Day 02 - Perga

Today we left Antalya and headed through the countryside of Turkey towards our final destination of the day, Isparta. During the drive we stopped at two ancient sites that let your imagination wonder back to the 1st and 2nd centuries. First, we journeyed to Aspendos, which happens to have the best preserved Roman theater of the ancient world. The theater brought us back in time to understand the entertainment of the day and how influential it was to the people (even still to this day). After leaving the theater, we made our way to Ancient Perga! This is one of the cities where Paul and Barnabas sought out to share the good news of Jesus Christ. Pastor Josh spoke to us about God’s intentional hand of choosing Paul and Barnabas to carry out the Great Commission commanded to us by Jesus Christ. After learning a lot of  background information of both Paul and Barnabas, I asked myself, “Would this mission have been different if Paul were not a Roman citizen, trained under one of the highest Rabbis?” Or “Would Paul and Barnabas not have enough funds to make it to Perga, if it wasn’t for Barnabas having land in Cyprus that could be sold?” Or “Would the people not see the importance of following Christ if Paul had not had a radical transition to Christianity himself?” Or “Would Paul’s zealous spirit been too abrupt for the people of Perga, if it had not been for Barnabas, ‘Son of Encouragement’, being there as well?”

We may not know the answers to those questions, but we can find rest knowing that God’s intentional hand-picked those two people to carry out His mission. We all have purpose in God’s mission, even an ex-Jew who stoned fellow Christians (Paul), and an empathetic encourager (Barnabas).