Standing on Holy Ground

Partaking of communion together with our group at the Garden Tomb in Jerusalem, while singing "Holy Ground" with groups from all around the world will be one of my most favorite memories of Israel.  The different languages being sung to the same tune at the same time in such a beautiful place with such a great significance were a reminder of what the Body of Christ really is; a union of believers from all over the world who love and serve Christ.

The trip was filled with many special events and places, including my first time to baptize in the Jordan River.  We enjoyed swimming (or actually just floating, since you cannot swim) in the Dead Sea.  We walked the Cardo (main street) of the old city (Jerusalem) and the path down the Mount of Olives Jesus would have followed on his last trip to Jerusalem before his arrest.  We walked through the garden of Gethsemane, down the ancient streets around the jail where he was imprisoned, and around the Temple Mount on the streets and steps where he walked. 

We spent several days around the Sea of Galilee, visiting Jesus hometown of Nazareth, his ministry center of Capernaum, the place of the feeding of the five thousand, the sermon on the mount, the places he fished, and towns he visited.  We travelled north to see a city gate that Abraham walked through and the place where Peter confessed that Jesus was the Messiah.  

The journey was truly life-changing.  Those who went now read the Bible with a new revelation of the geography and culture inherent within each story.  It is like reading a new version of Scripture, as the words jump off the page with clearer definitions.  It is truly something to be experienced, since it is impossible to put it into words.

Standing on Holy Ground in the Holy Land,

Bro. Wade

Following the Footprints

As I prepare to leave for Israel soon, I am spending a lot of time researching the places we will visit.  I am reading the biblical passages, reviewing the history books, memorizing the maps, and reminiscing over the photos taken on previous journeys to the Holy Land.  While I pursue this endeavor, I grow more excited each day with the anticipation that I will once again be changed by the events of this journey.  

Each trip to the Holy Land brings new insights regarding scripture, a greater appreciation to God for coming to this earth and living as he did for me, and a humbling of my spirit as I follow the footprints of Jesus and his followers.  I am deeply changed by each journey to Israel and believe that this trip will bring the same results.

Every encounter with God is life-changing; I don't have to travel half-way around the world to experience the transformation that comes from the Holy Spirit.  I appreciate the life-change found in the Holy Land, but oh, how I long for the life-change that comes from a great moving of the Holy Spirit in our church.  Please pray for us to see the footprints of Jesus in the Rio Grande Valley and follow them with passion each day.

Praying for our daily journey,

Bro. Wade