Day 09 - Priene, Didyma & Miletus

Our final day arrived. Thoughts and conversations began to shift to return flights home, packing, and the COVID test. But this day wasn’t to be overlooked! Our journey continued with another cold morning visiting the first of three sites.

The first site was the ancient city of Priene. While it isn’t found in the biblical text, the story and culture interwove beautifully with so much we have seen and experienced. As we gathered in the ancient theater, it once again reverberated with song but this time it was the Doxology and Amazing Grace. We toured the city ruins imagining a city fighting for its place in time. A massive Temple to Athena would have welcomed ancient travelers. Nestled further in the city was a synagogue where faithful Jews would have worshiped beginning around the 5th century BC. Yet deeper still, you could almost hear the whisper of early Christians who began to gather and quietly proclaim the good news. As in so many other cities, you could imagine an early house church begin to develop anticipating the next letter from Paul or John while sharing a meal and the Lord’s Supper.

While those “ruins” remain invisible to the eye, the remains of a 4th century church declared the presence of early faithful Christians.

The other two sites we would visit iterated an important truth: the power and influence of Rome no longer remains. These ruins tell an ancient story. Kingdoms rise and kingdoms fall, but the Word of God remains forever. We would later sit in the theater of Miletus and read Paul’s final words spoken in Turkey from Acts 20. It was a powerful reminder to teach the whole counsel of God, pay careful attention to your life, realize one is more blessed to give than to receive, and guard the flock entrusted to your care.

We have seen so much. We have learned, laughed, and prayed. Today, we were reminded that the journey continues as we return home. Our brief moment in God’s great story is being lived each and every day. We may face different challenges along the way, but the message of hope and love is the same: teach the whole counsel of God, pay careful attention to your life, realize one is more blessed to give that to receive, and guard the flock entrusted to your care.

We are all thankful for new friends, new stories, and the opportunity we’ve had to draw near to our living Savior. Revelation 1:17-18 proclaims the powerful words of Jesus, “I am the first and the last, and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and Hades.” Maybe the best way to conclude this final day is with Ephesians 3:20-21. “Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.”

Josh Allen