Something profound

Well I am not going to lie, this morning everyone seems to be feeling the exhaustion this trip can give you. In case you all were wondering if we do the regular tourist attractions like look at monuments through a bus window, we do not. However, that is what makes this trip all the more fascinating and encouraging.

This morning we started off in a wheat field that had just been harvested. The field was not a special place in the bible, or a tourist attraction in Israel, but that did not stop Eric from making an ordinary place into something profound. When farmers start to spread the seed out in the field, they have to use caution as to where the seeds are placed. The seeds can land on rocks or thorns, be snatched up by birds, or with hope be put in good soil. Eric as usual referenced this situation to the parable of the sower in Matthew 13. When the seed is snatched up by birds the seed has no chance of growing. The seed is not in a place that has the necessities for growth. As our faith, if we are not putting ourselves in communities or around brothers and sisters in Christ, our faith will not grow. The seed upon the rock will have a little dirt to attach the roots and may get some water, but unfortunately that is not enough to grow into wheat. The seed will have to work at survival. Our faith is not always going to be easy; we will have to work to have that close relationship with God. The thorns in the field can over power the seed and cause the seed to not grow. Everyone has thorns in their life, whether it is to worry, have doubt, or to not have trust in God. I promise in all of this there is a positive! If the seed is able to be planted and grow in good soil, then praise the Lord it will grow! Our faith in Christ must be rooted in a life filled with good soil! What is this good soil you may ask? The good soil is people that strengthen your faith, a community that keeps you accountable, but most of all your allowance of letting God change your life. Hang on tight friends because this was just the first hour of the day!

Our next stop down the road happened to be at Zippori. This place is somewhat like a museum with 1^st century mosaic tiling. The interesting thing about the mosaics is that back in the 1^st century this was a family’s entertainment. The house owner would pay for a mosaic to be created on their floor and the seating areas would go around the mosaic. The mosaic would tell a story along the room. Our amazing tour guide, Daniel, told us how the families would tell the story from the mosaic over and over again. The story would never get old because that is how they entertained themselves or guests. I think about the entertainment we have in our homes today. Wow talk about technology! Most houses nowadays have televisions, stereos, laptops, tablets, cellphones, and more! The mosaics gave a chance for the family to spend time together without all their noses in their cellphones. We have been constantly talking about community on this trip, and how many generations of one family would live together. I can only imagine how much knowledge a child could learn from sitting with his or her parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, etc. every night. We cannot go through life without having community.

Now I did not talk about entertainment so much just to go off on another topic. We were given the opportunity to visit Herod’s palace in Caesarea on the Mediterranean Sea. Before I make a comment I would like to say that I love the beaches in Panama City. We are known for the white sand and beautiful water. However, I saw the remains of the palace on the sand with seashells all around it, and the turquoise water crashing on the rocks, and at that moment I was amazed. It is hard to describe the beauty of this picture. In fact, I think for most of us it is hard to share what we see and how we see it. Pictures do not give any of these areas justice. As Daniel described all the luxuries of this palace with the pool connected to the sea, the chariot races, the theater, it made me think of how wonderful it would be to live there. Don’t worry I am getting to my point. I look at our society and how enticing it looks from the outside. During Herod’s time until Jesus was sent to Earth, two kingdoms were being collided, and still do today. The kingdom of society meeting with the kingdom of heaven. Everyone struggles with the wants and desires of the world. We must choose every day which kingdom we want to live for and in. The neat thing is to see the rubble and broken stone of Herod’s palace, and realize that in the present day we are the ones still standing for Christ.

I want to skip ahead a little bit to this evening when we arrived in Jerusalem. We were able to go to the Western Wall at the temple. The Western Wall is where Jewish people go for prayer, meditation, or to pray in a group for the community. The wall is divided into two sections, a side for men and a side for women. Most of the girls in our group had to borrow skirts handed out to us to cover our legs for modesty. The men received a yamecah before entering the men’s section. The interesting fact about the wall is that the Jewish community believes that is where God’s spirit lives and dwells. We believe as Christians that God is with us in our hearts everywhere. I walked up to the wall and saw women with the Torah in their face praying to God. They did not care what they looked like or how the outside world depicted them. It was beautiful. They were truly worshipping God and spending time with Him. I walked up to the wall and put my hand on it and began to pray. While I do believe that God is with me everywhere, it was touching to be at such a significant place. People write prayers or wishes on pieces of paper and stick them in the crack of the walls. There were thousands of notes sticking out of the wall, and I imagined all the different types of people putting them there. This particular experience made me wonder if the Jewish community can become so sincere at the place where they think God dwells, can we as Christians become that sincere everywhere we go since God is always with us?

I hope that this blog was not too long to read, and that it gave some insight on this trip. While these are defining moments in the trip, we will all becoming back with our own insights and some oh so funny memories. We will be seeing you soon family and friends!

Shalom Y’all
Sarah Duderstadt