Israel - God's Chosen People

"[Many]people for the first time in their Christian walks are finding that somehow and for some reason they now have a deep love in their heart for the Jewish peopl and the land of Israel. They may have no idea where it came from or why they are feeling this way. Suddenly they have a real desire to learn as much about the rich Hebraic foundation of the Christian faith as they possibly can but they dont understand why they feel this way.

"...Well if that is you, there are two things I want you to know about what has happened to you. First of all, that deep love you have for the Jewish people man did not put into your heart. In fact, man is incapable if putting that love in your heart for His people. It was th Holy Spirit of God who put that love in your heart for them.And secondly, God didn't put that love in your heart just for the sake of putting it there. He has done it for such a time as this." ~And Still They Come by Barry Wagner

Israel is a place that is loved by some and hated by others. It's a place where 3 different religions have their heart. Ever since I was a little girl, hearing the stories told by my beautiful grandma about Israel and the Jews and how they are God's chosen and we must support and pray for them, I've developed a love for this place. This small country that our Savior came from.

I never fully understood why this was. And I still have SO much to learn! But I'm learning that it wasn't my grandma who put this in my heart, but God Himself. I don't fully know why. Could it be part of my calling? Could it be because they are God's chosen that He desires His people (us Gentiles) to be apart of it all? Afterall, those who call Him Savior are grafted in! 

"Branches were broken so that I could be grafted in..." Romans 11:19 (read all of chapter 11!!)

 

 

 

Wild olive branches! It's our true identity. Not being Jew or Gentile, but being children of the living God!

"For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile--the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on Him, for everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." Romans 1o:12-13 (Emphasis added)

 

 

I'm so thankful that I am apart of all this. When I read the Old Testament and the New (which is very Jewish also) I gain new understanding for God's heart & His plan. And I love that.

Does anyone else have this heart?

Israel - Part 3!

First off, just wanted to say I want God to get all the glory!

It was He who made it possible!

Okay, blogger acting up, so part 1 is below this & part 2 is below this.

Let's get started! 

In Masada, our group was supposed to enter a museum. But me, Ash, & our friend were a little busy buying Popsicles. (Very expensive Popsicles might I add ;)

Brain freeze! Two times that happened where I was forced to eat an ice cream item & stuff it in my face so we could move on.

Anywho, the museum was the bomb! It was very dark inside & you pretty much went at your own pace b/c you wore a headphone & it talked to you & told you what you were looking at.

Did you know they had displays of cosmetics the women used to use? I didn't know they wore so much make-up! There were belt buckles from the Roman Soldiers & combs & shoes. It was amazing. There were also statues of random people & what they would've looked like/been doing.

I loved the background music to my headphones. It really set the mood.

En Gedi

You know this place, right?

It's where David hid from Saul in 1 Samuel.

This was only one of the few places where I could actually picture Bible people.

I could totally see David walking through here.

As we walked to the top, we passed this spring & no one wanted to get in except me & another girl!

So in we went!

Next stop...

Jerusalem

This place was nothing like Galilee, but that's ok. I still loved being here.

First, we saw the Temple Mount. We actually got to walk there one of those days but couldn't go in.

Beautiful Jerusalem.

 Behind this cemetery is believed to be the place where Jesus was crucified.

Here was a random tomb on the side of the road ;)

The Garden of Gethsemane

I know some of you were anxious about this one :)

It was very crowded here, but you could totally picture Jesus here without all the people & noise & city behind it.

These olive trees are like, 2,000 years old!

The Market Place

 I guess this is what they have instead of Walmart ;)
I wished I couldv'e bought stuff here so bad! Just look at all these goodies!

The Wailing Wall

We are on top of David's Temple. This area is where he saw Bathsheba!

I loooved David's Temple. Underneath was Hezekiah's tunnel & that was sooo fun! It was a 45 minute "walk" through a narrow tunnel of water that went up to your knees. And boy was it freeezing.

 The Via Dolorosa

Here is where Judas hung himself.

Do you remember that story in the Bible of that man wanting to be healed but no one would push him in that pool that was supposed to heal you? And then Jesus was all, "Get up, you are healed!" Well, here is the pool, or one like it!

This is believed to be the Last Supper Room!

Inside this room, you look up & see this hole. This is where they kept Jesus prisoner. Wow, I think it just hit me--I actually saw these places?!

This is the skull. Calvary. Doesn't it look like there are eyes inside it?

This was the only good picture I could take of the outside of Jesus' tomb. Can you see it?

This inside! The room was so small & there were two of these 'beds' on each side.

Jesus laied here?!?!

"He is not here, for He has risen."

That's what was written on wood as you exited the tomb.

There was this one time we were walking down a hill, & my back was aching so bad. I couldn't even go on.
But I tried to picture Jesus holding me up. As I thought that, a smile found my face & then it's like He said this:
"Not only am I right beside you walking WITH you, but I am in back of you, urging you on. I am in front of you, leading the way. I am below you, guiding your steps. I am above you, making my face to shine upon you!"  

And at that moment, as I lifted my face to the sky, there that Son was! Shining right on me!

The last day was the hardest because we were leaving to the airport & I was sad that I had to leave all these great friendships & bonds I made with these people!

I miss it more everyday. I am longing to be back there. Oh, Israel!


Well, folks, that's Israel. I didn't include every picture & story, but I pray you'll get to make those on your own!

"...the One who created you, Jacob, and the One who formed you, Israel--Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name and your are Mine.

I will be with you when you pass through the waters, and when you pass through the rivers, they will not overwhelm you."

-Isaiah 43:1-2

So tell me. From the pictures, is it like you pictured it?

Israel - Part 1! (part 2 is on the bottom)

Hello my friends!
I'm very glad to be back, although I miss that land so much! They're right when they say you feel at home over there ;)
I thought I'd show you some pictures & share some stories of this adventure. There are tons of them, so I'll have to do them in parts.
Enjoy!
*None of these are edited (there are too many!) so I know they aren't as "good" as they could be*

Tel Aviv

The looong plane ride had a "GPS" & here in this picture shows that we are almost there!

My first glimpse of Israel!

I seriously wasn't expecting any part of Israel to be city-ish, but I forgot this isn't the biblical days!

The Mediterranean Sea was just seconds from our hotel. My sister & I walked there at night!

A cool building

Our weird smiles ;)

During the middle of the night, we woke up to yelling Hebrew men outside our hotel! It was crazy! It's not as dangerous as that sounds, but we were a little freaked out. It was about 2 am, & my sister (Ash) & I ended up staying awake, eating chocolate & oranges ;) Then our noise woke up our Gramma, so we all stayed up praying & talking & singing & laughing until the break of day.

Caserea

 We had our first breakfast in Israel that morning, & the room we sat in overlooked the ocean!

Here are the ruins of Herod The Great's palace. Here is also where he built a harbor. It's also a place where Paul came.

Our guide gave us a few minutes to explore & off to the ocean me & Ash went! I walked the shore & picked up some shells. 

Galilee

My favorite place in Israel! This was the quieter part of The Holy Land.

Oh, the wildflowers!

Armageddon behind us!

The Burning Place (Elijah)

I loved our hotel in Galilee. There was a place where you could walk all the way to the Sea of Galilee & I did that one morning during sunrise.

I snuck away to this little forest & journaled away while the birds just sang & sang. As I walked back (barefoot!) a girl one the way said, "Shalom!" and out of habit, I let out a squeaky "Hi!" But eventually I got into the habit of saying Shalom to people.

The old boat museum held this 2,000 year old boat!

Then off for a ride on the sea! The boat was called "Sailing on Faith" & the guy who owned it was very funny & very godly. He sang for us w/ his band & you could just feel the Holy Spirit.

I loved sailing on the water where Jesus walked!

We had a fresh fish lunch at a restuarant & the fish came whole! Head, tail & all!

Everywhere you turned in Galilee was covered in green hills & flowers. It's literally the most beautiful place I've ever been to.

We went to see a church & it was raining! My sister & I were aheaad of the group while Gramma was in the back. All of a sudden, I hear people gasping. When I turn around, I see my grandmas two feet up in the air! I was so scared that she slipped on the stone, so we ran to her. But of course, she was all smiles.
Later on the bus, everyone was just laughing about it. One of the woman was all, "Bessie, did you read the plaque that had a verse next to where you fell? It said, "Blessed are the meek: They shall inherit the earth!" And from then on, the whole group couldn't get enough!




"...Who fills the sky with clouds,


preparing rain for the earth,

Then turning the mountains green with grass,

feeding both cattle and crows."
Part of Psalm 147