Home again....but something is different.
We hope to have an ISRAEL night with food and fun to share with anyone who wants to come. let me see if I can get a photo or two up on this blog site!
Love,
Lisa
Sunday, September 21, 2008
Saturday, September 20, 2008
Home Sweet Home!
Thanks to Lori Meed, we had a ride home from the airport tonight! Thank you, Lori! And of course, our driver, Igor, was a Russian Jew that fled religious persecution in Russia in 1991 to come here.
I will tell you the funny story of our last night...tomorrow.
but thanks for your prayers and for your notes, we are safe and sound, thank God!
Love,
Lisa, for everyone.
I will tell you the funny story of our last night...tomorrow.
but thanks for your prayers and for your notes, we are safe and sound, thank God!
Love,
Lisa, for everyone.
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
What day is it anyway?
Ok, I have completely lost track of the days. This morning I woke up and my first thought was, "Are we STILL here?" I was woken up by the early morning chatter of other guests on the way out for their day's excursion. It was easily 6 am.
Since I last wrote we have been all around the Sea of Galilee. I think I told you that it's not that big after all, and today we swam the 8 miles across in the morning and then 8 back in the afternoon. It took about 4 hours each way, to our shock.
Then we ate live chickens and guinea pigs for dinner, too!!!!!!!!!!
Right. That was just to see if Nicholas or Melissa is reading our posts!!
The kids swam in the moonlight last night is more like it.
We have visited the towns and villages all around this region because this is where Jesus lived and chose his disciples and healed people and performed many miracles. He fed 5,000 Jews on the one side of the lake and then 4,000 Gentiles on the other side, all miraculously, with only a little bread and a few fish each time. This is the place where He healed the Gadarene demoniac and the demons, named legion, begged Jesus to let them enter a herd of swime rather than be cast out of the region. Once he agreed, the 2,000 pigs ran off the edge of a cliff to their deaths in the Sea of Galilee. Pigs can usually swim so it is surprising that these drowned. Archeologists believe that this species had espeically sharp, razor-like hooves, and when the tried to swim, they cut their throats with their hooves. They may not have drowned, but bled to death.
We saw the area where the Hebrew servant girl, whose name was never mentioned in 2 Kings 5, implored her mistress to have her husband, Naaman, go and see the prophet of God that he might be healed of leprosy. He did and he was healed by dipping 7 times in the Jordan River. Now that I have been IN THE JORDAN RIVER MYSELF, I can understand why he was aggrivated with this remedy for healing. It is pretty gross. It smells, and it is not clear...but murky. Cows graze alongside of it and drink from it. We have even heard that sewage spills into it...we went rafting on it yesterday, nonetheless, and are no worse the wear for it. (Although one young girl, Sarah, is now battling a sore throat. That just occurred to me as I wrote. She is 9 and has a fever tonight, so please pray for her to be healed. They still have a big part of their journey ahead as they don't leave until Saturday and then they fly back to AUSTRALIA!)
So, the Jordan River is dirty and Naaman was healed by God and we saw that place.
We also saw Bethsaisa, Capernaum and Korazin, plus the Golan Heights....where there are UN Headquarters and barbed wire fences that say DANGER, LIVE MINES. Syria bombed the area with mines decades ago and has refused to produce a map with their locations, despite the fact that a peace accord is in place. The UN helps to uphold peace in the region and has for a very long time. All we saw in that region were IDF jeeps and vehicles and fences and of course, orchards everywhere.
This nation is a giant nursery. Every field and plain has orcahrds planted. This is a Sabbath year though, so while there are all kinds of fruits on the trees, none is harvested by the Jews. The Arabs may be planting and harvesting, but the Jews are not. They can pick fruit and eat it in that spot and may pick fruit anywhere in the entire country...whether it belongs to them or not.
Tomorrow we are going to the site where Gideon chose his mighty men, by a certain river...do you know its name? We will then read the story, swim in a giant pool and I forget what else the day has in store. Our last dinner is tomorrow night.
The kids have all bonded tremendously. One family from Houston, had 2 trees fall down while here when the hurricane hit. We all looked at the photos with shock and sadness, that their Grandma had sent of one tree crahsing into the son's room and lego's! The Grandma said she was washing the lego's one by one for him. No one else has received bad news while here, thank God.
Anyway, the kids love each other. They have spent hours and hours talking and playing and all of us parents are dreading getting back home and dealing with the loneliness they will all feel after parting. It is really not a normal kind of envronment, to be with kids non-stop for 3 weeks, day and night like this. It has been wonderful that they have gotten along so well, but when do kids ever get that much time together?? Chris Davis, our guide, told us that his son was just the best man in his friend's wedding, his friend from a trip that his family made on this tour about 6 years ago. Many families keep in touch and have even traveled across great distances to see one another again. The Canadian young men have really made the trip fun and that's not so far away, is it??? They live in the province just above Nebraska. Maybe you could pray that God helps their hearts to let go?
This resort is really beautiful. Like most places in Israel, it is full of cats, but there are also a couple of dogs around. Naturally, Abby and Caroline have LOVED that. Abby fed one this am and when we came back, it was waiting for her by our cottage door. I wonder if it stayed there all day? Abby has named it, of course, and will miss these pets, too, when she leaves.
For us parents...well, we will need God's grace and compassion to help the kids to transition back to life in America. We are going to miss the meals being made for us and the Moms...well, all of the plans being taken care of by someone else! We plan to get together at 6:30 am tomorrow morning on the beach of the Sea of Galilee to pray for Israel together. We are using James Goll's book as a guide. If you haven't read it yet, it is tremendous and I highly recommend it.
I have made you read too long, I know. Thank you for following our journey with us to this land of many people, deep conflicts and danger on every border. One thing is for sure though, God has an incredible destiny for this nation and He is a promise keeper. No matter what it takes, He will keep His word to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and all the families of the earth will be blessed as a result!
love you and miss you!
Lisa, for everyone
Since I last wrote we have been all around the Sea of Galilee. I think I told you that it's not that big after all, and today we swam the 8 miles across in the morning and then 8 back in the afternoon. It took about 4 hours each way, to our shock.
Then we ate live chickens and guinea pigs for dinner, too!!!!!!!!!!
Right. That was just to see if Nicholas or Melissa is reading our posts!!
The kids swam in the moonlight last night is more like it.
We have visited the towns and villages all around this region because this is where Jesus lived and chose his disciples and healed people and performed many miracles. He fed 5,000 Jews on the one side of the lake and then 4,000 Gentiles on the other side, all miraculously, with only a little bread and a few fish each time. This is the place where He healed the Gadarene demoniac and the demons, named legion, begged Jesus to let them enter a herd of swime rather than be cast out of the region. Once he agreed, the 2,000 pigs ran off the edge of a cliff to their deaths in the Sea of Galilee. Pigs can usually swim so it is surprising that these drowned. Archeologists believe that this species had espeically sharp, razor-like hooves, and when the tried to swim, they cut their throats with their hooves. They may not have drowned, but bled to death.
We saw the area where the Hebrew servant girl, whose name was never mentioned in 2 Kings 5, implored her mistress to have her husband, Naaman, go and see the prophet of God that he might be healed of leprosy. He did and he was healed by dipping 7 times in the Jordan River. Now that I have been IN THE JORDAN RIVER MYSELF, I can understand why he was aggrivated with this remedy for healing. It is pretty gross. It smells, and it is not clear...but murky. Cows graze alongside of it and drink from it. We have even heard that sewage spills into it...we went rafting on it yesterday, nonetheless, and are no worse the wear for it. (Although one young girl, Sarah, is now battling a sore throat. That just occurred to me as I wrote. She is 9 and has a fever tonight, so please pray for her to be healed. They still have a big part of their journey ahead as they don't leave until Saturday and then they fly back to AUSTRALIA!)
So, the Jordan River is dirty and Naaman was healed by God and we saw that place.
We also saw Bethsaisa, Capernaum and Korazin, plus the Golan Heights....where there are UN Headquarters and barbed wire fences that say DANGER, LIVE MINES. Syria bombed the area with mines decades ago and has refused to produce a map with their locations, despite the fact that a peace accord is in place. The UN helps to uphold peace in the region and has for a very long time. All we saw in that region were IDF jeeps and vehicles and fences and of course, orchards everywhere.
This nation is a giant nursery. Every field and plain has orcahrds planted. This is a Sabbath year though, so while there are all kinds of fruits on the trees, none is harvested by the Jews. The Arabs may be planting and harvesting, but the Jews are not. They can pick fruit and eat it in that spot and may pick fruit anywhere in the entire country...whether it belongs to them or not.
Tomorrow we are going to the site where Gideon chose his mighty men, by a certain river...do you know its name? We will then read the story, swim in a giant pool and I forget what else the day has in store. Our last dinner is tomorrow night.
The kids have all bonded tremendously. One family from Houston, had 2 trees fall down while here when the hurricane hit. We all looked at the photos with shock and sadness, that their Grandma had sent of one tree crahsing into the son's room and lego's! The Grandma said she was washing the lego's one by one for him. No one else has received bad news while here, thank God.
Anyway, the kids love each other. They have spent hours and hours talking and playing and all of us parents are dreading getting back home and dealing with the loneliness they will all feel after parting. It is really not a normal kind of envronment, to be with kids non-stop for 3 weeks, day and night like this. It has been wonderful that they have gotten along so well, but when do kids ever get that much time together?? Chris Davis, our guide, told us that his son was just the best man in his friend's wedding, his friend from a trip that his family made on this tour about 6 years ago. Many families keep in touch and have even traveled across great distances to see one another again. The Canadian young men have really made the trip fun and that's not so far away, is it??? They live in the province just above Nebraska. Maybe you could pray that God helps their hearts to let go?
This resort is really beautiful. Like most places in Israel, it is full of cats, but there are also a couple of dogs around. Naturally, Abby and Caroline have LOVED that. Abby fed one this am and when we came back, it was waiting for her by our cottage door. I wonder if it stayed there all day? Abby has named it, of course, and will miss these pets, too, when she leaves.
For us parents...well, we will need God's grace and compassion to help the kids to transition back to life in America. We are going to miss the meals being made for us and the Moms...well, all of the plans being taken care of by someone else! We plan to get together at 6:30 am tomorrow morning on the beach of the Sea of Galilee to pray for Israel together. We are using James Goll's book as a guide. If you haven't read it yet, it is tremendous and I highly recommend it.
I have made you read too long, I know. Thank you for following our journey with us to this land of many people, deep conflicts and danger on every border. One thing is for sure though, God has an incredible destiny for this nation and He is a promise keeper. No matter what it takes, He will keep His word to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and all the families of the earth will be blessed as a result!
love you and miss you!
Lisa, for everyone
Monday, September 15, 2008
Monday Night, 9/15/08, Sea of Galilee
Hey Friends,
Just a quick note to catch you up on the traveling Plums....yesterday Abby & Hannah got baptized in the Jordan River. We also visited the Garden Tomb, a place that could have been the site of Jesus' burial. Even if it wasn't the actual spot, it really gave us a sense of the size of tombs in those days and just how huge the stone would have been that covered the entry way.
What else? Well, we are on the Sea of Galilee right now and stayng at this great spot called the Ginosar resort. We walk out to the Sea of Galilee for swimming, plus there is a pool here, too. The sea is 13 miles by 8 miles, you can see across to the other side and see the Golan Heights. All around this area is where Jesus did his public ministry...so we are visiting those kinds of places now...Caperneum, Peter's house, the place where Jesus delivered the Sermon on the Mount. Very beautiful gardens, but oppressively hot. Kids are all losing steam, getting in and out of bus, so hot. Tonight they wanted to swim in the Sea in the dark..some kids went down to the water without adults..miscommunication...and we closed it down and switched to playing basketball in the gym that is also available for guests. IT WAS SO HOT! But swimming in the Sea, in the dark, I don't know if I am ready to let them do that?
Took a beautiful boat ride on the Sea today and they played music for us, first our NATIONAL ANTHEM, then Canada's and I can't telll you what that did for our spirits to hear our anthems played and see our flag blowing in the wind alongside the Israeli flag! After that, they played familiar Christian songs, tehn ISraeli songs and we were all dancing and singing on the deck together. It was a blast. We also saw a boat today that was excavated from here that is believed to be about 2000 years old! It was made from 12 different types of wood, too. Amazing.
Well, that's the scooooop from the Sea of Galilee...kids are starting to realize that we are on the countdown to comehome and want to cram as much socializing in as possible...they are really like a family. The adults are enjoying one another too, so thank you for all of the prayers. Don't stop...!
Love,
lisa
Just a quick note to catch you up on the traveling Plums....yesterday Abby & Hannah got baptized in the Jordan River. We also visited the Garden Tomb, a place that could have been the site of Jesus' burial. Even if it wasn't the actual spot, it really gave us a sense of the size of tombs in those days and just how huge the stone would have been that covered the entry way.
What else? Well, we are on the Sea of Galilee right now and stayng at this great spot called the Ginosar resort. We walk out to the Sea of Galilee for swimming, plus there is a pool here, too. The sea is 13 miles by 8 miles, you can see across to the other side and see the Golan Heights. All around this area is where Jesus did his public ministry...so we are visiting those kinds of places now...Caperneum, Peter's house, the place where Jesus delivered the Sermon on the Mount. Very beautiful gardens, but oppressively hot. Kids are all losing steam, getting in and out of bus, so hot. Tonight they wanted to swim in the Sea in the dark..some kids went down to the water without adults..miscommunication...and we closed it down and switched to playing basketball in the gym that is also available for guests. IT WAS SO HOT! But swimming in the Sea, in the dark, I don't know if I am ready to let them do that?
Took a beautiful boat ride on the Sea today and they played music for us, first our NATIONAL ANTHEM, then Canada's and I can't telll you what that did for our spirits to hear our anthems played and see our flag blowing in the wind alongside the Israeli flag! After that, they played familiar Christian songs, tehn ISraeli songs and we were all dancing and singing on the deck together. It was a blast. We also saw a boat today that was excavated from here that is believed to be about 2000 years old! It was made from 12 different types of wood, too. Amazing.
Well, that's the scooooop from the Sea of Galilee...kids are starting to realize that we are on the countdown to comehome and want to cram as much socializing in as possible...they are really like a family. The adults are enjoying one another too, so thank you for all of the prayers. Don't stop...!
Love,
lisa
Friday, September 12, 2008
Friday, Sept. 12, 2008: Jerusalem
Shabbat Shalom from Jerusalem!
Today I bought my first loaf ever of Challah bread in the Jerusalem Market. It was bustling with literally thousands of people all doing their last minute Sabbath Shopping to prepare for dinner tonight and the day of rest tomorrow. Fresh fruits and nuts, breads, meat and spice aromas permeated the air. Jews, Christians and Muslims alike shop here and people brush past you left and right with plastic shopping bags filled with necessary items. We got there nearly at the close of the market, so shop owners were even more generous with some items, knowing if they didn't sell, they'd spoil. One woman gave us free candles for celebrating the Sabbath, two simple votive candles for the meal.
I also took a short walk from our YOuth Hostel to the Jerusalem YMCA. Look it up on line. It is majestic and unlike any other Y in the world. Since we are members, we can go swimming there tomorrow if I can produce our card...can I???!!
This morning we visited the most incredible place, an archeological dig site from soil removed from under the Temple Mount. Muslims removed tons and tons of precious soil and artifacts while attempting to build a third mosque on this site that is so very sacred to the Jews. They dumped it in an illegal site away from the city and hoped no one would notice. Thankfully, some very wise Jews were aware of what was going on and petitioned the government to take the soil. They were granted permission to do so and estimates are that it will take 10 years to sort thru it all! Volunteers are so desperately appreciated for sifting thru it all...which is what our group did today! I actaully found a coin from hundreds, maybe even thousands of years ago. Our team found 3 altogether, which was really unusual. Hannah found a very cool charm from a woman's necklace, also very rare. We also found tiles, mosaics, marble peices and lots of pottery shards. They catalog the very important things and then determine its age and compostion. We didn't want to leave!!
But we had to....
Because we then visited the Holocaust Museum. We only visited the children's exhibit, which was so brilliantly done. 24/7 thenames are read of the 1.5 million children who perished at the hands of the Hitler and his Nazi regime. The exhibit hall is all glass, dark, and candles. With the way the mirrors are set, it looks as if you are looking into the stars, one for each of the 1.5 million children. It seemed to me, as if I were looking into the descendents of Abraham that man tried to remove from the heavens. It would seem that no one could keep track of so many people. BUT GOD! Not one of those precious children was a stranger to God, or forgotten by Him. Man can never remove the stars from the heavens, nor remove the descendents of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob from the face of the earth!
People don't seem happy here. Collectively, when you have events like the Holocaust in your national consciousness, maybe it is impossible. There is no peace and constant tension. Soldiers with machine guns are everywhere. EVERYWHERE. WIthout the Prince of Peace Himself, it is an impossibility for the US Congress, the Knesset, the Parliament..but WITH GOD, all things are possible.
Thanks for reading and have a great weekend...SHABBAT SHALOM!
Love,
Lisa
Today I bought my first loaf ever of Challah bread in the Jerusalem Market. It was bustling with literally thousands of people all doing their last minute Sabbath Shopping to prepare for dinner tonight and the day of rest tomorrow. Fresh fruits and nuts, breads, meat and spice aromas permeated the air. Jews, Christians and Muslims alike shop here and people brush past you left and right with plastic shopping bags filled with necessary items. We got there nearly at the close of the market, so shop owners were even more generous with some items, knowing if they didn't sell, they'd spoil. One woman gave us free candles for celebrating the Sabbath, two simple votive candles for the meal.
I also took a short walk from our YOuth Hostel to the Jerusalem YMCA. Look it up on line. It is majestic and unlike any other Y in the world. Since we are members, we can go swimming there tomorrow if I can produce our card...can I???!!
This morning we visited the most incredible place, an archeological dig site from soil removed from under the Temple Mount. Muslims removed tons and tons of precious soil and artifacts while attempting to build a third mosque on this site that is so very sacred to the Jews. They dumped it in an illegal site away from the city and hoped no one would notice. Thankfully, some very wise Jews were aware of what was going on and petitioned the government to take the soil. They were granted permission to do so and estimates are that it will take 10 years to sort thru it all! Volunteers are so desperately appreciated for sifting thru it all...which is what our group did today! I actaully found a coin from hundreds, maybe even thousands of years ago. Our team found 3 altogether, which was really unusual. Hannah found a very cool charm from a woman's necklace, also very rare. We also found tiles, mosaics, marble peices and lots of pottery shards. They catalog the very important things and then determine its age and compostion. We didn't want to leave!!
But we had to....
Because we then visited the Holocaust Museum. We only visited the children's exhibit, which was so brilliantly done. 24/7 thenames are read of the 1.5 million children who perished at the hands of the Hitler and his Nazi regime. The exhibit hall is all glass, dark, and candles. With the way the mirrors are set, it looks as if you are looking into the stars, one for each of the 1.5 million children. It seemed to me, as if I were looking into the descendents of Abraham that man tried to remove from the heavens. It would seem that no one could keep track of so many people. BUT GOD! Not one of those precious children was a stranger to God, or forgotten by Him. Man can never remove the stars from the heavens, nor remove the descendents of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob from the face of the earth!
People don't seem happy here. Collectively, when you have events like the Holocaust in your national consciousness, maybe it is impossible. There is no peace and constant tension. Soldiers with machine guns are everywhere. EVERYWHERE. WIthout the Prince of Peace Himself, it is an impossibility for the US Congress, the Knesset, the Parliament..but WITH GOD, all things are possible.
Thanks for reading and have a great weekend...SHABBAT SHALOM!
Love,
Lisa
Thursday, September 11, 2008
September 11, 2008 in Israel
This page keeps blinking as I tiry to write, so we'll see how far I get....
This was ONE, LONG, DAY! We had to be out in the lobby and ready to travel thru Jerusalem on foot by 7:30 am, and we didn't get back until 7:40 pm tonight....but I am already ahead of myself. Let me tell you a little about yesterday and the day before!
Did I tell you that we spent the night in the desert yet? Well, it was more than we could have imagined in terms of meeting the kids' expectations. The place was a commercial enterprise, but not..gimmicky. We rode camels as soon as we arrived and the kids, all of the kids and most of us adults, too, just laughed and giggled and made jokes the entire time. It was quite bumpy, as you can imagine! We all slept in one giant tent together and really had a sense of family. There are 25 of us, including our 2 guides. Kids were giggling and luaghing late into the night, the tent had electricity and floor mats, I mean it is not really the way the Beduoins (?) live, for sure, but it was a lot of fun.
But the kicker is learning the reality of the way this culture lives. Men don't do any work. The women do everything. It is the man's job to tell stories, to offer hospitality to strangers, (because in the desert to withhold hospitality could cause death!), and to protect the virtue of the women. If any woman is violated, she must be killed. If she caused it or a man did, is immaterial. Chris Davis, our guide, told us of a recent story in the states where a community of Beduoins knew that a young woman in their midst had been killed for this very reason, but they refused to cooperate with authorities because they wanted no one to interfere with their culture. One of the women working there, serving breakfast, had a real joy about her. We went on to talk and she shared that she was a Christian working amidst Jews and Muslims and how dangerous it is for her to be there. She has a mother's heart for the workers and was boasting about all of their varied skills and wonders why all of Israel can't work together like they do there? We also prayed for her right hand to be healed and she just wept. SHe has had 3 surgeries and it is still all withered. So, there was joy and real sorrow for the people in this culture....they are no longer nomadic and the deserts and just filled with tin shacks in which they live...shacks and camels and sheep. So barren. No windows. So hot.
From there we went to the heavily guarded city of Hebron, which I was amazed that we visited. There we saw the burial sites of the Patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and their wives. I cannot believe that I can write and tell you that I have stayed in the West Bank and visited Hebron. This is really unusual and not many tours do this. We are getting quite an education, quite an eyeful, quite an earful....too much to comprehend.
After the tent experience, we went to the field where David slew Goliath. It was hot and rocky, but we really got a feel for what the area is like and Yoni, our Jewish guide, brought the story to life so beautifully and powerfully. He loves to tell stories, loves being a guide, does impressions, etc. He was born in New York and moved here 6 years ago.
The coolest thing happened next. We ALL were invited to dinner by about 5-6 local homeschool families.!! They actually HOMESCHOOL in Israel for MANY of the same reasons we do in the States: they love their children, want to be with them, want to encourage creativity and diversity and freedom of expression. These mothers were incredible. Their kids were so very beautiful and happy. They played with all of our kids, just like they would have if we were in the States. The food they prepared was delicious, and all vegeterian.! There are about 350 familes that homeschool here, but it is not legally recognized as of now. the hostess, Dinah, has 7 children. Her eldest son is doing his Jewish studies in New York and the next, a daughter, is the second person in all of Israel to be a homeschooled student who is now in the Army! The first one was actually homeschooled in the States, so this is really a pioneering family! They were a joy, very realy, very transparent, and some were religious and some were not. The common thread was their love of children and learning!
We then checked into our youth hostel here in Jerusalem. Every place you walk, every place you see, has scriptural significance. It is amazing. It is OVERLOAD for the brain.
We visited the Muslim Quarter of the city, the Jewish Quarter, the old city, shops, the Cardo, the Western Wall, toured UNDER the city int he Western Wall tunnels (placed Ivy Ross's prayer note as close to the Holy of Holies as possible!!) and then prayed at the Wailing Wall. I was a mess all day. I started crying when a man was in the lady's room in the Jewish Quarter and began yelling and cursing at me. Was there a CLOSED sign? No. Was the door locked? No! He was a maint. man and we were just supposed to KNOW not to bother him? No toilet paper anywhere, I had to GO and Caroline was already in a stall and he was cursing at me, I am sure, and being really hostile. I waited for Caroline, of course, but just broke down after that. I cried for most of the day.
NOT about the man...
But your emotions, your spirit is on overload here. You see so many Jews living painfully, restricted observant lives...wearing hot clothes in the heat, no unique appearances, women so hot...then the Muslims, you see them doing similar things with regard to dressing in heavy clothes in the heat...again, mostly the women...and then when you are with a guide day after day that reads scripture, then shares the Rabbinical commentaries and Talmud and Midrash as if it were ALSO the word of God, then realize that he doesn't believe that we sin...so no one he talks about in scripture ever sinned...they just messed up, "We're all human, it's ok!" for 8 days and WOW, it is hard for the Christian mindset, the Christian spirit to tolerate. When you love Jesus and know that He is the Promised One, the One who has set us all free...it is painful to see such oppression and emptyy hope that things will really be ok. Throw in the tension between Jews and Arabs and also the blatant slurs and divisive remarks...
Let me close here...crying again. But please continue to pray for the PEACE OF JERUSALEM! It is the only city mentioned 881 times in scripture and is the only city that we are commanded to pray for BY NAME! Safe to say that God has something very special in store for this place that has yet to be seen by the world!
Love and miss you,
Lisa, for everyone!
Hey, post a comment so I can 'see' your face!
This was ONE, LONG, DAY! We had to be out in the lobby and ready to travel thru Jerusalem on foot by 7:30 am, and we didn't get back until 7:40 pm tonight....but I am already ahead of myself. Let me tell you a little about yesterday and the day before!
Did I tell you that we spent the night in the desert yet? Well, it was more than we could have imagined in terms of meeting the kids' expectations. The place was a commercial enterprise, but not..gimmicky. We rode camels as soon as we arrived and the kids, all of the kids and most of us adults, too, just laughed and giggled and made jokes the entire time. It was quite bumpy, as you can imagine! We all slept in one giant tent together and really had a sense of family. There are 25 of us, including our 2 guides. Kids were giggling and luaghing late into the night, the tent had electricity and floor mats, I mean it is not really the way the Beduoins (?) live, for sure, but it was a lot of fun.
But the kicker is learning the reality of the way this culture lives. Men don't do any work. The women do everything. It is the man's job to tell stories, to offer hospitality to strangers, (because in the desert to withhold hospitality could cause death!), and to protect the virtue of the women. If any woman is violated, she must be killed. If she caused it or a man did, is immaterial. Chris Davis, our guide, told us of a recent story in the states where a community of Beduoins knew that a young woman in their midst had been killed for this very reason, but they refused to cooperate with authorities because they wanted no one to interfere with their culture. One of the women working there, serving breakfast, had a real joy about her. We went on to talk and she shared that she was a Christian working amidst Jews and Muslims and how dangerous it is for her to be there. She has a mother's heart for the workers and was boasting about all of their varied skills and wonders why all of Israel can't work together like they do there? We also prayed for her right hand to be healed and she just wept. SHe has had 3 surgeries and it is still all withered. So, there was joy and real sorrow for the people in this culture....they are no longer nomadic and the deserts and just filled with tin shacks in which they live...shacks and camels and sheep. So barren. No windows. So hot.
From there we went to the heavily guarded city of Hebron, which I was amazed that we visited. There we saw the burial sites of the Patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and their wives. I cannot believe that I can write and tell you that I have stayed in the West Bank and visited Hebron. This is really unusual and not many tours do this. We are getting quite an education, quite an eyeful, quite an earful....too much to comprehend.
After the tent experience, we went to the field where David slew Goliath. It was hot and rocky, but we really got a feel for what the area is like and Yoni, our Jewish guide, brought the story to life so beautifully and powerfully. He loves to tell stories, loves being a guide, does impressions, etc. He was born in New York and moved here 6 years ago.
The coolest thing happened next. We ALL were invited to dinner by about 5-6 local homeschool families.!! They actually HOMESCHOOL in Israel for MANY of the same reasons we do in the States: they love their children, want to be with them, want to encourage creativity and diversity and freedom of expression. These mothers were incredible. Their kids were so very beautiful and happy. They played with all of our kids, just like they would have if we were in the States. The food they prepared was delicious, and all vegeterian.! There are about 350 familes that homeschool here, but it is not legally recognized as of now. the hostess, Dinah, has 7 children. Her eldest son is doing his Jewish studies in New York and the next, a daughter, is the second person in all of Israel to be a homeschooled student who is now in the Army! The first one was actually homeschooled in the States, so this is really a pioneering family! They were a joy, very realy, very transparent, and some were religious and some were not. The common thread was their love of children and learning!
We then checked into our youth hostel here in Jerusalem. Every place you walk, every place you see, has scriptural significance. It is amazing. It is OVERLOAD for the brain.
We visited the Muslim Quarter of the city, the Jewish Quarter, the old city, shops, the Cardo, the Western Wall, toured UNDER the city int he Western Wall tunnels (placed Ivy Ross's prayer note as close to the Holy of Holies as possible!!) and then prayed at the Wailing Wall. I was a mess all day. I started crying when a man was in the lady's room in the Jewish Quarter and began yelling and cursing at me. Was there a CLOSED sign? No. Was the door locked? No! He was a maint. man and we were just supposed to KNOW not to bother him? No toilet paper anywhere, I had to GO and Caroline was already in a stall and he was cursing at me, I am sure, and being really hostile. I waited for Caroline, of course, but just broke down after that. I cried for most of the day.
NOT about the man...
But your emotions, your spirit is on overload here. You see so many Jews living painfully, restricted observant lives...wearing hot clothes in the heat, no unique appearances, women so hot...then the Muslims, you see them doing similar things with regard to dressing in heavy clothes in the heat...again, mostly the women...and then when you are with a guide day after day that reads scripture, then shares the Rabbinical commentaries and Talmud and Midrash as if it were ALSO the word of God, then realize that he doesn't believe that we sin...so no one he talks about in scripture ever sinned...they just messed up, "We're all human, it's ok!" for 8 days and WOW, it is hard for the Christian mindset, the Christian spirit to tolerate. When you love Jesus and know that He is the Promised One, the One who has set us all free...it is painful to see such oppression and emptyy hope that things will really be ok. Throw in the tension between Jews and Arabs and also the blatant slurs and divisive remarks...
Let me close here...crying again. But please continue to pray for the PEACE OF JERUSALEM! It is the only city mentioned 881 times in scripture and is the only city that we are commanded to pray for BY NAME! Safe to say that God has something very special in store for this place that has yet to be seen by the world!
Love and miss you,
Lisa, for everyone!
Hey, post a comment so I can 'see' your face!
Sunday, September 7, 2008
En Gedi
Hey Everyone, Shalom!
I am sitting in the blazing hot lobby of the beautiful youth hostel in En Gedi. Tomorrow we make the pre-dawn climb to the top and watch the sunrise! Sounds fantastic! We are in an area that overlooks the Dead Sea and you can see the mountains of Jordan just behind it! We also face the huge Masada site on the other side. YOu can travel thru these hostels for $20 a nite! We have met a family from Boston that has been traveling with their 3 kids all summer long...and a group of college kids that has 1 from Willow Grove and another from Blue Bell! The world is so small!
We also were amazed to go INTO the Dead Sea today....very incredible. HOT! Muddy, buoyant, and thrilling. Jack was the first to cover himself in mud and he never looked so muscular, nor his teeth so very white! HAHA the photos will show you what I mean! It was amazing.
After that, we climbed a mountain and found a fresh waterfall where David and his mighty men escaped from King Saul as he was pursuing them. It was like an oasis in paradise, just so much to take in to realize that this was the exact place where King David was...not enough words. The swimming was so refreshing after the heat and salt of the Dead Sea!!
I was ready to book a flight home on Saturday am. If I was near a phone... I might have done it. I came to the I HATE *RAEL point. We were staying in the Orthodox Cummunity and the atmosphere was so totally sad and oppressive. I had dreams of prison all night, but then Roy Fields came at the end and picked me up to take me away. Any idea what that one meant??!! I KNOW! The only way out of an oppressive situation is this: WORSHIP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Let that be a word for you today...struggling? WORSHIP HIM! The anointing breaks the yoke!
Let me run, will be in touch, but please do pray, the people here are in such a bondage to ritual and tradition and laws and it is so very hard and sad and hard and sad....
I am sitting in the blazing hot lobby of the beautiful youth hostel in En Gedi. Tomorrow we make the pre-dawn climb to the top and watch the sunrise! Sounds fantastic! We are in an area that overlooks the Dead Sea and you can see the mountains of Jordan just behind it! We also face the huge Masada site on the other side. YOu can travel thru these hostels for $20 a nite! We have met a family from Boston that has been traveling with their 3 kids all summer long...and a group of college kids that has 1 from Willow Grove and another from Blue Bell! The world is so small!
We also were amazed to go INTO the Dead Sea today....very incredible. HOT! Muddy, buoyant, and thrilling. Jack was the first to cover himself in mud and he never looked so muscular, nor his teeth so very white! HAHA the photos will show you what I mean! It was amazing.
After that, we climbed a mountain and found a fresh waterfall where David and his mighty men escaped from King Saul as he was pursuing them. It was like an oasis in paradise, just so much to take in to realize that this was the exact place where King David was...not enough words. The swimming was so refreshing after the heat and salt of the Dead Sea!!
I was ready to book a flight home on Saturday am. If I was near a phone... I might have done it. I came to the I HATE *RAEL point. We were staying in the Orthodox Cummunity and the atmosphere was so totally sad and oppressive. I had dreams of prison all night, but then Roy Fields came at the end and picked me up to take me away. Any idea what that one meant??!! I KNOW! The only way out of an oppressive situation is this: WORSHIP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Let that be a word for you today...struggling? WORSHIP HIM! The anointing breaks the yoke!
Let me run, will be in touch, but please do pray, the people here are in such a bondage to ritual and tradition and laws and it is so very hard and sad and hard and sad....
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