The whole world in His hands

Athens
Monday August 25

What an EARLY morning of traveling! Waking up at 5:15 felt almost as wonderful as going to bed at 6:00 am but we have arrived in Athens where we are currently sitting in our dorm sized room with 5 beds and no air conditioning. Needless to say I’m sweating like you wouldn’t believe it.

When we were driving in from the Athens airport we passed through a section of the city that made me weary of our visit but once we made it to Plaka, the section of Athens we stayed in, things tuned up. With narrow streets and vendors galore we had a wonderful day just wandering around (and shopping, duh). We even found a Starbucks!!

The Acropolis was absolutely amazing and the view of Athens from the top of the hill was unbelievable. We took a dorky tri-delt picture which I thought you might enjoy!

After the Acropolis we went to the Areopagus which is the rock from which Paul spoke in Acts 17:16-34. It was INCREDIBLE to stand there and imagine Paul preaching to the people of Athens about their unknown gods. And as I looked around I could see some of the remaining temples of their gods which made his words even that much stronger. And then he proclaims to the Athenians, “The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and of earth, and does not live in temples built by human hands, nor is he served by human hands as if he needed anything, since he himself gave all men life, breathe, and everything else. And he made from one man every nation of men so that they might inhabit the entire earth, having determined allotted periods and boundaries of their dwelling place, that they should seek God, in the hope that they might feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one us, for in him we live and move and have our being.” This verse has always been a powerful description of the might of the Lord and his incredible love for us but it truly came to life as I stood around looking at the temples and the Agora marketplace.

And beyond being a once in a life time chance to stand at the Areopagus, it was excellent reminder of the power and love of Christ as I begin to freak out about Berlin. God made the world and everything in it and he made from one man every nation of men so that they might inhabit the whole earth. The people of Berlin, although vastly different from the people of Houston or Winston-Salem, are God’s people. And in the end, He has the whole world in his hands.