So I'll take what I can from my journals and summarize this amazing trip to the Holy Land.
The day started with a 4 am wake up call, but unfortunately, never got up. And my in -considerate Dad never woke me either. He was ready to go at 4:30 am., and I was just waking. A quick 2 min. shower and race to the door was amazing to be ready in less than 10 minutes. We were only 5 minutes late getting out the door.And with my Dad driving the bus, we made it to the airport in record time.Flights were great, and we were ready for this hot, hard week.
My heart sank as I saw our tour guide once again. Andre is amazing, and we grew immensely from his knowledge. I was just thankful to see him at 9:30 am. After not sleeping for a day though, I was tired. We stopped in Jerusalem at the ridge of the Mt. Olives. We were given a quick history lesson of Jesus and his life and it was a great start to the trip. Extremely tired and not functioning well, we met our hosts and they were wonderful. Our family had 3 kids...yet they looked a little familiar but not quite. Later that evening we realized they attended cam p in 2007.
Sunday morning would be different, as the pastor joined another evangelical church in Bethlehem, so those of us who took the trip in 2007, were not in the loop this time. Headphones were given to us for translation...This was a great thing to have. We had a meeting later on in the evening with our translators. Now we are ready for the week.
Monday started off a little rough with some administration problems at the YMCA. But that's a usual for a 1st day. It was extremely hot(104) and most kids didn't have water. We solved that problem after day one. Our translators have been awesome. And the kids have been great, with some discipline issues. Everyday, one of the ladies asked if thier name was in God's Book. The gospel was clearly presented this year.
I spent most of my time with the girls, playing beach volleyball, jump rope,basketball, volleyball, talking, taking pictures. Only a few times did I play futball, but it was fun to be flexible throughout the morning.
We have enjoyed getting to know our host family. I brought the game Uno, and taught the kids a new game..They know own a set of the cards. Many of our talks were about the Bible. We started the 1st night talking about Evangelism Explosion. They are well trained and we had some great talks...We shared verses with each other, and learned much from this family. One afternoon, that was all we did, was look up verses and talk about what they meant. I was blessed to be with such a great family who loved reading the word. Our home visits were a blessing and some challenging. We sent 6 teams out a night, and we all came back feeling blessed that God allowed great opportunities to share the gospel. Many were saved, and many seeds planted, and we pray that those families that struggled in some hard sin issues, that the word will continue to be spread as our translators continue to make home visits.
This trip allowed our team to make some travels that were new to us from the 2007 trip. We however took the trip to the Dead Sea of course...And then took a long, horrendous hike at En Ghedi. We were lied to for the 1st time by Andre that this was a 20 minute walk..But no it really was a 40 min. hike with lots of steps, and extremely hot...but we were walking to a spring of water. OK- it was worth is after all. The hike back was easier after being wet. Though i think most of us were dry by the time we came back, and Magnum Ice cream awaited us too :)
One of the highlights of our travels for most of us was staying off the Sea of Gailee and being able to take a boat ride. We learned how the fishermen caught fish, and had a great time of prayer and reflection of God's amazing life.
I have a stronger love and passion for the people in Palestine. God graciously allowed me to take a 2nd trip to the holy land. I am blessed beyond what I can see. My family was an encouragement to me. I am praying He allowed a 3rd trip in the future, but if not, I pray God will continue to work in this land. May every tribe and nation hear the gospel. The seeds were planted, and many recieved, and our team is blessed beyond measure by your prayers and your faithful support.
p.s. We were extremley safe, and God took Care of us during all the checkpoints and in traveling.
There are funny stories of my roomie and I getting lost around town, and trying new foods, and naming half our team the King, Prince, Princess, She-wa, Troublette 1 & 2, oh and Hit, Kick and Spit(our triplets at camp)---Just ask!!!!
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