Final Two Days of Convention in Jerusalem

Wednesday Morning

Last night the session was really enjoyable. It included a dramatic musical history of the people of Israel (The Covenant). Being here has given me a much greater understanding of the people of Israel -- an appreciation for the people, their history, their culture, their faith and their perseverance. Visiting the Holocaust Museum yesterday deepened these sentiments. Furthermore, the rich Biblical history is exciting and rich and creates strong feelings that are difficult to describe. There is the threat of a transportation strike which could effect our travel home, but this may not be an issue at all (http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3429205,00.html).

We are now looking forward to going home, but first we will spend time in Jerusalem along the Via Delorosa and visiting the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

Here is an interesting "cultural photo" of a few Israeli soldiers:

Tuesday

Last night Jack Hayford spoke at the main session of convention. The message could best be described as an “anointing” service. It concluded with the distribution of small vials of oil and small group prayer. Overall it was a good time of ministry and probably the most balanced message of the convention. I appreciated the prayer time more than anything. Besides last night’s session, the highlights of the day included the worship services and a short tour of the Mount of Olives. It was amazing to see trees that date back to the time of Christ and to see the route Jesus likely traveled on Palm Sunday.

This morning I went for a run within the walls of Old Jerusalem. It was facinating being able to explore the small streets and alleys before the crowds came out. My routed passed by the Church of the Holy Sepulcher (the site where according to tradition, Jesus died, was buried and rose). We also found the “best” coffee in Jerusalem. Heidi, Steve Mickel, and Ted Vail and I enjoyed coffee there before making our way to convention. There are no Starbucks here. Instead there is a company called “Aroma Coffee”. They have an excellent selection of specialty coffees.

This morning there are two sessions followed by an afternoon of touring. Tonight we will be seeing a musical/drama called “The Covenant”. During our afternoon tour we will be going to the holocaust museum. I believe that this will even better help me understand the people of Israel.

In Jerusalem

Monday -- Convention
The worship at convention has been the best thing so far. I have always enjoyed Tommy Walker. The messages though, have been interesting for sure. All the speakers (besides Jack Hayford) are Jewish and they all seem to have the common theme of trying to convince everyone of the importance of Israel in God's agenda for human history (as well as the present time). This is definitely a different theme for convention than I have heard in the past. I agree from my study of Romans that Israel is important and the people of Israel should be valued by all believers...but the two main speakers so far have gone further than that. One spoke of a 2nd Pentecost that will come which will REALLY fulfill the prophesy of Joel. The other said until we win over Israel (first), the Spirit of God will not be poured out on all flesh. These are just a couple comments that were made, but the theology is definitely different than my own. I believe in the historic Pentecost and its implications. I believe our challenge today is to walk in Spirit now -- and that all is now available to us if we would just come to understand who we are in Christ. The messages here seem to not be a development of any particular Scripture or passage, but rather a conglomeration ideas and Scriptures. Have I said too much? Anyhow, I will continue to glean as much as I can and have also enjoyed the fellowship. There are 2000 people who are a part of the convention and the tours.
This morning I ran around the walls of Jerusalem. It was a great way to start the day, watching the surise over the Mount of Olives. Blessing to all of you....

A lot has gone on since I last updated my blog. Right now I am in Jerusalem and the opening session of convention is starting. After three days of tourning we now settle into the main purpose of our trip here. The highlights of the past two days exploring the caves of the Dead Sea Scrolls (This was not a normal part of the tour, but four of us made our way to the cliffs and scrambled around until we found several amazing caves. Some were tunnels that came back out. Others were large and had bats living inside of them). Today I skipped the gondola ride and opted to hike and run up and down Masada, and last night we explored the back streets of Old Jerusalem (including the Western Wall) at night. Here are some photos. We are anticipating a great convention. It has been great seeing friends from Foursquare churches around the country. Yes, it has been hot – but we again are thankful for the opportunity to represent Eastside Foursquare Church here. There are many churches from Washington here and it has been good visiting with those Pastors especially.

Galilee

Thursday evening...Today we visited Caesarea, Meggido, Mt. Carmel and Nazareth. It surprised me how much ground could be covered in a day. We have an excellent tour guide and the weather has been decent -- a little hot but really not bad. I am gaining a whole new perspective on the Bible and this land. Today really brought the geography into perspective. I especially enjoyed Caesarea. I also shared a devotional at Meggido. It is sobering to consider the conflicts of the past and the future which will surely take place again in this land. We must all keep a perspective that includes eternity.

It has been great spending time with other pastors and missionaries. There are many people here that we know, although some we have not seen for a long time. There are 12 buses that are part of this tour. Each bus has its own tour guide and they are spread out along the route. Tomorrow we begin the day with a boat trip on the Sea of Galilee. Our room has a view of the Sea (it really is a large lake). There is something really inspiring about seeing the places where the events of the Bible took place. You step back in time and can visualize the people and the events that took place. It suddenly doesn't seem to be that long ago.

Friday evening -- Today's journey began with a boat ride on the Sea of Galilee. From there we toured around the lake, including stop to the Golan Heights, the Mount of Beatitudes, Capernaum, and a baptism in the Jordan River. It was truly hot today, but still enjoyable and very informative. We were with the Olympia Foursquare group for part of the day, but are mostly with a group from all different places.

Tomorrow we will end up in Jerusalem where we will remain for the rest of our trip.

I am struck by the popularity that Jesus had and the amazing impact that He made coming from this seemingly remote part of the world. Without the help of technology His influence spread throughout this region and around the world. It was great seeing where it all began -- particularly while visiting the synagogue in Capernaum and travelling on the Sea of Galilee. So often we rely on our methods, technologies and strategies in our efforts to formulate effective ways of reaching our world. They sometimes grow so complex and difficult that we wear ourselves out in the process. There is something refreshing about considering a group of young fishermen, men and women -- emerging from this place with a world changing message (and methods) that didn't come from a textbook or management strategy.

Tel Aviv and Joffa

Today we arrrived in Tel Aviv. It was a long trip -- 2.5 hours to L.A., about 5 hours to Newark...than 9.5 to Tel Aviv (plus the layovers). Our airplane was full of people going to the Foursquare Convention. It was an uneventful but long journey. We arrived feeling pretty good and without any delays (even our luggage arrived on time).

Our hotel sits right on the Mediterranean. It is a beautiful beach with soft sand and warm water. After arriving I went for a run down the beach to the ancient city of Joffa (Joppa). There are many Biblical references to Joppa, including the story of Jonah and the story of Peter in Acts 10. It has been an important port since the earliest times in recorded history. I found it inspiring to view this coastline while imaging the many ways it has remained the same over the centuries. A great deal of history is right here. My run took me past the traditional site of Simon the Tanner's house that Peter visited (Acts 10) as well as through the key streets of Old Joffa. I cooled off in Mediterranean Sea before joining Heidi and the delegates for a wonderful buffet at the hotel. The sunset tonight was beautiful and Heidi and I walked on the beach in the evening.

Tomorrow we get up early for a full day of touring and will be moving to Tiberias in the area of Galilee. We will be visiting Caesarea, Mt. Carmel, Meggido, and several more places.

Thursday Morning

I took the surise photo of Tel Aviv this morning while on my run. Now we are off to breakfast and then to Galileee.

Snowboarding down Rainier

Levi and I decided it was time to go snowboarding again. In July, Mt. Rainier has to be the best place to go. Our plan was to climb up to Camp Muir (elevation 10,188 ft.) and then to board back to to Paradise (elevation 5420 ft.). The distance of the climb is 4.5 miles each way. The Muir snowfield is 2.2 miles long and provides continuous snow.

The weather was perfect and we set out from the parking lot at Paradise at 6 a.m. The climb to camp Muir is tough, especially while carrying snowboards and boots. The elevation is definitely a factor once you're over 7000 feet. You have to just force your way up the mountain.

It was a tough day, but we both made it. We were back at our car at 2:30 p.m. and I made it back in time for our evening services.

Our First Trip to Israel

Heidi and I will be leaving for Israel on Tuesday morning (July 17). We are going there to represent Eastside Foursquare Church at the annual convention of the Foursquare Church. This is a real privilege for us and we are really looking forward to it. I will be updating my blog with notes regarding our travels as well as the convention. We will be touring before, during (in the afternoons), and after the convention. We arrive home on July 27th.


I guess we are going there as pilgrims (lit. one who travels to a shrine or holy place as a devotee). At the same time, I wonder how badly marred the experience will be as a result of the commercialism of religious tourism. These sites have been exploited in this way for centuries now, so I go with a bit of skepticism. You can also be sure that I will find myself safely off the beaten path doing a bit of my own exploration. I look forward to this aspect of the trip as much as anything else.

After studying the land of Israel for so long it will be great to finally see it firsthand. There is so much to see that I am sure it will go by way too fast. Still, I plan on making the most of my time.

Baja 2007 Recap

FYO Baja 2007 (Team One) may have been the best overall youth missions team experience I have had! The key factors that made this true include:

• A great group of young people from Texas, Oregon, Washington, California and Oklahoma.


• Great leaders -- the youth leaders, volunteers, interpreters, FYO interns, missionaries and Mexican hosts came together to form a unified team -- The common vision, unity and mutual support was evident throughout.


• Great things took place: Many people came to faith in Christ. We completed the building of the trusses for the Bible school. We saw miracles happen. The people on the team were impacted deeply.


• The trip was well structured: We hardly wasted a moment -- between projects and the ministry we kept busy while having fun all along the way.


• Deep friendships were made -- Everyone got along really well -- deep and lasting relationships were built.


• On top of all of this, everyone stayed healthy and made it back home safely.

Sure we had our challenges -- dangerous driving, small injuries, hot weather, lack of sleep, etc...but the joy was far greater than the difficulty.

Please keep missionary Bill in your prayers regarding the serious injury he suffered to his foot. This is a grave concern that needs our prayers.

A few more of my photos can be found HERE.

FYO Teams are a great missions experience. Learn more by clicking here.

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A Break From the Action

It is 930 p.m. on Monday, July 2nd. This is probably the only time I will be able to access a computer....so here is the update. This is a great team of young people. We are in Tijuana staying at the Foursquare Bible College. It is hot, dusty, and a very impovershed city. The missionaries we are partnering with are great people. The team is busy with difficult construction. We are building a school, digging ditches, framing, etc. We are also ministering in churches and in city parks. We have all learned five dramas. Plus we have activities for kids, testimonies, etc.
Pray for our health, strength in the heat, fruitful evangelism, safety as we drive around the city, etc.
Thanks for your prayers. I wish I could post some photos, but I am not able to. Today, after a full days work, we celebrated three birthdays with a pinata and cake. Yesterday we were in Rosarito where we ministered at one of the larger Foursquare Churches. Our schedule for the next three days is the same. 730 a.m. devotions. 8 a.m. breakfast and chores. Leave at 845. All day we have evangelism and construction projects. In the evening we minister in the churches.
We will be home on Saturday.