Light to overcome the darkness

Dear friends in Christ,

It sure is getting dark earlier now, isn’t it? How many of you have found yourselves saying this over the last few days? We here in Latvia did the “fall back” a week before the US did, so for a few days, our time difference was lessened by an hour, which was nice for contacts and conversations with friends and family in the States.

But as we slide into the darker part of the year, I find myself reflecting on the words of Isaiah 25:7-8: “And he will swallow up on this mountain the covering that is cast over all peoples, the veil that is spread over all nations. He will swallow up death forever; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces, and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth, for the LORD has spoken.” The dark shroud of death covers so much of our world. Not only do we see many examples of death rampaging in our world, but there is the far more insidious darkness of spiritual death.

But instead of giving into despair, God reminds us that he has already given the answer for this darkness of death. Our Lord Jesus Christ swallowed up death at the cross and through his resurrection. In Christ, we have eternal life. And that life is ours now. This life then belongs to our Lord. And as his servants, we now rejoice at the opportunity to share the willingness of our master to receive all others as well! This is why we as Christians engage in mission: Death has been defeated, and we get to tell people about not just the victory but also the victor!

May God grant you the light of life and joy as we move into the end of the Church year and look with anticipation to our celebration of God swallowing up the shroud of death by sending his son to be incarnate among us for our salvation. May God bless the work of all missionaries throughout the world, and may He bless those who pray for and support those engaged in the work.

In Christ’s service,

Pastor Cundiff

Whew – what a month!

October has been a really busy month! Quintin had Ph.D. intensives in Fort Wayne for two weeks and has also been working on planning a conference in Norway in March.

Carter had his week-long Fall Break and got to hang out with his South Korean friend, Peter. He also had a field trip to one of Rīga’s river islands (Ķipsala). There is a memorial and museum to a man named Žanis Lipke, who rescued and sheltered Jews from the Rīga Ghetto during World War II in a secret bunker. Carter’s class then had a discussion on when to trust authorities and follow the rules made by those authorities. Very important to contemplate in today’s world!

Lindsay has been working hard in her Research Methods nursing course and is doing well so far. She also had a side project of proofreading a 250-page autobiography, so that was exciting!

The Cundiffs also jumped the annual hurdle of visa renewal, assisted by the lovely Māra Jensone, the Archbishop’s administrative assistant. We always love spending time chatting with her while waiting in line at the Immigration Office. Part of the process is not unlike waiting at the DMV, so it’s good to have a friend to catch up with while you do so!

Finally, all three of us spent this past Saturday at the movie theater. If you know the Cundiffs at all, you know they love sci-fi! It is the 25th anniversary of the first Matrix movie, so the theater did a triple-feature of all three Matrix movies in one afternoon and evening. It was a LONG day, but it was so fun to see them together in the theater! Afterward, we stopped and talked to two Latvian strangers about world events and how they relate to the movies – we even got to share the gospel with them!