Galilee......December 2014

There is something magical about this place.  

It is peaceful.  It is rich with history.  It is memorable, memories from my past but also in creating new memories.  Perhaps it feels so good because for 11 days we were able to leave behind the contention, the honks, the politics, the fast paced bustling city of Jerusalem.

Here it is green, quiet, full of rich spiritual history and current testimony building.

It was a wonderful, busy, and restful trip.  Unfortunately it was also the last major trip with this wonderful group of students. We have come to love these 60 new friends of ours.  It has been a wonderful semester with them.

We began our trip traveling through the Jordan Valley, walking through the ancient city of BetShean, walking through a beautiful Christian church in Nazareth which is the largest in the country.

 

As we traveled from Nazareth to Tiberias we stopped at Mount Arbel where the students had their first magnificent view of the Sea of Galilee.  Ron did some teaching there and then gave them some reflective time before the wind and rains came.  

We all settled in at our home away from home at Ein Gev, a holiday resort of the Kibbutz. After dinner Ron and I sat at the waters edge and reflected back 20 years when we were at this very spot with our children.  Those are such choice memories for us.  We could almost see the five kids picking through sea shells to find the perfect ones to take home.

A good nights rest prepared us for a very emotional day complete with a true miracle.

We visited the Mount of Beatitudes, Tabgha, Peter's Primacy, Capernaum, Magdala and by our faith and prayers we were able to watch the storm subside long enough for us to ride a boat from Tiberias to the other side of the Lake.  Upon arriving to eat dinner the rains came and the winds blew.

Ron's schedule during these 11 days was crazy busy.  Every other day he was either on the road for a field trip or in the classroom for three hours teaching the New Testament. When he wasn't on the bus or teaching he was preparing.  He spent countless hours each day to prepare himself to provide these students the best possible experience.

Ron is a wonderful teacher.  He loves what he is doing.  He has some of the most incredible classrooms as you can tell by the photos. "Jill, there is nothing like teaching on the very spots that we read about in the New Testament.  I am so blessed."

I don't think there is a day that goes by that we don't remind each other where we are, what we are doing and how very blessed we feel.

The following pictures are of Gamla, Tiberias, Mount Tabor, Megiddo, Tel Dan, Banias and Nimrod's Castle.  Also, Chorazin, Sepphoris and the ancient city of Akko.

All in all this was a fantastic trip of a lifetime.  The fortunate thing about it is we get to experience it another two times before we return in August.

WE ARE TRULY BLESSED

STILL HERE...........

BEGGING FORGIVENESS!!!!!

I think many of us make promises to keep everyone informed and up to date through some form of social media.

We are some of THOSE people.

Our lives have been so full of students, class, 11 days in the Galilee, visiting family and friends.

Meetings.  Greetings.  Eatings.

We've loved every minute of every moment and have made many memories.

We are currently in the city of Ashdod, which is south of Tel Aviv, ready to go to the airport to pick up the next group of 79 students.

Weather has caused the city of Jerusalem to close major roads and so the faculty left early this morning to get to the airport early enough to meet them.  As I look out our window at the hotel the wind is whipping wildly, the rains are reeking havoc and the skies are black as pitch.

We are starting off this semester with quite the adventure and look forward to seeing the excitement in the faces of these young, eager students.

Pass it along would ya........we are still here.......still alive.........still happy.......still in love!

Just a 45 minute drive to the East......JORDAN!

Our last out of country experience took us to the country of Jordan.  It was a wonderful four days and the following pictures are an insignificant attempt to show our adventures.  But here goes...

We left bright and early on Monday morning and drove 45 minutes to the east.  We passed Jericho, the oldest city in the world, the Dead Sea, a lot of barren desert and reached the border.  The border was about a two hour process but the anticipation kept everyone happy and patient.

Mohammed was our Jordanian guide for the week.  He was a happy young man, very knowledgeable and had a wonderful spirit about him.  He was always sharing his historical knowledge and expertise of his country.

Ron's first teaching spot...the top of Mount Nebo, where Moses was translated and looked over into Israel.  It was a beautiful day and we could actually see all the way to Jerusalem.

Next was the Church at Madaba, where the oldest mosaic map of the ancient city of Jerusalem

was located

We then took a small drive up a winding road with spectacular views until we reached Machaerus, John the Baptist was said to be beheaded here. This was one of my favorite stops in Jordan.  Ron's teaching was insightful and the hike and views were incredible.

We spent the night in Wadi Musa.  We arrived late in the evening, with only time to eat and get a good nights rest for a HUGE day in the morning.  We awake to a hazy day with the threat of showers but were pleasantly surprised when the haze cleared and we never felt a drop of rain the whole day.

****PETRA****

Words and pictures cannot describe this place.  We walked and hiked over seven  miles during the course of the day.  Every way you turned your head there was another spectacular view or carving in the mountainside that literally took your breath away.  The canyon was full of history, artifacts, camels, horses, donkeys and merchant trying to make a few dinar.  Ron and I had a wonderful time and as we stood atop the high place,we looked at each other and exclaimed one more time,

"Look at where we are."

We rounded out the trip with museums, races in an ancient hippodrome at Jerash, King Hussein's auto and motorcycle museum, and our final stop at the Baptismal site at the Jordan River.  We are having a wonderful time and enjoying each others company every day.

Just another Holy Land experience.