The streets are empty. There aren't even taxis on the road (they are on a month-long strike!)
Our 6th camp this summer has just ended at Porto Astro. I'm down in the office on duty...
As I entered my little office space on Lydias 12, I felt welcomed to my personal sanctuary.
A place to work, but more importantly, a place to "worship". I like it that our work done unto the Lord with faith and sacrifice becomes our reasonable offering to Him (Rm 12:1). Yet, I felt like the Lord in a quiet whisper was saying to me as I pulled out my chair, that "I'm more interested in the relationship than in your work..." Come to think of it, it's been much more about his work than ours. We've seen His hand at work in a wonderful way this summer!
As I've sat down thinking about the summer (I should be working on other stuff!), I can't help the rush of gratefulness to the Lord that has been flooding and overwhelming my heart!
...Thank you for wonderful staff. Our team is incredible. I would venture to go anywhere and do anything with this team! They are among the best of the best!
...Thank you for an incredible family. Each of my kids have worked so hard this summer and with all their hearts. Kyle (15), for example is manning the dish washing of all the dishes for the Church camp of 70 people. (State of the art dishwasher should be mentioned!)
....Thank you for our Greek camp leaders
....Thank you for our incredible lawyers who managed to get the Morning Star released and back to sea after 2.5 months of impoundment for alleged taxes. We ended up paying 1 Euro for a tax form and the obligatory harbor fees.
... Thank you for our coordinators for Operation Joshua 4 (Janet Sewell and Steve Calhoun - and the team Yiannis Athamopoulos, Ellias and Nelly Tsatsarbalidis, Sarah Wheway)
... Thank you for special loving Greek supporters
... Thank you for special mentors and a few select encouragers
... Thank you for incredible HM'ers abroad who speak and share of the vision to others and have mobilized many to get involved this summer Over 300 people have participated as volunteers this summer!
... Thank you for like minded partners in ministry
... Thank you for phenomenal sacrificial supporters and donors
... Thank you for a Godly heritage - a Mom and Dad who showed us what it meant to love and serve the Lord.
... Thank you that we as an extended Macris family have been able to work together this summer (my sister Ifie and her husband have joined us this summer!)
... Thank you for the example of friends and loved ones who have pointed the way to Jesus even from the bed of suffering
... Thank you for those supporting and blessing the Hope Center - Crises Pregnancy Center
... Thank you for a tremendous Greek Board
... Thank you for many Greek young people and Pastors who have joined in prayer and service
... Thank you for key note speakers Tom Mahairas and Peter Grant for their ministry in Word to us and for their love, friendship and encouragement
... Thank you for life to live and give so that others will hear the invitation for the great eternal wedding party!
The cascade of gratefulness from my heart goes on and on and on...that's when work becomes a praise and worship ceremony!
I've got to get back to work...but before I do here a few highlights.
CAMPS:
I don't know where to start or end...many young people have given and committed their lives to Jesus this summer through the camp ministry.
2 refugee camps; Pre-teen (9-12); Teen Camp (13-19); 2 church camps
OPERATION JOSHUA 4:
Imagine camping in Corinth about 1000 yards from one of the ports that Paul sailed in and out of! Imagine doing communion near the bema seat where Paul was dragged before the Proconsul referred to in Acts 18. Imagine a tent city with nearly 100 tents. Imagine an armada of vehicles - nearly 60 in all! Imagine filling each of these cars with gas at nearly $10 a gallon and doing the circumference of the earth twice in cumulative mileage driven in 6 days on Europe's most dangerous stretch of hwys! Imagine worshiping under the stars along the lapping sea side with 270 participants from 17 nations! Imagine 866 villages reached and blanketed in 6 days. 3 provinces covered. 105,000 homes received a personal copy of the scripture (a beautiful hardbond NT), an audio version of the same NT, and beautiful color pamphlets. We chose to share the story of my dad (and mom) and his life as a Greek who chose to put his faith in the Lord. Death is a compelling topic here in Greece. It was a means of sharing God's hope! In the pages of this beautiful 9 page pamphlet we shared my dad's desire for every Greek to know the way of salvation with a simple road to prayer and repentence!
What an honor to be alive and to witness this historic event!
Stories:
Even as I've been writing to you, the phone has rung several times. One person wanted an explanation on what he was reading about the parable of the talents in Luke 19, while the other wanted to know what version the Bible was that he was reading! Yesterday, someone called to thank us for a Bible he received in the ski resort of Kalavrita. Those on assignment to deliver Bibles to this town were Pastor Alf from South Africa and his team of 4 and my team of 5! He requested 30 copies for his home town on the island of Andros.
The stories go on and on. On the last day, even as we were breaking camp, we got a call requesting 300 Bibles from a lady who had received a Bible on her door step. She worked at the the largest casino South of Athens, in the town of Loutraki, near Corinth. She wanted a Bible for every room in the Casino Hotel!
If that's not enough, a man had his gun loaded and ready to commit suicide in a town outside the city of Patra when he was interrupted by a Bible bag hung on his door with the inscription "God Loves You". He is now getting personal legal counsel from our legal team, has signed up to participate in a Christian conference later this summer and to express his gratefulness has offered us the use of his 3 story house for anything we need as a mission!
One more encouraging story - a lieutenant from my Greek army days 25 years ago received a Bible on his door step and called me in amazement recognizing my signature on one of the pamphlets. He asked how he got it and if I personally had visited his home while they were out. When you blanket 1,000s of square kilometers and hundreds of villages door-to-door, your bond to surprise friend and foe!
The Orthodox Church metropolis of Patra went all out putting the anti-heresy propaganda machine to work - writing articles against us in the press and on the Internet, using radio and the chain of command to demand our demise publicly. Interestingly, the very audience they were targeting to rise against us, in certain instances the public denounced the derogatory remarks and claims of the Orthodox Church. "The Church is acting like it is still in the Dark Ages", "Do you really want us to burn the Bibles the State Church has authorized?" were among comments made on the Internet! (We use this version because it has the signatures of approval of the synod of the Orthodox Church world wide! We hardly have to defend ourselves these days!
The Cost of the Outreach: (in terms of the Bible and literature cost only)
€300,000 Euros ($426,000USD) PTL! Nearly half has been paid or pledged! Please pray for our faith and those who God will use to help cover the remaining cost needed!
It's been an awesome summer!
Thanks for journeying with us.
Johnathan Macris, for the family
www.hellenicministries.com
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