A Dream… A Vision… A Plan
The Dream began in the heart and spirit of Gita Mednis.
The Vision began in the heart and spirit of Professor Jesse Sowell.
The Plan begins, now, to take shape in the hearts and spirits of the entire Friends of Latvia community, across
miles and oceans.
Gita dreamt that her pastors would have ministry partners/mentors to ease the journey they have each
undertaken. We have all known the value of those more experienced than we who share their experience,
strength, and hope with us; those who have listened to our dreams, visions, and plans, then celebrated or
suffered with us – whatever was needed at any given time.
Jesse had created and implemented such programs frequently over his 38 year teaching career. He had seen
how such pairing enhances the making of disciples and contributes to more celebrating than suffering. He
envisioned such a program of pairing between pastors in the U.S. with pastors in Latvia. In sharing his vision with
his pastor/wife, the vision began to take shape and form. It became this proposal:
We will bring our Latvian pastors and their US partners to Stillwater Lodge in Glen Rose, Texas for a 3-day Academy for Spiritual Formation. They will have opportunity to experience educational sessions, worship times, and sharing times with each other and the full group. They will learn and practice rich moments of encountering God through the practice of the Spiritual Disciplines. They will get to know each other. Then, with the aid of modern technology, they will keep in touch with one another across the miles and the oceans. The proposal has been adopted by the Texas Regional Friends of Latvia in the hope that the greater FOL community will catch the dream and envision their participation, too.
What can YOU do?
SUPPORT THE LATVIAN PASTORS’ TRIP TO THE 2015 FOL MEETING AND RETREAT WITH YOUR PRAYERS AND YOUR FINANCES.
We will be sending a note to individual contacts at US connecting congregations requesting that those churches
consider sponsoring the expenses of their Latvian pastor. However, we know that there will be some
congregations who cannot cover the entire expense, and there are some pastors who do not have a connecting
congregation. Therefore, we ask that each of you consider giving toward this great effort! Every little bit helps.
Together, we can make a great impact in transforming the hearts, minds and lives of our Latvian friends.
Our goal is to cover all expenses for any pastor who wishes to attend - airfare, retreat expenses, accommodations, entertainment, translators, etc. We hope all of the Latvian pastors will attend, and we do have firm commitments from most of them. We estimate that the total cost for each pastor will be $2,200 (depending on airfare). Airfare will vary depending on when flights are booked, whether pastors visit their connection congregations, etc.
FUMC Grapevine has agreed to receive and process the donations for the retreat. To give:
Mail checks to: FUMC Grapevine | ATTN: Latvia Pastors Retreat | 422 Church Street | Grapevine, TX 76051
Give online at www.firstmethodistgrapevine.org/give - put your donation amount in one of the “Special Gift” lines
with “Latvia Pastors Retreat” in the memo.
If you have questions about how to give, contact Melissia Mason at FUMC Grapevine (817-481-2559 x109).