September of 2019 was shaping up to be the worst month of our lives. The “terrible, horrible, no good day” had arrived. The day that the Dragonslayer was fired from the dragon factory… the place he had worked all his life, 50 years of life to be exact. This news was to be expected but it still stung. And left was reeling as to our next move. The Dragonslayer may have lost the battle with the private equity company that bought the dragon factory, but that did not mean he had lost the war. So we licked our wounds and set forth on a new course of action. As Providence would have it, we had accepted an invitation from the president of our daughter’s college for a ten day trek through Greece. That trip proved to be balm for our weary souls not just because Greece with her views, her food, and her people would heal any heart, but also because of the people with us on that trip. They surrounded our heavy hearts and got us started back on the path of all that is good, beautiful and true. They reminded us that our best days were ahead of us.
We were encouraged by walking in the Apostle Paul’s footsteps through Athens and Corinth. In the ruins of Corinth we all gathered to take communion, breaking bread and passing the cup of Christian fellowship in anticipation of the heavenly Communion to come. It was there that our little band of 30 travelers were able to witness a group of 300 South Koreans joined in a circle singing hymns of praise to God with arms lifted heavenwards. They didn’t speak English and we didn’t speak Korean, but somehow we asked if we could join their circle. They were overwhelmed that we would even want to join them. Soon 330 voices were signing together, praising our heavenly Father. Afterwards we found out that their leader had been wanting and praying for an opportunity to attend Gordan-Conwell Theological Seminary. We were representing Gordon College, a sister institution to the seminary! What great providence indeed. The young man was able to have an encouraging conversation with Gordon College’s President, Dr. Michael Lindsey. We were all encouraged by this divine meeting. Even though we did not speak the same language, Spirit-filled hearts don’t need a common language to express love. I have had the blessing of traveling all over the world and I would be hard pressed to think of a culture more loving or affectation than Greeks. They love to eat, to sit drinking coffee for hours in little cafes, to tell anyone who asks or doesn’t ask about their amazing history and contributions to the world. They smile and laugh constantly regardless of how the economy is doing or how corrupt their politicians are. They know the secret to life…to eat, drink and be merry….for who knows what tomorrow may bring. They are also deeply religious. There is no separation of church and state in Greece. This keeps them humble and reliant on God for His provision. Their flag is emblematic of their beliefs-blue and white stripes representing the sea and sky, the cross representing their faith and the number of stripes, 9, symbolize the 9 syllables in the Greek phrase “Freedom or Death” for Greeks know what it means to be a free people and what it takes to maintain freedom. Their harrowing experience of brutality at the hands of the Nazis in World War II is not far from their collective memory. I think this is the reason they are such a joyful people; they can still recall the days when the sun seemed never to shine on their Greek Isles. But our time in Greece was punctuated by delicious food, welcoming people, long, drawn out meals centered on beautiful conversations with people we had only just met, but somehow had become dear friends. Our trip to the magical islands of Greece started out with two heart weary souls but ended with two pilgrims now full of promise for all that God would do in our lives. We saw new business opportunities, made new friends, and had the delightful experience of walking through the Apostle Paul’s footstep and seeing the Bible come to life. Traveling is certainly a healing balm to ailing souls, at least it was for us.