Delphi

Remember the movie 300? This is the place they climbed to seek the prophecies of the Oracle in Delphi.

The Temple of Athena

And our first real baklava!

Back to Athens: Courtney and Tolis, the answer to our prayers!

Upon our return to Athens for the weekend, we found the streets to be very busy.


We also found gyros! The best we've ever had!



We had a chance to revisit the Parthanon while each of us was feeling much better. You might think that in the picture above Nick is raising his arms as if to say, "Check out this huge old building!" but in hindsight, we will forever see this picture as Nick saying, "How come no one told me I tucked my shirt in my underwear?"



We met up with Courtney and Tolis on Sunday at this Greek church. It is one of the few that are not a part of the Greek Orthodox Church. The minister spoke, in Greek, about the love of God, our adoption into His family, and the big brother-ness of Jesus. It was heartfelt, moving and enlightening.



Fortunately, they had an interpreter with headphones because the only word we understood in Greek was "agape".



Tolis and Courtney are called to love the children of Athens. Many are from broken families and unloving homes. But in these two they find a refuge and a stronghold where they can be loved and cared for. The building behind them is owned by the church.



This is where the kids can come and find fellowship and fun and various programs all in an environment that is honoring to Jesus. It takes a lot of energy to keep up with these kids but these two do a great job.



After they showed us a little about what the Lord is doing in their lives, we went home and ate a hearty home cooked Luisiana-Greek meal. We've made some great friends in Greece and we'll be praying for them every first Monday of the month.

Corinth

On our way back to Athens, we stopped at ancient Corinth, the same town to whom Paul wrote his famous letters to about two thousand years ago.


Look! A fountain that's still running!....


and ruins of a temple! Maggie is pointing excitedly!

Epidavros

There are many ancient ruins to see in Greece. We took a short day trip from Nafplio to check some out in Epidavros.

Most of the sites are similar to this one, ruined.

Those that have a more fortified base are a little more in tact...

But this ruin is, well, not quite ruined yet.

This is the theatre at Epidavros. One of the earliest theaters in Greece and also the largest and most intact. In fact, it is still used today. This is where the movies we watch today find their origin!

Maggie strikes a pose in the exact center of the stadium, which can hold about 15,000 people.

Nick stands with one hand up to wave and drops a pebble with the other. Maggie easily hears the sound from the top row! Awesome acoustics! Those ancient Greeks were really smart!

Nafplio

We had never heard of Nafplio before reading about it in a guide book. Great place to stay though.





Lots of bougainvillea (red flower vines) in neatly crowded alleyways...


And a castle on top of a hill overlooking the city.





It was a little scary climbing to the top...long way down








This plaque, the lion with wings, we later discovered is Venetian. At one time the castle was Greek but it fell to the Byzantine empire and eventually to the Venetians (from Venice) and later to the Ottoman empire before it was restored to Greece.














Finally a Date Night with just the two of us!


What better to eat in Greece than octopus!

Greece, Athens

We made it to Athens with little to no trouble. Here, we enter a different style to the journey we're on. We declare that our lives are the Lord's and we are never, nor ever want to be, without Him or His "assignments" that He has for us. All that to say that we didn't come to Greece with a particular assignment in mind but rather to relax a bit in a country that's a little more western than the ones we have just come from. Not to mention seeing the awesome ancient ruins that seem to lie at every turn!


Here we see the Parthanon (most prominent ancient ruin of the Greek people) standing on the Acropolis (giant rising rock formation of which the earliest Greeks founded their society) that looms in the background of a Greek Orthodox Church (95% of which Greek people claim as their religion today) next to the busy, taxi filled streets of Athens, Greece's famous capitol for thousands of years.



Our first day in Athens, despite either of us feeling all that great, we set our minds to climb the Acropolis. Here Maggs points out the Erechtheion which sits adjacent to the Parthanon. It is famous for its six pillars that are carved in the shapes of women. If you notice only five, it is because one was stolen by a conqueror from Britannia long ago, whose crew accidentally dropped it in the sea on its way there.


While Maggs checks out the Temple, Nick takes a breather. Something is turning inside.


And here it is, the Parthanon. They say that it doesn't have a single right angle on it anywhere to increase the perceived symmetry. This was built over 2500 years ago when Greece was the dominant superpower over the western world.


Among the sites to be seen from the top of the Acropolis, are the Temple of Hephaestus...


The remains of the Temple of Zeus...


...and on this particular day, Nick vomiting. That's no pose folks, that's the real deal. Unfortunately this was the fifth time of the day. In answer to Maggie's concern, Nick assured her that he always felt better afterwards and was ready to continue slowly.



And now, the most significant of the events during our time in Greece. After leaving the Acropolis, we strolled down to this giant rock called Mars Hill. This is a view from Mars Hill looking back at the Acropolis where we just were. Mars Hill is the place where Paul preached to the Athenians and many came to know Jesus. As we were sitting and enjoying the view, we overheard a woman preaching to a small group of people and made our way toward them.


This is a church group, of which most are a family from Louisiana. The woman preaching is there in the blue on the right, and the Pastor is in the black shirt to the left of Maggie. As we approached their group, they were just about to start praying for the couple to the right of Nick, Courtney and Tolis, when we asked if we could join them. They were happy to welcome us.


Tolis and Courtney are missionaries to the city of Athens and specifically the children here! Courtney is from Louisiana, hence the group, and Tolis was born and raised in Athens. He is Greek, through and through. They've been married for two years now. They are heavily involved in their lively Presbyterian church and specifically in their mission to love on kids in downtown Athens. After we prayed for them we got a chance to chat for a while and agreed to come back to Athens on Sunday hang out with them.


After a day of site-seeing, people-meeting and vomiting, Nick sits and replenishes by drinking down a large juice box. As we sit together, we remember the awesomeness of our God. Our prayer before we came to Greece was to meet some missionaries who we could both encourage and come alongside. After all, we knew absolutely no one when we arrived. The first day, God honored our prayers! He loves bringing His children together especially when we ask Him to! Thank you Father!

From Kenya to Greece

Our last day at AMCC. This was taken right before we departed while the kids were at school.

Maggie and Nancy together, the Kenyan and the American who each are of one heart and mind for Jesus, crossing a bridge. How prophetic!
Though our visit to AMCC this time was much more refreshing than it has been before, we encountered once again the severity of their situation, and also once again the faithfulness of God. And along with His faithfulness, the reminder of the calling that He has given us in partnering with Him in raising up AMCC. We both felt an encouraging conviction and a renewal of direction for that calling, which we will share more about later as the Lord gives us clarity on the roles He has for us to play.

On the night before we left, as we were hanging out with the kids to say our "goodbyes", Eutycus asked Nick, "Excuse me Uncle. Could it be that if you and Aunt Maggie stayed in Kenya for maybe two years, your skin can become dark like ours?" (Eutycus is on the front row in the dark brown suit, the second from the right)

This was followed by Brian's question, "Excuse me Uncle. There on the plane, you can put your head out of the window for entertainment when flying?" To this we both had a hearty laugh and promised that we would take a picture of the inside of a plane and send it to them.
-Father, we thank you for our time at AMCC, and for the relationship that you have given us. We recognize that you are their sustainer and it is because of you alone that they are still going. Lord, please show us the roles that you have for us to play in this amazing story and let us glorify you in our relationship with one another and in the growth of your Kingdom! In Jesus' name we pray!

Our next destination is Greece, that land of ancient history and religion. Where Democracy was born and where Paul preached to many on the Mars Hill about the alter that had been raised to "An Unknown God". We will go first to Athens and find there the Acropolis where the earliest inhabitants made their dwelling! It is our prayer that we would meet someone there in Greece who knows you Lord, who loves you, and who is striving for your Kingdom!