Time is drawing near for our journey to Israel! An excited group of 30 will join me for the EXPERIENCE ISRAEL Tour, set to begin on Wednesday!

As time draws near, my heart is drawn to Psalms 120-134, known as the Psalms of Ascent. These psalms were actually sung by the Jewish people during the Temple period as they made their way from all across the land to the Temple of God three times a year for the major feasts of Israel. Their journey was one of tremendous anticipation of worship, so they literally sang the desires of their hearts! They longed to worship God in His Holy Temple.

Well, the Temple was destroyed in 70 AD by the Romans, putting the Jewish people in a quandary. Where and how would they worship? Where would they offer sacrifices and fulfill temple rituals? In the despair of losing the centerpiece of Judaism (the Temple), they turned to rabbis to fill the void, and to interpret God’s will for them. While incredibly well-meaning, rabbis are only human, so must interpret through human understanding. Spiritually, it has left the Jewish people lacking salvation. (Read more about the rise of Rabbinic Judaism here.)

Despite the spiritual wilderness, many Jews still long to worship the God of Israel, and the Psalms of Ascent provide a bit of direction for them in their quest.

For believers, that quest begins and ends in Jesus Christ! Our journey “up to Jerusalem” is also one in which we long to worship the God of Israel…in the land of Israel! The Psalms of Ascent provide us spiritual direction as we make the physical journey!

You are invited to follow along as the Psalms of Ascent serve as our guide. You don’t have to go to Israel to quench the thirst of worship! May the next few days be a huge blessing as you “travel” with us into that place of worship!