Greece Day 5

What a full day - it is presently 11:00 PM, and I have to write before I go to bed - mainly because I was not able to talk with my wife today, and I know she will be reading this tonight.

The day started with ministry at the Helping Hands ministry in downtown Athens.  Scott McCracken actually met us on the metro (by "accident") and walked with us to the facility.  We met individuals from all over Europe and the United States that were there to serve the Afghan people (and some Iranians as well).  I was able to see Iril again - and work with him in the kitchen.  He has not changed a bit, still the hilarious, quick witted, fun loving Albanian.  Only since I last saw him he has added another child to the mix.  Anyway, it was a fun reunion.  We served about 160 people dinner, and then had a quick service, followed by games and activities to interact with the people.

During the message, I was working in the kitchen and was cleaning dishes (yes, Dee, apparently I can do dishes) and God taught me an interesting lesson.  We were asked to "go slow" which really meant "try not to make noise".  They closed the doors (to lessen the noise) which increased the room temperature.  Then I was working in hot water (actually burned my fingers), the dishwasher was running (increasing the temperature) and I was getting hotter and hotter.  People would occasionally come into the kitchen, and I would relish the cool air they allowed in.  At one point I asked Lawson to keep the door open for a few seconds.  I stopped working, and the thought hit me - "am I willing to be hot and uncomfortable doing dishes so others can hear the gospel without distraction?"  Doing dishes quietly so others can hear the gospel.  Sounds silly, but isn't that what God often calls us to do.  Be uncomfortable for His glory.  Be humbled for his glory.  Anyway, it was one of my lessons for the day.

After Helping Hands, we headed for Mars Hill and listened to Fotis as he passed on his vision for the people of Athens.  We also spent some time reading Paul's speech to the Athenians - noting that in only took about a minute and fifteen seconds to read.  (Normal procedure for a speech was 6 minutes, and people used all of that six minutes to say what they wanted)  The reason Paul only spoke such a short time is because he mentioned the resurrection - which in fact drew sneers and laughs from his audience, but some believed and followed Jesus.  We went from there to the Acropolis, and enjoyed the views and the ruins from the top of the mountain.

About 6:30 we made our way to the Refuge Ministry - a ministry to the Greek homeless.  Along the way we stopped at an orthodox church and got an education on Greek Orthodoxy.  When we arrive at Refuge, we had the opportunity to give testimonies and listen to a man preach the gospel.  We left there and ate dinner at the Placa Restaurant (sampling some of Greece's finest) and then headed for home.  George picked us up at the train station and we arrived back at the CVC just before 11.

A long and wonderful day for the team - very full of activity.  Tomorrow we head for Corinth.  New lessons in the life and activities of the apostle Paul, and hopefully deepening our understanding of the Word of God.