My wife and I were finally able to take our trip to Israel. I say finally because it has been in the works since 2018. We made our first deposit for the trip that was scheduled for 2020. Well, we all know what happened that year. So it was postponed. And then postponed again. I believe that it was postponed four times all together. Then it was totally cancelled, but then rescheduled for 2023. We kept holding our breath for another set back, but it never came. Needless to say, we were excited to finally be going.
EXCITED:
Excited is an understatement. Who wouldn't be excited to take a trip to the Holy Land? Wasn't really excited about the long flight, but once we arrived, OH WOW! To be able to see in person places that you only read about in The Bible. The Sea of Galilee. The place where Jesus walked on water. Where He called Peter to get out of the boat and come to Him. Where the battle of Armageddon will take place. Visited the city where Jesus' first miracle took place. Turning water into wine. The Jordan River. To baptize and be baptized in the same river that Jesus was baptized. See all the ancient architecture & ruins. It was a lot to take in. Sensory overload is what some of the people on the trip were saying.
EMOTIONAL:
How can you not get emotional about seeing where Jesus walked and talked and taught? The Mt. Of Beatitudes. The Mt. Of Olives, where Jesus will set foot when He returns. The Upper Room. The garden of Gethsemane. Seeing where He was whipped and beaten. Walking the Via Dolorosa. The same street that Jesus walked while carrying the Cross. Seeing where he stumbled and put His hand on the wall. Where He fell and Simon helped carry the cross. Golgotha. Where He was nailed to the Cross. Then the tomb where they buried Him! We checked. It's still EMPTY!! To see and take a boat ride on the Sea of Galilee. The Western Wall or better known as the Wailing Wall. One day, so many emotions. Very powerful and impactful. That's not even the half of it. If I were to list everything, it would be a novel!
EXHAUSTED:
To say that we were beyond exhausted is another understatement. Every day we were on the bus @ 8:00 and done by 5-5:30ish. We walked & walked and then walked some more. At the end of the trip we added up the mileage that we walked. Thirty one miles during the five days that we were actually in Israel. That is a lot of walking for those who are not used to it. On some days we were emotionally exhausted as well. Some places we carried heavy emotions while we walked. Lets just say that we all pretty much slept good every night after a long day of walking and sight seeing.
FRUSTRATED:
Not going to lie. I as well as some others were frustrated with our tour guide. He was good at what he was doing, but there were some things that we wish we could have spent a little more time at. We took a tour of the tunnels under the Western Wall and came to the spot where the Holy of Holies was at. He just kind of brushed past it like it was no big deal. We were like "wait, hold on a minute." Wanted to spend a little more time there. Maybe do some praying. You know, what we Christians do. He was very knowledgeable in history, buildings, flowers and such. I wanted more of what Jesus did and where He did it.
WRAP UP:
The trip was amazing. We had beautiful weather everyday. Went with a great group of people. Made many new friends. I know that I am forgetting a lot of what I saw & experienced, but I think that I hit some of the most important parts. At least to me. It was definitely a trip of a lifetime. Like I said, to be able to see and experience what you read in The Bible. Priceless!
Psalm 135:4 Living Bible
4 For the Lord has chosen Israel as his personal possession.
God Bless you all.
Rev. Kev.
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