Wow, what a journey it has been! As I sit awaiting my flight home, I cannot be more grateful for the blessed privilege to lead others to Israel. If you have followed, perhaps you understand why!
Our last day began with cool temperatures but bright sun, which we have had the past two days. The city was gleaming today and we made the most of our final stops. First up was the Yad Vashem Holocaust Museum. This is a difficult, but good, place to see. The atrocities of the Holocaust punch the air out of your gut, yet, to realize God has brought life to those dry bones (Ezekiel 37) is amazing. I could fill many pages with thousands of pictures and it would not do it justice. But we saw it, and we will never forget what we saw there. I pray we will never be silent when it comes to Israel. We don’t need to agree with everything a sinful nation does, but God’s command to us as followers of Jesus is to love, pray for, and support Israel. I hope you will do that too.
I prepared many videos to help tell the story, but ran out of time to prep and post prior to the long flight home. We also met with a Holocaust survivor whose story you should hear. Please stay tuned and I will share those in the near future.
Things took a 180 degree turn emotionally as we left Yad Vashem and headed toward our crescendo…the Garden Tomb. We can’t say for certain that this is the place Jesus was crucified, buried and resurrected. But what we can say with absolute certainty is that He WAS crucified, buried, and raised to life again! The place doesn’t matter when you know the truth of what He did.
To get to the Garden Tomb requires walking through a Muslim area of Jerusalem. Seems fitting since truth is always a light in the darkness! Once inside, the peacefulness and beauty of the place cause this to become the perfect place to contemplate what happened those final days of Holy Week. We see a hill that, at one time, appeared as a skull. A bus station now sits at the base of Skull Hill (Golgatha), so fumes and constant vibration have taken their toll.
Beside Golgatha is a garden, complete with an olive press and cisterns. This place was owned by a rich man, and the large burial cave is evidence of that. We stepped into the burial cave and can confirm: He is not here. He is risen!
We enjoyed communion just a few yards from the empty tomb as our last act of worship together. What a sweet time we had.
Then we headed in the direction of the airport. On the way, we stopped at the valley in which David and Goliath engaged in battle. It is a narrow plain, well-suited for combat, yet it took David only one stone taken from the creek to take care of Goliath. God had plans for that young shepherd boy who would later become king of Israel.
Finally, our farewell dinner together. Each had an opportunity to share what was on their heart, whether it be an experience during the trip that was especially impactful, or simply words of joy, gratitude or contemplation. There was one overriding theme in their comments, and it wasn’t about the sites they saw. It was about the experiences they had. We saw ancient stones that tell the story of Israel, but we also engaged with living stones, believers in the land who have incredibly deep love and commitment to the Lord. We met Arab and Palestinian pastors, worshiped with Messianic believers, loved on Holocaust survivors and the elderly, and spent time with the staff of ONE FOR ISRAEL. Those are the experiences they spoke of. Those are the experiences that changed lives here.
I invite you to consider joining us on a trip to Israel. If you have followed, you’ve gotten a taste of what it’s like, but you have missed the most important thing: the ability to EXPERIENCE what you have seen and heard online. One thing I can guarantee: For those who truly love Jesus, there is no way your will return from Israel unchanged. I am happy to customize a tour for your church or your Bible study, or you are welcome to join any of our tours open to the public. To customize a tour, please call me at 817-776-2367 or email kym@oneforisrael.org. Otherwise, visit our tour website for options to join an upcoming tour. It would be an honor to host you.
Finally, stay tuned. I will continue to share reflections of our tour, as well as videos taken inside the Holocaust Museum and with our Holocaust survivor, over the next few days. You’re welcome to finish the journey with me!
