceful voice and thick European accent as he speaks English. His godliness is pervasive in every aspect of his life and his speech--just as I had remembered. In this moment I realized deeply how I had missed my friend and these quiet exchanges of life and the love of Christ that permeated our friendship. What a sacred moment this was. 

Later that evening, me and Bob went to see "The King's Speech" at a local theater. It was in English with Latvian and Russian subtitles. On the walk there, Bob filled me in on his day only to relay that it had been a really good day and how impressed he was with Vesma, his translator. She didn't miss a beat, but kept pace with him so that it was almost as though there were no translator at all. That was great to hear. This meant Bob could teach with freedom and not feel hindered. Many of the students speak and understand English, but the translation is for the sake of those who don't. 

After the movie, which is great, by the way, we made our way back in the cold night air. When we got back to BPI, we grabbed a bit to eat and Bob checked his e-mail. He learned that his oldest daughter had been hospitalized with some sort of intestinal blockage. Bob was concerned, but took the news as well as could be expected. Later, he would learn that his wife, Janice, was planning to travel from South Louisiana to Michigan where their daughter and family live. The next day the news was not so good. They determined that the blockage was indeed a tumor and would have to be removed. With each time Bob checked e-mail he learned that the news had grown worse. The next would tell him that the tumor was cancerous. We worked at getting Bob a flight out of Riga for this coming Friday, but to no avail. Everything is booked and he wouldn't be able to get out until Sunday. With the expense of changing the ticket and knowing that he would be leaving early Monday morning, Bob had no choice but to resign himself to staying. I just began to pray that God would tell me what I needed to do to walk with my friend through this hard news. These are moments when we're reminded what missionaries go through when they are so far away from home. I remember when the e-mail came from my sister saying that it was time for me to come home because my mom was close to death. That's an entirely situation and there is much hope in this case, but Bob awaits the next word from his daughter's surgery--far across the Atlantic. 

Bob is torn. He longs to be with his family as they walk through this storm, and his heart is also here with these young men he has been teaching. It has been a great joy to him, and yesterday he looked at me from out of the quietness of his thoughts and said, "Monte, this place is in me." I knew exactly what he meant. He meant that the call he had once known to come here and work and was now being fulfilled, was right, and would be right for the future. That's good, because in the time we spent with Peteris Sprogis, the Latvian Baptist president yesterday, an invitation came for Bob not only to return and teach again, but to return and lead Latvian Baptist pastors in a conference. I was amazed at how God works.

At one point during the day, Vesma, Bob's translator stepped out of the classroom during a break time and saw me seated in the lounge area. She came and sat down, looked at me and exclaimed, "Thank you so much for bringing Bob to us!" I smiled. I knew what she meant. She went on to explain how she had been concerned in the beginning because they never know what they're going to get from American pastors. She said, "We usually get the 1, 2, 3's of how to be a successful pastor, but that's not what these men need. Bob, on the other hand, speaks from the Word, from his heart, and from the wisdom of his own experiences." I looked at her and said, "That's Bob. He will always speak from out of the grace and humility in his own life." I thanked Vesma for her work of translation, acknowledging that this was hard work to sit and translate all day long in a classroom. She said, "No, I have enjoyed it! I have learned so much from him." I was very pleased. Bob is a pastor's pastor. His highest call in life has been to pastor and shepherd his people. He understands the implications of this--not just preaching and teaching, but caring and nurturing his people, as well as casting vision. Bob speaks of the great sacredness of the call to be a pastor. For me, he has been a model pastor. I suspect that many of these men have not had a right model. They're getting one this week! 

In the meantime, I've been battling some kind of virus--a really bad cold or something to the effect. It really stinks, to put it bluntly. At times I've run a little bit of fever. Yesterday I stayed in for most of the day when I longed to be out and about Riga, visiting with friends and seeing familiar sights. Yesterday evening after Bob finished teaching I felt caged and was ready to get out. The sky was clear and you could tell it would be a cold evening, but I didn't care. We made our way to the old city and walked its cobble-stoned streets, walked past the cathedrals, and to a familiar little pancake shop I used to frequent--again, like old times. Later, we made our way into the Dome Square where so much history was made in the break-up of the Soviet Union. Latvia was one of the first of the republics to declare their independence from the Soviets in 1991. They barricaded themselves into that square, awaiting the Soviet army to arrive from Moscow. They were prepared to die for the cause, if need be. The armored forces arrived, but ultimately stood down with little violence. It's an awesome thing to stand in that square and realize that the undoing of one of the greatest forces in the world began right there.

It's another beautiful day outside. It's cold, but the skies are clear and sunny. Bob has begun his last sessions with his men. No doubt, he's feeling a mixture of feelings--a longing to continue on with these men, and a longing to be home. I know he would appreciate your prayers as he works through these next few days. God has not allowed this trip to be uneventful for us, nevertheless, He uses moments like these to cause us to learn something new about who He is as we experience Him in our lives. We walk with Him in trust and grace as He displays Himself to us as Hope, Peace, Love, Grace, Glory, and ministers to our lives through unassuming men and women from a far off land called, Latvia. No matter what the next several days hold it is rich to be here and we will look back on this journey with the fondness of the memory of how God worked in the lives of others and in our own. What a great God we serve. It is His work, "which He prepared in advance for us to do."