Ancient Corinth…Yeah, From the Bible

Bema of Ancient Corinth

I mentioned that I wasn’t too fond of Athens. So, I was looking forward to renting my car and heading west to the Peloponnese peninsula.

One of the firsts stops I was planning was Corinth. Paul visited Corinth and later wrote two letters to the church of this city. 1st and 2nd Corinthians.

As I have been in Greece, I’ve been reading through Corinthians. And many things struck me on this reading.

Divisions.

The church of Corinth had some issues. Various issues that needed to be addressed. Yet, 2000 years later, this book is just as important because we still have divisions within the Church.

I appeal to you, dear brothers and sisters, by the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ, to live in harmony with each other. Let there be no divisions in the church. Rather, be of one mind, united in thought and purpose.

1 Corinthians‬ ‭1‬:‭10‬ ‭NLT‬‬

We have people following this leader. Or that leader. Vocalizing their thoughts why one leader isn’t truly good for the Church. Just lots of negativity of the Church.

Some of you are saying, “I am a follower of Paul.” Others are saying, “I follow Apollos,” or “I follow Peter,” or “I follow only Christ.” Has Christ been divided into factions? Was I, Paul, crucified for you? Were any of you baptized in the name of Paul? Of course not!

1 Corinthians‬ ‭1‬:‭12‬-‭13‬ ‭NLT‬‬

It seems we are a society that loves to stir division for the sake of restoration. But are there better ways?

So where does this leave the philosophers, the scholars, and the world’s brilliant debaters? God has made the wisdom of this world look foolish.

1 Corinthians‬ ‭1‬:‭20‬ ‭NLT‬‬

The first stop of our trip through Corinth was an old port. The Ancient Port of Kechries. Or Cenchrea.

Ancient Port of Kechries

Paul stayed in Corinth for some time after that, then said good-bye to the brothers and sisters and went to nearby Cenchrea. There he shaved his head according to Jewish custom, marking the end of a vow. Then he set sail for Syria, taking Priscilla and Aquila with him.

Acts of the Apostles‬ ‭18‬:‭18‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I commend to you our sister Phoebe, who is a deacon in the church in Cenchrea. Welcome her in the Lord as one who is worthy of honor among God’s people. Help her in whatever she needs, for she has been helpful to many, and especially to me. Give my greetings to Priscilla and Aquila, my co-workers in the ministry of Christ Jesus. In fact, they once risked their lives for me. I am thankful to them, and so are all the Gentile churches.

Romans‬ ‭16‬:‭1‬-‭4‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Next we headed to Ancient Corinth.

Temple of Apollo in Ancient Corinth

We walked through the ruins of this old town, looking at the idol temples, supposed homes and meeting places back in the day.

But mostly, we were looking for something that mentioned Paul.

And behold, we found it.

”But when Gallio became governor of Achaia, some Jews rose up together against Paul and brought him before the governor for judgment. They accused Paul of “persuading people to worship God in ways that are contrary to our law.” But just as Paul started to make his defense, Gallio turned to Paul’s accusers and said, “Listen, you Jews, if this were a case involving some wrongdoing or a serious crime, I would have a reason to accept your case. But since it is merely a question of words and names and your Jewish law, take care of it yourselves. I refuse to judge such matters.” And he threw them out of the courtroom. The crowd then grabbed Sosthenes, the leader of the synagogue, and beat him right there in the courtroom. But Gallio paid no attention.”

Acts of the Apostles‬ ‭18‬:‭12‬-‭17‬ ‭NLT‬‬

The Bema, or the first picture, is where this was supposed taken place. It was the town center, so disputes were usually handled there. Including this interaction between Paul and Gallio.

So, I stood in the place Paul supposedly stood. He was preaching and teaching, defending the Gospel. And all I was doing was standing silent.

It seems like I live a quiet life. I don’t share my faith openly on the streets like a Paul or Silas. I don’t go to the large gatherings in hopes of sharing the Good News. I don’t live my life loud.

I wonder would the world be a better place if more quiet people grew a little louder. But instead of talk of divisions and negativity, the world hears more peace and unity.

I’m hopeful.

Peace

Athens – I Don’t Know What I Was Expecting

When you think of Greece, what comes to mind?

Ancient civilizations? Mythology? Philosophy? Socrates and the Stoics? Wars and the Trojan Horse?

I always love traveling to places with history. I longed to travel to Italy for years before I bit the bullet and plunged into a lifelong passion of seeing places I once thought was impossible except from the pages of a book.

When I decided to head to Greece, it wasn’t my first option. I was going to travel to the cheapest flight on a given day.

Nice, France was the cheapest.

I called my family and they were okay with heading to southern France. One sister who started traveling with me a few years ago couldn’t go, and said she had always wanted to go there and asked if I would pick somewhere else to go. We could go to southern France another time all together.

So, my mom and my other sister picked Greece. It’s been on their bucket list. So I booked the flights.

I have always been intrigued with Greece. I love the modern Olympics and the two weeks it engulfs my television. I have never been into mythology, but I love ruins. I love walking around and imagining what people did thousands of years ago in that very spot I stand. There is something mesmerizing about staring at a piece of marble older than everything built in America.

I also find it humbling traveling to places mentioned in the Bible. I recently read portions in Acts that mentioned Paul’s journey to and from Athens. How he spoke to the philosophers and preached the Good News. And I wonder, did he speak to them in the very spot I stood in the Ancient Agora or around the Acropolis? Was I near the place where he tried to reason with them about their unneeded idols?

I wish I had a wonderful story of incredible feelings of emotions. But so far, Athens leaves me feeling blah.

To give you the dirty of Athens, you just have to look around.

It’s dirty. It’s covered in graffiti. Trash lays around the streets. Our hotel is surrounded by nice restaurants and shops, but as I walk around the neighborhood I feel unsafe. Just because of the appearance. It feels rundown and in the projects of Athens. But much of Athens feels that way to me.

What happened? And it seems like they are okay to the destruction. Most buildings throughout have some type of tagging of spray paint, even if it’s nothing but a scribble that appears someone messed up and just walked away.

I think in life, our lives may look like Athens. We worship false idols even if we don’t believe it. We debate and argue with anyone who disagrees with us. We philosophize our opinions and assume we are always right. We are smeared in mess. And it’s like we have given up on hope and walked away.

But the beautiful thing about life is God hasn’t left us. Even though we are a complete mess with our life in complete ruins like the Acropolis or caked in ugly graffiti, He still sees the masterpiece He created. He sees the potential. He sees the image of us coated in grace and mercy.

So even though Athens hasn’t bewildered me, I’ve learned from her.

May we each not live like Athens, but live renewed with hope and a future. Because God can take our ruins and create something beautiful out of them again.

Peace

Norway – The Beautiful Fjords – Am I a Fjord?

Fjords. I remember learning about this word in grade school, but I never fully understood what it meant. Some things are best understood by seeing.

Not just reading about.

I’ve been told that Norway is the best country to see the spectacular fjords, but mostly in the southern portion of the country. But there are still some fjords where I was traveling in the northern part of the country.

If the fjords are more beautiful in the south of Norway, I will be utterly speechless.

The fjords in northern Norway were stunning.

We stopped for a visit in Narvik and took a gondola ride to the top of a mountain. Looking down onto the city below and the beautiful fjord nearby it is easy to forget this is a real place.

We had a bite of dessert and descended down the mountains to start our journey north, driving along various fjords to our hotel for the night. (Apparently this isn’t peak travel season in northern Sweden and Norway because this was the second night of our trip that we were the only people in the hotel. I felt like we were in The Shining as I looked at my hotel window at all the snow.)

As we traveled, we had to stop multiple times and just gaze upon the beauty of the fjords. At each turn I kept expecting the scenery to change, but at each curve or bend along the mountain, the beauty continued. Then as one fjord would end, another would start within a few kilometers.

After supper in Lavangen we took a evening drive. The sun doesn’t set until after 10pm and even then, it is still pretty bright.

As Robert Frost would say, “we took the road less taken,” and traveled beside fjords seeing very few people in the hour long drive. We would laugh and say, we must be the only tourist in all of Norway and Sweden. Both of our tours we had taken we were their only customers as well.

I know we can’t possibly be the only tourist, but it’s still a humorous thought. But I definitely haven’t heard any other American accents lately.

But back to the fjords. Sometimes in life, seeing is what we need to understand a concept or idea. In school, I was a visual learner. Reading textbooks were like a foreign language sometimes, but show me an example and I can figure it out. The same with user manuals. I don’t read the instructions, I study the how-to pictures and somehow can change my faucet.

The same can be said about faith.

I’ve heard people say, “I love Jesus’ teaching, but I’ve never seen a real Christian. So, I’ll pass on becoming one.”

Are Christians like fjords?

A concept in a book studied and taught in grade school, but not really understood because we aren’t really living the way we should?

It is disheartening to think, people may look at me and wonder, what are you? Just as someone may read a mathematical equation and wonder, what is this?

Hopefully, after time and conversations my faith looks real to people. Hopefully, my faith is sometimes as picturesque as a distant fjord when someone truly looks at it.

Hopefully, my life isn’t one that causes people to disbelieve in the concept of Christianity, but causes people to consider it.

So, maybe I’m a fjord. Or maybe I’m delusional in my comparison. But hopefully, either way, my life points a little more to Christ than not.

Peace

Narvik – Taste and See

I’m not one to try new foods, except for desserts. You could lace a spare tire with powder sugar and call it a new donut and I would probably try it.

However, when I travel, I try to branch outside my norms of chicken strips and hamburgers and try some of the local cuisine. Sometimes I am rewarded and other times I’m looking for a McDonalds later in the evening (Chur, Switzerland after a fondue pot of cheese – I wasn’t a fan).

On the second morning around Kiruna I tried some smoke reindeer. It was spicy (from their seasoning) but pretty tasty. Later I tried something similar to codfish and then a reindeer stew. Some things tasted better than others, and some things I may never eat again.

But I at least tried it.

I have learned I would never know what something taste like until I try it.

And it may turn out to be something delicious and good for me.

I had a friend years ago that would always say, taste and see. “Sometimes you have to taste bitterness in life to see how sweet God really is.”

Such wise words from my friend.

And it seems that I am reminded of her comment often.

Life may be hard at work…but I have felt what it feels like to not be that hard. Those are good times. So, when times get hard, I can remember those good times to push me through.

God is the same way.

Sometimes life is hard. But in the moments in the dark times I can remember when I knew God was good to push me through to the finish.

Since I have tasted His goodness, I can remember it. And that remembrance spurs me to look forward to brighter days ahead with Him.

God never says life will be easy. But He does promise to be there when the burden is heavy.

It’s in those moments when you need a reminder.

Think back as a kid of your favorite dessert. Does it bring back those warm, fuzzy memories of chasing lightning bugs, or being chased by junebugs on a string, or watching the snow fall through a frosty window pane?

Our senses have a unique way of bringing back a memory with a taste, a smell, a sound, a touch, or a sight.

God has a fascinating way of conjuring our memories when a certain aroma hits us.

Do you have a certain smell that causes you to smile thinking of your grandparents or favorite aunt?

Do you have a song that when you listen to it, it takes you back to being a teenager driving around with your friends? It’s the same way.

And there are moments when I read the Bible or hear a word, that triggers a memory of when God was present. So, when God doesn’t feel close sometimes, try and trigger that memory.

Sometimes it’s as simple as tasting something salty to be reminded of one of Jesus’ parables.

But whatever it takes, I hope you can sense Him.

Because He is there. He’s always there.

So, here’s to tasting new goodies (or baddies depending on your preference). And I bet, if you taste something disgusting, you will never forget it.

Then you will know a little more about tasting and seeing what is good.

“Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!”
‭‭Psalm‬ ‭34‬:‭8‬ ‭ESV‬‬
https://bible.com/bible/59/psa.34.8.ESV

Peace

Kiruna – What Are You Chasing?

I flew from Stockholm to the small city in northern Sweden, Kiruna. The main purpose of this trip above the Arctic circle was to see reindeer.

My sister loves reindeer.

I booked a stay where reindeer are free to roam among the cabins, but sadly we found out that the area didn’t have any reindeer because they have all migrated into the mountains for a couple of months.

We spent the day driving around and only saw a few reindeer lying in the snow in the distance. At least we assumed they were reindeer.

After checking into our cabin we were told of a road where reindeer were seldom seen. That’s all we needed to know. So we started on the chase.

After driving down the road, looking side to side, our hopes were realized. A group of 4 deer feeding on the moss. We stopped and watched these beautiful creatures stop eating for a few seconds to acknowledge us. Then they went back to nibbling on their greens.

Many photos were taken and we continued our journey down the road to see more.

But we never saw any more, so we returned to the same spot and found the four reindeer roaming in the snow.

We journeyed into the city center of Kiruna to start our northern lights tour. And a new chase began. We journeyed to Abisko about an hour west of Kiruna which is supposedly one of the best places in the world to see these glorious lights.

But no northern lights were seen.

Sometimes you reach what you are chasing and other times it eludes you.

So, what are you chasing?

There are good chases and there are bad chases. Chases that bring joy and happiness and others that quickly brings destruction and sorrow.

Runners chase after the proverbial runners high. Whereas drug addicts scheme for their next fix. Both chase after something, but not all chases are worthy to be chased.

I’ve been told that we need to pursue God. To chase after Him. Search for Him. Run toward Him.

Sometimes that chase may feel like looking for the northern lights in broad daylight. Longing for a glimpse of His wonder, but missing it. It may feel disheartening to seek after Him and not see what you are hoping to see.

But what if what you are hoping to see isn’t really Him? What if you’ve created an image of what you think God is, and when you don’t “see” it, you assume that He’s not near you.

But what if He’s still there, in the faint whisper, the low hum, the light touch, the silent night.

I truly believe that if we chase after Him, we shall find Him.

And what I love more is that as we think we are pursuing Him, He is actually the one pursuing us. Calling us home. Leading us to Him. Chasing us with a fervor that nothing can match.

And sometimes we just have to stop our running and feel the chase of being caught.

In this upsidedown faith, of last is first, weak is strong, poor is rich…the chaser is caught.

May you always chase after the good things in life…and may you be caught in His love.

Peace