Last day in Israel....catch up

Hey there my blogger friends. I cant't believe it, but in the craziness of being home, I forgot to post about our last day in Israel.

It was a slower day compared to many of our other days but it was one of the most impactful by far. Our day started with a view overlooking Bethlehem and the shepherd's field where the shepherds saw the star and were surrounded by angels singing "glory to God in the highest." We didn't actually go to Bethlehem because like I said in an earlier post it is in the West Bank and it is entirely under Palestinian control. So definitely not very safe. There was this huge, imposing wall surrounding the city...freaky kinda. It reminded me of like a high security prison and people choose to live there...crazy if you ask me.

Then we headed out to the field where David fought Goliath and the Philistines. Tyler read us the scriptures and we walked along the path, picking up stones and imagining what it would have been like to be there. It was so awesome to be in the place where David and Saul would have been and be reminded of how great our God truly is.

Our next stop was at the Holocaust museum in Jerusalem. We spent a few hours there, taking it all in and remembering the horrors and injustices that were done to the Jewish people during World War II. It was very moving, especially seeing the room with the names of all the known people who died during the Holocaust. Row upon row of books filled with page after page of names in a room 2 stories high...it really hit home just how many lives perished in that awful stain on our history. There was also a memorial set up for all of the children who died during the Holocaust. It was a set of three lights that were reflected around the room by mirrors, making hundreds upon hundreds of lights. The room was completely dark and silent, except for a voice reading the names of children who had died, with their country of birth and ages. That was probably the most heart-wrenching part of the whole thing. Innocent children who hand't done anything to hurt anyone were murdered just because of who they were by birth. It was awful. Afterwards we all just spent some time processing all that we had seen and heard and remembering those who had died.

Our next stop was one of my absolute favorites of the trip. It was the Garden Tomb, one of the traditional sites where Jesus was said to have been buried. This site seemed much more authentic and lined up with the gospels much better than the other place we saw. First we sat in a little alcove and just sat and remembered what Jesus did for us by dying on the cross for our sins and then raising again to live with God the Father. We took communion together and spent time in prayer. We then walked around the garden with our guide and she showed us the things that make this a good candidate for the crucifiction and burial of Christ. First we saw the side of the cliff that looked like a skull, and in the scriptures Golgotha means "the place of the skull". Then our guide explained to us that the place that we were at was a garden in Jesus' time, which was basically a walled-in place where they grew crops. There was a giant cistern and a winepress, so they probably grew grapes in that garden. Then there was the tomb, the only one built there and carved out of the rock. We were able to go inside and see the tomb and on the inside of the tomb in really old writing there was a symbol that said that meant Jesus, the son of God, the Messiah. It was really cool to be there and I think we were all overcome with emotions at being at the actual site where our faith became so personal and where Christ died to save my sins. Nothing on this trip can could ever come close to topping this experience and it is one that I will always carry with me.

Finally to celebrate the end of our trip Leor treated us to a fabulous dinner at a little restaurant on our way back to Tel Aviv. We feasted on chicken kabobs and these delicious french fries, along with some other more traditional dishes. It was my favorite meal of the entire trip and we all had a great time reminiscing about some of our favorite parts and relaxing around the table with our good friends.

The Lowest Point on Earth

Good evening again my blog readers. Today (Saturday) our group headed out to the region of the Dead Sea to explore. First up was our baptism on the Jordan River. The spot we went to today was much more secluded and far less touristy feeling. Plus it is most likely closer to the actual spot that Jesus was baptized in. It was a sweet time to be together in the Lord's presence and remember our faith and be baptized in the same waters that Jesus was. Everyone agreed that it was the highlight of the day.

Then we headed to Masada, which is this giant fortress built on the top of a mountain by Herod the Great and it was later used by the Jewish during the revolts during 70 A.D. To get to the top we had to ride cable cars like the ones you see in the Alps. I am not a huge fan of heights, and Adam and Alan found about it when we were driving through the Golan Heights the other day and kept teasing me about it...good-naturally of course. :) it was really interesting to see and once we got to the top it didn't really seem so high up so I was great.

Then we stopped at Ein Gedi, which is the site where David and his men sought refuge when Saul was chasing them. David also used these settings as inspiration for many of his psalms. It was a beautiful nature park with walking paths and waterfalls. It was at one of these waterfalls that we stopped to read about David and Saul and also to read some psalms. The psalms really do come to life when you can actually see and experience the things that David is writing about.

After that we stopped at the Ahava store, which is the maker of all the Dead Sea skincare products. We bought a few things before heading down to the Dead Sea for a swim. The Dead Sea is the lowest point on Earth and is over 30% salt, compared to only 3% in the oceans. Swimming in the Dead Sea was on my bucket list and today I accomplished that. It was awesome to get into the water and without even having to try, be completely buoyant, floating in the water. The edges of the shore are also extremely cool with salt formations along the edges. The only bad thing is that the shore is extremely rocky and it kinda hurts getting in and out of the water. We also slathered ourselves in the Dead Sea mud and took some really fun pictures. The mud is right there along the shore. It is super rich in minerals and is so good for your skin. It was an adventure getting it off though and we had lots of laughs as we played in the mud.

Then our last stop of the day was Qumran, which is where the Dead Sea scrolls were found in the 1940's and 1950's. The park was officially closed but since Leor is so well known they let us in to explore a bit. (well I guess we kinda jumped the gate....:)  There were caves built right into the sides of the cliffs  which is where the scrolls were found. We loved just getting the chance to explore this awesome place that is so important to our history.

Back at the hotel, we headed to dinner and also visited a little grocery store in downtown Jerusalem before heading to our beds for the evening...which is where I should be so goodnight!

On the Sea

Shalom and good evening to you my friend. Today has been my favorite day of our trip so far. We spent the day touring around the Sea of Galilee. It was a beautiful day and it was amazing to truly walk where Jesus walked and experience the things that He did.

We started out at the southern shore of the lake and started traveling around to the east. We stopped briefly at the location where Jesus cast the demon out of the man and into the pigs before heading over to Capernium. This place was amazing. This was the main place where Jesus did the majority of His ministry. capernaum is no longer a functioning city but it is full of artifacts. We visited the archaeological site of Peter's house where his mother was healed by Jesus. But my favorite place today had to be the temple at Capernaum. The original foundation from Jesus' time is still there and a newer version (still really old) is built on top of it. It is built of limestone and it stands out beautifully against the black lava rock. This place is full of history and life and it spoke to my heart about who Jesus was on Earth and how out of this humble place comes our faith and what we believe.

Our next stop on the tour was the Mount of Beattitudes. It is the place where Jesus most likely gave his famous sermon on the mount. I wasn't as impressed with this site because it was a modern day chapel of sorts and it seemed more commercialized than other places we have visited. We did head down to a small pavillion to gather and reflect on Scripture, which I really liked. Standing there looking out over the Sea of Galilee I was able to see the connections to the surroundings that Jesus used to help his audience understand what He was teaching them. Like the fertile soil, the birds and the flowers, and the mustard seeds. Mustard grows like wildfire here and it is almost everywhere you look. The parking lot had amazing views of the Sea of Galilee and it was a very beautiful place to visit.

On our way to the next stop, we sang worship songs. We all laiughed about it afterwards how terrible we all were, but it really was a sweet time spent praising our God as we drove around the Sea of Galilee.

Our next stop was the boat ride on the Galilee. There is a museum exhibit that is part of the experience that is all about a 2,000year old ship that they recovered from the Sea of Galilee. It was so interesting to see what a fishing boat looked like in Jesus' time and to learn how they preserved the boat for us to see today.then we headed out onto the sea. It was an amazing experience to be on a boat in the middle of the Sea of Galilee where Jesus walked on water and calmed the storm. It was pretty overcast today but we got really lucky with the rain. For the most part, it only rained in between our stops or when we were inside. On the boat, we were paired with another group, so we spent a lot of time at the front of the boat experiencing this special time together. Tyler talked to us about how Jesus walking on the water had even more meaning to the people living in Jesus' time because they were afraid of large bodies of water and were superstitious that demons lived in the lake. So Jesus was showing them that faith is about trusting in Him and knowing that He will take care of us and also that He is bigger than anything in this world. These words just resonated with my heart because I feel as if these words were aimed directly for my heart and God is telling me to trust Him in all of the unknowns in my life. He has it all under control and I just need to trust Him.

Then we headed to another small town named Migdal for our lunch. The restaurant is famous for serving St. Peter's fish, basically a whole breaded fish caught in the Sea of Galilee, eyes, fins, tail and all. Only Adam was brave enough to get the whole one, everyone else got it filleted. I got the chicken and it was delicious. I am glad I didn't get the fish because they don't have tartar sauce in Israel. Lunch was great fun and we all had lots of laughs.

After lunch we went exploring near the cliffs of Arbel on the Nazareth Path. We hiked along the trail that Jesus would have taken to get from Capernium to Nazareth and Jerusalem. It was absolutely gorgeous and we loved hiking and taking pictures of God's country.

Since it rained so much today, we saw 5 different rainbows. Each one was more beautiful than the last and the last one was a double rainbow. It was almost as if God were smiling down on us and reminding us of his majesty.

Then we headed over to the Jordan River baptism site. We did not really like the atmosphere, so our guide Leor set up for us to get baptized in another less commercialized place. It was kind of sad to see such a special spiritual time be so affected by commercialism. It reminded me of when Jesus got angry with the sellers at the temple for disregarding the holiness of the temple and for not having right hearts about it. So instead we took some really pretty pictures of the river and stopped at the edge to reflect and touch the water.

We also stopped at a specialty market that sold all sorts of produce, spices, and other Israeli specialties. It was fun just to explore this place and see the unique items in there.

Tonight after dinner at the hotel we all met in the lobby to process the day and discuss what we had seen. This is probably one of my favorite parts of the trip and why I love our small little group. With only 9 of us, I feel like I have known these friends for much longer than it really is. Our group dynamic is so special and I look forward to spending more time with them throughout this trip. :)

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touring Israel

My friends I am writing you from the lobby of our hotel on the shores of the Sea of Gallilee. Today is March 8th. I am telling you this because it probably won't make it onto the blog until at least the 9th because when I tried to log into Blogger, the screen would only come up in Hebrew...so needless to say I couldn't log in. :(

The past 48 hours have been crazy, busy, and fun. As you know from my previous post, our flight to Tel Aviv was delayed overnight so yesterday morning we headed to the airport around 4:00 a.m. to head out on our flight. The flight was super long...we took off at 6:30 a.m. our time and landed in Tel Aviv, Israel at midnight their time. The only saving grace was the in-flight entertainment system. There were over 100 movies to choose from as well as movies and games. So I slept a little on the flight but most of my time was spent watching movies. I saw Tangled, Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince part 1, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, and Bride Wars.

We stayed overnight at Tel Aviv and in the morning we headed out to begin our sightseeing. Our first stop was at a museum that described Israel's fight for independence in the 1940's. It followed a group of young Israelis who were key players in the story. Their tale was told through documentary and theatrical films as well as life-size dioramas with special effects. At first I really didn't enjoy it, but as the film progressed I was able to appreciate the struggles that the Israeli people have gone through to get to where they are today.
Then we journeyed on to Cesearea where we saw the theatre there and were able to explore a bit. It was on the Mediterranean Sea and it was truly beautiful. It was also great to see some Roman architecture from the time of Jesus. It was quite blustery and it rained on us at the beginning but we managed to enjoy ourselves and have fun exploring this historical place.

Then we headed north towards Mount Carmel. We stopped for lunch at the home of a family whose son was killed in a suicide bomb while serving in the Israeli army. The food was delicious and there was TONS of it. My favorite was the chicken....oh so delicious and just the right amount of seasoning. Then the family told us the story of their son. This was so meaningful and heartfelt and It brought the story from the museum to life even more.

Then we stopped at Mount Carmel, which is the site where Elijah challenged the prophets of Baal in 2 Samuel. It was so high up in the mountainous region of Israel and it looks down upon the Valley where Armageddon is. We got some awesome pictures on the lookout before we headed into the chapel at the monastery there and read the scriptures. I was once again reminded how great and awesome my God is. Just as he showed up for Elijah in his situation, God will also show up for me in my situation, no matter how impossible it looks. I just need to have faith and trust that He can and that He will.

Our next stop on the journey was to Nazareth, the boyhood home of Jesus. The town is built into the mountains and it is truly a site to behold. We went to the highest spot in the city to take in the view. This spot is also one of the places that Jesus preached the Word. to stand on that mountain and be where Jesus walked and to see what Jesus moved me and made me all the more excited to explore more of this beautiful land.

Our final stop for the day was our hotel on the Sea of Gallilee. We checked into our rooms then we all headed down to the shore to see this place where so much of Jesus' ministry happened. It is so beautiful and peaceful, surrounded by huge hills and with palm trees and flowers everywhere. We will spend much more time exploring here tomorrow...I can't wait!

Well, I am off to bed...it is almost midnight here unlike back home where it isn't even 5 p.m. yet. :) So I am signing off...see you all tomorrow!

World Traveler

A passport is a wonderful thing. It literally opens up a world of travel to a person. Europe, Asia, a remote tropical isle....they all become possibilities when you own a passport. So many people have never left the United States, but in my little passport lies proof of the wonderful adventures I have taken. Britain, Mexico...and in just a few short hours I will be heading to another new destination. Israel: another place to explore, to experience, and to be.

I will be chronicling my journey through this little blog as I explore this ancient and holy land, the birthplace of my faith. So stay tuned, my blog readers, and experience the Holy Land with me as I go on this once-in-a-lifetime journey.

Saturday Scrappin'

Well, its Saturday and as usual I can be found down in my scrap room and the paper is flying! :) I finished a new layout and I thought I would post it along with some of my other scrappy creations this week.

I had a lot of fun creating with this bright and funky travel line from American Crafts. The elements were perfect for these photos at the beginning of our little road trip in Florida. :)

These are just the miscellaneous photos from our days spent at the beach. I really like the fun bright colors that are in these papers from Making Memories and I used a technique called masking and some glimmer mist to create the hibiscus flower and date on the page.  :)

These are photos of Emily and I on the OceanWalk at Daytona Beach. I love this page for so many reasons: the photos are really bright and fun and I was able to find the perfect patterned paper to match my layout. I also had a lot of fun playing with my Cricut and new Life Is a Beach and Don Juan cartridges to create a lot of the page elements.