Waves and Stars

We're finally back from our four-day trip in the Galilee area and let me just say, Galilee is so beautiful! I apologize in advance for the massively long post that's about to come your way...

Sunday 6/27:
Today was the beginning of our Galilee trip. We started out at Caesarea, right on the Mediterranean. It is truly amazing, all the place Herod built. Caesarea is yet another huge masterpiece constructed by him during his reign as King. Caesarea is where Paul was imprisoned and eventually appealed to Caesar for his release. We read this passage while at Caesarea and took time to think about all that Paul went through and the extreme faith it took him to get through it all. It's incredible that after Paul was unjustly imprisoned for two years, he was still able to testify in Rome. I think we are so quick to doubt God's goodness in times of trouble, but the reality is that God is always good, no matter how hard things get. It's simply that when we're in the midst of the storm, we can't see the good that God will bring from it. This is where we are called to cling to the truth that God is good, and Paul very clearly understood this. He was so sure of God's goodness that he was able to stay strong through his hard life. How much different we wound be if we truly believed that God is good!

From Caesarea we moved on to Mount Carmel, where Elijah challenged the prophets of Baal. Here onh Mount Carmel, Elijah asked the people to choose who their God was, instead of shallowly wavering between two. He goes on the challenge them by building an alter and having them do the same. Then, both Elijah and the prophets of Baal called on their respective God to set fire to their alter. Nothing happens to the alter of Baal, but Elijah's alter to God bursts into flames which proclaims God's glory. (this is all in 1 Kings 18) A woman on our trip, Bev, talked about how we are presented with Elijah's question every day. "How long will you waver between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him; but if Baal is God, follow him." Do we choose God, or do we choose to follow our own ambitions and successes? God calls us to give up everything, our vaery selves, to follow Him completely. How often do we only give up half? How long will we waver between two opinions?

After this we stopped at a rolling tomb that looked similar to what Jesus' tomb would have looked like. Then we went on to Megiddo, where the final battle will take place at the end of days. For this trip we are staying at a hotel resort type place run by a kibbutz right on the Sea of Galilee. It is so amazing here! We went for a swim in the lake before dinner, ate AMAZING food, and watched the sunset over the lake. It's definitely different than what we are used to in Jerusalem!



Monday 6/28:
We started off today at Hazor, then stopped at Bar'am on our way to Tel Dan. Dan is mentioned numerous times in the Bible and is home to the Canaanite "Gate of the Three Arches" which is remarkably still intact, preserving it's full height of 7 meters. We moved on from Dan to Caesarea Philipi (Banias). Here we took a hike to some beautiful waterfalls where we got to relax a bit and take tons of pictures. Once back at the hotel, we went for a refreshing swim in the Sea of Galilee before eating another fantastic dinner.

In the evening I just spent time sitting on the beach watching the sunset and, eventually, watching the stars. The Sea of Galilee is basically gorgeous all the time. It was amazing to look across the lake at the huge city of Tiberias all lit up, but to be sitting alone on a quiet beach. I got to thinking about how huge the world really is and how small we each are. But the beauty is that even when we are in the midst of thousands of people and we seem so small and insignificant, God sees us just as clearly as if we were sitting alo0ne on a quiet beach. Out God is a personal God that knows us and loves us all so deeply. I am not simply part of the masses, I am this precious child that God knows and loves. (ps, psalm 139 is all about this...)

And this idea of being God's child is awesome in itself. A child is fully reliant on it's parents for everything. It doesn't know anything about the world and it doesn't have a clue what to expect. It simply grows up unknowing of all it is learning and all it is being prepared for. Yet it is constantly growing and being made ready to face the world. As God's children, we aren't supposed to know everything or be able to figure it all out, we are asked to simply follow and trust that God is preparing us for what is to come. How much rest this gives us! Children don't worry about their future and what steps to take next, they just go where their parents take them, and trust it is the right way to go. What a great relief it is to stop worrying and just follow!

Our God is so amazing! With faith like a child we can follow a beautifully good God that loves us and we can be certain that He is leading us, teaching us, and growing us every second of every day.















Tuesday 6/29:
Today we visited a bunch of churches that have biblical significance. First was Kursi, which commemorates the place where Jesus healed the demoniac, sending the demons into the swine that then ran into the sea. Then we went to Korazim, which isn't a church, but contains some amazing ruins of a synagogue built in the centuries after Christ. From here we went to the Church of the Beatitudes, where Jesus preached these words. We took some time here to read the passage and process it a bit before moving on to the Church of Heptapegon. This is where Jesus fed the 5000 with the bread and fish. Soon after, we went to the Church of the Primacy of St. Peter, which commemorates when Jesus appeared to Peter after His resurrection. Our final stop was at Capernaum, where Peter lived and where Jesus spent a lot of His adult life. Jesus performed many miracles here, including healing the paralytic.


We ended the trip with a boat ride across the Sea of Galilee from Tiberias over to the other side where we have been staying. It was awesome to see how big the lake actually is and get a feel for what it is like out there. At one point we stopped the boat and got to experience how still and calm it was on the lake. It was so quiet, it gives an amazing picture of what it would have been like after Jesus calmed the storm.



We finished the day with yet another phenomenal dinner and a great time swimming and goofing off (which included a chicken fight and an epic game of nighttime monkey in the middle). Our stay at Galilee has been incredible! I can honestly say this is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been.

Wednesday 6/30:
Today we packed up to go back to Jerusalem. We began the journey with a walk up to the Arbel Cliffs to overlook the Sea of Galilee (picture to the left). Then we moved on to Zippori, which was a major Jewish center following the destruction of the second temple. Along with some ruins, there is some incredible tile work that has been preserved here at Zippori which really shows the souls of the people that lived here long ago. Our final stop before our long drive home was at Beth Shean. I'll admit that I wasn't too excited due to the heat and the numerous other cities we have seen already, however, the city turned out to be very cool. It was huge and the structures would have been so remarkable back in their prime. It would have been a major hub of commotion as it sits right at a major crossroads (picture below).















After we got back, we topped off the day with an adventure to the German Colony in Jerusalem, which is basically just a hip area with restaurants and shops and whatnot. It was a nice walk despite the roundabout way we took to get there (which probably added a solid hour to our trip). All in all, today was long and tiring, but it feels good to be back at JUC. The trip as a whole was absolutely amazing and filled with so much incredible stuff.

Food and Friends

After an exam, a lecture, and a meeting, we had a wonderful evening in the Old City. A bunch of us went into the city to go to dinner at a rooftop restaurant, which ended up being closed. But nevertheless, we ended up at a great little restaurant and enjoyed some excellent food and had a great time hanging out! Then we ventured over to a place to watch the USA/Ghana game which was a lot of fun. It's so hilarious when a goal is scored and everyone in the place goes insane.

We are off tomorrow on our second overnight trip to Galilee, where we will be staying right on the Sea of Galilee, which is supposed to be gorgeous! That said, you won't being hearing from me again until Wednesday when we get back. Love you all!

Free Day 2

So for our second free day, our first day in a long time to sleep in, we made the insane decision to wake up super early (4:45 am) and watch the sunrise over the Temple Mount and the Mount of Olives. While we were really tired, it was SO worth it. The view was gorgeous and we had such a wonderful moment of reading a few Psalms together and enjoying God's beautiful creation. We got some fresh baked bread on our way back to the school, made it back in time for breakfast, almost fell asleep in our food (which we didn't eat most of because we had eaten so much bread), and took a nap. When we awoke at a more decent hour, we made our way into the old city to do a little shopping. We finally met Shaban, the nicest shopkeeper ever, who is good friends with many of the people here at the college. It's such a busy city with the small streets and the hustle and bustle of shopkeepers and customers.

This evening, the director of the school and his wife had our class up to their flat for dessert and tea. It was so cool to hear all about how God had led them here to Jerusalem in such a unique way and has worked in their lives in some very amazing ways. They are such sweet people, and they can sure make some excellent cookies!

Southern Israel

For the last three days we were on our first overnight trip, seeing the southern parts of the country. We saw so many amazing places, so I'll try to stick to the abridged version...

Tuesday 6/22:
We stood today in the Elah Valley, where David fought and conquered Goliath. We reenacted the event with a skit and then moved on to Tel Azekah, where we overlooked the whole valley from above. It is amazing to me that, as young as he is, David still has no hesitation to go and show the people what God can do through him. He gives the glory to God and and does not fear. He declares that God will deliver him with certainty. Nothing, and no one, can defeat God. Being led by the Spirit, David defeats Goliath in the name of the Lord. Why is it so rare to see this sort of faith today? God can use us to do great things and we should be confident and certain of that fact! It was awesome to be where this happened, where the young David defeated the Philistine hero with the Spirit's guidance. All odds were against him, except the one that mattered--He was working for the Lord.

Today we also went to Bet Guvrin (aka Maresha) where there are huge caves that date back to the Byzantine period. During the Roman persecution of Christians, it is said that many of them were exiled here to these caves to live the rest of their lives here. After a stop at Lachish, we made our way to Ashkelon, where we spent the afternoon swimming in the Mediterranean. It was awesome to just relax and hang out for a bit after being out in the heat (which was brutal). After swimming we went up to some ruins from the Canaanites, where we saw the first arch ever built and got to lookout from a high point over the Mediteranean. It was so beautiful! (see the video below!)

We finally made it to our home for the next two nights: a youth hostel in Arad. To our surprise, the dinner at the hostel was SO good! They served us some very traditional food, and SO much of it! It was definitely an excellenet end to a long day. We eventually went out to a local spot to watch the Argentina/Greece World Cup game, which was a lot of fun.


Wednesday 6/23:
Today we focused on studying different areas of the Negev (which, by the way, means "dry" and "south") Our first stop today was the ancient city of Arad. This was actually so cool. It is the ruins of an Israelite citadel, which had a temple in it. It was actually fascinating to talk about the implications of the Holy of Holies (the inner most part of the temple where God was said to dwell) at this particular temple because there were 2 alters, rather than the one you would expect in a temple of God. Archaeologists have also found tons of small statues of what seems to be a form of an idol from another religion. While this could be frustrating, it is actually very cool because this temple would have existed during the time of the prophets that were condemning Israel for adopting pagan ways and being influenced by secular religions. So these sorts of discoveries actually strengthen the accounts we read about in the Bible. It's so crazy that all of these places that have been found and excavated align beautifully to what we read. They make the text come alive because these places actually exist and significant things so clearly happened here. And, by the way, archaeologists haven't found any evidence of idols from the time of the exile or beyond, which eludes to a huge change in the ways and hearts of the Israelite people. It is amazing how God's glorious works can be preserved by things and places like this. These places aren't just piles of ruins and rubble, but they reveal God's glorious unfolding plan for His world and His people.

After Arad we moved on to Beersheba where we talked a little bit about the time of the judges, and Samuel's sons who were judging Beersheba very poorly, which prompted the people of Israel to ask Samuel to appoint their first king, which ended up being Saul. Next we took a hike up the canyon of Wadi Zin, which is in the Wilderness of Zin. This is where the Israelites wandered for 40 years, receiving manna from heaven to sustain them. It talks about how the people complained in the desert, and let me tell you, I can understand. Just being there for an hour was rough because of the intense dry heat. However, its was gorgeous in the canyon and it felt like quite an accomplishment when we got to the top (picture below, yay!). Then we trekked over to Avdat, where there are ruins of a Navitean city. These people were pagans that converted to Christianity and built churchs right on top of their pagan temples. We saw where their sanctuary type room would have been as well as a baptismal fount.

We made our way back to Arad where we had another great dinner and then some awesome conversation between a few of us girls in the part right across from the hostel (and we found swings!). Then we topped off the day with a card game and some gross cheetos (they were peanut flavored, do you know how weird it is to taste peanuts when you think it's going to be cheese?) and went off to bed.














We climbed all the way up this crazy thing!

Thursday 6/24:
Today was our Dead Sea field trip! We spent all morning at Masada, which is beyond amazing. Masada is one of the fortress' Herod built in case his people tried to rise up against him. The fortress is right on the dead sea, with a beautiful view from the top. You can still see a lot of the original structures, including the siege ramp used by the Romans when they attacked the Zealots that took over Masada after Herod's death. You can even see the places where the Roman camps were located around the base of the mountain. Herod was no minimalist, that is for sure. the buildings are large and elaborate, with detailed architecture, painting, and tile mosaics. Architects today still can't figure out how he built some of the things he built. His palace would have been absolutely stunning, with the most amazing view over the Dead Sea looking across at the mountains of Moab. He had three levels to his palace with large patios that look out over the land, which you can see there today. The craziest part was climbing down. The climb up was on the side by the seige ramp, which is 300 ft from the base to the top, so it wasn't too terrible. The way down on the other side, however, is a solid 1300 ft from base to top. To walk it you take the "snake path" which is exactly what it sounds like. It winds all the way down the side of Masada (picture below). Now, going down doesn't seem like it would be hard, but let me tell you, it was brutal. It definitely felt like quite the accomplishment!

After Masada, we moved on to En Gedi, one of David's stops during his flight from Saul, where he may have composed a good number of the Psalms. Here we actually got to swim in the Dead Sea for a bit (the 2nd picture below)! At 25-30% salinity (salt content), they aren't kidding when they say you bob liek a cork. It takes work NOT to float and every single tiny open wound an your body stings like crazy. It was so cool though!

Our last stop was Qumran before we made our way back to Jerusalem. This is where they found the Dead Sea scrolls, which are the earliest copies of the New Testament books we have (except Esther, they didn't find any copies of that). It was so cool to walk around here and see some of the caves where the pieces were found.

Once back in Jerusalem, and still so tired from the last few days, we made a grocery store run for snacks. This turned out to be the most entertaining grocery store experience ever and we discovered these weird biscuit thingys that the cashier said were "the best thing ever" that are now my new favorite thing. He was so right. So all in all it was a great few days! Now it's time to study for the exam tomorrow!















The side of Masada we walked down, it's ways taller than it looks.















floating in the Dead Sea

Video from Herodian

I've been trying to post this video for days...it goes with the post above about Herodium!

Exam day number 1

This morning was another free morning, with our exam and a lecture in the afternoon. I finally got to sleep in a bit which was so excellent! It was great having a break from waking up at 630, as we have been almost the whole time. The exam wasn't too bad at all, a bit tricky, but not bad. It was a nice day just to hang around campus doing a little studying and taking it easy. We didn't even leave campus til 7 pm! We've been out and about every day so far and we are exhausted by days end, so it was refreshing to not have a schedule and just hang out. A few of us girls walked into West Jerusalem to a little coffee shop and had some snacks and whatnot for a bit which was so nice. The we came back and topped that off with an awesome game of cards out on the patio at the school. It was a very pleasant day if I do say so myself!

Tomorrow we are off on our first overnight trip, down to the Negev (the southern area of Israel). I don't now how much internet access I will have (probably none at all) but I promise to update you all when we get back to Jerusalem on Thursday night! A little preview though: I am pretty sure we get to swim in the Mediterranean tomorrow, and the Dead Sea on Thursday :)

Free Day!

Today we had a free day with no classes and the freedom to do whatever we wanted! It was awesome to just get to relax without and schedule and wander around as we pleased. In the morning a bunch of us went to Christ Church, just inside Jaffa Gate in the Old City. It was so cool. It was all in English, some of it was more traditional while some of it was very contemporary, and I'm pretty sure the pastors were Americans or Canadians because they didn't have an accent at all. It was really cool though singing worship songs in both English and Hebrew.

Then we trekked into the Jewish Quarter to have some authentic falafel, which, let me tell you, is no joke. Seriously. It's legit :)

We spent the afternoon wandering the Old City learning to barter with shopkeepers and buying fun things for family and friends (and ourselves...). We eventually headed back to campus to do a little studying (exam tomorrow...) and eat some dinner. Then we went back into the Old City to watch the Brazil/Ivory Coast soccer game which was so so fun. I don't even follow soccer, but it was a great game to watch and we had such a great time just sitting around eating and drinking coffee and hanging out.

Now it's time for sleep. Breakfast at 7am, then we have a free morning which basically translates to studying until our exam at 1.