Journey to Riga

This blog has been silent for some months. There are many reasons, but I’m not going to try to justify this silence. I’ve wanted to write more, but wanting is not the same as doing. I just didn’t get round to it!But following this last weekend, here is an attempt at writing again.

Anyone who knows me realises that I have an interest in the church in former Communist countries. Whilst Communism was the ruling power in Eastern Europe I visited Christians in Prague to encourage and learn. Following the collapse of communism I have always been glad of the opportunity to visit churches in Eastern Europe, again to encourage and learn, but also to be encouraged as I see how God has answered those prayers of over thirty five years ago. So when I was invited to accompany Lindsay Brown to a conference in Latvia I was happy to accept, and to see what was happening there.

The conference we were attending was called MISSION DAYS, and brought Christians from both the student world and churches in the country together to consider the call to mission. Lindsay (former General Secretary of IFES) was asked to give five talks on Mission, and there were opportunities for seminars, Bible studies and much fellowship.

There are a number of things which I hope will be helpful for me to share, and I trust will both encourage us, inform our prayers, and will compel us forward in obedience to the great commission.

Firstly, some general points.
We are all encouraged when God answers prayer. However we in the West tend to be a bit impatient. Our prayers are often general and vague, and we often miss what God is doing. When I think back to the mid-seventies when I became a Christian, we were challenged often to pray for Christians in Eastern Europe who suffered under communist regimes. Open Doors, Friedenstimme, and other societies encouraged us with exciting stories, but there was much suffering at that time. I don’t know whether over the years we have forgotten those prayers. But God has not forgotten, and He is still answering them. Seeing this is a sure aid, both in our own faith and worship, and in our commitment to the Gospel. Having an old woman with a wizened face come and embrace me, thanking me for our prayers was both a humbling and motivating experience.

Secondly, Latvia is a country which has suffered much over the years, and since the year 1300 has known almost constant domination by other nations. There is something in the Latvian psyche which corresponds very much with the Welsh inferiority complex, built over years of domination by another culture. There is an affinity which makes it particularly easy to minister to them.

Thirdly, it is a very needy country. Economically it is one of the worst hit in the recent economic crisis. The hopelessness, especially among the middle aged, has led to the country having the second highest suicide rate in the world. The young are leaving the country in droves, and the population is decreasing. There is much corruption in government and business.

Fourthly, the churches there are encouraged in many ways, but the workers are few. Many are missionaries who have come from other countries. The dominant church would be the Lutheran church. But liberalism has left its’ mark on much of the church. However there are good things happening in many Lutheran churches. There are also Baptist and Pentecostal churches which are growing. There are gifted young men and women who can be trained, and it was a joy to meet some 250 of these people in the Mission Days Conference.
I will try to give a taste of the conference in the next couple of blogs