It was the Easter Sunday in Athens! We always attend a Sunday service no matter what part of the world we happen to be visiting.
We were able to find from the internet that there would be an English Service at the St. Paul's Anglican Church serving the English speaking residents in Athens. We looked forward to attending the Easter Sunday service at the church which was pretty packed when we got there about 15 minutes before service started.
At around 10 a.m. there was standing room only, we were happy that we got there early enough to find a seat for the duration of the service. With the declining attendance of church services in many parts of Europe, I was very happy to see the church full of congregants of all ages!
The people at the church were warm welcoming and the lady sitting beside me and I even had a small chat before the start of the service. With humour and thoughtful language, the minister shared a heart warming message with the congregation. Being reminded of Jesus' sacrifice and God's love for me once again, I was moved to tears.
This is why I enjoy going to our weekly church service so much for the past many decades. Many of us living in the west are leading such busy lives that we hardly have any quiet moments to reflect and be thankful to God for His blessings. I am thankful that many ministers' messages often challenge me to think what are the priorities in my life and therefore help me to refocus and reset my goals.
A light lunch was served after the service and everyone was invited to take part in this lunch. I was surprised how the church could manage to feed everyone on one of the busiest holy days. Well, it did! With just 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish, Jesus performed a miracle and was able to feed the 5000 people in the New Testament time! I should not be surprised that this church was able to feed everyone who wished to partake in the Easter Day lunch.
It was wonderful meeting other Christians from Athens and celebrating Easter together while we were in Greece!
RT, Easter Sunday Service
Athens, Greece
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