Day 03 - Hierapolis, Colossae, and Laodicea

Just when you thought this trip couldn’t get any better…IT DID. For those from the group who wanted to, we participated in a hot air balloon ride at sunrise. It was breathtaking - truly, an amazing experience! After the balloon ride, our first location was Hierapolis. We talked about Epaphras and the kind of pastor he was. After spending sometime in the necropolis, we talked about keeping our finish in mind as we run the race of life. At Hierapolis is a memorial honoring the disciple, Philip, who was martyred there. 

Our next stop was Colossae. We read the book of Philemon, since Philemon lived in Colossae. Before our last stop of the day, we had lunch at a restaurant next to a cool spring waterfall, which was beautiful. We finished the day in Laodicea, reading the letter written to the church in Laodecia in Revelation 3. We discussed that many people misinterpret Jesus’ statement about the church being lukewarm, when really it was proof of how intimately he knew his church and how much he wanted them to repent. Praise God that we have good reason to believe that they did repent with the excavation of a large church where several believers could gather to worship.