The Challenge of Being PresentThe walk down the Mount of Olives to the Garden of Gethsemane was wonderful and felt adventurous, but if I’m being transparent, I was distracted by the cars driving by, the people around me, and the responsibilities of the day. We arrived in the Garden of Gethsemane and had 30 minutes to meditate and pray, but …

Gaining a New Perspective (by Jessica Stallbaum)Early in the morning, we were driven to the very top of the Mount of Olives. The view was breathtaking. From that elevation, we could see so many of the places we had recently visited on our sojourn across Israel. The Dome of the Rock with its multimillion dollar gold overlay was glistening in …

Visiting the Mount of BeatitudesWe visited the Mount of the Beatitudes, and this is the place where the feeding of the 5,000 happened and where Jesus preached His longest recorded sermon. There is a beautiful church sitting on top of the hill in the place where people would have sat listening to Jesus. Inside the church is a wonderful mosaic …

Exploring Our New SurroundingsWe visited The Church of Annunciation in Nazareth, Israel and a re-creation of Nazareth Village just outside of the church. The Church of Annunciation is a place that commemorates the Virgin Mary’s visitation by the angel Gabriel and the announcement that she would give birth to the Messiah. If you look at the table, behind it is …