At training camp, I learned a new phrase: “The man of peace”. In scripture, Jesus sends his disciples out two-by-two. He instructs them to look for the person who promotes peace. It’s an Aramaic saying that references people who welcome you well. In ministry, the man of peace often is somebody God places right in your path at just the right time.
I have two stories from my time in Thessaloniki about women of peace.
On the first day in the city, I was desirous to go out and explore. It was an “off” day (basically, a weekend), so a squadmate and I wandered around the city, getting ice cream and great views. We walked for hours. She shared with me that she missed doing purposeful ministry, and I listened. As I listened, we passed by a cute little shop with books in the window. My friend has a special affinity for children’s books, so we slowed to a halt. I started reading the book title: Ο Ιησο?ς και οι μαθητ?ς του, which reads “Jesus and his disciples”. I looked at other books, and recognized the author Lee Strobel… and then Cloud and Townsend (They wrote Boundaries, one of my all-time favorite books)! We walked into the shop and I spoke to the woman behind the counter in my limited Greek. She, in fact, was an evangelical Christian! (She smiled sweetly as she said “yes”) This is a big deal. Less than 1% of the Greek people are evangelical Christian; likely, this is the only evangelical Christian bookstore in the city. On the way to Greece, I prayed and asked God to show me what he was doing in the city.
In my previous time living in Greece, I did not meet a single protestant Christian. Within the first 4 hours of being in Thessaloniki, the Lord led us to a strong believer! I was almost in tears with joy! We spoke to the shopkeeper, Gianna, for over half an hour: me in broken Greek, her in broken English. She gave us 5 contacts of other churches and pastors in the area, effortlessly providing answers to specific prayers. One of our main goals in coming to Greece was to find and connect with other believers; God was doing all the work for us! I ended up buying a CD of Greek Worship music based on Gianna’s recommendation. She gave us a few beautiful bookmarks as well. Gianna allowed us to pray for her and to bless her shop, and we were happy to do so. She was almost in tears, and we were all in smiles. She told us, “This is amazing! Several months ago, almost the same thing happened. 2 missionaries wandered into the shop, prayed for me, and blessed me. God is sending out messengers to remind me how he loves me!” Yes! That’s exactly what is happening! I walked away, filled with joy! My God is the faithful God! My God is the God who answers prayers! That day, our “man of peace” was a sweet woman in need of blessing and encouragement. Gianna received us warmly and we were both blessed because of it.
Praise be to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. –Ephesians 1:3
