Laodicea

Honestly, I was pretty weary about this day simply because I’m not the best automobile traveler and 4 hours one way is a long time – not to mention that we had practically been living on the buses already. But as it turned out, it was one of the easiest travel days. I had some really fantastic conversations with my fellow travelers, getting deep with them and learning about who they are. Plus, our tour guide not only gave us some great info (which I have neglected to really mention, but he had been doing all along), even throwing in a pretty hilarious story about his wife and daughter (which began with, “My wife, the other day she…she…(and here he was searching for just the right word)…she really pissed me off!” It was pretty funny. Additionally, we had a pit stop about half way there where we indulged in Turkish Delight (a chewy gelatin-like candy covered in powdered sugar…think Applets & Cottlets, only considerably better), apple tea (a local favorite) and fresh squeezed (over-priced) orange juice. I think all the sugar rejuvenated us because we made the trip in what felt like no time at all.

The church at Laodicea was located up on the tippety-toppety of the mountain, which overlooked the entire valley region below. It was a city and culture of absolute opulence and the people of Laodicea looked down on others much in the same way their city looked down over the valley. As such, the letter to the church in Laodicea (in Revelation 3:14-22) begins with a harsh word, warning them to be either hot or cold instead of the lukewarm to which they have become accustomed. Interestingly, we learned that due to the natural surroundings, both hot and cold water were easily attainable for the people living in the valley below Laodicea, but that because of the plumbing system the rich Laodiceans only ever had lukewarm water – which is good for nothing. Imagine making coffee with lukewarm water, or trying to relieve yourself from the heat with lukewarm water – ugh! Thus, Jesus warns them that instead of comparing themselves to others whom are cold and considering themselves hot, they ought to be one or the other.

After Pastor Mark’s teaching in this incredible site, we made the short drive over to Hieropolis, a historical site with a somewhat funny juxtaposition of recently excavated buildings and a modern café. Additionally (and most interestingly) there were also naturally formed pools in the ground there, covered completely with some kind of calcium carbonate (honestly, that’s probably wrong – but I wasn’t really listening as I was in total shock at the white substance covering everything.) It looked like snow on a mountaintop from a distance. It was the most shocking thing! In order not to damage the natural formations, we had to take off our shoes, but we were allowed to wade in the pools and enjoy the water (too bad it was lukewarm – ha! No but seriously, it was. Such a tease – it looks cold and refreshing, but it was like bathwater. And after enduring the near 100 degree weather….torture).

After exhausting ourselves in the sun (and exploration) we piled back onto the bus for our four-hour journey home. The ride home wasn’t quite as jam-packed with fun as the ride there, but mercifully, it went quickly enough. We made it home in time for a late dinner and fell into bed. With only one more day in Izmir, it was promised to be the best yet! Tomorrow: Ephesus.

Philadelphia & Sardis

On our second day of touring, we loaded back onto the bus for a 75-minute drive to see the ancient remains of the Lydian city Sardis. Once there, we were rewarded with several different (much more intact) sites including a gymnasium (which is really like a gigantic “high school”), the synagoge, as well as ancient shops. Think of lots of columns and arches with a fair amount of greek writing and marble everywhere. Because there are so many earthquakes in the area, there were no complete buildings still standing and certainly no existing roofs. Still, there was plenty to see under the boiling hot sun and with the help of two greek dudes in our group, we were able to understand some of the ancient greek writings on the walls (of course, I don’t remember what any of that says now…)

After perusing the ruins, we traveled a few minutes drive to another site to hear Pastor Mark preach on the letter to the church at Sardis. Found in Revelation 3:1-6, this church receives a harsh word of Jesus as he calls them spiritually dead. It seems that Sardis is doing everything “right” on the outside – he doesn’t criticize their doctrine or their immorality – but on the inside, there is nothing: no passion for Jesus, no genuine love and affection for their neighbors and the world around them. Sardis is its own worst enemy. They have become apathetic and satisfied with the routine of faith instead of taking true joy in the rituals of faith. They simply don’t care.

This sermon was a particularly good one (though to be honest, they were all quite good) and has an easily applicable message into my own life: where have I become spiritually dead? What do I just not care about anymore? As part of the message, Pastor Mark talked about the difference between deadness and dryness as well. The latter being a season in which I’m not connected to Jesus or the church, but it bothers me. I am disconnected and uncomfortable about it. Deadness, on the other hand, results in no discomfort at the lack of Christ in my life. Good stuff, eh?

From there we ate lunch nearby and then settled in for another 75-minute drive to the teeny remains of the church of Philadelphia. Similar to the church at Thyatira, what remained was literally the shell of the ancient church, fenced in and tucked away within a city square. This letter, found in Revelation 3:7-13, acknowledges the church’s ability to keep to the Word. However, Jesus admonishes them to keep the strength and to not give up, as they have been doing. In a later sermon, Pastor Mark informed us that the small church of Philadelphia did in fact heed Jesus’ words and remained faithful for hundreds of years, until eventually the Turks invaded (during the Ottoman Empire) and wiped them out. What a legacy: to have remained faithful for so many generations! As an American with such a short national history, it can be difficult to fathom that kind of faithfulness.

After snapping a few pics, we (again) filed back onto the bus to escape the relentless sun and made our way back to the hotel for dinner and to rest up for Laodicea tomorrow: four hours away. (Yikes!)

I'm Going to Turkey!!

Hello dear readers!!

I know it has been unforgivably long since I last posted anything of substance, and for that I apologize. But it is with great excitement that I am (belatedly) happy to tell you that I have the incredible opportunity to travel in Turkey for 10 days!!

Here's the scoop: Mars Hill Church (my new church home in Seattle) is taking a group of folks from all over the world (172 of us, to be precise) on an expeditions tour of the seven churches of Revelation (See Revelation 1-3.) The apostle John wrote seven letters to the early Christian churches at the time to both encourage and discipline them. We will be seeing a number of the early churches as well as studying both the biblical history and the accompanying scripture (mostly the book of Ephesians and Revelation 1-3).

We will be spending the first week in Izmir, using the city as our hub as we venture to a new site each day. For the final three days we will travel to Istanbul and explore the enchanting metropolis.

I can't tell you how thrilled I am to be traveling again and on the precipice of sharing my new adventures with you, dear reader. While this won't be quite the same type of free-styled adventure I had in Italy, I'm confident the experiences will be no less memorable. My hope is to post daily and share my Turkish adventures as they unfold. (My secret hope is that I can easily fall back into the habit of blogging again and not have another year-long radio silence...heh heh. But we'll just have to see how that goes.)

So stay tuned! There is more to come - beginning with a day-long lay-over adventure in Chicago...