Nearing the End
We are nearing the end of this incredible journey! We began the morning with another typical Israeli breakfast: assorted salads, rolls, cereal, yogurt, and eggs. We spent our devotional time re-reading the Christmas story out of Luke, only this time we paid particular attention to names, places, and the words "amazed," "marveled," and "awe." With the weather a bit rainy, we made our way to the Church of the Nativity, a church operated by Christians from the Coptic, Catholic, Arminian, and Orthodox traditions.
The grotto that marks the birthplace of Jesus is interesting: it's certainly in the right location, and the time period is correct. As a team, we discussed the idea that we are to worship the Son of God, not the places, regardless of how accurate they are. It was good to reflect on this, as it led us to reflect on the magnificent idea that God humbled himself, took on our form, came to live among us in order to be crucified and resurrected, that we may inherit his righteousness and be cleansed of our sin.
We then went to the Herodium, the palace Herod the Great built for himself, where he chose to be interred, and where he likely resided when he sentenced the babies 2 years of age and younger to be slaughtered in an effort to kill the baby Jesus. The storm intensified at that point, so we hopped back on our bus. Raed, our guide, and Noor, our driver, treated us to a light lunch of freshly baked naan (bread baked over a wood fire), cheese, and kanafa, a dessert made of goat cheese, honey, a crust of some sort of bread, and some pistachio nuts (our allergic team members had to pass on the last bit!).
We visited the traditional site of Boaz's field, where he let Ruth glean, and finished the day at the Shepherd's field, the traditional site of the angelic proclamation of Jesus' birth. We explored natural caves that would have been used to hold sheep and could easily imagine shepherd's doing their thing when the most unlikely unemployment announcement from the angels filled the skies! "Glory to God in the Highest!" (And by the way, shepherds, you won't need to raise sheep to be sacrificed at the Temple anymore because the Messiah will be the final lamb sacrificed for the people's sins- you're out of a job!).
We had a feast for our final dinner at a restaurant called "The Tent." In what may be our final debrief, we spoke about what we will bring back to Colorado from this trip in terms of our faith. Each of us have been challenged to keep moving forward in the incredible strides we have made in our faith, to not let it grow stagnant.
On a side note, parents, I have a suggestion: I would encourage you to greet your son or daughter at the airport without bringing his or her cell phone. The students have mentioned how liberated they have felt not having to keep up with the madness of social media. One of their concerns of your students is falling right back into some routines with technology once they come home. If you don't bring the phone to the airport, I bet you'll get a more attentive student telling you about all of the things they got to see and experience on the ride from the airport to your house! Just a thought. Also, I'd plan an evening with some snacks and some good drinks to let your son or daughter project or pass around the photos he or she took. Time to tell the stories will be important for them. Warning: some have taken upwards of 700 pictures! Whether you actually read it or not is for you and your student to decide, but I'd finally suggest you ask about his/her journal, too. I've seen your sons and daughters write in their journals more in the last 10 days than I see some students in class write in a year. I don't know if we'll be able to post another blog before we leave.
We wake up tomorrow for a fun day of shopping. We'll have just enough time to go to our hotel in London, sleep, wake up, and then board our next flight in the morning to leave for Denver. We should see you all in Denver around 4:15 (plus the time it takes to de-board, etc.) Lord willing! Your sons and daughters have been wonderful. I do believe they have grown in their faith, their understanding of God's Word, and in their desire to pursue God with more self-discipline- it's really, really beautiful to see them praying for each other and writing in their Bibles. God bless you all, and we'll look forward to re-entry on Wednesday!
The grotto that marks the birthplace of Jesus is interesting: it's certainly in the right location, and the time period is correct. As a team, we discussed the idea that we are to worship the Son of God, not the places, regardless of how accurate they are. It was good to reflect on this, as it led us to reflect on the magnificent idea that God humbled himself, took on our form, came to live among us in order to be crucified and resurrected, that we may inherit his righteousness and be cleansed of our sin.
We then went to the Herodium, the palace Herod the Great built for himself, where he chose to be interred, and where he likely resided when he sentenced the babies 2 years of age and younger to be slaughtered in an effort to kill the baby Jesus. The storm intensified at that point, so we hopped back on our bus. Raed, our guide, and Noor, our driver, treated us to a light lunch of freshly baked naan (bread baked over a wood fire), cheese, and kanafa, a dessert made of goat cheese, honey, a crust of some sort of bread, and some pistachio nuts (our allergic team members had to pass on the last bit!).
We visited the traditional site of Boaz's field, where he let Ruth glean, and finished the day at the Shepherd's field, the traditional site of the angelic proclamation of Jesus' birth. We explored natural caves that would have been used to hold sheep and could easily imagine shepherd's doing their thing when the most unlikely unemployment announcement from the angels filled the skies! "Glory to God in the Highest!" (And by the way, shepherds, you won't need to raise sheep to be sacrificed at the Temple anymore because the Messiah will be the final lamb sacrificed for the people's sins- you're out of a job!).
We had a feast for our final dinner at a restaurant called "The Tent." In what may be our final debrief, we spoke about what we will bring back to Colorado from this trip in terms of our faith. Each of us have been challenged to keep moving forward in the incredible strides we have made in our faith, to not let it grow stagnant.
On a side note, parents, I have a suggestion: I would encourage you to greet your son or daughter at the airport without bringing his or her cell phone. The students have mentioned how liberated they have felt not having to keep up with the madness of social media. One of their concerns of your students is falling right back into some routines with technology once they come home. If you don't bring the phone to the airport, I bet you'll get a more attentive student telling you about all of the things they got to see and experience on the ride from the airport to your house! Just a thought. Also, I'd plan an evening with some snacks and some good drinks to let your son or daughter project or pass around the photos he or she took. Time to tell the stories will be important for them. Warning: some have taken upwards of 700 pictures! Whether you actually read it or not is for you and your student to decide, but I'd finally suggest you ask about his/her journal, too. I've seen your sons and daughters write in their journals more in the last 10 days than I see some students in class write in a year. I don't know if we'll be able to post another blog before we leave.
We wake up tomorrow for a fun day of shopping. We'll have just enough time to go to our hotel in London, sleep, wake up, and then board our next flight in the morning to leave for Denver. We should see you all in Denver around 4:15 (plus the time it takes to de-board, etc.) Lord willing! Your sons and daughters have been wonderful. I do believe they have grown in their faith, their understanding of God's Word, and in their desire to pursue God with more self-discipline- it's really, really beautiful to see them praying for each other and writing in their Bibles. God bless you all, and we'll look forward to re-entry on Wednesday!
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