OUTSIDE THE BOX

At our home church in Athens, Texas there has been a recent series of messages concerning thinking and being outside of the "box". Pastor Kyle Henderson always seems to come up with some memorable aids to help us remember basic truths.

At this week's Youth Meeting, Laura taught a great lesson using the same concept. She challenged the kids to not to rely on doing things in their spiritual life 'just because that's the way we've always done it". The kids really picked up on the main idea and had a good discussion.

Below is her visual aid. The kids made a box using all of the excuses for not thinking and acting outside of the box.

Freedom or imprisonment?

The choice is ours.

 

HOW TO EAT NACHOS

Last night at our regular weekly Youth Meeting, Laura served nachos for the first time. We had found some corn chips that were semi-good and she topped them with melted cheese and browned hamburger meat. She also whipped up some great salsa from tomatoes, onions, garlic, etc.

When the kids had the chips and melted cheese on their plates, they just kind of froze. Some looked like they wanted to use a fork to try to eat with, others just didn't know what to do. Finally, I showed them how to spoon some salsa over the whole mound of chips and cheese and then munch away using your fingers.

That loosened them up (who doesn't like eating with their fingers?) and they were into the nachos like we were sitting in Athens at Taco Bell. I tried to get a couple of the boys to try the jalapeno peppers but that was asking too much for one night.

I'm thinking of the whole affair as just a teachable moment in culinary culture!

 

  [The way nachos are supposed to look ... not the way our Latvian homemade nachos actually looked!]

WE ARE TEMPORARY LATVIANS ONCE MORE!

After a few trips to Riga, quite a bit of money and almost two months time ... we have been APPROVED for another year of temporary residence in Latvia. Yes, sir! That's what I'm talking about!!

Yesterday we got our official Temporary Residence Permit that will allow us to stay here until September 1, 2009. Almost every foreign citizen can tell a difficult story about the immigration process. Rules change suddenly, papers are not accepted and papers without correct seals/stamps all play a big part in acceptance or rejection.

We are already planning when we should start the next application .... maybe in a week?

We thank God we have the permit, that we are legal and that we can continue to concentrate on helping the people of Cesis and Latvia. Thanks also to many of you that have been our prayer warriors in this episode. We always appreciate your prayers.

THE NBA -- IT'S FANTASTIC

 

Today was a very good afternoon to stay inside (rainy and cold) and watch the NBA.

That's right ... our friends Inese and Peteris have a new TV (Japanese) and satellite system (Russian). They pick up a gazillon channels (with two being in English) and it's fun to flip through and try to figure out what the Russian words mean.

Of course, my favorite stop was the NBA channel. Today's game was vintage NBA: Chicago Bulls vs Utah Jazz (1998 finals). It is rather unique hearing a Russian sportscaster commenting in an highly excited voice as Michael Jordan slams one home.

I'm hoping I get a few more invitations to come watch some games as the season progresses. It would be nice to watch a few games rather than read about them on Internet.

Loti paldies Inese and Peteris!!!

GREAT NEWS FOR OUR LATVIAN FRIENDS

President Bush announces Latvia's preparedness for Visa Waiver Program

On October 17 President George W. Bush invited ambassadors of the 13 candidate countries (Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Bulgaria, South Korea, Greece, Cyprus and Malta) of the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) to a White House ceremony to announce the US Administration's decision to admit seven of these 13 countries to the Visa Waiver Program.

Latvia was represented by Ambassador Andrejs Pildegovics.

President Bush officially announced the addition of Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary and South Korea to the Visa Waiver Program.

Most likely in approximately one month, travelers from these countries will no longer require a visa to enter the United States. The program currently includes 27 countries.

The President stated that the seven countries agreed to share information about security threats to the U.S. and that their citizens would use a new system that requires travelers to register online ahead of their visits to the United States.

President Bush emphasized that Latvia and the other 6 countries have fulfilled all requirements related to admission into the US VWP. Admission to the VWP will open new possibilities for interpersonal contacts, tourism and business development. The removal of US visa requirements is yet another example of the dynamic development of the Latvia-US strategic partnership.

WE HAVE THE BEST KIDS

Last night was the first youth meeting since we returned to Cesis. It was great to see some of the kids that we haven't seen in a while. A couple attend school out of Cesis, one is now working in Norway (visiting last night) and a few we just not seen in the week since we have been back.

We are about to start the study 'Purpose Driven Life'. It is one of the few books we can find in both Latvian and English. They seem excited about the challenges we put before them last night. We will now order the books and hopefully get started next week.

We also had a request from a parent to move our meetings to Friday nights. It certainly doesn't matter to us but I was skeptical the kids would give up their Friday nights to spend them at Youth Meetings. They never cease to amaze me as all but one said Friday night was great with them.

The only problem is now they can stay at our small flat as long as they want ... "NO SCHOOL TOMORROW!"

 

Here are a few pictures of last night's game - Lifesaver On A Toothpick relay. You have to pass the lifesaver between the two people using only a toothpick each, no hands allowed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

WHAT DOES IT FEEL LIKE TO COME 'HOME' TO CESIS

We feel like we now have two homes -- one in Athens, Texas and one in Cesis, Latvia.

When we arrive back in Cesis from a trip to Texas it can take several days before we really feel 'adjusted'. Some of that adjustment is due to jet-lag but most is just due to the differences in culture and our life-style. Some of the more noticeable changes might be:

 

-- Availability and selection of food products -- Now you can look at either of us and know we are not on the verge of starvation. BUT, coming from a small town where there are restaurants, fast-food places and grocery stores on every corner, the change is striking when you reach Cesis. There are about 5 places to eat in Cesis but they all serve the same type of food (Latvian). Unlike Texas, there are no Mexican, hamburger, Chinese, Italian, deli or any of the other myriad types of food choices. Accordingly, the grocery stores have a limited selection as well. A couple of choices for your main, everyday products and that's it. When you are used to Wal-Mart or Brookshires with all of their choices, the Universal Veikal just doesn't have the same appeal.

 

-- Lack of television -- We firmly believe that we accomplish more in Cesis because we don't have a TV to monopolize our time. After we return from the TV occupied world of our Texas home it is a big adjustment to go cold-turkey on the TV watching.  It probably takes us a couple of weeks to forget about flopping down in front of the TV to waste an hour or two on the latest Cops/CSI/Dirty Jobs/DIY network/reruns of Andy Griffith shows. Now if I could just get a remote control to carry around and click then maybe my addiction could be contained more easily.

 

 

-- Loving on our dogs -- As hard as I have tried I can't get Laura to let me have a dog in Cesis. In Texas, we are crazy about our dogs and enjoy being with them.  I shouldn't tell this but Laura actually lets them have a small scoop of Blue-Bell Ice Cream on special occasions. We can always email and phone the boys but even though we have the smartest dogs in the world, we can't get them to send email regularly. It looks like I will just have to continue bugging Laura until she gives in so I can have a Latvian dog as a pal. [Zoe on the right and Jasmine on the left.]

 

-- Weather -- The Indian Summer was really nice (80's as highs / 60's lows) when we left Texas. When we arrived back this time it was  late fall. It just seems like we had put up our winter clothes yesterday and now we are wearing coats, scarves and winter caps again. We have had a couple of nights close to freezing and only into the low 50's during the day. It is kind of like missing a couple of months...going from very warm to very cool overnight. Plus, we have already begun to build daily fires for heat in our stove.

Don't take any of the above in the wrong manner.

We enjoy the cultural differences, we enjoy the difference in people and we enjoy trying new things. We are blessed to be be here and experience all that we have.

God has made it clear He doesn't want His church to be just one culture, one race, one color or one nation. Living here has helped us to understand that idea on a daily basis.

BACK IN CESIS!

We are back in Cesis after a spending the month of September in Athens, Texas. We had scheduled this trip home so that we could spend time with our family and more specifically, attend our son Adam's graduation from the Art Institute of Dallas. We had to leave Latvia a little earlier than planned because of visa difficulties but the extra time in Texas was great.

What did we do while we were in Texas? Here is a partial sample:

1] Survived one hurricane (Ike)

2] Braved the traffic of Austin, Houston and Dallas on several occasions

3] Ate Mexican food 13 times.

4] Ate several cartons of Blue Bell Ice Cream (is there any other kind?)

5] Had a major operation performed on one of our dogs. (Everything turned out great!)

6] Attended a college graduation (Yea Adam!)

7] Spoke at Mission Emphasis at FBC-Athens

8] Attended a 50th Wedding Celebration (congratulations to the Finchers!) and a Texas BBQ

9] Worked on our boys' cars to get them ready for winter

10] Watched a couple of Dallas Cowboys games (on TV!)

11] Networked with college coaching friends on trying to get some of our Latvian players scholarships

12] Went on a great barge ride one night around Lake Athens. (Thanks to our friends Lee and Susan)

13] Met with the good folks at WorldConneX to update their involvement in our activities

14] Worked a few hours on our lawn to try to overcome some of the neglect inflicted upon it while we have been away

15] Scoured every Goodwill Store that we came across in search of cheap books to bring back for our enjoyment (English books are hard to find here and expensive)

16] Packed, re-packed, and re-packed again trying to get everything crammed into our baggage. (We still left some things behind.)

Whenever we get discouraged in Cesis, God always helps us to focus on something that recharges and fills us with enthusiasm. This time, that encouragement came from our family, our friends and our church at FBC-Athens. It is always a thrill to again be a part of a church that is so mission minded and generous with God's blessings.

Thanks to everyone for a great trip. You always help us to realize how important Cesis is, not only to us, but also to you.