At the top of the mountain

Last night was our first night in the Qibbutz at Galilee and it rocks. Each roommate pairing gets their own little condo type thing that has a few beds and a bathroom with a small kitchen. They’re very cool and unlike anything I’ve ever stayed in. It’s right on the water too, which is so nice. You can see the city of Tiberius across the water which, when lit up at night, is beautiful.

We woke up this morning and headed to breakfast at 6:45. The food was killer as always. We left at 7:30 and headed to Korazim. Bob and Rachel both taught there. We left Korazim to Mount Arbel. Mt Arbel was amazing. It looked like something out of a movie. The hike was not too difficult and on the way up there was an awesome system of caves that we got to explore for a few minutes where there were ruins of an Ottoman Fortress. We continued up along the trail that got thinner and thinner until overlooking the cliff face onto the Sea of Galilee. We had to climb some metal handles that looked like staples to get to the top, where Tiff taught. We sat in silence enjoying the view for a minute, before taking communion at the top of the mountain.

We then got on the bus and drove into the city of Magdal, where we ate Felafel. After lunch, we drove to the Mount of Beattitudes, where Rachel read the sermon on the mount. It was an awesome experience. From there we walked to Tabgha and Seth taught on some of the interactions between Jesus and the disciples on the Sea of Galilee.

From Tabgha we went to Capernaum, where we learned of where Jesus carried out a lot of his ministry and miracles. It was so cool to be in a place where Jesus actually walked! One of the coolest things that we learned from there is that Jesus is Lord of all. That rang true because we were in a place surrounded by His glorious creation, standing in a place where He actually taught. Capernaum was our last site, a good way to end the day before we went back to the Qibbutz.

Right when we got back, we got to meet together down at the Sea of Galilee and have 12 brothers and sisters be baptized (me included). It was an amazing time where everyone got to share their testimony and then be in the water while each person was baptized by a staff member.

Written by Chad and Brandt