Coming to a Close

Written by Brian Kiley

Today was our final day touring the Holy Land. In a sense, today was not simply the end of a ten-day journey. It was the end of a yearlong journey of prayer and preparation, and for some in our group this trip was the culmination of a lifetime of hoping and praying for this opportunity.

I think it is fair to say that the group entered today tired, but grateful. Many days of walking, exploring, and learning had taken their toll, but they had done little to dull our collective joy. This trip has impacted all of us in different, but profound ways.

This morning we were given an extra hour to sleep in, so we made our way to the busses at 8:45. Our first stop was at an archaeological society site for an archaeological sifting project. After a short presentation by a staff member, we split into groups of three or four and got to spend about an hour or so sifting through dirt that had been excavated in Jerusalem. Members of our group found dozens of pieces of pottery, bone, and other small artifacts.

After leaving there we went next to the Pool of Bethesda. Pastor Matt led us through a teaching out of John 5 about the healing of the blind man lying by that pool. Matt talked not only about the man’s healing, but also about the deeper meaning behind Jesus’s question to the man (“Do you want to be healed?”, and His command (“Sin no more.”) In short, Jesus was trying to help the man see that he had been looking for healing in the wrong place. Pastor Matt connected this to our own tendency to seek healing and fulfillment apart from Christ. We had a few minutes to walk around the ruins surrounding the pool, which were quite impressive. Our next stop was a brief one in Saint Anne’s Church. We walked into the empty church building and had the chance to sing “Amazing Grace” together from the front. The acoustics in that building were unbelievable, and it was wonderful hearing all of us belt out that amazing song.

From there we had a short teaching from Ronen about the path Jesus would have traveled when He was walking to be crucified, and we walked the Via Dolorosa. The path takes us down narrow streets in Old Jerusalem, and most of those streets are lined with shops. The activity in the shops and the foot traffic made it difficult to try to imagine the scene along that road nearly 2000 years ago. Eventually we made it to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, and had about 45 minutes to walk through it. The church marks the place where it is believed Jesus was crucified and where it is believed His body laid between His death and resurrection. The church itself is shared between six different denominations. The church building itself was incredible. It had many different rooms and small chapels, and it was decorated beautifully. Ronen told us that the crowds today were lighter than normal, but it still felt extremely crowded. The lines to touch the places where it is believed Jesus was crucified and buried were prohibitively long. I got the sense that exploring the church was a little bit odd for most of our group, and it certainly felt that way to me. On the one hand, it was a beautiful building. On the other hand, it was so crowded that it was difficult to focus in on the significance of the site.

After that we walked a short ways further and Pastor Ryan led us in a devotional before we ate a quick pizza lunch. From there we walked back to our bus and drove to the Israel Museum. We didn’t have much time at the museum, but we did get to see the incredible model of Jerusalem that the museum hosts (I would estimate it was at least 100 ft x 100 ft, and it was probably considerable larger) and the Dead Sea Scrolls exhibit.

Finally, we went back to the old city where we had some time to shop before our farewell dinner. For our farewell dinner we went to a rooftop restaurant where we had a view of the Temple Mount and several other notable Jerusalem sites. After the delicious meal we took turns sharing highlights from the trip and expressing gratitude towards Ronen, Meier (our bus driver), Pastor Matt, Emanuel, and one other. It was a sweet time, and a wonderful way to end the trip.

Tomorrow our alarms will ring at 4:15am (6:15pm on Wednesday in California) and we will begin the long journey home. Like others in our group, I’m anxious to get home to see my family. This trip has been life changing, but it’s time to return to real life. As I board the plane tomorrow, first to Istanbul and then to San Francisco, I will carry this land in my heart. The Scriptures have been opened in new ways during these ten days. My appreciation for this land has grown ten fold, if not more. I’ve made new friends and strengthened old ones. As I sit here in our hotel lobby at almost 10:00pm, I’m simply at a loss for the right words to sum up this experience.

My friend Pastor Matt likes to tell people at Bridgeway that when you visit Israel you move from seeing the Bible in black and white to seeing it in color. I knew that was true before. But now I know it’s true in a way I couldn’t possible understand without walking the land, seeing its sights and breathing its air. If you have not yet visited Israel, I urge you to consider coming. It’s a long journey and it’s expensive, but it’s well, well worth it.