Between Ruins & Redemption: The Importance of Global Connectivity Among Christians

Hi from the Greek islands! For over a week now, I’ve been traveling with a church group through Greece and Turkey, retracing the steps of Paul and spreading the light of Christ along the way. Today, I’m taking a moment to pause from tours and sightseeing and share my reflections from this trip. This first post couldn’t be more fitting as it speaks to the importance of global connectivity among believers.

I often question what purpose this blog serves. I know my readership isn’t massive, but I always tell myself if this blog helps just one person grow closer to God or discover God, then it’s worth it. I was reminded of the purpose of this blog in Turkey, where I was connected with a tour guide who converted to Christianity after marrying into a Christian family.

Our guide explained, that given Turkey is a Muslim country, he’s experienced a degree of persecution for his choice to convert and he is unable to attend church or foster Christian community where he lives because there are no churches within proximity. The government controls what is allowed to be built and the government has not approved for a Christian church to be built in Kusadasi.

To attend church and be among other believers, our guide must travel over 300 miles, which makes regular church attendance and in-person community impossible. His story reveals the reality of so many in countries where the national belief is not Christianity. They are not lost. They are disconnected.

So, how do we foster global connectivity among believers as organizations and as individuals?

• Utilize the technology you have to stream your church services

• Share your testimony and Biblical reflections on social media

• Create a Facebook group for believers

• Start a blog like this one

Do not fear a language barrier. The truth is, most people know English and if they do not, technology allows for translation. Your words matter, and you never know who they may reach.

There are certain realities that never really affect us until they do. We hear of the devasting persecution of Christians, specifically in other countries. We know that freedom of religion is a blessing. But we don’t really understand how big of a blessing it is until we see what it looks like on the other side. Knowing is not the same as understanding. Even now, I don’t pretend to understand the struggles that believers in non-believing countries face. But I do have more perspective and empathy than I did a week ago. I hope you do too.

Let this post be a reminder to count your blessings if you live in a country with religious freedom.

Let this post be a call to utilize the freedom and technology you have to connect with other believers and help them connect to Christ.

And if you are a believer searching for a community, I hope you feel like you’ve found one. You are part of the global Christian family.

Resource: https://youtube.com/@wogm?si=n-AMIg56dgwgCqmS

One last thing...you see the photo (first picture on the second row). This is a symbol carved into the marble grounds of ancient Ephesus, one of the many places that Paul visited and wrote the letter of Ephesians to. What do you think this symbol is? Our guide asked us and we were all encouraged to give different answers. I said a wagon wheel. Others said a game, a compass, a map. It was very easy for us to come up with interpretations of this symbol and that was the point.

This symbol is called the Ichthys Wheel and it is one of the earliest symbols of Christianity. While we may know the earliest symbol as the fish, representing when Jesus multiplied the fish, this symbol swiftly followed. Ichthys is the Greek word for fish, the letters of which (IX0YE) ***imagine I have a Greek symbol keyboard*** are an acronym for "Jesus Christ, God's Son, Savior."

Anyone who understood Greek would know the word for fish and could decipher the meaning of the symbol. By layering the letters on top of one another, the word becomes nearly unidentifiable and the symbol became a safe place for Christians to gather in plain sight. And when they were asked, what are you gathering about? What does this symbol mean? They could easily say it's a game, a map, a compass, or anything other than what it truly meant.

This symbol was carved all over the grounds of Ephesus, and it was one of the most powerful things I saw that day. It is a reminder of a time when Christians were forced into hiding. And it wasn't the only reminder I saw while in Greece and Turkey. I visited catacombs in Milos where believers hid and were buried. Seeing these hiding places and hidden symbols and hearing the present day story of my tour guide made me realize--Christians hiding in plain sight is not necessarily a thing of the past.

If you do not have to hide, be thankful.

If you do, I am praying for you.

For the believers who came before, I am inspired by you.