Last Day - Worship and Good-byes

[by Charlie]

This was our team's last full day in Antalya. We began with worship, and I had the privilege to preach a second time, this time on the story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego and the fiery furnace. Basically my approach was to share my ignorance about being a religious minority and encourage them through the faithfulness of these three teenagers who were exiles in Babylon. I enjoyed the experience again this week and sensed it was well-received. Suzy, Mike, David and Katie taught the Sunday School during the worship time. At one point we were all brought up front, thanked and prayed for. After the worship we said our good-byes to people in the patio and walked over to a restaurant with a beautiful view of the ocean and spent several hours sharing and debriefing our time in Turkey. That was a good time in which we shared about what were the highlights of our time here, what was hard, what was surprising or different than what we expected, what we learned about ourselves, and suggestions for future groups...or even for ourselves if any of us should come back next year. We also revealed to each other who our 'Secret Pal' was and shared what our favorite Turkish meal was. Mine was the grape-leaved wrapped fish I had for lunch while on the river rafting trip.

After that, Mike, Suzy and I met with our liaison, Pam, at Starbucks (which is the best air-conditioned building in Antalya) and spent another hour and half debriefing with her while David and Katie hung out at a table nearby. Despite the length of time involved, all of it was good and helpful and necessary as we bring our time here to a close. After that we all walked home - Mike, Suzy and David in one direction...Katie, Pam and I in another. After Katie was safely escorted to her home, I finally made it back to mine around 10:30. A LONG day...but a good one.

I gave a couple of gifts to my hosts - a handcrafted wooden cross made by a man in Atascadero, and a Thomas Kinkade tapestry - two uniquely American-made items for them to remember their time with me. Plus, I gave Metin my IMPACT t-shirt. Each of us either brought something or bought something to give as an expression of our appreciation of our host home's hospitality.

I am tempted to include some of the thoughts and feelings that came out in our debriefings...but I simply don't have the energy. Mentally, I am spent. And besides, I have to pack. We leave for the airport at 4:30am tomorrow morning.

SO...consider this my last blog...though if I get inspired on the plane ride back, I might write one more. But I suspect that from here on out, each of us will be 'blogging in person' as we share with our home churches about what we did and how this trip has impacted our lives.

For those of you following this blog, thank you for reading and thinking about us, and most of all for praying for us. I hope that this has helped you feel connected to our work in Turkey, and given you a sense of the way in which God has been at work among us. We could not have done this without your support and belief in the value of this trip.

Teşekkürler ederim! (Thank you very much!)

Glory Tanrı! (Glory to God!)

Charlie

Our last group shot after our dinner and debrief, overlooking Antalya Bay with the sun setting just off to the side and behind us.