“The Lord has been at work before you even step off the plane…”

One of the lessons that was drilled into us during our training was to be careful of a savior mentality. We are not going to start the Lord’s work; He has already been working in the hearts and minds of the people. The Lord is the one who saves and grows and we are going to join Him in His work.

There is a church plant here in Ādaži called Misijas Draudze and we were able to worship with them on Sunday. Their pastor, Kaspars, has worked tirelessly on our behalf for several months in helping us find a place to live, arrange transportation from the airport, and spent several days helping us set up here in our new flat. We are eager to join them in their work to reach the people of Ādaži with the good news of the gospel.

I am reminded of Philippians 2:1-4:

So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.

This church family here has helped us in many ways and taught us humility by being humble themselves. Whether it was collecting cookware so that we could cook during our first few nights at our flat or taking Patty to the grocery store and showing her where to find things, they have been a great blessing to us. In fact, we spent almost the entire day this past Sunday with our brothers and sisters in Christ.

First, we gathered for a post-worship meal in a neighboring apartment. The girls had a wonderful time, enjoying the food and playing with toys.

After a lovely lunch, our friends invited us to go down to the beach. It may have involved Patty off-roading in one of their vans…

It was a gorgeous evening with a beautiful beach and great company. There is a river called the Gauja River which flows through Ādaži. We were able to walk down the beach a couple of kilometers and see where the Gauja meets the Bay of Riga. The girls had an absolute blast and were covered in sand by the time we got home.

While Luke can’t speak very much Latvian, he can pick things up and put them down again. The church plant here in Ādaži has been working on a playground near our apartment complex. Our girls have enjoyed going with Luke to play on the playground while he and a few of the men from the church put the finishing touches on the structure.

We are thankful to join the Lord in what He is already doing here in Ādaži!