Debriefing

Today was a nice change of pace since we got to Riga from camp.  We spent the morning debriefing the past week at camp.  What was a highlight, what was challenging, and how did you see God work in camp?  We all shared the answers to those questions as we recounted the busy week.  It was a great, productive time for us.  In the coming days as we shift back into our lives, we will run through a series of emotions that will range from joy to missing the students.

Tomorrow is a free day and the team is still tired so we will spend a casual day in old town Riga and have lunch and gelato and probably dinner.  Wednesday we will get an early start for our journey home.

Thanks for praying!

Back in Riga

Today we went to church service and a lot of students came to church.  That was super encouraging.  We said our goodbyes to the Latvian church team, the interns and the students one final time.  We then made the journey back to Riga where we will spend our two remaining days before coming home.

One of the important aspects of a trip like this is to spend time debriefing the week.  Emotions are running high from the joy of relationships built with students to exhaustion from a busy week.  As the team begins to process the trip for themselves personally we want to hear what challenged, what encouraged and just hear about their impressions of camp.

Tomorrow we will begin that process of debriefing with our team and Josiah Venture staff.  An experience like this takes time to process and so I will have a deeper debrief in a coup of weeks once we all settle back into our schedules because we will each be feeling different emotions at different times and the Lord will help us process the trip as we seek what the Lord would have us do after a trip like this.

We will then spend some time celebrating the camp and do some sight seeing.  The weather may make some of that a challenge since it looks like we will be in for a couple of rainy days.  We are in the final stretch of the trip and would ask you to keep lifting us up in prayer for health, rest and safety.

The End of Camp

Whew!  The end of camp has arrived and we all have mixed emotions.  We are tired, but we really loved spending time with the students and we are already missing them.  But we will get to see a number of them tomorrow when they come to church.  After church will be our final goodbye to Limbazi and the Latvian team and students we have had the privilege of spending this past week with.

The last day was jam-packed with Program, English, Workshops, Afternoon program and games.  At the end of the day the inevitable tears came as students expressed their appreciation and goodbyes to us.  There is joy in seeing the impact of our work through the week and a bit of sadness because it has come to a conclusion.  Many students asked about next year- in fact, beginning on the second day they were asking about next year.  We tell them that we don't know but it is possible.  

Tomorrow we worship at church again and then head back to Riga for a couple of days for debriefing and rest before returning home.  We can see the finish line but I ask for your prayers for us to finish strong and stay healthy for the remainder of the trip.

Gospel Day at Camp

Today was a busy day with the usual camp activities of English, workshops and sports.  But today was also very different than the previous days because the students heard the gospel during the program time this afternoon and then go through the Labyrinth that is a personal reflective journey about God's offering the free gift of salvation for those who want it.

We had been praying for the students to have open hearts as they heard the gospel story.  Early reports from the Limbazi church team says the students had a great experience with the Labyrinth.