JANUARY 20, 1991 by Larry Stout
JANUARY 20, 1991 by Larry Stout 1/20/08
Few dates are as important to me as the 20th of January. It was on that date seventeen years ago that my family and I embarked on a historic mission to what was then the Soviet Union. We were the first American family to live in the capital city of Riga and very possibly the first officially recognized missionaries to the USSR. (“Officially” recognized in that the KGB apparently did not flag our visa application as they should have when we listed ‘missionary’ as our occupation!)
I remember the chaos of trying to check in five people and nineteen pieces of luggage at JFK airport, of the tearful goodbyes to our family, of the long layover in Helsinki awaiting our Riga connection, and then the twilight flight into Riga itself. Though I had been to the city three times before, it seemed different that night. In some incredibly strange way, I felt like I was going home.
For the next fifteen plus years, Riga was my home. I never could imagine leaving Latvia. I knew that sooner or later we probably would be returning to the States, but I felt that it would come to me with the greatest reluctance. How could I leave the country that I had grown to love so much?
One reason why I am a Reformed Christian is because I believe so much in the sovereignty of God. There is no logical explanation other than God’s intervention for a simple Pennsylvania boy to develop such a love for a country he practically never heard of before. Similarly, the Lord would also take that love and enlarge it so that I could see that my direct work was done and that there was a new home for me – back where I grew up!
Even though I do not see January 20th as another anniversary for living in Latvia, it still is an important memorial for me. It reminds me of how God works in a servant’s heart. As Debbie and I have sought to do His will, He has supplied us with the joy in doing that will. And the joy of the Lord has been our strength.
Few dates are as important to me as the 20th of January. It was on that date seventeen years ago that my family and I embarked on a historic mission to what was then the Soviet Union. We were the first American family to live in the capital city of Riga and very possibly the first officially recognized missionaries to the USSR. (“Officially” recognized in that the KGB apparently did not flag our visa application as they should have when we listed ‘missionary’ as our occupation!)
I remember the chaos of trying to check in five people and nineteen pieces of luggage at JFK airport, of the tearful goodbyes to our family, of the long layover in Helsinki awaiting our Riga connection, and then the twilight flight into Riga itself. Though I had been to the city three times before, it seemed different that night. In some incredibly strange way, I felt like I was going home.
For the next fifteen plus years, Riga was my home. I never could imagine leaving Latvia. I knew that sooner or later we probably would be returning to the States, but I felt that it would come to me with the greatest reluctance. How could I leave the country that I had grown to love so much?
One reason why I am a Reformed Christian is because I believe so much in the sovereignty of God. There is no logical explanation other than God’s intervention for a simple Pennsylvania boy to develop such a love for a country he practically never heard of before. Similarly, the Lord would also take that love and enlarge it so that I could see that my direct work was done and that there was a new home for me – back where I grew up!
Even though I do not see January 20th as another anniversary for living in Latvia, it still is an important memorial for me. It reminds me of how God works in a servant’s heart. As Debbie and I have sought to do His will, He has supplied us with the joy in doing that will. And the joy of the Lord has been our strength.
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