PCC Israel Trip 2011

We had beautiful weather today as we visited various sites throughout the Old City of Jerusalem. It was perfect for a day with tons and tons of walking.

Our day began with a visit to the Mount of Olives. We took pictures of the Temple Mount and reflected on many of the stories that took place here. We talked about Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday and walked the path that he would have ridden. Along the way, we reflected on some of Jesus’ teaching that he shared with his disciples here, talked about his weeping over Jerusalem, and ended up at the Garden of Gethsemane.

It was here that Jesus was betrayed and arrested, leading to his crucifixion. This is also where, prior to being arrested, Jesus prayed. He asked that the Father would provide another way for Jesus to accomplish what he came to accomplish, if there was one. Since there was not, though, he prayed, “Not my will, but yours.” This really resonated with the group – we were in awe of the love for us and commitment to us that Jesus displayed. It truly is amazing.

After spending some time at the garden, we drove next to the Jaffa Gate in order to enter the Old City. Our first stop was the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. This is traditional site where Jesus was crucified and rose again. Although it is one of the possible locations where this took place, for those of us who do not come from traditional and liturgical church backgrounds, the ornate décor and activity was a bit of a distraction. We will be visiting another one of the possible sites tomorrow – the Garden Tomb. This site feels a lot more authentic, so we’re looking forward to that.

From the church, we headed next to lunch. Most of us ate falafel (the national food of Israel). It was delicious – one of the best food experiences you can have when you visit Israel. Our next stop was the Western Wall. This is the holiest site for the Jewish people – it is a spot along the original retaining wall of the Temple Mount. Today it is the closest location to the Temple that stood here thousands of years ago.

We prayed at the wall – mostly praying that God would open the eyes of so many in Jerusalem who are lost in their religion…and many of whom have missed the point of a relationship with God through Christ. Next we were able to make our way through the Rabbi’s Tunnel. This exhibit gave us the opportunity to learn more about the history of the Temple Mount. We walked underground along some of the original retaining wall built by King Herod.

When we exited there, we headed next to the Pool of Bethesda. We reflected on the story of the man who Jesus healed here (John 5). We also visited the church that was built at this site – St. Anne’s Church. This church was built during the Crusader period 1000 years ago. The acoustics are amazing – we sang a few songs together there and the sound was breathtaking. Several of us were in tears.

From there we exited the city through the Lion’s Gate. Leor took Jan back to the hotel (she was tired and needed some rest – she had done so well keeping up with the group), so the rest of us moved on – walking along the eastern side of the Temple Mount. It provided us with a spectacular view of the Mount of Olives across the Kidron Valley. We walked all the way around the city to the Dung Gate. From here we had access to the southern excavations of the Temple Mount.

In these excavations, archaeologists uncovered steps that led up to the Temple Mount in Jesus day. As we walked on these steps, it was so surreal to think that 2000 years ago, Jesus walked up these very same steps. Awesome!

After this, we spent a little more time in the shops in the Old City while we waited for Leor to come back and pick us up. About 2 hours later, we met up with him again outside the Jaffa Gate. We headed back to the hotel – and every single one of us was exhausted. We ate dinner together, and everyone headed to our rooms to start getting stuff around for our departure tomorrow.

This will probably be the last summary post for the blog since we will be at the airport tomorrow night. As for our agenda tomorrow, we are starting the day with a visit to Bethlehem. Then we’re going to the Elah Valley (where David fought Goliath), Yad Vashem (the Holocaust museum), and the Garden Tomb. We’ll wrap up the day with dinner on our way to the airport, and we fly out late tomorrow night. It won’t be long until we are back home. We have truly had a life changing trip – it has been amazing! We are excited to see everyone back home, though.

We’ll keep you posted with brief updates regarding where we’re at along the way. Thanks for your prayers!