Today we spent the day in what was the heart of Jesus’ ministry -
Capernaum
Our first stop was to a place Jesus was known to love - Capernaum. After being rejected in his birth town of Bethlehem, Jesus travel and stayed in this city. He stayed here and carried out his mission for most of his life. Other churches have been built upon the original church that Jesus preached at, but we were still able to walk among the ruins knowing that this was the exact place that Jesus stood and spoke to his followers.
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| The ruins below this modern church are the location of Peter's mother-in-law's home. It was this exact site that Jesus healed Peter's mother-in-law. This is also the location that the lame man was lowered through the roof in order for Jesus to heal him. |
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| I was able to sneak inside the church just before a service was beginning to snap this picture. The ruins are visible from above, through glass windows. As I stood and took this photo, I felt an overwhelming power and energy among me. It was an extremely special moment. I know that God was with me at that moment. I could feel him! |
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| We stood at the edge of the Sea of Galilee - I imagine that this could have been where Jesus first met Peter. |
Mount of Beatitudes
We then traveled to the Mt. of Beatitudes. It was such a beautiful garden to walk through! We looked for the beatitudes that described ourselves and posed for pictures on them. We then found a quiet place along the water an took in the special area that Jesus spoke the beatitudes. My mom always wanted the moment to sing at this location because her old friend Kitty had done this years ago. She worked up her courage and sung with another lady on the trip. It was so powerful and meaningful to her!
Lunch in the City
That afternoon, we enjoyed a delicious lunch in the city. The beers were cold and refreshing. And the guac was stellar! Such a fun memory together. This was a time that my mom and I were able to eat together just the two of us. We reflected on the trip and enjoyed the weather outside. I loved this "mother/daughter moment"!
Sea of Galilee
Even later that afternoon, we neared the Sea of Galilee. We walked through a museum in which we saw an actual fishing boat that was discovered from the time of Jesus. We watched a documentary on how it had been preserved for years within the mud. And we stood in awe as we were able to imagine what the disciples fished upon!
We then walked down to the shore and boarded our own boat in which we worshiped and sailed upon the Sea of Galilee. It was such a refreshing moment of the trip. The water was beautiful. There was overwhelming peace among our entire group. We were blessed to have a captain who was a Christian man. He sang some of our favorite songs and we were able to join in. I remember them playing the song "Oceans" while we sailed. I sang in tears as I thought of my little boy Jasper. "Oceans" is the song I dedicated to him at birth and it connects so many of my life struggles to receive him with Jesus. It was a blessing to worship to this song upon the very waters that Jesus once walked, performed miracles, and calmed storms.
reBAPTIZED in the Jordan River
We could not wait to see the Jordan River, where John the Baptist actually baptized Jesus. Not only did we see it, many of us walked in it and were baptized i it as well! If we made the decision to be baptized, we paid a little bit of money for a robe and a locker. We then changed into our bathing suits and our white robe, and headed out to the water. My mom and I said a silent prayer that her hard and crusty suit would not break off of her as she came up out of the water. :-) Because my mom baptized me when I was in college, she wanted me to baptize her in the Jordan. The water was incredibly freezing at first. As I walked out into the water, it was hard to catch my breath. Shan was waiting and helped me to breathe through the shock. I then professed my believe in our Lord and Savior and was dunked under. Hallelujah!! Then Mom came into the water and had the same reaction that I did. She professed her believe in our Lord and Savior and I helped Shan baptize her. It was such a special moment for us to spend together!
A Sunset at Mount Arbel
With wet hair and soggy make-up, we redressed into our clothes and headed up Mt. Arbel to see the sunset. It was simply beautiful! Jesus spoke with his disciples just before he was crucified upon a mountain that overlooked the Sea of Galilee. I wonder if it was this one.
Our final stop for the evening was such an experience! About half of our group (somehow all of the ones who took the plane through New York) went with Eli to the Scots Hotel for a wine tasting event. We tasted several wines and loved them all! But one of our very favorites was a red wine that was actually made from grapes seeds back in the time of Jesus. It was called the Wine of Negev. Many of the grape vines had been destroyed, and not many years ago, deep in the soil, archaeologists discovered seeds and pits during an excavation. This winery worked to ferment a wine from the seeds as well as work to grow back vines from this era. We tasted it and it was delicious! So delicious, that my mom had to purchase and entire case of it! We were left with the challenge of getting it home in our checked bags and keeping them from breaking along the way, but we were successful in the end! It was such a fun night to let loose and enjoy fellowship and the culture with some of our new friends. Shewww! What a jam-packed and blessed day!
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