We woke in Amman, Jordan, to another clear day as we headed to the 4 checkpoints necessary to return to Israel. This would be about an hour drive. We could see Mt. Nebo, the highest peak across from Jericho, at Pisnah. We waited a LONG time to clear the border on a hot bus with no air going. However, my new "sister" and I talked the whole time so I barely noticed. We became deep friends in that little time; I felt so blessed by her friendship as Gary & I both did with a small group of people we had interacted with and prayed with throughout the trip. We left the border around 11:45 am with another 40-min. drive ahead to Jerusalem.
We ate lunch at a Lebanese restaurant. The food was authentic and delicious. Their eggplant was in some sweet red sauce, different from all the other eggplant dishes we had enjoyed. Then we returned to The Olive Tree, out hotel. It was the Sabbath for all of the Jews, so all of their shops and restaurants were closed.
The rest of the day was incredible and these words won't begin to explain what we were taught and saw for ourselves. Robert, the NTS president, asked if anyone wanted to go back to the Mt. of Olives before leaving. Everyone needed to pack, but we were not going to miss the chance. Just a small group went. That made things even nicer! So, at 1:30pm we boarded the bus and returned to the overlook of the whole city. There Robert gave us an amazing teaching. Altogether he gave us 4 teachings in 4 places on the Mt. of Olives. He showed us how Jerusalem is probably the Garden of Eden and where the Tree of Life and the Tree of Good and Evil were probably located; about how Abraham almost sacrificed Isaac there; about Jesus dying there; and about how Jesus is returning there. Completion. He also mentioned something about the red heifer there, which I am not familiar with. Of course, he gave facts about the FOUR rivers that define the Garden of Eden. One of the rivers, I think it is the Araba River, was discovered 30 years ago. It is underground.. And, he gave the scriptures supporting all of his points. I want to get this teaching again. I think he has it posted online.
A friend of his, Zeb, and his wife Linn (who are missionaries to Jerusalem) joined us. They took us to the spot that probably is the real Golgatha, the place of the Skull. He gave the explanations. Nothing has ever been built on this spot. People have tried but had no success. It is just an empty paved parking lot now, littered with trash. However, they said it is the most expensive piece of land in Jerusalem. They felt that it was being protected. Zeb had been given a word of knowledge from God about the true site of the tomb of Joseph of Arimathea. We went there. It was only about 200 meters from where the family would have stayed overnight. It was a MUCH more appropriate distance for Mary to cross and then run back to the other disciples. She ran back and forth and back again. The traditional spots that are claimed would have her running well over a mile down into a deep valley and back up over and over. The time element wouldn't even work with scripture, if that were true. Anyway, inside Joseph of Arimathea's tomb, we were all given another message & then we had the opportunity to go right into the spot where Jesus lay. I put my hands upon the rock where he would have lain, and I prayed in that spot. Only a few of us were there at a time. Eventually, someone came and told others they could not go there. Today, the stone is no longer there, but Zeb said he talked to a man who verified it was removed from the spot only about 8 years ago. This place is now called Pater Nostrum, the name of a church built there to commemorate the Lord giving the disciples the Lord's Prayer. There must have been close to 100 different languages displayed with the Lord's Prayer. They took us to some back steps for another message. Imagine what we got to see and do before we left Israel: we stood in the spot of the cruxifiction and put our hands right on Jesus' grave.
As we left, two Palestinian men blocked the door to the bus. They were pick pockets. Gary had to shove them in order for him to get on the bus. They left me alone as I had not brought anything with me at all on this final trip. A man named Bill realized they had taken his phone and turned and demanded it back. They denied it at first, but Bill was firm (and he was a tall guy). Dale and Robert both had phones stolen. These phones had all of the business contacts for each of them. A spirit of alarm was rising when everyone on the bus began to pray. We were all leaving the country within 3 hrs. and it looked impossible. But, we knew that we have a God of the impossible. A man outside who knew Robert from his many trips there saw the whole thing. He ran after them. A man in a Palestinian shop nearby said he knew these thugs were Palestinian. So, the acquaintance knew a man who knew a man who knew a man. Several hours later, when we were finishing dinner back at the hotel, getting ready to board the bus to leave, the "friend" returned the phones. He had had to pay $1000 to get them! He didn't want to be reimbursed; eventually he alowed it. Dale gave him $300, the last of his money.It was an amazing answer to prayer that was prayed right there in tomb area.
We had a wonderful goodbye time with people who we had developed great friendships with. We actually hated to leave these fellow Christians whom we had come to love and respect! We had learned so much from them.
We left for the airport to get Flight 797, a 12 hr 34 min flight. The airport had about 5 places where our passports were checked. Our carry ons got checked as we got on board. Several of our group were all seated together on the plane. We realized how God had touched our hearts and minds. We had gotten to walk where Jesus had walked. We were very thankful for God's presence being so incredibly strong in so many places. Gary reviewed Psalm 120-129, how the Jewish pilgrims praised God as they ascended into Jerusalem. Now we see and understand their joy.
We landed in Philly at 4:45 am. Customs didn't even open until 5am, so we had to wait. By the time we cleared customs/immigration and were ready for our next flight, it was 6:15am. We tried to get on an earlier flight out of Phillly but it would have cost $150. So, we waited until 11:50 to go to Chicago.
We got to Chicago ahead of schedule, but it only made our wait longer. We didn't leave until 6:03pm. At boarding time, we had been traveling for 30 hrs--with still more to go.
We arrived in Ft. Wayne at 8 pm. to an awesome greeting from Joe, Heather, and three little angels. What a nice way to be welcomed home!
It took us a LONG time to adjust when we returned. Our minds were pretty much overwhelmed to the point we could not express thoughts about our experience in just a few words. I actually hoped no one would ask how the trip was for a few days. A week or two later, I was a bit better, but I still had a lot of processing to do.
This blog expressed only a fraction of our experience in the Holy Land. It was an absolutely wonderful trip, a trip of a lifetime. If you get the chance to go, look at it as an amazing blessing and prepare for it spiritually. It has changed the way we see and read the Bible. Many things are so much clearer now. It is exciting to read about all the Old Testament places and realize how close they are together and how things really took place. We praise God for that opportunity1
No comments:
Post a Comment