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Expanding roles and services
Dear friends in Christ,
Life on the field has been a joy over this last month. We are well into the fall semester with Luther Academy. Carter’s school is underway, and he is involved in some great extracurricular activities as well. Lindsay is back to school, and I am halfway through my Ph.D. program, with the intention of being done with the intensive courses this academic year.
The English services that we have been doing at St. John’s for the last few years are set to expand this month, which is exciting. We have previously been worshipping in English twice a month, but as of October, we will be worshipping in English every week. This is an important development because, in order to plant an actual congregation, we need to have not only regular worship services, but we also need to develop a community. The missionary families already have lunch together after church most Sundays, and we are occasionally joined by a Latvian or two who speak English and attend the services. We hope to be able to reach out to the larger area and offer some Bible classes and other outreach opportunities.
In other news, I have been given some expanded responsibilities on the field. I was recently promoted to the role of Area Facilitator for Eurasia North and East. This means that I have responsibility for the oversight of the mission activity and missionaries in these areas of our region. This will facilitate greater communication on the field, and we will be able to collaborate on projects more effectively. This means that you may get to hear occasional stories about the work happening in other parts of Europe as well! It is a joy to work so closely with Rev. Dr. David Preus as our Regional Director and Rev. Nathaniel Jensen, the Area Facilitator for Eurasia South and West.
God’s blessings to you this fall, and we thank you all for your continued support of this important work that our Lord is doing throughout Eurasia!
In Christ’s service,
Pastor Cundiff
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Quintin leads the English worship service at St. John in Rīga, Latvia.
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Carter’s Corner
Sveiki (hello)! September has been an interesting month. We had our school picture day, and I don’t hate pictures, but they are not my favorite. I’m glad they are done for the year!
World Scholar’s club started up again recently. I qualified for a global round in December, and I am really excited to partake in it!
Latvia actually celebrates Father’s Day every September, rather than in May like the United States does, so we took Dad out to a pretty tasty restaurant, and we had a great time celebrating him. When we got home, my dad and I played a video game together, and it was a really good bonding time.
At school, we had MAP testing, which is a test that measures the amount we’ve learned from year to year. We have those twice per year, once at the beginning and another at the end. As always, I did quite well.
I joined a video game and app development club at school, and I have a lot of fun doing that with friends. I even began to design a really cool dragon from a story I’m working on.
Thank you all again for your support!
– Carter (age 13)
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PLEASE PRAY FOR:
- Quintin in his new role.
- The administration, faculty, and students of Lutera Akadēmija.
- Good health and well-being for the family and friends of all missionaries.
PRAISE GOD FOR:
- The long, faith-filled life of Evelyn May. We look forward to seeing her again at the Resurrection.
- YOU – our generous donors and prayer warriors, along with the steadfast workers of Mission Central and Mission Advancement, without whom this mission would be impossible.
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Lielais Kristaps
This handsome fellow is known in Latvia as Lielais Kristaps (literally “Big Christopher”), and his legend is linked with the founding of Rīga, the capital city. Many versions of this legend exist, but I found one that was very, very interesting.
In the 3rd century, a kind giant of a man named Offero resided in a cave on the banks of the Daugava River, and he would carry travelers through its raging waters. One day, a small child asked for help to cross. Offero agreed, but the child became incredibly heavy, and they barely made it across.
Once they made it to the other bank, the child revealed that he was Christ, and the immense weight the giant had carried were the sins of the world. Christ baptized the man and christened him Christopher, or “Christ-bearer.” Upon return to his cave, he discovered a hoard of gold, which he used to found the city of Rīga.
This statue resides in the Museum of the History of Riga and Navigation, while a replica stands on the banks of the Daugava River.
Information from: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/big-christopher
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Cundiff_Latvia_Sept2024.pdf
