Baseball Training

Hey all. I know that it's been awhile since I updated and I'm sorry.

Right now we are in the middle of our baseball training camp, and God has blessed it immensely.

A team of 8 people from View Crest PCA in 84, PA, has come to lead this training camp. They are doing an outstanding job and God is greatly blessing their efforts.

At least four of the teens attending have expressed interest in joining our regular group, and this is huge. It is so encouraging to see the Lord at work here! It has been very helpful to all of us.

Please pray for the remaining two days of the camp. Pray for conversions. Please also pray for the health and well being of all of the leadership here. We are tired, but it is a good kind of tired. A very satisfying feeling.

Thank you for your continued support.

-Caleb


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Location:Vīlandes iela,Riga,Latvia

Jani Camp 2011

This Saturday I completed my third Jani camp. I've been the past three years in a row and that's really amazing to me. I'm amazed at how the Lord has made it possible for me to be in Latvia three years in a row. He has worked out every detail, including my job. I've gotten two months off work during the past two summers. They have had to hire replacements both times but somehow they are willing to work with me and reserve a spot for me. I Praise God for this.

It seems like get to know the people here better and better each year, and I also feel that I relate to them better each year. At first I didn't really care for the flavor of many of their foods simply because it wasn't what I was used to. Now I'm enjoying everything more and more as it becomes more familiar to me. The people here like to joke about me being a full blooded Latvian now. Even though i know that I'm not even close, it still feels good to have them say this. I understand the culture better and develop more of a love for it every year.

Alright, so the camp was great. The Holy Spirit was very evident and I feel like the teens that I worked with learned a lot from this camp. We had discussion times after each of the lectures where we did an activity directly related to the talk, followed by some question and answer time, and a song to go with it also. We could really tell that some of the teens were definitely getting it. They understood the lectures and this was encouraging to see.

I slept in a tent again this year, and I also didn't shower during the camp. As you can image, I was pretty worn out when I got home, but I have recovered since then.

Brad and I were a part of the worship team for this camp and it was a real blessing to each of us. The worship team was a combination of both churches this year. Gundega Gulbe led the group and she did a wonderful job. She teaches piano to children for a living and she is a very talented leader.

Thank you for all of your prayers! The camp was a huge success. I wish that I could explain everything in detail but there's no way I could do everything justice. I will be trying to put up some more pictures though so hopefully you will get a better feel for what Jani camp is really like.

Thanks again for your support in various ways!

-Caleb



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Teen ministry

Today I got the chance to go bowling with a couple teens from RRBC. A good time was had by all. I really enjoy spending time with all of the young people here. They are just a pleasure to be around. I thank God for the good relationship I have with these teens.


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Location:Merķeļa iela,Riga,Latvia

Praise report

Thank you for all of your prayers!

I just want to update and tell you that I'm feeling more encouraged now than ever before on this trip. I feel more focused than I've been since I arrived nearly three weeks ago. Beyond that I feel joy. I feel joy being able to serve God through ministering to His people here in Riga.

Your prayers mean more to me than you know. Keep 'em coming.


-Caleb


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Location:Vīlandes iela,Riga,Latvia

Monday June 13

So, on Mondays we have planning meetings for the new week and the summer in general. Today's meeting was good but almost overwhelming. There are a lot of decisions that are yet to be made for this summer, and I want to share a few things we need prayer for.

First, please pray for the Jani camp. Jani camp will be held on June 23rd-25th. The Jani celebration here in Latvia celebrates the longest day of the year but it is also closely connected with Latvia's pagan roots. Jani celebrates nature worship and a "fertility" ritual that is really an excuse to have sex. The church has the Jani camp during this time to pull people together to worship God and get to know Him better instead of the pagan tradition. Please pray that the people attending this camp would experience the presence of God and would come to a better understanding of the Gospel and God's love. Please pray specifically for the teens involved in this camp. All of our teens here have both good and bad influences on their lives. At church they have friends and mentors urging them to find their identity in Christ, and they also have their friends from school and virtually everyone else telling them to find their identity in the things of this world. This is a critical time in these young people's lives so I beg you to pray on their behalf. The leaders here and I are incapable of moving them any closer to Christ. Only God can bring them to Himself and show His power in this way.

Second, we have a team coming for softball training the second week of July. The date is from July 10th-15th. We will be gathering teens in the park and teaching them how to play softball. There are many decisions yet to be made for this time. Please pray that God would give us guidance. Please also pray for the team coming from the US. This will be the first overseas trip for some of the team members and that can be very difficult. We are also trying to make new contacts with teens during this event so please pray for that to happen.

The last thing I would ask you to pray for is my focus. I feel that the devil is trying to distract me with thoughts of things at home. I just ask you to pray that this would not be allowed to happen. My time here is very important and I know that but its also very hard to be away from home in some ways. I was recently convicted by a verse in Luke 9: Jesus said to him, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God." My hand is on the plow and I need to not look back but it's hard.

Thank you for your generous prayer support.

-Caleb


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Mission to Riga III

Well its been a good Sunday! Today we had a good teen meeting in the park. The Bible Study was on Romans 9.

Then it was time to scoot over to the church so that Brad and I could practice music. The music went well. Brad and I played acoustic guitar while Anda and Inga sang.

After church 7 of us went to eat at Čili Pica.

Now Brad, Oskars, and I are renting a movie from iTunes to watch.

-Caleb


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Location:Lāčplēša iela,Riga,Latvia

A few pictures...

Brad and me at the airport in DC.



Here I am in Frankfurt.



Here is Mārtiņš receiving his guitar that was a gift from Summer Oaks PCA.



Here Brad and I are playing music for Light Café.



Here is our teens meeting on Sunday in the park.

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Location:Vīlandes iela,Riga,Latvia