Speaking with him and describing his concern, the pastor suggested to bring him in touch with a church in New York, The Redeemer Presbyterian Church, because he had faced the same challenge: what it means to be a church in a big metropolis. After two or three unanswered emails the contact was never made and Giotis returned to Athens. But soon after he returned to Greece he received an email. One of the church leaders, the one to whom the emails had been sent, was traveling in a flight and sitting next to a person who was from Greece. When he mentioned Giotis’s name to his surprise he realized that the person sitting next to him was a relative of his. Was it a coincidence or God’s providence? Thank God, he chose the second option!

There were clashes between the police and a group of anarchists right in front of our building. The result was that the windows overlooking on the side of the street were broken and the church inside was full of scrap, rocks and tear gas. For us, this image was a final and unquestionable challenge. There is no safe place. The church building is not a fortress to hide from the world. In fact the idea that people from Exarcheia came to our ‘front yard’ was more than a challenge. Instead of us going to them, they came to us! It is time we stepped outside!

We want to share with others what God has taught us throughout the years about establishing churches in a big city. Over the years, City to City has been a source of inspiration and encouragement and a great context for the development of our vision. Now, in cooperation with City to City Europe we want to do the same for other cities in our geographical region with the prayer to see a gospel movement emerging in the cities of the Southern Balkans and beyond.