Count the Cost/Paying the Price

I got an email today from a dear friend who lives in Cambodia. His email talked about how he had made a mistake and parked his motorbike in a "no parking zone", so to speak. As a result, his bike was taken to the police station, where it must stay for 3 days and he received a fine. The subject of his email read, "I have to pay the price".  In the body of the email he wrote that he wanted to encourage those in his country to obey the laws or they would have to "pay the price". He then went on to ask for help as he was feeling "blue" or down about the incident. He asked for encouragement, prayer, and rides to work & lunch since he wouldn't have his bike for 3 days.

As I began to pray for him I felt like God spoke something to me. Luke 14:25-35 talks about the cost of being a disciple.  If we are to become a disciple of Jesus, we must "count the cost" or be willing to "pay the price". Just like every decision we make in life, there will be consequences or "prices to pay". There will be a price to pay to become His disciple. Jesus paid the "ultimate price" for us, so that we could spend eternity with Him.

God has a plan and purpose for each of our lives, but we must count the cost. Before we marry we must count the cost, before we have children we must count the cost. To move to the mission field I would have to leave my family, my friends, my home, my job, my church, all that I knew as "normal", all that I loved. I needed to count the cost before making that decision.  I thank God for His call on my life and for the wonderful people He has placed in my life to encourage me, counsel me, pray for me, partner with me and strengthen me.  I am also grateful that I have leaders in my life that reminded me that I should count the cost. They didn't want me to jump into this calling without much prayer, counsel and without counting the cost and seriously thinking about it. I am so thankful for each of them.

I am honored and humbled that God wants to use me here in Greece.  I just want to encourage you, God has amazing plans for each of your lives. He wants to use each of you in amazing ways, but it will cost you something..... I believe it will so be worth it all!!!! 

I continue to pray for each of you and asked that you continue to pray for the Celebration Athens Team and Celebration Church Athens.

Ephesians 3:7-8, "By God’s grace and mighty power, I have been given the privilege of serving him by spreading this Good News. Though I am the least deserving of all God’s people, he graciously gave me the privilege of telling the Gentiles about the endless treasures available to them in Christ." 

Love & Blessings,

Tracy

Love & Mercy....God's Goodness!

This past week, God reminded me daily of the Love, Mercy, & Goodness He has for His children & humanity. Regardless of the present situation or circumstance we may find ourselves in. As I reflect on the divine appointments I encountered this week and each of these gifts He gives us, I am in awe of our Father's love, and so Thankful.  His love is unconditional, regardless of our qualities or our actions. He is merciful & compassionate toward us.  And His goodness toward us is His overflowing love, compassion & desire for us. It is so undeserved, yet freely given. 

My week started out meeting a beautiful woman of God that needed prayer for herself, her children & her husband. She had such a sweet spirit and God just wanted her to realize how much he loved her and believed in her. He wanted her to understand that she was the apple of His eye. After praying with her, we decided to meet for coffee during the week. When we met up, she had invited another friend and her children. We had our first women's small group! It was a wonderful time of encouragement, sharing the word & prayer. I can't wait until we meet up again!

The next divine appointment I want to share, was on the metro. I was riding to meet a friend when a man on a scooter (electric chair) got on. Everyone around him moved away, as though they were afraid they'd catch something.......then they just stared at him, some even pointed. I was told by a Pastor that many people believe people with disabilities are "bad luck." My heart was breaking for this man. Then God said to me, "I love him". I quietly said to God, I know. Then God said to me, "tell him I love him." I suddenly started having an argument in my head with God, "I have to get off at the next metro stop, there isn't time. I don't even know if he speaks english. I don't want him to get the wrong idea....." God just kept saying "tell him I love him." It was so strong...........so I tapped him on the shoulder. He turned to me, very stiff, as if he had severe CP. I leaned to his ear and asked him, "Do you understand english?" He nodded "yes". I then said, "God wants me to tell you that He loves you." You would not believe the look on his face. His eyes got real big, and filled with tears. He then asked me as best he could "why?" I said to him, "God just wants you to know, He loves you." As the man got this huge smile on his face & was still cryinging, I put my hand on his shoulder & quietly prayed for him. It was the most wonderful experience.......then the metro doors opened and I stepped off.  I don't know what was going on in this man's life, but I do know that God loves him and he NEEDED to know that!

The last experience I want to share is from a church service that I attended for drug addicts. It was on the roof top of a building where the pastor has been ministering for years to the addicts on the streets of Athens. There were probably 50 people at the service. There was a worship band, the word of God was preached and the people were fed. Many of the people who were there were high and/or drunk.....but God's love & word, is no respecter of persons. God's love meets people where they are. His word is "alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires." Heb 4:12  The people at this service were being given the love of God and His word was going forth. Many of their lives were forever changed! It was a blessing to see men that a few weeks ago were on the streets on drugs now sitting in a church service sober, with their hands raised giving God glory & honor & praise for the things He has done!

God doesn't care where we are. He will meet us there. Whether we live on the streets in a cardboard box or in a mansion on a hill. He doesn't care that we are not perfect, that we have made numerous mistakes. He doesn't care if we have no money or if we are millionaires. He loves us and he wants us to know that. 

As Christians, the body of Christ, we must pursue a revelation of God's love. We must love Him back with all our heart, our soul, our mind & our strength so that from the overflow of this love, we can love those that he brings across our path. Those that the world sees as lovable & those that the world sees as unlovable. We must love them the way He loves them, unconditionally. We are His hands and feet! Opportunities are all around us daily. Don't miss the chance to shine His light and share His love with those around you today!

"O give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; for His mercy and loving-kindness endure forever!" Ps 107:1

Hosting A Team-Sharing His Love

We just got done hosting our first mission team to Celebration Athens! Although when the week was over I was exhausted, it was a wonderful feeling. To serve along side this great group of missionaries from Celebration Church Jacksonville was an honor. They touched many lives in their week here, with the unconditional love of Jesus. 

Their first night in Athens the team had a traditional Greek home cooked meal prepared with love by our friends & family in Christ, Dimitris & Sophia. The food was amazing and the fellowship was even better!

After a good night sleep we started Friday morning hearing from Phil who runs A21 in Greece. He shared with us some staggering statistics, also how A21 is fighting human trafficking right now, some of their plans for the future and then some wonderful stories of women who had been rescued, nurtured with the love of Jesus & given hope & a new life! It is so exciting to be partnering with such an amazing organization that is bringing awareness to trafficking and helping to abolish this slavery in the 21st century!

Friday evening we all went out to dinner in Agia Paraskevi. It was a divine appointment! There was a rave party going on in the square with many young people drinking and doing drugs. We were able to hang out, talk to people & pray throughout the square.

Saturday we served at Helping Hands all day. This is a ministry that loves on & helps care for, the refugees in the city of Athens, most who live on the streets. They are from many countries, Iran, Afghanistan, Northern Africa, just to name a few and here at Helping Hands they are loved, encouraged and given hope. We spent time doing crafts with the children, serving tea to the men & women, playing checkers & chess with the teens & adults and talking with them, listening to their stories, many which were heartbreaking. God opened the door for a couple of team members to be able to share their testimony with the refugees and that was a blessing!

Sunday we went to a church where Pastor Darren preached a great message on believing. Sunday evening we went to Hellenic Ministries young adult worship service. It was a great service. The worship, which was in both Greek & English, was amazing & the presence of God was tangible. Jonathan(from H M) gave a great word & we met many new friends, including a ywam team from England. 

On Monday we served at the Greek Bible Institute clearing tree branches from the fence line, washing windows, & other outdoor jobs. Then on Monday night we served food at Hellenic Ministries "Love Meals" to 100's of refugees who would otherwise not have a meal. Hellenic Ministries touches so many lives here in Greece, especially the refugee population. Please keep all of these men & women in your prayers.

                                                      

Tuesday morning we went to chapel service with the students here at the bible college. We participated in worship & then the students shared about what God did over the Easter holiday. Then the mission team shared a little with the students about themselves. We then had coffee & fellowship before heading out to Pastor Darren & Katie's new home to serve them. We cleaned their new home, clean up the street, trimmed the trees & shrubs & then we all prayed through their house. I'm so excited for them to get settled in & make it their own!           



On Wednesday morning we went on a prayer walk with Nea Zoi through the streets of Athens in and around the brothels. Nea Zoi is an organization that ministers to prostitutes (men & women), offering care, information, alternatives for their lives, as well as emotional support. A place where they can find restoration and new life if they want it. We witnessed first hand girls working the streets and men that were there to purchase services. Please pray that God changes the hearts of these men and breaks this cycle that is so natural and accepted in this culture.

Wednesday afternoon we did some site seeing, because early Thursday morning the team would be leaving. We visited the Acropolis and the Acropolis Museum as well as many shops so the team could purchase souvenirs.

It was an amazing week spent with a great group of people both from our Celebration Team and from the other ministries we served with. I feel blessed and honored to serve along side each and every one of them sharing the love of Jesus with those who are hurting, hopeless, and lost.  Isaiah 58:10 says, "If you extend your soul to the hungry and satisfy the afflicted soul, then your light shall dawn in the darkness, and your darkness shall be as the noonday." To extend one's soul is to help another person, heart to heart. No distance, no differences, just one human being reaching out and touching another with love. The breach is repaired, bridges are built, trust is gained and hearts are restored. Then God's light is shown and darkness flees. I believe this is what will make a difference in Greece and around the world. Meeting people where they are, heart to heart, shining the light of His love. Please continue to pray for the Celebration Athens team and the country of Greece and we will continue to pray for you. 

Love & Blessings,

Tracy

My Big Greek Easter

Holy week & Easter were celebrated all over Greece recently & I was blessed to experience it in person by being right in the middle of it all, here in Athens. The Orthodox Easter is the country's most important "religious" holiday. The traditions bring family, friends, & generations together for the most sacred & celebrated of all holidays in Greece. Their festivities start with a 40day fast, culminating with Holy week which starts on Palm Sunday. On Holy Thursday, traditionally the special red eggs, which symbolize the blood of Christ & renewal of life, are colored. Good Friday or Great Friday, is the most sacred day of Holy week here, & is considered a day of mourning. All flags on government buildings are set at half mast to mark the mournful day. Women & children go to church to decorate the "Epitaph/Bier of Christ" or tomb of Christ, with flowers. The morning of Good Friday Jesus burial is reenacted at the church & in the evening the "Procession of the Epitaphios of Christ" takes place. The decorated coffin is carried through the streets by the faithful dressed in mourning clothes weeping. This takes place in every city & village throughout Greece. On Easter Saturday morning preparations start for the festive dinner of "the night of Resurrection". Just before midnight, people gather in the churches & squares in the city, holding white candles which will be lit with the "Holy Light", which is believed to be brought from the Church of the Holy Sepluchre in Jerusalem. It is distributed by the priest to all in attendance. At midnight the church bells ring & the Priests announce "Christos Anesti!"...Christ is Risen! Everyone in the crowd responds "Alithós Anésti"....Truly He is risen! The people then leave the churches & squares to gather in the homes of family & friends. The candles they carry are placed in each home & burn throughout the night symbolizing the "Light" returned to the world. The celebration continues with the cracking of the red eggs, which is meant to symbolize Christ breaking from the tomb. They also partake in the resurrection table meal where traditional foods are served with celebrating into the night & early Easter Sunday morning.

On Easter Sunday the Easter table is prepared and the festivities continue. The Easter meal is truly a feast with the traditional main dish being lamb, served in honor of the Lamb of God who was sacrificed and rose again. A whole spiced lamb is roasted over a charcoal fire & is the most traditional of Greek Easter foods. The Easter Sunday celebration lasts through the day while visits are made to family & friends & the feast is shared with every guest. (below is a picture of our Easter lamb!)

Sophia & Dimitris, our good friends here in Athens & brother and sister in Christ, took us to the market to show us how they pick out the lamb & then we were invited to their family's home to share Easter Sunday dinner with them, celebrate our Risen Savior & fellowship.  The meal was absolutely delicious! We experienced all of the Greek Easter Holiday down to the lovely dinner with family & friends. I am so grateful to have been able to experience what many only read about. My prayer is that the people of Greece would not only celebrate the Risen Savior during the traditional Easter/Holy holiday, but that God would, by His Spirit, pour out a spirit of wisdom, understanding & revelation in the knowledge of Jesus here in Greece. And that His light would shine in Athens & throughout Greece, so that people's hearts here would comprehend His love & longing for a relationship with them & be forever changed. Please continue to be in agreement in prayer for the people of Athens & of Greece. That they would experience the risen Jesus in a real, tangible & personal way that would bring hope, joy & freedom to their lives. 

   Christos Anesti!
 Love & Blessings, 

~Tracy~ 

Prayer moves mountains!

Last night we were invited to a prayer rally in Omonoia Square. It was an invitation asking all believers in Athens to come together to pray in unity for Greece and for a breakthrough in the crisis going on in this country. It was an opportunity to humble ourselves together, confess our sins, seek His face for this country and for it's leaders. I believe that this Unity in prayer is key to God bringing lasting change. I was so excited to be a part of such an event and pray that these rallies continue to happen more frequently. There was an awesome turn out and I believe that God moves mountains through our unified prayer! Please pray in agreement with me that we continue to unite together in Athens in prayer.


The earnest prayer of a righteous man makes tremendous power available [dynamic in its working].  James 5:16b amp
  
Omonoia Prayer Rally: 
http://plixi.com/p/92421098

A Stranger in this Land

My first week in Athens has been filled with many experiences, all of which I am grateful for. At times I have felt out of place. Like an alien from another planet, a stranger........a fish out of water. I don't understand their alphabet, can't speak the language yet or read the street signs. I don't know where I am going when I get on the bus or the metro, & they don't have a Walmart or a Target here! But then God reminds me that we are all, as followers of Jesus, "strangers & temporary residents on this earth" Ps 119:19a. Hebrews 11 talks about how Abraham, by faith, obeyed God, left his home & went to an unknown land.  It says that "they were aliens & strangers." Reading over these verses reminds me that I'm in good company, I'm not the only one that has ever felt this way and I won't be the last. I am reminded God is with me. His word is my comfort & my guide, whatever my circumstance.

We have been visiting different areas of the city, meeting people, looking at buildings, talking to the different ministries we will be partnering with & visiting churches. It has been both exciting and saddening. The people we have met in the Christian community here have been wonderful, very welcoming, helpful and gracious. I am so thankful to be building relationships with them & to be able to call them family. As I have walked through the city I have seen many things that are distressing, sad, and remind me how vulnerable people are though. There was an addict shooting up right in front of us as we walked down the side walk, a drug deal went down just steps away from me, there are prostitutes and homeless on the streets. The peoples eyes are filled with emptiness. There's no hope, no peace, no love, no Jesus. That is why we are here! To bring the love of Jesus which gives hope, peace and brings freedom!

I am humbled and honored to be used by God here in Athens. I pray that he continues to work in and through me and equip me to do all that he wants me to do here. Please keep all of us on the Celebration Athens team in your prayers. We have alot of work to do for God! I will also keep you in my prayers.                              
Love & blessings,  Tracy

We made it!!

I can hardly believe I am waking up in Athens Greece this morning! A little chilly but I'm praying that the sun will come out and warm things up! I am so in awe of all that God has done over the last few months. It has been nothing but His love, grace, mercy and miracle working power that has gotten me here. I will continue to walk in faith, trusting him to lead the way. I am excited to get to work serving the people here in Athens and sharing his love with them so they can experience all that he has for them as well!

We are currently staying at a Bible College here in Athens. They have taken us in and welcomed us like family! I am so very thankful for Ms Helen and I can't wait to get to know the students here. The grounds here are beautiful with a garden, walk ways, outside sitting area, & volleyball courts.  Waking up this morning I'm excited to get out and do some exploring! Pictures will follow =)

As I venture out on this journey I am continuing to trust my heavenly father who has encouraged me that nothing is impossible with Him! Please continue to keep us, the Celebration Athens team, and the people of Greece in your prayers.


Ephesians 3:7-8,  By God’s grace and mighty power, I have been given the privilege of serving him by spreading this Good News. Though I am the least deserving of all God’s people, he graciously gave me the privilege of telling others about the endless treasures available to them in Christ.