Wow! Time has flown by. We are already packing and preparing to leave the Greek Bible Institute in Pikermi. We are off to Camp Kalamos tomorrow morning bright and early where we will be councilors to teens from the church. I am so excited to re-live my fantastic girl scout camp days by sleeping in canvas tent/enclosure type things, playing games, showering every few days =) and bonding with all of my fellow campers! It'll be so exciting. Our team has been tasked with planning and leading games for the next eight days which means tons of water fights and team activities! I am so excited to get to know these teens' stories and be able to really communicate well since they pretty much all know English. I have already talked with a few of the girls who are part of the youth group of First Greek Evangelical Church and they are incredibly sweet and interested in my life in the United States. It'll be neat to hear about their lives in Greece and their impression of being part of a very small Christian denomination in a country that is about 97% Greek Orthodox.
As I was reading through my last few blogs, I was realizing that I had ALOT of thoughts and evaluation and not alot of the basics like all of the minstries we have been a part of! Goodness! Sorry that my last few blogs have been so lengthy (I tend to be very wordy when I write). We have been very involved with Center 68 and the ministry to the Albanian immigrant population through festivals and tournaments (which I discussed a few blogs ago), homeless ministry, trash pickup ministry and the Nea Zoi brothel ministry.
The homeless ministry that we took part in was interesting for me. We traveled downtown and up to the sixth floor of an average looking building. When we arrived, there were men and women lined up down the hallways waiting to be served. One of the main rooms was full of bags and bags of clothes and shoes which were given in exchange for these individuals' dirty clothes and laundered. In addition, there were a few bathrooms with showers, sinks, and shaving supplies for these people to have the opportunity to clean up. After everyone had an opportunity to change, they were led downstairs and given snacks, frappes and fellowship. Soon after, the gospel was preached and people were fed. This ministry went through this routine every week with about twenty volunteers. It was a beautiful, well orchestrated evening. People were fed both physically and spiritually. We were blessed to be able to sing a few hymns and some gave their testimonies. We also talked with many of these people and learned their stories. Many people had left their home countries and traveled to Greece in hopes for a better life, lost their jobs, and were on the streets. I found it odd that so many of these people were educated and well spoken. I was shocked to hear the stories of English teachers and carpenters. These were men and women who had families and hoped to provide for them but were faced with huge unemployment and little government welfare cushion as immigrants. It was amazing to see a handful of people responding to the altar call, some weeping and some in solemn prayer. God was working in amazing ways and it was very neat to be part of his promise to love all of his children, especially the lowly and the needy.
Another ministry that we have worked with a few times has been trash pickup in various parts of Greece. Before I arrived in Greece, the team was staying in the city of Volos and the main thing that they did was pick up trash along the road and cliffs. They learned that it was quite common for people to simply throw their trash out of their windows as they drove along. Some of the other interns had a competition of who could collect the most bendy straws (used for frappes- a must have for Greeks everyday) and they collected about four hundred. They filled up multiple trashbags from just picking up trash for a few hours. They were encouraged, by Pastor Meletis there, that they were "washing the feet of Volos." This was the way that they could serve the people the best since it is considered shameful to pick up trash, especially if it is a strangers'. They were a huge blessing there. A few days ago, however, our team ventured into the neighborhood of Exarcia to walk through their parks and on the hillside picking up trash. This neighborhood is a very unique one. It is the scene of many protests and holds the plaque remembering a 15 year old boy who was killed by a police officer during a protest. Since this event, the neighborhood has formed a strong hatred for the police, believing all of them to be corrupt pigs. There is now no police presence in the neighborhood. There is an unwritten agreement that if the people are left alone, they will remain peaceful and law abiding. In some strange way this system works for them because they have one of the lowest crime rates in Greece. It is a neighborhood of young college student and older socially conscious adults. It was described as a very "eclectic city" that is antiestablishment. Being that I am proestablishment and am quite fond of police and law enforcement, it took some getting used to. Becasue the neighborhood is essentially left to its own devices, there is a significant drug dealing/using population that hangs out in more secluded areas, including the parks and wooded areas that we were cleaning. As a result, most of our trash pickup was cigarette butts and syringes and needles. It was a huge shock to me. It was frankly kind of scary and eye-opening. I tried to remain calm since some of the other girls were getting a little worked up but admittedly, in my head, I was flip flopping between fear, tears and thanking God that I grew up in a loving family with parents that were always looking out for my best interest. I saw a few people sleeping on the concrete with nothing but a jacket to lay their head on. I also saw people shooting heroine right in front of us picking up trash as if it was as common as tying their shoes. This is the same neighborhood that the church is trying to establish a church plant for. They are truly men of God, abiding by his will even though many of the church planters and newlyweds who have moved into the neighborhood and out of their comfort zone. On man that we were able to speak with did just that: got married and moved into this neighborhood even though the church plant was not ready yet because they still needed more manpower. He moved into the neighborhood to get to know its inhabitants and begin to form relationships. I tell you, the men of the church that we have met here are so amazing. They leap out in faith more than most Christians I know dare to. That trash pickup was difficult and heart wrenching because the amount of despair was overwhelming but the hope that these church planters have and their dedication to their call was phenomenal to see.
That last ministry that we have been involved with in the Nea Zoi ministry. We have not had very many opportunities to visit the brothels just because we are very unwanted by the pimps so we have to tread lightly. What I did see was very sad. The first brothel I visited I was only in for a few moments because the regular madam was sick and the interim madam was not very friendly with us. Dina is the wife of the president of the Bible Institute here and she is very involved in the brothel ministry. She has been working for the past eight years to form positive relationships with the madams, many of whom were prostitutes themselves, in charge of taking care of the women. It was interesting to learn that the madams are generally very kind and inviting towards Dina because they see the good will that she has for all of the girls. They are not madams to continue the oppression but rather to ensure that the women are in the best possible living conditions that they can be in in their circumstances. It is the pimps that are very hostile towards that work of Dina's ministry and understandably so. By giving these women hope for a future, and encouraging them that they are worth more than the lifestyle they have chosen out of desperation, Nea Zoi is directly threatening the method of income for the evil business of legal prostitution. The courage that Dina shows and her dedication to the pursuit of these women has been refreshing for us to see. Talk about a challenging mission. I so often find myself hesitating to talk to my peers and sharing with them the hope that Jesus offers. I can't imagine facing angry pimps and their wives, one of which angrily screamed and chased us out of one of the brothels, while trying to give hope and respect to women who feel like they are stuck and ashamed. Please keep this ministry in your prayers especially.
Thank you all for your love and support during my time in Greece! It has been a blessing to be able to serve God and his people in Greece but I wouldn't be here without the encouragement of all of my loved ones. I have been so encouraged by the things that I have seen here and blessed to be part of the great outreaches and ministries of the Evangelical church. There are amazing things happening here in Greece and God is pouring so much love on his servants and those they are serving. I love you all very much and am so excited to return to the U.S. and begin to love in a way that I was too selfish and too haughty to love before this trip. I have seen the depths of hopelessness and despair on this trip but I have also seen the joy and love that is both possible and realistic if you fully trust in God's will and love all people of your community.
"Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries ina year of drought and never fails to bear fruit" (Jeremiah 17:7-8).
Thursday, July 14, 2011
Friday, July 8, 2011
Loving Greece
Hello all!
A common theme that has been coming up again and again in the last few days is the importance of loving Greece and its people. This seems like a fairly obvious thing that should be on our hearts daily, and it is, but it is hard. What I have been learning lately is just how tricky it is working in a culture much different than my own. It can be classified as culture shock but for me it is much more. I love the United States of America and anyone who knows me knows that (and would claim that my patriotism is often over the top...like my rendition of Yankee Doodle at the top of my lungs Fourth of July morning). I had been frustrated that because of the severe economic crisis here, strikes had become violent and out of control. Protesters were initially peaceful but began to attack the police line surrounding Parliament which prompted the police to begin to use tear gas against its people. Admittedly it was exciting to me but also scary. The people were hurting and the childrens' festivals were postponed. It was a sad few days in Greece and this broke my heart. Again, just yesterday, we were scheduled to have our last festival where we distributed the trophies and awards and we received word that there was Communist rally happening in Neos Kosmos square which was the square that we gathered at for the festvals; it would have been too big of a risk to bring families and children there so the festivals were postponed. Again my frustration flared and my nationalist thought that "this would never have happened in the U.S" came to mind. How is it just that a festival that everyone in the community knew about, and happened every night, could just be disregarded so callously? Oh man did God want to humble me...
When Alex, the man in charge of the festivals, came in and informed us that the festivals had to be postponed, he was calm and rational. He explained to the group that he had a conversation with the leader of the Communist rally and had decided it was safer to postpone the festivals. Alex excitedly proclaimed that he was glad to be able to tell the man that it was not a big deal at all and that, since they were so local anyway, they would just try again another day. What!? Alex's joy was a breath of fresh air in a room of frustrated Americans and Canadians. He represented Christ and Greek culture in that moment. He was not at all miffed by the change in plans, but rather excited that this created an opportunity to love the Communist party as well as feel confident that one heated rally cannot ruin all of the progress and positive change that the community center had brought to that community. Alex saw the bigger picture and was optimistic about the fruit that would come out of this seemingly negative event. I was immediately encouraged and humbled by his great love and wisdom. His love mirrored what Pastor Giotis (of First Greek Evangelical Church) had described to us a few days prior.
Pastor Giotis came to speak to all of us at the Bible Institute two days ago and his comments can be summarized as: love and be patient with the Greeks; it takes time to see great change but if you are patient, you will see amazing things. He jokingly remarked that the problem with American is that they need a schedule. They want to know what they are doing, when they are doing it and if the results are worth the effort. Admittedly, I have fallen into that stereotype. He described to us the needs of the Greeks. They need to be loved, cared for and have time invested in them. Because essentially everyone is a Greek Orthodox Christian, it is insulting to see people trying to convert them or tell them the errors of their ways. They are Christians and they are dedicated to the Greek Church. What they need is love. Love is what makes the difference and what exemplifies what it means to be a "Christian." That is what the Greek Evangelical Church is trying so hard to do here. They are picking up trash, something that is shameful and rare; they are establishing community centers to provide free tutoring, computers and games for a population of people though to be a lower social class; they are establishing church plants in communities that desperately need love and need to hear the gospel of grace; and they are going into brothels to show love and respect to women who feel as if they are unworthy of both love and respect. Giotis encouraged us in the work that we are doing here in Greece. He said that it often takes generations to see any real change because the culture is very nationalistic and has an inward looking church. It is difficult to change the mindset of the people and to convince them of the equality of all men. No one is deserving of Christ's love so who are we do look down our noses at the "lower people" of society? It is refreshing for me to remind myself of this as well as the fact that Americans are equally as guilty of this sin. Love is not something that flows very freely anywhere. Giotis work in Greece is not something to overlook or underestimate. He has sacrificed his time, money, comfort and more to ensure that Greece, Athens in particular, understands Christ's love. It is a priviledge to be part of a very large mission that is underway in Greece. I have been encouraged by the servants like Alex, Giotis and Courtney who serve the church and love Greece in the Greek way. As an American, I am striving to put aside my American schedule and list of goals and instead love Greece through patient devotion and service...the Greek way.
Please be praying for the Church:
-that they will begin to look outward for ways to love their own community
-for people to begin to embrace leadership
-for the Greek Evangelicals to begin to do ordinary things with "gospel intentionality"
"Dear children, let us not love with words or tounge but with actions and in truth. This thenis how we know we belong in the truth, and how we set our hearts at rest in his presense...Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us" (1 John 3:18-19; 4:11-12).
A common theme that has been coming up again and again in the last few days is the importance of loving Greece and its people. This seems like a fairly obvious thing that should be on our hearts daily, and it is, but it is hard. What I have been learning lately is just how tricky it is working in a culture much different than my own. It can be classified as culture shock but for me it is much more. I love the United States of America and anyone who knows me knows that (and would claim that my patriotism is often over the top...like my rendition of Yankee Doodle at the top of my lungs Fourth of July morning). I had been frustrated that because of the severe economic crisis here, strikes had become violent and out of control. Protesters were initially peaceful but began to attack the police line surrounding Parliament which prompted the police to begin to use tear gas against its people. Admittedly it was exciting to me but also scary. The people were hurting and the childrens' festivals were postponed. It was a sad few days in Greece and this broke my heart. Again, just yesterday, we were scheduled to have our last festival where we distributed the trophies and awards and we received word that there was Communist rally happening in Neos Kosmos square which was the square that we gathered at for the festvals; it would have been too big of a risk to bring families and children there so the festivals were postponed. Again my frustration flared and my nationalist thought that "this would never have happened in the U.S" came to mind. How is it just that a festival that everyone in the community knew about, and happened every night, could just be disregarded so callously? Oh man did God want to humble me...
When Alex, the man in charge of the festivals, came in and informed us that the festivals had to be postponed, he was calm and rational. He explained to the group that he had a conversation with the leader of the Communist rally and had decided it was safer to postpone the festivals. Alex excitedly proclaimed that he was glad to be able to tell the man that it was not a big deal at all and that, since they were so local anyway, they would just try again another day. What!? Alex's joy was a breath of fresh air in a room of frustrated Americans and Canadians. He represented Christ and Greek culture in that moment. He was not at all miffed by the change in plans, but rather excited that this created an opportunity to love the Communist party as well as feel confident that one heated rally cannot ruin all of the progress and positive change that the community center had brought to that community. Alex saw the bigger picture and was optimistic about the fruit that would come out of this seemingly negative event. I was immediately encouraged and humbled by his great love and wisdom. His love mirrored what Pastor Giotis (of First Greek Evangelical Church) had described to us a few days prior.
Pastor Giotis came to speak to all of us at the Bible Institute two days ago and his comments can be summarized as: love and be patient with the Greeks; it takes time to see great change but if you are patient, you will see amazing things. He jokingly remarked that the problem with American is that they need a schedule. They want to know what they are doing, when they are doing it and if the results are worth the effort. Admittedly, I have fallen into that stereotype. He described to us the needs of the Greeks. They need to be loved, cared for and have time invested in them. Because essentially everyone is a Greek Orthodox Christian, it is insulting to see people trying to convert them or tell them the errors of their ways. They are Christians and they are dedicated to the Greek Church. What they need is love. Love is what makes the difference and what exemplifies what it means to be a "Christian." That is what the Greek Evangelical Church is trying so hard to do here. They are picking up trash, something that is shameful and rare; they are establishing community centers to provide free tutoring, computers and games for a population of people though to be a lower social class; they are establishing church plants in communities that desperately need love and need to hear the gospel of grace; and they are going into brothels to show love and respect to women who feel as if they are unworthy of both love and respect. Giotis encouraged us in the work that we are doing here in Greece. He said that it often takes generations to see any real change because the culture is very nationalistic and has an inward looking church. It is difficult to change the mindset of the people and to convince them of the equality of all men. No one is deserving of Christ's love so who are we do look down our noses at the "lower people" of society? It is refreshing for me to remind myself of this as well as the fact that Americans are equally as guilty of this sin. Love is not something that flows very freely anywhere. Giotis work in Greece is not something to overlook or underestimate. He has sacrificed his time, money, comfort and more to ensure that Greece, Athens in particular, understands Christ's love. It is a priviledge to be part of a very large mission that is underway in Greece. I have been encouraged by the servants like Alex, Giotis and Courtney who serve the church and love Greece in the Greek way. As an American, I am striving to put aside my American schedule and list of goals and instead love Greece through patient devotion and service...the Greek way.
Please be praying for the Church:
-that they will begin to look outward for ways to love their own community
-for people to begin to embrace leadership
-for the Greek Evangelicals to begin to do ordinary things with "gospel intentionality"
"Dear children, let us not love with words or tounge but with actions and in truth. This thenis how we know we belong in the truth, and how we set our hearts at rest in his presense...Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us" (1 John 3:18-19; 4:11-12).
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