Some Experiences with a Tinge of an Education Push

I am really starting to bond with Athens.

In a love/hate sort of way. I have conquered mass transit and the ability to be discrete when suffering by someones lack of hygiene and/or refusal to wear deoderant. You would think that after squeezing onto a packed bus or metro every day of their lives..one would want to wear deoderant, but this seems not to be the case. Also, I now have a newfound appreciation for the US plumbing system. God bless all your souls. I may cry the first time I do not have to stick TP in the trash can. Oh the relaease of the fear that I may be the cause of some mass plumbiing problem because I had done the unthinkable: absent mindedly put tissue in the toilet.

I am also starting to realize why very few people are fat.

First of all, it is very very hot here. As in 100 degrees and the AC is too expensive to run (if you even have it). I find no shame in basking in front of the cold air or fan coming from a shop, but not buying anything. We counted the stairs we took one day. It was close to 400 one way. Thats almost 1000 stairs a day if you do not take an escalator. But dont you worry. I will find a way to be the one person who goes to Europe and gains weight.

The city has its beauty.


I went to the Acropolis. I could not get over that I was walking in a place that at one time only existed to me in my history books. The parthenon and the other temples were magnificent. I kept picturing all that went on there. People lived and died. I imagined wras being fought on the gorund I was standing. People probably fought and lost their lives in the Parthenon. From atop the hill of the Acropolis you could see it all. All of Athens, the Sea, amd the surronding hills for miles. It was no wonder Athens was such a great city for so long. I also stood on top of Mars Hill that day. It was incredible... all around you could see the sights of the city. On one side you have the Acropolis, Mars Hill sits below (but close) to it so you can see the Parthenon and ancient temples atop the acropolis. On another side, you could see the temple of Zeus... in front of you lay the city and the Sea. This was where Paul stood and preached a message to Athens. Acts 17:22-34. What a wonderful place to preach the message of Christ! Another fun fact, Aeropagus (Mars Hill) was where the judicial council met, and some high officials had their homes at one time on the side
of the hill. At the bottom you can see the ruins of the church that Dionysis built after he was converted from the sermon Paul preached on that hill (Church of St. Paul). I will put up facebook photos someday soon. Read Pauls sermon and all of this will putin context.

I also walked where Paul walked... literally.

We went to Corinth for half the day before Outreach. I climbed the ancient ruins of the Acro Corinth. At the very top of that mountain, I stood where the Temple of Aphrodite was. They say over 1000 prostitutes were there. One of the missionariies told us that Corinth had the power of Washington DC and the sin/pleasure of Las Vegas. Mind you, we drove half way up the mountain.. then climbed for awhile.. I cant imagine going all that way by foot just to sleep with one of the girls of the temple. The missionary turned to all of us who are young and unmarried and asked... Dont you think it would have just been easier to have a God honoring relationship? Food for thought. Now back to walking where Paul walked. We went and saw the ancient ruins of Corinth. This is where Paul preached and walked arond. In one of the verses it talked about how he went and preached in the marketplace until the rest of his team came and then he went into the temples. There are two main roads in the main part of the city. Everyone who went to Corinth walked these roads. I walked on the actual stone..the actual road that went right through the marketplace. We made sure to go back and forth and criss cross to be positive we touched the same stones no matter what path he may have taken. So yes.. I really have walked the same road as Paul.

I do not understand the police here.

Pretty much every day on my way to the office I see people shooting up. Its really sad. A bunch of druggies are scattered everywhere slumped over. What a sad sad life. Mind you the police are there too. What for? Your guess is as good as mine. Omonia (the part of Athens we work in) is definitly the land of drug addicts. Often when we are out in the streets at night the police will give us a scolding for being there. They say our safety is in our hands. Funny how no one seems to be worried about the young Nigerian girls who are forced to be out there every night. Heaven forbid something be done besides just driving around in police cars or motorcycles all night making the girls run and hide. Its like a game. The girls just become mice to scatter and scare. The police do this repeatedly, and I still dont see the point. It just makes it hard for us to have conversations with the girls because they are nervous and cannot really concentrate. If they do get arrested, they will go to court and just be sent out again. Back on the streets. It does not really solve anything.

Funny, but not so funny story.

One of the nights we were out there, there was a ton of police. They kept driving through scaring the girls. So the girls spent most of the night running. We were well equipped with water, tea, and biscuits for them, but it still made it hard to have conversations. One girl came up to me and said, "I like your legs." I was a little caught off guard by this comment. Especially considering she has the long slender African legs, and I have the American (I played all the butch sports) Scandanavian legs. I tried to come up with a compliment in return, but failed. "I umm like your legs too?"

We shall call her S. Now a little later that evening I started to hear yelling. Screeching. A ton of girls came running and shouting. There was an uproar. Out came S. Screaming and yelling and pointing. I had no idea what was going on. Then a police car was coming and everyone did not run. They started yelling and shouting for the police to come. The police didnt see and the girls would laugh while still shouting and yelling. They began to run after the police. Now I was really confused. Finally the police stopped and one took off running. The entire time in this uproar. S has not fully dressed herself, I have a ton of shouting and laughing girls all around me, I see a police officer chasing a man in the distance, and I am completely lost. I wish I could explain and tell you all the details of why this was funny in an insane way, but I cannot accurately describe this night to you at all.

Turns out it was a pickpocket.

The girls hate pickpockets and apparently so do the police because in that moment they were allies. The prostituted women and the police.. trying to find justice and stop thievery.

What a warped sense of justice.

I am not going to try and pretend to understand what all this is about, but I really wish that the police here were more of a help. The justice system really has failed these girls. The police go after a pickpocket because more can be done to them then to one of these prostituted women. Prostitution is legal even if human trafficking isnt. So how would a girl prove she has been trafficked? Most of the girls do not even know these terms or know that they have rights. The traffickers are so highly connected, withinn the government and the police force, that any attempt to stop them seems almost pointless. How can justice ever be served? How can these traffickers be caught? You see, one girl can be saved, but hundreds more in her place will come. Its never ending. These men must be stopped at the source. Human trafficking has to be stopped at its root or it will never end. Lives will continue to be destroyed. Precious girls will continue to be terrorized. This is not just for Greece, but all around. There are places where girls in the villages just disappear. Villages you can go to where you will not find a young girl because they have all been sold. Places like India, Thailand, and Cambodia.. human trafficking allows for not only prostitution.. but more horrible horrible atrocities that are done to these girls. In any country, do not be fooled into thinking that prostitution is glitz and glamour. That is a terrible lie. Stopping all this,is so vast a task that it can be seen as daunting to try and stop this. Those at the aftercare level are overwhelmed by the endless amount of lives that have been ripped apart, forever changed. It must be stopped at its source. But How?

There has to be a way. What we need is not just ministers, but an educated people. One of the ladies that has been with Nea Zoi from the start has gone back to school to be a therapist. The missionaries say that ministry is begging for professionalism. A pastor once told me that to have a good heart was wonderful, but that he had seen many people in the church be frustrated because they could only do so much because of their lack of education and money. Why is the church afraid of education? Of a profession? Of money? Last time I checked this, and yes our Lord too..keep in mind I am holding Him as a constant, are very important to a ministry.

Hosea 4:6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children.

Do you know apart from loving God with all their heart mind and soul, I really truly believe that the way my generation and the generations to come are going to make a difference, is through having a profession, higher education, and knowledge. To gain respect in the secular world. To not be seen as ignorant and never venturing outside our churches... Gods people should be an educated people. Yes, I know that many have been used who did not have this. Some people have extenuating circumstances that do not allow for this. Each person has their own conviction in the matter. But it cannot be argued.. We are so blessed in America. So so Blessed. If the opportunity to learn is there.. TAKE IT!
So much can be done for the Lord. Why not enter the secular world as Christian professionals and fight for the cause of Christ? I guess all I am trying to say is.. Church please do not downplay the importance and role of higher education, because the mission field and hurting people are in dire need of those who have it.

In Conclusion..

As I said before, many of these girls know who God is. They were raised around Christianity at home. They even go to church on Sundays, but they are trapped and in bondage. They are in bondage to the witchcraft spoken over their lives, their traffickers, their overwhelming shame and guilt, and often their families. Pary for the girls. Pray for the team. Let us pray for freedom. Let us pray for Justice.

Psalm 145:19-20 He fulfills the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves them. [20] The Lord watches over all who love him, but all the wicked he will destroy.