Southern steps and the "Wailing Wall"

All,

On this particular day we started on the southern steps of the Temple in Jerusalem. This is a location deep and rich in history. Many key people in the bible stood on these step......from King David to Jesus himself (where He proclaimed..."I am the light of the world"). We started our day there with a message and a time of worship. I have to say it was odd to be sitting on the same steps that Jesus stood. Again....like many other times during our trip.....quite surreal and humbling.

We then we to the western wall or the "wailing wall" as it is known. Jews come here as part of their faith in the re-building of the Temple. Since I am not an expert on the subject.....below are some write ups / facts I found on line.

"In Judaism, the Western Wall is venerated as the sole remnant of the Holy Temple. It has become a place of pilgrimage for Jews, as it is the closest permitted accessible site to the holiest spot in Judaism, namely the Even ha-shetiya or Foundation Stone, which lies on the Temple Mount."

"Jewish tradition teaches that the Western Wall was built by King David and that the wall we see today is built upon his foundations, which date from the time of the First Temple."

"The sages state that anyone who prays in the Temple in Jerusalem, “it is as if he has prayed before the throne of glory because the gate of heaven is situated there and it is open to hear prayer”. Jewish Law dictates that when Jews pray the Silent Prayer, they should face mizrach, towards Jerusalem, the Temple and ultimately the Holy of Holies, as all of God’s bounty and blessing emanates from that spot."

Wikepedia, 2009

Our time here was very interesting. Couple of rules.....you have to wear head covering. So if you did not have a hat, they had paper yamikas (sp?) for sale.

Also, woman are forbidden to pray in the same area as the men. There is a fence that seperates the two areas.

Hope you enjoy the pics.

More to come.......cool story of Masada and our time swimming in the Dead Sea.

Scott

Lots of great pics from here.

The Garden Tomb and "dianu"

Our trip to the Garden Tomb was really cool. We started our time there with a great message by Dr. Koshy (a spiritual mentor and friend of Joel's). We had communion there also.

To take Communion on the same grounds that Jesus rose from the dead................I mean............come on..........really...............................could it really get any better than that? Obviously it was a highlight of the trip.

We learned a Hebrew word ...."dianu" (pronounced "dee-a-new")... which I kept coming back to me over and over again during our trip........it means............."this alone should be enough".

The day in the tomb.......dianu for sure!

Here are some pic's. One is inside the tomb itself.

Broken arm......catching up....Jerusalem

Hello all,

Finally.....a moment to catch up on the trip, though the way the time presented itself is not good. Our 5 year old daughter, Ellie, broke her arm yesterday and we are sitting here in the hospital in Charlotte while she recovers from surgery this am (3 pins in the elbow and a cast for 4 weeks!). Please pray for her recovery and healing. She has done great amidst alot of pain.........better than Daddy did in having to see her go through it!! There is a clear spiritual message in the process of watching a child experience pain......but that is for another time.

So.....while she is sleeping.......and we are waiting.................lets catch up.

Next up was Jerusalem. Dan had told me all along that what we experienced in Tel Aviv and the Galilee were completely different than Jerusalem and he was right. Jerusalem is not at all like the open, mountain areas like we saw in the Galilee. While it is obviously rich in history and biblical context, it is very urban and crowded.

The Temple and the history around it is so far beyond what I had read about it was really enlightening. I mean I have read the bible and the scriptures about the Temple but you can't really understand it til you are standing there overlooking it. The significance of the 32 acres that this sits on is the most prized / sought after piece of land in the world! Think about that.....

Our first day in Jerusalem we listened to Joel preach on the Mount of Olives about God's promises to Israel and the significance of Jerusalem....very cool. Then we did the actual Palm walk that Jesus did when he came into Jerusalem.......then ended the day in the Garden of Gethsamane (where Jesus confronted Satan).

Not a bad start to our time in Jerusalem ya think.

Pictures are of the Mount of Olives, Garden, overlooking Jerusalem, cemetery (complete with tombs)......

Next up......the Garden Tomb, Qumran, Masada, and the Dead Sea.

sw

We're back but not done!

Hi all,

We made it back safely. Thank you for all your prayers while we were there. They were felt and appreciated.

If you are interested, you can continue to check in with the blog as I have SO much yet to share. I underestimated the time that it took to post while we were there AND how little time we would have to do so.

So......more to come, complete with pictures.

Blessings,

Scott

Gates of Hell

We're sitting here waiting to get on the plane in the Ben Hurion Airport in Tel Aviv and I realized how much stuff we have not had the chance to share yet. The trip was absolutely amazing.

I am going to keep posting the tours and pictures so you can check the site if you want to see the other pictures and posts.

On this day, we went to Caesarea Phillipi. This was in an area called Pan (named after the greek god....half man half goat...played the flute....thus the Pan flute....everything has a story). There were also many other greek idols there. This is an area that Christ stood with his disciples and is also where Jesus asked Peter "who do people say I am?" Read Matthew 16:19.

Anyway, greek mythodology believed that the gods entered Hades through a cave in the rocks there and thus this became known as the Gates of Hades....or the Gates of Hell. The picture of Dan and I is in front of the Gates of Hell. Not too often you get to do that.........literally anyway.

The rest of the day was spent in the Golan Heights. Alot of history of the wars in Israel are there. We could see into Syria and Jordan from there. We were close to the borders of each. Joel spoke there as well. Very, very interesting how important this peace of land is very Israel.

That's it for now. Post some more when we get back.

More Pic's less Talk

Hey friends,

In the absence of time to write a long summary .......... I thought I would just post some pictures for everyone. Most are of our time here in Jerusalem. Joel teaching at the Temple (Dome of the Rock), grave site across from the old city, and us:)

Blessings to all.

More to come later.......

Sea of Galilee and more

We spent the day today at the Sea of Galilee complete with boat ride (yeah. ... we were floating were Jesus walked). The Sea is absolutely beautiful. For those of you following along on what happened biblically in the Galilee area ....... 26 of Jesus's 39 miracles happened in this area so it is rich in biblical stories and meaning. Too much to really put into words on this blog. Our guide, Schmulik (english version of Samuel) did a great job of teaching us what all happened in the places we visisted.

We then had the traditional St. Peters fish for lunch. I had been warned of this tasty treat by Dan and Diane prior so I was ready. It's basically a fish prepared whole............ head, guts, the whole shootin match.

But suprisingly tasty:) You can see the picture ....... judge for yourself.

After that we went to the Mount of Beatitudes where Jesus gave his sermon on the mount! Very cool and a great time of reflection. We were allowed about 45 minutes to sit alone and just spend time with the Lord. One of the best parts of the trip so far. The mountain (more like a really big hill) overlooks the Sea and is beautiful. The picture above of the Sea is from there.

We ended the day in a museum of what they call the "Jesus Boat". Really cool story of a boat that was uncovered in the Sea and determined to date back to the time of Jesus. Maybe it was THE boat .......???? Who knows ..... but interesting.

Oh yeah ...... when we got on our boat ride they played the raised the American Flag and played the national anthem. Odd to be on the Sea of Galilee and feeling a little like you are at a ball game!

Next up for our tour is the "big question" at the Gates of Hell and the "Tearful" valley.