Tour of Israel

It was a day of Agony. We went to Mt. Olives where so many times Jesus retreated to for reflection and to look over Jerusalem. We then went to Gethseme where Jesus prayed before He went to the cross. As you remember Gethseme means an olive press. Christ was pressed and crushed for our sins. It was a very moving moment to reflect that the weight of the sins of the world were to be cast upon our Savior. We are free because Jesus was crushed for us.
We left there and went to Yad Vashem which is a memorial to the Holocaust. Yad Vashem means to remember the name. One of the reasons they opened this memorial is to retrieve the names of those that died in the Holocaust. We must remember as painful as it is that there is evil in the world. That there are evil people that do awful things to other people. The answer of course is our Savior that changes our hearts and the hearts of those that do evil. It was a day of agony. It was a day to remember that our Savior suffered and the people of Israel have suffered. One day christ is coming back to set the record straight. Amen!

Tour of Israel

I posted a blog yesterday and did it wrong. To catch you up let me say that we went to see Masada where  hollywood made a movie about the event that happened in 73 A.D.. One thousand Jewish rebels commited suicide instead of seeing their children and wives abused by the Roman soldiers. Masada is a flat top mountian where Herod the great had built an unbelievable fortress. Herod had passed away and in 66 A.D. the Jewish rebels had taken it in order to escape Rome. In 73 A.D. the Romans decided to pay the price and take them down. We were challenged to be courageous and to take a stand and finish well. We may disagree with the leadership at Masada, but there was a resovle not to be enslaved again. Something else that has really come to light is how enslaved the Jewish people were to the Romans. Roman ruins are everywhere! Herod built his three palaces with Jewish slaves. The Romans used the Jewish people to take Masada! It is a miracle that Israel exists today in it's own land and is free. Israel needs our prayers.

Sea of Galilee & Capurnum

Wow, today Jan and I went to a museum where we saw a fishing boat that was used in the first century, one that Jesus and the disciples would have used. It took many years to preserve it, once it was found, as it would have disintegrated without the careful preservation. We went from viewing an ancient boat to riding a modern boat on the Sea of Galilee. Pastor Jim gave wonderful devotion about different events that occurred on the Sea of Galilee with Jesus and his disciples. The captain of the boat sang two Jewish folk songs and we all danced to a third song. We left there and went to Capurnum where Jesus spent most of his time and healed Peter's mother-in-law. They have found first century remains of the town. Jan and I were baptized in the Jordan River. It was a great moment of rededication and thinking about the future. When we came up to the baptismal area, a group of Asians were singing a hymn. It was an international event. We sat on the mountain where Jesus gave the Beatitudes and also where Jesus, after His resurrection, asked Peter three times, "Do you love me?" Being in all of these places brings to life all Jesus' teachings. It touches our hearts.

Caeserea

I had the privilege today of giving the devotional at Ceaserea.  If you recall, this is where Peter went to lead Corneliua to the Lord. It is the first known gentile who came to Christ. We went to Mt. Carmel where Elijah defeated the prophets of Baal and a monastery built on the mountaintop provided an awesome panoramic view of all northern Israel. I know you have heard it said before, but let me repeat it, it is very impactful to be standing where these events actually took place. We are now on the shores of the Sea of Galilee. Please do not worry about our safety. Anything you hear on the news has not affected us. We will let you know if we experience any trouble.