Month: August 2019

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Waking up in Jerusalem almost felt surreal. So much history and beauty in the small and amazing land of Israel. Breakfast was lovely in the open air atrium between the lobby and the dining area. Lots of things to try, including wonderful, melt-in-your mouth fresh dates – oh my!

Next we were off to the red bus where we enjoyed the humor and knowledge of our bus leaders (Harrison, Julie and Lily) as we headed toward Mt. Scopus for more views of this amazing city.

A drive through the Judean desert was up next as we traveled to Masada. The desert mountains were so rugged and beautiful. I don’t think the pictures do justice to them, or to one of the many date palm orchards we passed.

 

Masada — Wow! It was SO….SO high when going up the tram, SO hot (108 degrees), and SO Big! To learn more and understand it’s history (Jewish & Roman) view this video or visit this website. To give some perspective… the tram in the center top photo held maybe 30 people, and it looked like a small dot when it was at the top landing (center photo). The center bottom photo shows remains of a Roman bath house and steam vents.

 

After lunch we left Masada for a visit to the Dead Sea.  You can read it’s history here, and as  the photos below show, it is beautiful, but a bit dangerous. I am glad to have visited, but the bath house was very crowded and hot, and the journey down to and up from the water was very steep. I rubbed some of the dead sea mud on my skin… but the water felt almost oily and not very pleasant. Regardless, it was beautiful and worth the visit. And, on the trip back I got a couple photos of the local wild life (smile).

 

I’m not sure if this was a 2nd stop at Mt. Scopus… but we stopped here to sing and welcome in Shabbat before going back to the Inbal for a very pleasant Shabbat dinner. I even got a photo with Shelli Brim (yay!). Dinner was hosted by a local Rabbi and his wife. It was a blessing, and a very blessed day indeed.

 

In honor of our Shabbat (Sabbath) meal in Jerusalem, below is the blessing of the bread (Hebrew transliteration and English). I like to picture our Messiah Yeshua (Jesus Christ) as He (the Bread of Life) spoke this blessing at the last supper.

Baruch ata Adonai, Eloheinu Melech ha-olam, hamotzi lechem min ha’aretz.

Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the universe, who has brought forth bread from the earth.

You can go here to learn about the Shabbat meal and it’s blessings.

I so enjoyed our days in The Galilee, I found it easy to picture Rabbi Jesus and his disciples there. But this was our day to leave, and I was excited about two special stops we would make before ascending up to Jerusalem.

Our first stop was in Migdal (Magdala in the Greek) at a very precious piece of property called, Migdal Arbel. It was indeed a blessing to be there with Shelli Brim, Pastor George and Terri, and others that were also there when I first stepped on to this land in November of 2001. That’s when I heard the vision for this prayer and study center — it pierced my heart and has never left me, since that time I have felt that a piece of my heart was planted there. The project has been a rocky road, but much progress has been made and we serve a God of miracles. And, in my heart I believe I will return to it again.

Next we traveled to Ariel in Samaria (Hotel Eshel HaShomron) after crossing a security check-point as we entered the West Bank. There we visited with an amazing, courageous couple who run a hotel in Ariel. We heard how Tova Gilboa survived a 2002 suicide bomber attack in the lobby of the hotel, and about her husband, Menachem Gilboa, who was awarded Israel’s highest honor for his heroism that same year. Many Israeli soldiers were saved as Menachem prevented a suicide bomber from completing his mission at a nearby gas station and restaurant. Following that we visited their model of the tabernacle and toured the beautiful city of Ariel.

We then began our ascent up to Jerusalem. We read some of the Psalms, and as we entered the city they played “Jerusalem, Jerusalem.” My heart was lifted and my eyes filled with tears. We arrived in time to visit a park overlooking the city, where Guy, one of our guides also talked about the importance of our visit and support of Israel. Next we made our way to The Inbal and settled in for our first dinner and night in the city.

The second part of our thrilling trip was just beginning, but I’ll share more about that in my next post. Until then, did you know that The Psalms of Ascent (Psalms 120-134) were sung by worshipers as they made the journey up to Jerusalem for the annual feasts? These Psalms are inspiring and amazing, pick up your bible and have a look. Here’s a taste:
I was overjoyed when they said, “Let’s go up to the house of the Lord.” And now at last we stand here, inside the very gates of Jerusalem! O Jerusalem, you were built as a city of praise, where God and man mingle together.
Psalm 122:1-3 TPT

Scripture quotations marked TPT are from The Passion Translation®. Copyright © 2017, 2018 by Passion & Fire Ministries, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.