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!

AWE-some Pics (Part 4)

Black Swan




Blue Sea and Blue Sky of the Bathhouse!






Volkswagen Jetta? Or Volkswagen Sagitar?



Oooo boy!! Cornsicles! A frozen, sweet, salty, buttery delight that tastes extraordinarily just like sweet corn on the cob.(Warning: Do not attempt to eat with the wrapper still on.)



Oh great! We finally found Cianmeidohoufeyaije Street! It's that way! -->



Nick does his best to make friends with this guy but all he wants to do is take pictures of himself. (Don't be deceived, he's not real.)



Mind your toes!



...

AMCC: A Blessing to Many

I wanted to start with this picture because it is typical of what you will see in Kenya. Many of the buildings are used as giant advertising boards and this one in particular is advertising the company "Darling". Underneath is a product description, "Highest Quality Hair Additions". An interesting marketing technique but it adds a lot of color to the place.

Before we came to Kenya We spent some time asking the Lord what He wanted us to accomplish in our short time at AMCC. One of the things that Nick heard from God was this: "As AMCC reaches out to help others in need, I will start lifting them higher." We wanted to share this word from the Lord with John but we were a little hesitant. How do we tell a man who is already raising 36 children with little and insufficient resources that he needs to start reaching out to help others. Hasn't he got enough on his plate already? But alas, John never ceases to amaze us...

And that's why we were blown away when John brought us to this place.

The lady standing next to Maggie is Shosho Eutycus, or Grandmother to Eutycus. Eutycus(you-tick-us) is a 15 year old boy who lives at AMCC. Both his parents died when he was young and his Shosho took care of him as long as she could until her blindness was too severe to keep him. She is a widow herself and has no one to watch over her. When John came to her house a few months ago, he found her in this location with only three walls surrounding her in a very small place. The fourth was made of plastic grain bags sewn together and was draped from the ceiling which had holes in it. He was very disturbed by this because this time of year the temperatures can drop to the 40s and winds and rains are very heavy. One night he couldn't sleep because he was overwhelmed at the thought that this woman was living in such conditions. The next day he began to rally the community; churches, other guardians of some of the AMCC kids, his family, his government connections etc... And began to raise money to build her a new home.

The same picture here, as shown above, is the results of his efforts. In about a week they had built her this new house with three different rooms. It's not much and it's made of iron sheet metal but it's a tremendous upgrade from her previous place. To her, it's a castle. She's no longer wet and cold at night and she's extremely thankful to John and the staff at AMCC. While we were there, she actually made the several mile trek, with only 15-20% of her sight, to AMCC to donate a whole sac of avocados. These avocados were cherished and greatly appreciated as we divided them amongst ourselves and the kids one night and ate them with our supper.

Another conviction that compelled John to reach out involved a girl named Valentine. This is the school that John's daughter, Agape, attends (her education is paid for by donors through theschoolfund.org as are a few of the other AMCC kids). Valentine is one of of Agape's closest friends. She is in form 4 (senior year) and is the president of a student established Christian outreach organization. The secondary school ( high school) saw her good grades and offered her a position at the school when she graduated from 8th grade. Unfortunately her father died when she was in grade school and her mother doesn't make enough money to pay the school fees. Because her debt is up to $500, the school is obligated to send her home until it is paid.
Education is of the highest importance in Kenya, even to the students. Valentine is making good grades and has a shot at college, but because she's being sent home due to school fees, she is starting to have anxiety attacks. When we were here visiting Agape, we found out more about this situation and John asked for a meeting with the principal. In the meeting he asked the principal not to send her home anymore and told her he would see what he could go about the fees. To our surprise the principal agreed! John doesn't have the money to help but he believes God wants Valentine to continue.

We remember the phrase that The Lord gave to Nick before we came to AMCC.
"As AMCC reaches out to help others in need, I will start lifting them higher."
We shared this word of the Lord with John. Not really as an encouragement for him to begin reaching out to help others, but rather as an affirmation that God is already starting to lift AMCC higher, because they have already started reaching out to others.
In the picture above John holds out a real treat! Boiled goat meat! Believe it or not Nick really missed it, Maggie on the other hand wasn't nearly as excited but she was a real trooper and ate her share. This is a picture of a man offering meat. This is John Kameru Muhika, who is the one, in a land that has been desolate and hungry, that offers meat. He is close to the heart of the Lord, and has seen the hand of the Lord do miraculous things. His faith is strong and profound. He gives, not out of what He has, but rather out of his faith in what he knows the Lord has. Surely he is a man of God and blessing to many!