Three Photographs For You!

Today was a good day. :)

Can anybody identify this place?

(hint: you thought you were going to get hint, huh?)

More importantly, can anyone identify these children?

Gone to England.

We arrived here in England yesturday.

And since then have been enjoying lovely views

as we drive through the countryside,

 

soaking in everything as we walk through the quaint towns,

and taking pictures in red telephone booths. :)

The end.

Israel Have I Loved

Our family is getting ready to board a 777 bound for London. For years we dreamed of visiting Israel – and soon we will fly away and vanish into the clouds with souvenirs in our suitcases, stamps in our passports, memories in our hearts, and pictures…many pictures. I suppose those things will eventually collect dust and my passport will expire. But to travel in Israel – is to be impacted forever. 

I can’t explain it…so why blog? Why journal? Why think? This place has been more than tels, ancient rocks, and impressive historical sites. For each one of us it has been a deeply personal journey to the One who is alive and dwells in our hearts. 

Yesterday morning, our last full day in Jerusalem, we had a couple hours of solitude at the Garden Tomb. It is hands down my favorite place in all of Israel. Perhaps it is because it is so very empty! =) It was incredible to hear other tour groups singing in their language. Even the birds were chirping praises. Last week Michael was baptized at the Jordan River (it was awesome!) In his testimony he shared Philippians 3:10 as his desire. I thought of it as I sat looking at the empty tomb…” that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings,” That is what I want from this trip and as we go from here – to know Jesus Messiah. 

Today we road down our forever-slow-elevator at the apartment one last time…and were for once grateful it took forever long. 

Today we ate falafel for the last time. Monica will be going through withdrawal…but we plan to put her on a special medication for that soon called European Chocolate.   

Today we hugged little Hanoch and Yosef extra tight. 

Today we sang as we left Jerusalem. The Barkman’s were missed. We tried not to look back at the city as we sang #16. There is still something special about singing in Jerusalem. 

Today we returned Dearly to the Avis rental car company. She was faithful to take us many places.  

Today we were stamped out of Israel.

Right now the plane is boarding...must go. Shalom…until London…

**P.S. Anyone who reads the Bible should travel to Israel...and even if you think you can't - you should at least have the dream in your heart.

The Little People...

So what do little people do on an archaeological tour.... in a land of tels and ruins.

 Survive or thrive?    Sink or swim?

Well, they surprised us all... and journeyed back in time with the rest of us...  absorbed huge amounts of information... and experienced the land of the Bible.

Donnavon and Brian (our guides), did an excellent job of including them.

Perhaps their perspective was a little different than ours...

(don't forget to look up in the tree in this one...)

 Here they uncovered some mosaic themselves....

 

There were five smooth stones to pick from the same place David did.

There were tunnels to explore, with and without water.

And speaking of water...

 there was water.... for floating on...

Jerica in the Dead Sea

Water for sailing on....

Israel and Michael on the Sea of Galilee

.... and always plenty of water for drinking.

And along with the rest of us, they worshipped.

Occasionally, and only occasionally the whistle was blown.... by some Park Ranger who wasn't quite sure what to do with this group of children in a land where most visitors are ten times their ages.  We concluded that if a wall stood for last couple of thousand years, it would  survive the M-Bark bunch.

Once a line was hundreds long, and we were escorted to the front of the line... because of the children.  Thanks children!!!!

Yeah for Pizza on the Hotel Balcony by the Sea of Galilee!!!

And when all else failed, there was always Fanta.

 

... and that is my attempt at blogging for the M-Bark blog.  Shalom, Dolores

just another post

Hello from Jerusalem!

Here are some pictures from the last few days...

I won't be able to show pictures from nearly everything, but here's a few!

Enjoy!

The Ramparts Walk...

Just another day of hanging out in the Old City Jerusalem.
 Life is good.

3 cheers for Fanta!!!

An attempt...at....at....a photo. :)

"It says Jerusalem, they didn't have any that say Issy." -Nichole

We had a "fabulous" time babysitting Hanoch and Yosef the other evening.

(Though, I think Hanoch did more of the entertaining than any of us did.)

Walking home  through Benyuda the other night,
and stopping to listen to this amazing violinist play
 Mozart really made my day at least. :)

Yesturday, we went back up to the Sea of Galilee area for the day...

Kelci sits on the Replica of the Moses' Seat in Corazim.
 We saw the original in the Israel Museam. 

All of us, in the synagogue in Corazim.

Kelci gives Austin a tour of her home.
"This, is an arch...and if you step this way you come to...another arch..."

The Mount Beautitudes Garden. Beautiful.

This is how Nichole feels about riding Merry-go-Rounds by the Sea of Galilee.

Shopping? No way!

At the end of the day, a spectacular light show by the sea.

 It's been a truly wonderful and laid back the past few days... can't believe tomorrow is our last full day in Israel! How will we say goodbye?

God is faithful.

-Monica

Gone With The Wind

They are gone.
All eight of them...up and left us.
It feels so different around here without them.

We are all kind of wandering around, wondering how we are supposed to keep going without them.
It's been an incredible two weeks.
(wow, that was the lamest sentence ever... how am I supposed to describe it to you? After trying to find a word that would work and only coming up with "incredible", it seems like such a let down.)


I was looking through some pictures this afternoon.
laughing.
almost-crying.
reliving memories.
feeling lonely.
 
God has shown us so much these past two weeks.
I can't explain it to you.
The Bible has come alive to us, really alive. 



We've been reliving the whole story over through the past two weeks.
What happens when you relive The Story? God's Story?

You see things in ways you have never seen them before.

You begin to get to know Jesus, really get to know Him.

You start to understand the Father's love, mercy, justice, and faithfulness.

You hunger--oh boy do you ever hunger!-- yet you are more filled than you have ever been before.

You walk away realizing The Story isn't over, that it is still being written...and you want more than anything to be part of it.


And here, our theme song for the trip, The Lord Is My Light.
None of us will ever forget this moment...
Oh Guys.......I miss you! 

Down to Earth.

where do I start?
 So much happens in one day that I can't pack it all into my little brain, much less describe it all to everyone.
I can't even describe it when I journal.
But this trip isn't describable.
We all experience different things;
 different things stand out to us and meet our own personal needs, and  hopefully change us.

At home, I would imagine the events and places in the Bible in a sort of fantastical way;
everything was romantized and dramatic.
When you're here, it all comes down to earth. 
THIS is actually where it happened. THIS is when it happened, and HOW it happened.
Conditions weren't ideal; the distances people had to walk to get anywhere, the dusty clay that cakes onto your shoes, the oppressive heat; it wasn't pretty.

And into that dirt and grime, my Jesus came. 

And every little thing that He did, every seemingly insignificant thing that the Bible records:
it ALL had meaning. 
At home, when I would read the Bible and come to places where Jesus did something or some strange random little recording that didn't make sense to my little brain,
I would skip over it and move on.
but, EVERYTHING that the Bible records had meaning. 
Why would it record something that didn't have any meaning, or story behind it?
THAT doesn't make sense.
And there are so many things that have been incorrectly translated, or misunderstood, that in the Hebrew language, land, or literature would make complete sense!
Brian and Donavon (our tour guides) gave us so many examples...

FOR EXAMPLE:
 John 14: 2
"In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you."

I've always thought this means that in heaven, everyone's going to have their own giant, grand, and glorious mansion all to ourselves, and we'd go around and visit each other very now and then.
But when the Bible was translated in 1611, the word "mansion" actually meant a group of rooms in an estate.
We would all have our own ROOMS, but we'd come together in the central area for fellowship; sort of like a giant house.
SO much better, right?
Who wants to live alone in heaven anyway?

Okay, I'll stop "schpealing" now.
Everything is just so rich.
I'm learning so much every day, and there have been so many things about the customs, city, and experience alone that need gotten used to:

Keepas  (yarmulks) worn by most men all the time,
all the women dressing like you; covering their head and wearing skirts and dresses,
having your language as secondary, 
living in a tiny apartment with 8 people, 
going going going every day,
the smothering heat,
the harsh beauty of the land, 
security checkpoints stationed on the roads and in front of malls, 
humus and pita bread all. the. time., 
converting sheqels to US currency at almost every store, 
being a real tourist for the first time ever,
the time difference,
soldiers everywhere, 
taking illegal u-turns almost every day because we don't know where we're going, 
bargaining for things for the first time ever (except perhaps with the siblings... :),
seeing a rabbi walking or riding a bicycle to the synagouge during the day, 
people always honking at you, not out of spite, just to let you now what's going on, 
espresso instead of plain coffee (i must say i don't mind TOO much), 
compared to some places though, it's really not much of an adjustment.

I can't believe we're leaving in two days.

It's incredible how at home and safe and 'comfy' we feel.
it's not that everyone here goes out of their way to make you feel that,
(but the few who do are jewels)
it's just ... how it is.

"When you accepted Christ, he came into your home. 
When you come here, you are entering His home. 
Of course a child will feel welcome coming into his Father's house." 
- Moshe, a store owner who is one of those people aforementioned.

But nearly even more wonderful is how the Jewish people
capture a bit of your heart, and how much of a burden
you feel for them.
It's almost like the Holy Spirit inside us all is giving us a little glimpse into the feelings of longing, love, and grief that Jesus has for them.
We all know and believe with everything in us, as we should, that Christ came for everyone,
but there is still something significantly special between Jesus and His chosen ones.

that's all for now.
I'm sorry, i had tried to upload pictures, and you have no idea how long i waited for them to load,
and then i ruined it with one fateful click of a button.
But i hope you enjoyed it anyway.
Shalom.


NUMBERS 6:24-26


- Christy