LaGrange resident Kimberly Holley Smith went on a pilgrimage of many historical Christian sites in Turkey back in April and has now turned that experience into her first book, “The Stones Still Speak: Discovering Ancient Turkey — The Seven Churches of Revelation.”
The book is part Bible study and part pilgrimage guide, filled with historical research and the things Smith learned and journaled during her trip. “The Stones Still Speak” takes readers on a journey of ancient cities Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea, collectively known as the Seven Churches of Revelation, while uncovering the spiritual lessons each church still teaches today. The book breaks each city by section and delves into history, archaeological remains and spiritual messages. The book includes scripture from Revelations, space for reflections and notes, discussion questions, a timeline of Christianity in Turkey, and photos both taken on Smith’s journey and some generated by AI of the ancient civilizations. Smith has also created a companion coloring book to help readers explore the ancient cities while taking in the relaxing, therapeutic experience of coloring. The coloring book includes photos of her trip turned into coloring pages by AI, as well as some pages created by AI of what the cities might have looked like.
Smith wanted to create the Christian travel guide and coloring book for others who may also want to pilgrimage because she noticed a lack of guides that explored Turkey’s biblical past when she traveled
“I didn’t realize the number of cities that are in the Bible that are in Turkey. It was always Israel or Jerusalem when I think of the Bible, but Turkey has a tremendous Christian history. Along our journey, I had wanted a resource that told a little bit about the archaeology, that told a little bit about the history, but that also covered the early Christianity part. Turkey being a predominantly Muslim country, there wasn’t really any type of resource like that that included the early Christianity piece. So, I just wrote it myself. I plan to go back. So, if I want it for that type of trip, I’m sure there are other groups that are going that would like it as well,” Smith said.
Smith loved her pilgrimage and recalls her favorite experience was sharing about her faith with her Muslim tour guide. “It was just a little bit eye-opening because we were able to have conversations in the van on the way to the next location about what they believe, and then we were able to share what we believe, and he was open to that,” Smith said. “That really became my favorite part of the trip is being able to share Jesus with somebody that’s not of the same faith.”
Smith wants the book and coloring book to inspire others to take their own pilgrimage to get closer to Jesus. She wants to share Jesus with others. Smith says the Seven Churches of Revelation can teach current-day churches about how to navigate many struggles that they too faced in their time
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“The number one thing that I would love for people to do is read it and take their own pilgrimage. It is one thing to read about something and to study it in scripture, but to just walk it yourself really. It really was life-changing for me and kind of catapulted me in this direction of like, ‘Hey, I’m going to write this book,’ and then I’ve continued some other creative projects since then, and then to take Jesus’ message to the church. The church is the body of Christ. A lot of the struggles that [the Seven Churches of Revelation] faced inside the buildings or inside wherever they held church are the same struggles that churches today face,” Smith said. “I hope it’s a reminder to Christians, like it’s not new. It happened then, it’s happening now. But Jesus, He’s our hope, and there’s a way out of it. It’s never too late to repent, which is what revelation calls us to do — to repent and return to Jesus.”
The remains she visited are physical reminders that the churches’ history, their legacy, and Jesus are still very much present even though the cities are gone. The stones can still speak to Christians
“A lot of the structures that remain are stone and rubble, and there’s rocks everywhere, and I just think that those stones have a story to tell. That’s kind of where [‘The Stones Still Speak’] came from is just what we can learn from history and those ancient sites,” Smith explained
Smith said she has incorporated the book into a ladies’ Bible study she teaches at her church, First Baptist on the Square, and has received lots of great feedback
“It has really been a tremendous experience. I’ve been with this group of ladies for quite a while. We had some additional ladies that kind of just found us because they didn’t have anywhere else to be. What I have found is, it’s just enough information. There’s a million other things that I could tell them in the book, but it’s a good conversation starter. We get to ask the questions and dig into it, and then they get to ask about things that we saw and experienced while we were there,” Smith shared. “It’s just been really amazing, and there’s been such an interest I’ll teach it again starting in August, and it’ll be like an open invitation for the church at First Baptist as well.”
Both the book and coloring book were self-published through Amazon and can be found on Amazon
