Happy Tears

Last day. Tears for sure, but I have prayed that I wouldn't only cry my way through this day. Kindly, Natalie treated me to one more field trip, even though she wasn't feeling a 100% today. We walked to the other side of the Old City and out to the Jerusalem Archaeological Park. The ruins there go back more than 2000 years. We sat on the actual steps that would have been present when Jesus dwelt  in this area. He walked there. He taught there. God Himself became man and lived among us. His perfect life, ultimately, was offered for a covering for my iniquities. I am grateful.

We enjoyed lunch out. Where there is a good crowd, usually good food can be found. Delicious schwarma! A must have if you ever visit. Then we headed back toward Shevet.

I had one more thing I wanted to pick up in the Christian quarter before I left , so we did one last swing through one of the most interesting shopping places I  have ever experienced. These are things I have heard from shopkeepers or vendors in the last 3 weeks...

"How many camels for your daughter?" -Shopkeeper in Jerusalem

Vendor: "Are you sisters?"

Shopkeeper: "Let me show you my shop.

Natalie: "No, thank you."

Shopkeeper: "I will never forgive you."

Shopkeeper: "Your twins!"

Vendor: "Young ladies, may I show you my goods?"

Shopkeeper: "Would you like to see my goods?"

Natalie: "No"

Shopkeeper: "Why are you so sad? You need to smile?"

My time here has been as precious as I could have hoped. Just spending three weeks with my daughter, serving together has been worth it all. She has been gracious in giving up the lower bunk and doing the acrobatics necessary to make it to the top bunch each night for my good. We've shared good life discussions at the local coffee shop. I have watched her enjoy the "game" of communicating with people you don't share a common language with and she is good at it. I freeze up in fear a bit each time I am put in this situation. I have heard her say, "I don't mind"  to doing the behind the scenes, less desirable jobs. Mostly, I have valued just being at the friend stage of life, serving the Lord together.

I expect more tears tonight as I say good-bye to her and my new friends here at Shevet. Each is a treasure. But so are my family and friends back home. So I am going from blessed place to blessed place. Happy tears. God is good.

Who is Really at our Table?

Galya is her name. She joined us for Shabbat meal the second week I was here. She is originally from the Ukraine. Natalie told her our story of visiting and adopting from there as Jonathan translated to her. Then we saw her sitting on benches nearby regularly. We greeted her with a hug and a kiss on the cheek. She speaks Hebrew. I don't. Well except for "Shalom"-hello or "To da"-thank you. One day she saw Natalie and I and put her finger up as to say "wait" then she began digging through her bags. She pulled out a package of Strawberry/Banana Marshmallows...a gift of thanks for sharing Shabbat with her we decided. We brought them home to share with everyone. Seemed each day we would see her. Then she was at our Shabbat table again. Two weeks in a row. I learned our director and another volunteer had been inviting her for weeks to join our community for this special Friday evening meal. She sits quiet and seemingly content with us. Much of the chatter around the table is in English, but from time to time someone will translate a message to her. Yesterday evening she was in our living room as she waited to speak with our director. When she saw me, up went the finger again..."wait"...she dug through her bags and pulled out 2 individual servings of pudding...dark chocolate...hmm...my favorite. I thanked her with a hug and a kiss and left the room awkwardly. Her old, tired face and posture has been heavy on my mind since. Was I not looking at Jesus? She has given me gifts. Why? What can I offer her? I asked that of a friend here. He suggested kindness. Acknowledging a homeless woman in this culture restores a small sense of dignity. Kindness, I will try. I know I am really seeing Jesus.

"And the King will answer them, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.'" Matthew 25:40

For the whole story...Matthew 25:31-46

Unexpected Moments

My daughter and I decided to walk the ramparts of Old City Jerusalem this morning. At Jaffa gate, you can buy a ticket to get up on top of the wall and walk much of the perimeter in two different directions. The stones along the top, like most of the stones of the streets, are very smooth from centuries of people walking on them.  Footing can seem a bit slippery in spots.  Because they are so smooth and seemingly polished, I think they are also quite beautiful. I didn't expect the walls along the sides of the top to be so tall. I thought I would have long views of the city in both directions. Silly me, these ramparts are where the men protecting the city would have defended her from. Makes sense that there were window like spaces along the way for them to see out...in those space we could see out too.


We headed first in the direction of the Armenian quarter and got off at Mt. Zion. The church there was the site of the Last Supper, is the traditionally respected place of King David's Tomb, and was the place of Pentecost. The site of the Last Supper, according to my fabulous tour guide, is a building that has been destroyed and rebuilt a few times. The current room was rebuilt by the Arabs, hence you'll see writing in Arabic in the stained glass windows. It is a very beautiful old stone room, and though maybe Jesus didn't kneel in this actual room to wash his disciples feet, he very likely did so in some space very near here. He left each with a vivid reminder of serving others and not expect to be served. Meandering through the church site, we entered the place where King David's Tomb is kept. The tomb has a dividing curtain and two entrances exist, one for the men to enter and the other side for women to see it. Tears came to my eyes as I entered for all I could think of...he was a man after God's own heart. My reaction today surprised me. As I serve with volunteers here, I observed people who are after God's own heart...I hear it in their worship, in their prayers, in the passion to understand and apply scripture. I am challenged by them to be more diligent, less lazy, in my own pursuit of knowing our God and pursuing His own heart.

"... God testified concerning him: ‘I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do.’" Acts 13:22

A Date with My Daughter

Some days are unexpected gifts.

Today looked to be a rather easy day, with one group going off to the hospital and then airport and the rest of us doing our basic duties here. Three of us took on the cleaning chores and finished by 11:00 am. This is a first, so my daughter and I decided to take advantage of a half day out and about.

We relaxed at a one of a kind, local coffee shop for lunch. She had pancakes topped with chocolate and caramel (looked more like dessert than breakfast), and I had Jerusalem Salad, a mix of tomato, cucumber, beats, and lettuce. This establishment reminds me of Dunn Brothers back home. Many books on the shelves for purchase, mostly in Hebrew of course, but a few in foreign languages. I like the shelf that says Hebrew classics in English.

After lunch, we meandered our way through the Old City to make a few purchases at some of our favorite shops. These shop owners we know always offer juice or tea and time to chat. They seem not just interested in our purchases, but enjoy discussing life. They are familiar and supportive of Shevet Achim. I am becoming more and more aware of the respected reputation this ministry has in the city. As we traverse through the Old City, I am starting to be able to tell the differences of the different quarters. Cues such as what is offered for sale, the look of the owners, what they are wearing on their head or not, the tidiness of the shop spaces, and the general make up of the shoppers in the area are clues.

Having not yet visited the Garden Tomb, we determined this would be a good place to go as well. Though it may not be the actual tomb Jesus was buried in, it shows what a rich man's tomb (Joseph of Arimathea) would have looked like. The garden was not overly populated by tourists and we relaxed on a quiet bench for awhile.

After coming home, we finished the evening by watching the excellent movie "Something the Lord has Made." This movie tells the story of ground breaking research done in the 40's-50's to save the lives of "blue babies". The research of that time is literally what is saving the lives of the children Shevet Achim is helping bring to Israel for surgery.

Thank you, Father, for the precious gift of today. Quality time talking though this day made it a treasure.

"This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it." Psalm 118:24

The Door is Always Open

Flexibility and hospitality are an essential way of life here.

In the current 48 hours....
... an American family of 8 who consider themselves wandering missionaries and have a heart for Muslims joined us for the celebration going home party for Sarina and Sarchil last night...they are off to France for 2 months
...another family of 4 from Jordan who are friends of the founder also dropped by for the celebration
 ...a new volunteer arrived from Germany this morning at 3 am...she is a nurse and a darling gal...looking forward to getting to know her...two of our young staff members were up in the night to meet her at the Tel Aviv airport
...2 families left today..a Kurdish mother and her daughter and another mother and her son...hearts healed!
...2 staff members left to take these two families to Jordan...though we'll see them in a couple days we still sent them off with hugs and a couple bags of snacks for the journey (pita, fruit, cucumbers, cheese, water, cookies)...when they return they will bring another mother and son
...those 2 staff members are also picking up one of our long term staff guys who has been gone the last week and a half out of need to renew his visa to return...he says he is enjoying the quiet time away...but he sure calls often
...a volunteer from Sweden leaves tomorrow...she is a beautiful young woman of grace and kindness...we romped through Hezekiah's tunnel together and shops in the Old City...she feels like one of my daughters...so glad to have had time to get to know her and talk about the truths of the Christian faith
...at dinner we had a young woman who is here from New Zealand serving as a volunteer in the Israeli army
...we are not always sure how many places to set for dinner, but always are ready to add another...or two

Daily we see how a mutual love for the LORD makes our hearts one with many brothers and sisters in Christ who walk through the door. As we live inspired by His love first for us, we hope and pray to draw others into His family.

Changing faces are the way of life at Shevet and it is a blessing!

Loving the Impatient

"As a father shows compassion to His children, so the LORD shows compassion to those who fear Him." Psalm 103:13

God's love for us is as high as the heavens are above the earth the psalm goes on to say. This verse gives an analogy most of us can relate to. Parental love. We understand the tenderness we have for our children, or the tenderness we may have received from a parent. It is undeniable. Right?

That it is why the last several days have been so perplexing. One of the children here had surgery and has been recovering well, for the most part. One critical piece of the road to recovery, though, is making sure the INR factor of his blood is just right. Too far one way or the other means to thick or too thin of blood. One direction increases the factor of clots, the other direction means danger in the case of a cut and his blood not being able to clot. It is a life threatening condition and medications need to be adjusted correctly for his well being. As a parent, isn't it natural to want the best for your child's health?

In this child's case, that has not seemed to be the priority. This child's mother has struggled for the last week and a half. She is ready to be home. She has a 3 month old baby there. We don't know what kind of pressure she is hearing from home. On more than one occasion she has said she is leaving with or without her son. She doesn't care if he dies. Yes, you read that correctly. She has said, she doesn't care if he dies. She has spoken this openly in front of him. Our hearts break. We continue to love him. Reassuring him of how grateful to God we are for him. We continue to love her. Reassuring her that God is with them in this and cares for what is best for her son. How do we handle her determination to leave?

God's grace. Today this boy's blood tests came back within a safe range. Thank you, Lord. Tonight we celebrate their departure now scheduled for tomorrow. In spite of past attitudes, we hope the example of looking out for the well being of this boy, be one that follows this mother home.

"Bless the LORD, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless His holy name! Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's." Psalm 103:1-5

Living in Community

Shevet Achim is a community of people living together to serve the Lord. The faces of the community change, for example I am here for 3 weeks, my daughter 2 months, another gal has been here 2 years. Volunteers come and go so organization and communication are vital for the smooth operation as responsibilities change from person to person. Currently, nine of us live at the location and three more come most days to serve who live in Jerusalem.

A few things I am appreciating...

1. Morning meetings- We gather almost everyday at 8am for worship, Bible study and prayer. Without remembering first that we are doing this work unto the Lord, it would just be a humanitarian work. At the end of this time, we receive our assignments for what needs to be done on that given day. Trips to the hospital, shopping, writing blogs, preparing dinner, working with the children and mothers, housecleaning, and so on are all divided out among the staff. The gifts of the body of Christ are put to work for His glory.

2. The "Book of Fun", as Natalie calls it. This notebook has listed out the areas of the house that need to be cleaned each day with specific tasks noted. For example, today's jobs included cleaning out the refrigerator, cleaning the tea pot, filling the tea station, cleaning the stove top, scrubbing the bathrooms and cleaning the living room, dining room and entry. With that the everyday jobs included washing dishes, drying and putting away, wiping appliances, sweeping and mopping, picking up liter in the garden, washing laundry, hanging on line, folding and putting away, and emptying trashes. The organization of these tasks helps keep the place looking spiffy and guides those who come to serve in this capacity.

3. Shared basic responsibilities. On the pantry door is a list of nine basic jobs that rotate week to week. Cooking dinner (this is a daily signup), setting the table, clearing the table (everyone), washing dishes, drying dishes (after dinner), cleaning the counter tops, taking out the trash, mopping the floor, preparing Gaza lunches. One rule seems to be stated most every night, if you cook, you don't wash dishes, but it is appreciated if you clean them as you can as you prepare. From my point of view, this adds to the fun of life together... "many hands make light work."

4. The open communication. I am trying to find my footing here, but a couple different times I have had a team member apologize to me for something that was done, or not communicated. Because I don't know what the "expectation" is for many things, I am appreciating their proactive openness in communication.

5. Grace. Where things don't go perfectly, their is no condemnation.

A Day of Rest...Shabbat Shalom

Six days you shall labor and on the seventh you shall rest. From Exodus 20:8

At Shevet we take our Sabbath rest on Saturday. I don't know all the reasoning behind that, but I know the Lord has commanded a day of rest. He cares for our well-being, and so it is a gift to give rest to the body and nourishment to the soul.

What Sabbath rest looked like today.
1. Sleeping in. This is my 2nd night of sleeping soundly through most of it. The first few nights, my mind was too busy thinking about the day to rest completely. This has happened to me before, and as a result I experienced the provision of God for energy to make it through several days without the typical amount of sleep.
2. Worship. I attended a Messianic Jewish service this morning with coworkers which meets just half a block away from here. The entire service was in Hebrew, and fortunately there was translation available. So glad I packed a set of earbuds. The pastor spoke about Moses drawing water from the rock. The first time God told him to strike the rock, but the second time he was just to speak. He connected Christ as the Rock, who only had to be sacrificed once for our sins, not "struck" again. I am so grateful the work of my salvation is complete throughout Christ. This service was a taste of heaven. (I had to smile, Pastor Mike, as the pastor finished his sermon, I noticed he had used an iPad to speak from).
3. Lunch. Natalie, Tara (another short term volunteer) and I were invited to have lunch at Lina and her family's home today. Lina works here at Shevet, speaks several languages and I think has lived in the old city her whole life. She met us at Jaffa Gate and walked with us into her family home deep in the old city. We had previously shopped along a few of the streets that we took on the way to getting there. Her mother had prepared a tasty lunch of Palestinian food...Chicken and Okra Stew, salad (cucumbers, tomato & onion), rice, pita and ice cream. We treasured the invitation to visit a friend's home.
4. Reading. I am enjoying a couple books I have found on shelves here.
5. Nap. Didn't take long to drift off to sleep for a couple hours. The heat here does make one tired.
6. Only one shower. This is the first day, since arriving, that I haven't desperately felt the need for a second or even third shower.

Thank you Lord for the command of Sabbath rest. I look forward to another week to serve You!

A Taste of My Own Medicine?

I enjoy capturing moments and the beauty of God's creation...people...in still images.

Yesterday, Natalie and I ventured out with two of the mothers and their children to a small, local historical garden that has a fish pond. In the park is an old, stone olive press, a mill stone and several other ancient farming implements. The fish pond was the real designation. Natalie knew Hani, a darling 18 month old, would love it...she goes crazy at the site of water. While we were there, another group of 4 siblings from the neighborhood Measherin (Ultra Orthodox) Jewish community were exploring the area. These children were darling and I wanted to see if I could capture a photo. After Natalie pointed out that doing this openly could get me into some trouble if their mother arrived, I tried to be a little more inconspicuous. Maybe 2 of the ten photos I shot from the hip are framed right, but the preciousness of these children I couldn't resist trying to capture.

And then it happened...

A man from a tour group that had entered the garden wandered our direction and got right up next to my Kurdish friend and her one-year old son. He held up his small camera within 2 feet of her face and took a picture. "What are you doing?" I thought. Frustration stirred inside me. She is not a spectacle. She is a beautiful creation of God, who greets me with a hug and kiss on the cheek each day, who taught me how to make Kurdish food, whose precious son needs heart surgery. She is not a zoo animal!

We have been talking about having a pure heart in our morning meetings as we are studying through the book of Proverbs together as a community at Shevet. What are my motives in capturing photos of life here? Are the pure? Or are they to exploit?

Surrounded by Inspiration

Inspiration. A picturesque  landscape. A compelling story. A deep conversation. Possibly a tragedy. Sometimes it is from the sage advice of one who has experienced a host of life's blessings and challenges. For me, here at Shevet, the source is sharing an inner office space among young, passionate followers of Jesus. Six cubicles provide work space for some of the short and longer term volunteers here.

In one space, is the resident nurse who in her late 20's and has served for 2 years here learning all that is necessary to care for fragile cardiac cases. She prays with joy and trust in God, and often reminds us of His grace in our morning meetings. Her love for God and for the mothers and children is evident in how she often is able to relate a Biblical truth to a life experience. She radiates the grace of God.

A young Chinese believer, rises each morning and is often the first in the garden to savor time with the Lord. I see her sitting quietly, then singing praise music, then reading from her Bible out loud, surprisingly, often in English. Her role here is caring for the children for a couple hours in the morning and then again in the late afternoon. You will never see her in my photos. It is too dangerous for her. She is a picture of the Lord's loving kindness.

The young man that sits behind me, has grown up in a missionary family. Currently, his parents live in the Kurdish part of northern Iraq and are running a bookstore that sells a variety of books including the Kurdish translation of some good Christian resources. His Kurdish is helpful in relating to the families. He has been serving with Shevet for 3 months and was just able to get his visa extended for another 3 months. He was very happy about this. He began gathering the guys in this ministry to meet each Tuesday morning at 6am for prayer. He says he figures he can never have too much time before the Lord. He serves with a willing wherever he is needed. He is a gentle servant.

Another young man is away this week. I worked with him quite a lot on the calendar project, and have grown to appreciate his thoughtful way with words. He finished a two year Hebrew language course last Friday and had to leave the country 2 days later because his student visa expired. He hopes to re-enter this next week with a work visa. He is careful about laying his own plans, but rather wants to be sensitive to the Lord's leading with the language skill he sees now as a tool. When he was here, he was also up early in the morning in the garden for prayer and reading of scripture...his is in Hebrew. He is a diligent student for the Lord with a contagious smile.

Lastly in the office space I share, is a sweet gal who tenderly desires to follow the Lord with all her heart. She is doing much of the web site work this week, a skill she inadvertently learned a couple years ago. She sees God's hand in this and it encourages her to see how He equips those who follow him. We have had good chats about life. Next to her bed it looks like she is in the middle of a dozen different books. She is a joyful, willing servant doing whatever is needed on any given day.

I see the kindness of God in the space He has set me for this week. I could expound, and may in another blog about the other servants here...all equally as inspiring. Their desk spaces are just through doors in 3 different directions.

I am content to be in the middle of these new friends, who are an inspiration to me. Grace. Loving kindness. Gentle servant. Diligence. Joy. It is a taste of heaven.

I am blessed.

Good grief..4 languages spoken here!

So to prepare me for this experience, Natalie wrote out some Kurdish words and phrases back in March so that I would be able to connect better with the mothers and children here at Shevet. I, like any good student, made some flashcards. Then life got a little crazy at home. I did keep the small stack in my purse, and then sometimes in on the counter at home. But real effort in learning to count to ten, say no, yes, doctor, surgery, child, thanks to God, beautiful, hello, thank you, I love you, sit down, what is your name?, good, water, come, for you, for me...fell by the wayside. The only phrase I mastered was "moosh-ka-lay-nee-ya" which means "no problem" and that is only because she said it ALL THE TIME when she came home last year and it sounded so nice. So I came pitifully prepared. I am not proud of this. Yesterday at the hospital I did practice counting with Sarchil and Sarina. I am grateful kids are understanding and helpful to me when I try to learn to count. This is a great way to  help pass the time and I remember in Romania, Dennis got a kick out of this. By the end of the day yesterday, a few of these phrases, though, were starting to make way into my stiff brain cells. How could one not say "jwana" (beautiful) over and over while at the sea?

So today Natalie and I went and purchased some flowers to honor another Natalie (volunteer) in the house who is leaving tomorrow for a year in Peru to work as a admissions director for a Bible college. (For another blog, I'll will expound on the passions and interests of the staff here, several of them are just in their 20's). Anyway, we enjoyed browsing the small flower shop just down the street and settled on a nice bouquet mix of daisies and roses. Thinking hard about what I could say to the shop keeper as we closed the sale, I racked my brain and couldn't remember "thank you" so I thought of the next best thing to compliment his product and said "jwana"...beautiful. Natalie smirked as we walked out the store and reminded me we were in the Jewish part of town. Hebrew. Snap. "Do you think he understood me?", I asked. "Not a word." was her reply.

"Holy Awe"

I lay in bed last night trying to put into words some of the emotions I felt from yesterday. To be honest, I struggled to experience the "holy awe" of the precious sites we were seeing.


The Garden of Gethsemane...Christ sweat blood in agony on that hill over going to the cross from my sins...and yours. He was betrayed there. The Via Dolorosa...He was beaten, spit upon and taunted as he carried the beam he would hang from. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre...He was crucified near that site and very possibly buried in the tomb that lies within that church.


These are sacred places for the Christian. They are significant places, but more importantly significant  events for all mankind.


Maybe I am easily distracted, but the challenge for me was seeing beyond the masses of people, vying for a good place to take a picture, multiple languages being spoken, group leaders holding up a variety of odd objects so their groups could find them, and then there were the vendors with armloads of postcards, rosaries stamped with Jerusalem, scarves, gold-plated crucifixes and so on. I had hoped as I visited each site, I wouldn't miss the preciousness of each location in what the Lord had done for me. But a sense of "holy awe" wasn't there.


It came later...


I lay in my bunk reading Ephesians 2:11-13 and beyond...


^"Therefore, remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and called “uncircumcised” by those who call themselves “the circumcision” (that done in the body by the hands of men) —remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ."

And then the Lord began reminding me of some of the "holy awe" places and moments of my life...

...receiving a hug of forgiveness from my young son, who bounced up off his bed when I confessed I had wrongfully disciplined him and his quick statement of "I forgive you"

...Krivig Rig, Ukraine when the little girl in front of us was confirmed in our hearts to be the daughter we had been praying for

...hearing my husband's muffled voice through the closed doors of his office encouraging men in their walk with the Lord and in being faithful husbands and loving fathers

...Rediger Chapel at Taylor University several weeks ago at a young friend's memorial service as the students passionately sang "How Great the Father's Love for Us" as a gift of love to the family

...watching my son contend with the coming and going pain of arthritis in his young body with a spirit of acceptance and grace

...rich conversations with a family member about God "stuff"

...realizing  my daughter's International Studies major, love for other cultures and passion for the Middle East are answers to this mother's prayer for my children to know Christ as Savior and want to take that message to the world

...every lecture at Bible Study Fellowship as the Lord teaches me in the preparation and then gives me words to speak to women eager to learn...I know I am held by His faithful hands

...in my kitchen watching thunderstorms roll in from the west, or the fall of dancing snowflakes, or the change of winter to spring as a new color of green appears each day for a whole month, or the turn of fall leaves and the gentle breezes that bring them to the ground

...observing the work of a small church in Pitesti, Romania and their love for the people in Rezboini, a people group often not trusted, respected or loved by others in their city

...being in my bed at night this past January with an idea that wouldn't go away, for a calendar to highlight the work of Shevet and seeing the Lord bring it all to pass with the talents and passions of a variety of people

These are some of the places of "holy awe" in my life.

I realize the Lord is not limited to a time and place in the past, but continues to show Himself personally, powerfully and holy to His people all around the world.

Still I am grateful to be visiting these sacred sites in Jerusalem. But a site is not worthy of worship. God is. He acted in those places, but He is not limited to them, and I am grateful.

Walked on Sacred Ground

Two days. Two flights from home. MSP to Newark then Newark to Tel Aviv on El Al Israeli airlines. A flight that felt like a family reunion on the way to a family reunion. It was a party for the most part of Jewish families and of groups of students making a Birthright trip to the country of their heritage. Though sleeping on a flight that crosses the Atlantic and lands in Israel at 7am seem like a logical idea...that wasn't happening...for the most part...and it was just pleasant to be on a plane of people so excited that they clapped when we touched ground. Welcome to Israel...the land of God's chosen people and the place my daughter is serving for 2 months with Shevet Achim. An organization that is helping children in the middle east who need life-saving heart surgery come to Israel for that surgery. Check out their website at shevet.org. I am in awe of what the Lord is doing through this organization. I'll be lending a hand for two weeks but...

Arriving on a Friday, means half a day of work followed by Shabbat...a full day of Sabbath rest. As a newcomer, I am not expected to help until the 3rd day, but couldn't resist making dinner the first night when the need was presented. Anticipating I might have the chance to help with the cooking I packed a couple unique ingredients. So my first Shabbat meal in Israel was Minnesota Wild Rice soup, salad, Challah and cherries. We also celebrated one of the staff member's completion of Modern Hebrew studies at Hebrew University with locally purchased chocolate cake! Good job, Ryan!

In these two days, Natalie has treated me to a walking tour of some of the most significant, sacred sites of Jerusalem. We bought dinner ingredients at the outdoor Jewish market just down the street and had lunch at a wonderful local back alley coffee shop that would be impossible to find without the direction of locals. In the evening, we visited the Western Wall, which on a Friday evening felt like a continuation of the celebration and joy I had witnessed on the flight here. Jewish men and women crowding the Western Wall in prayer, with scripture readings, songs and dance. No photography is allowed on this evening or the Sabbath, the sign reads that the wall needs a rest.

Today, we walked to the other side of the city to the Mount of Olives, the Garden of Gethsemane, to the top of the hill that oversees the city, went into the church that houses Mary's tomb, back down, then travelled the Via Dolorosa, found a shop with old, old coins from Jesus' time, stopped for a lunch of falafel and shawarma and Coke, found a wonderful local photography shop, purchased some pottery from a favorite shop keeper of Natalie's, walked on to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre (one of two places believed to be the location of Jesus' tomb), had coffee and dessert at the King David hotel and then meandered back home. This is a beautiful place. I can see why Natalie says something about it feels like home. This is a treasured time to be here with her. Thank you, Lord, for this gift.

"Great is the Lord, and most worthy of praise, in the city of our God, His holy mountain. It is beautiful in its loftiness, they joy of the whole earth. Like the utmost heights of Zaphon is Mount Zion, the city of the Great King." Psalm 48:1-2