First Christian Church, Wauchula, FL

L.V. Ellis – passed away today. (Dick Ellis’ Dad) A Memorial Service will be held at a later date. The family appreciates all our prayers for him. Please keep his family in prayer during this difficult time.

Frank Milby - (Mike’s Dad) Prayer – is dealing with several health issues

JoAnn Morris – Prayer — for recovery from her surgery

Darlene Piniero - Prayer for the family of Jennifer Whitford, 24 years old. She passed away Monday (5/24), Memorial services will be held at a later date. Jennifer was the mother of Darlene’s grandson.

Today started out about 8:15 AM with a visit to Mr. Zion.  There are three places to visit while here, the first was the room of the last supper.  Now of course it wasn’t the very same room because today a church stands on the location but; where we were standing was in a room directly above the area where the location was.  Standing here gave us a moment to remember how the last hours of Jesus’ life really began.  As I was standing in this room I began recalling John chapter 13 and the account of Jesus teaching His Disciples what it meant to be a servant.  It’s the account of how Jesus got up from the table and washed their feet.  I believe that God was using that moment to remind me that I should always be about serving.  It’s a reminder I think we all need sometimes.  I silently stood there and thanked God for His example and for the reminder to me.  It was also a very somber moment for me.  I began to really think how difficult it must have been for Jesus to look on the face of His Disciples and know that Judas was about to completely betray Him and that all would somehow turn their backs on Him throughout these last few hours.  How must it feel to know that everyone will disappoint you when you need them most?  It was also very humbling that knowing all of that Jesus still wanted to spend every moment possible with these men.  These Disciples were really the luckiest guys on earth.  They were truly loved and the great news is that we’re just as loved today!  (giving thanks)

The tomb of King David

  Next we visited the tomb of King David.  Yes, THE King David,  The ancestor of Jesus, the one anointed to be King by Samuel, the one who killed Goliath, an outstanding musician, the one who slept with Bathsheba, the one Samuel called “a man after God’s own heart.”  I was reminded while here that God can use anybody, despite the mistakes we make God can use anybody that is willing to be used.  David wasn’t perfect, but he WAS willing and God used him in mighty ways.  I pray that God will use me in just a fraction of the way He used David.  I am also very thankful that God will look past my faults and see in me the man He knows I can be.  (giving thanks)    After everyone else left the tomb area I stood there with my hand on the tomb thinking, “I want to be a man after God’s own heart.”  I want to have a heart that desires nothing more that what God’s heart desires.  I asked God to take away the earthly desires I struggle with and place in me a heart that see what God sees, that wants what God wants.  How can you stand in a place like this and NOT be stirred in your spirit?  (giving thanks)

We then visited the house of the High Priest Caiaphas.  After Jesus had been arrested this is the location he was brought.  We visit the abandoned cistern used as a jail.  We saw how Jesus would have been lowered down into the cell through a hole.  I was standing in the very spot Jesus spent His last night on earth.  We then walked the path from the house of Caiaphas that Jesus was led down as he was taken to Pilate.  These were some of the steps that forever changed the world.  It was kind of a foreshadowing, because in just a few days we’ll finish the steps by following His route to cross.  However, as I was standing there tears began to fill my eyes because I was reminded again that He walked this very path for ME.    He loved me that much!  (giving thanks)  We took a break from tracing the footsteps of Jesus during this afternoon to take a look at what horrible things occurred during the holocaust.  We visited the Holocaust memorial as well as the children’s holocaust memorial.  Very sad afternoon!  Over 6 million Jesus were killed and over 1.4 million of them were children.  You could not help but have a broken heart for what happened.  Sad…very, very sad.  The Holocaust memorial was built in such a way that as you walked through the entire place it felt as if it was caving in on you.  The architect wanted to give a sense of the oppression felt at that time, but at the end, as you were about to exit the memorial it opened up to a great expansive balcony over looking a new city meant to show that there is still hope in Israel.  The children’s memorials was about 4 or 5 stories tall and as you walked through they read name after name of the children who died there and there is a candle lit for each soul.  Very beautiful memory created for such a sad time.

We also visited the Israel Museum where the Dead Sea Scrolls are located.  The most interesting part to me was learning that they really do prove the Bible to be accurate.  You can read from the original scroll of Isaiah, well that is if you speak Hebrew, but you know what I mean.  It matches word for word the text found in our scripture today!  It was cool to see the words of God in its original print.

We then headed to the last stop of the day and to me the best of the day.  We went to Bethlehem and visited the birth place of Jesus.  I had a moment to place my hand on the very place Jesus was born.  You can honestly feel the presence of God there as you enter.  The Savior of the world was right where I was standing!!! (giving thanks)  I knelt down in the location of the stable.  We stood together as a group and sang the Christmas Carol “Away in a Manger”.  I can tell you I’ll always remember how I was feeling while standing there every time I hear that song.  It felt as if Jesus was standing with us while we were worshipping Him.  My heart was pounding and the tears from my eyes were running down my cheeks.  I did not want to leave.  Humbling, so very humbling.  Thank you God for the gift of Jesus.  (giving thanks)        

Kneeling in the location of the Stable where Jesus was born

  I seem to find myself daily saying thank you God for providing me with the opportunity to take this trip.  It still just amazes me that I am here, and each day just gets better and better.  Much more is planned for tomorrow so…good night.

Jackie Alls - Prayer for a lot of health issues she is having now

Prayer for Hope Senkeleski, for God’s will to be done! As of 11:00 today (5/21) she is reactivated for transplant with an A-1 status for 30 days

Dixie Lind - (Jen Canary’s Grandmother) has been diagnosed with breast cancer. Prayer for wisdom in making the choices for care and treatment

Jim Williams - Prayer for family, he is home with hospice care

Katelyn Hanshaw - (Larry & Darby Barwick’s niece) 18 years old, and has been diagnosed with a tumor on her carotid artery. She sees more doctors today

Sue Smit - Prayer for Charles Lamar and his family, Prayer for him to be right with God

Prayer for our Seniors

Tina Barwick - Prayer for Teddy — doctors are not able to diagnose what’s wrong — he’s been sick over a week; also prayer for Tina for guidance & strength on her job

Nikki Milby - Prayer to be joyful through all that she’s going through and to get back on track with God

Rachel Kipp - Prayer — she’s heading to St. Louis Christian College in August to begin her training & education for the mission field for the deaf community outside of the US — she thanks everyone for their prayers as she made decisions and asks that everyone continue to pray that every step she takes is in His will not hers

Donna Salmon - Prayer for Hope, Bobby & the rest of the family as they wait for God’s will concerning a new heart for Hope (and if it’s His will for her to get a new heart — prayer for the family of the donor)

Emily Green - Prayer for Shay Randolph (a young mother that works with Emily) — her 3 year old drowned on Saturday

Peck Harris Update – attended church last night, he possibly had a minor heat stroke last week, is doing well

Lee Frey - Prayer — in Tampa General Hospital having surgery at this time (3:00) for a mass on the left side of his brain. Surgery should take about 4 hours

JoAnn Morris - came through surgery OK and doctors said everything looked great; Prayer for recovery

JoAnn Morris - is being transferred from Wauchula to Florida Hospital Heartland in Sebring, room 335. She will have surgery on a blocked intestine, today or tomorrow. UPDATE: She is going in now for surgery which will take two to three hours, 4:00 pm

Lori Spinks - Prayer for Peck Harris — in his early 30′s and has lost sight in his left eye and has numbness on his left side

Prayer for Hope Senkeleski, for God’s will to be done! As of 11:00 today she is reactivated for transplant with an A-1 status for 30 days

Dixie Lind - (Jen Canary’s Grandmother) has been diagnosed with breast cancer. Prayer for wisdom in making the choices for care and treatment

Tammy Hall-Crosby – Prayer

Don Bissette – Praise — his hand is healing and he would like to thank everyone for their prayers

Selina Ureste – Prayer for God to help her pull women of this county together

Brenda Miller – Prayer — wants her words to be positive and encouraging — she wants to become more aware of how words can hurt

Karen Whaley- Prayer for Homer DeVane (age 55) — he was diagnosed with throat cancer a month ago and it has already spread to his lymph nodes — he has no insurance and his family is struggling both financially & emotionally

Lindsay Spaulding – Prayer

Day 5 – Israel Trip – Wednesday, March 17

 After a great nights sleep in Tiberias I got up around 6:45 AM jumped in the shower then headed down to meet our group for breakfast.  

My baptism in the Jordan.

 We left our hotel around 8:30 AM and our first stop was going to be the Jordan River.  Today is the day I will be baptized in the same river as Jesus was baptized. (giving thanks) I put on my swim suit and the robe they provided to me and met Joe Wright on the bank of the river.  It was a beautiful day, the sun was shining, there were a few dove nesting in a tree on the bank of the river, the water wasn’t too cold, everything was just right.  It was such a special feeling to have this opportunity to give my heart again to God at such a holy place.  Just standing there taking in the surroundings, breathing the air, you could honestly feel the presence of God all around you.  It was a wonderful experience and a way I could say again, “God, forgive me of my sins and I still 100% believe that you are the Christ, the son of the living God.” 

 The next stop for the day was the Roman city called Bet She’An located about 45 minutes from the Sea of Galilee.  In 1 Samuel 31 the story is told of how Saul lost in battle to the Philistines.  His sons were killed, then Saul after being wounded fell on his own sword.  The Philistines found their bodies, cut off Saul’s head then hung his body on the city walls of Bet She’An.  I brought a piece of the wall home to serve as a memory for me.  It was an amazing city and it was very interesting to learn how the Romans laid out their cities and how advanced they were in just about everything.  While in the city we went into the theater that still remains.  Darin was standing center stage speaking in a normal conversational tone while I was at the top row of seats (the theater seats 4,500).  I could hear every word he was saying perfectly.  Even when he would whisper I could hear him clearly.  The acoustics were amazing.  For most of you that is probably no big deal but for a musician, it means a lot.    The main roadways which stretched for probably one mile were lined with pillars and the pillars at the main entrance, which had fallen over were so large I couldn’t even stretch my arms half-way around them. After touring this entire city, about 4 miles worth of walking we left and headed  across the west bank of the Jordan valley to find some lunch and towards our next destination.

Standing next to the pillars at the main entrance of Bet She'An

 We stopped at a local restaurant and as we walked in were greeted by an Israeli soldier and his M-16.  That was weird; it’s definitely not something you are used to seeing here in the states.  For lunch I had a schnitzel in pita bread with hummus, tomatoes, pickles and lettuce.  It was GREAT!  I was never quite sure what the food was going to taste like, so it was always refreshing when it tasted so wonderful.  I also tried for the first time some Falafels.  Falafels are crushed chick-pea, seasoned, battered and fried.  They sort of look like a meatball, but without any meat in it of course.  You add them in your pita bread or you can eat them as they come.  Any way you eat them they are delicious. 

Schnitzel in a pita. Yummy!

 After lunch we continued south and traveled through the check point on the west bank.  Jordan and Israel have always had a very strained relationship and on our afternoon drive we basically drove across the entire Jordan/Israel border which is protected by not one, but two electric fences.  I think they really want to keep people out. 

 The mountain ranges were beautiful; the desert areas were breath-taking.  It was so neat to see Shepherds in action tending their flocks of sheep and goats as well as a few children riding donkeys and 4 or 5 camels.  We were hoping to stop in the city of Jericho as well as visit the valley where David defeated Goliath while on this journey but due to some unrest in that area we were not able to see those locations.  Turns out that the ruins from the walls of Jericho have pretty much all be removed anyway so; we had to be content just looking over the existing city of Jericho from a distance and recalling the account of what happened there. 

 Traveling the same route Jesus would have traveled when coming into Jerusalem we finally arrived on the mountain just outside of the city so we could take in a bird’s-eye view.  Modern Jerusalem is much larger today than in Jesus day but the entire “Old City” is still surrounded by a wall.  From our vantage point we could pretty much see everything; we were looking from the east side.  It was a great way to gain a perspective of where things were and routes that were used to go in and out of the city headed to different locations.

 While on this drive to Jerusalem God provided Darin and I an opportunity to speak to our guide Dror about his Jewish faith and about his belief in Jesus.  It was very enlightening to have such an open conversation, respecting one another’s faith while sharing and debating our beliefs.  At the same time it was also very sad.  Here Dror is, surrounded daily with so many of the very locations Jesus spent his days and Dror is so “informed” as to what happened through scripture yet he chooses to not believe Jesus.  He only sees him as a man, he doesn’t believe the Jesus was the Son of God, he doesn’t believe that his death on the cross was for the forgiveness of the sins of the world, he doesn’t believe that Jesus is the only way to Heaven; sad, so very, very sad.  While talking with him my heart was just broken for him, because without accepting Jesus as Messiah he has no hope of Heaven.   It was a stark reminder that it’s not enough to “know” Jesus (head knowledge) you’ve got to “know” Jesus (heart knowledge).  Without having Him in your heart you don’t truly “know” Jesus. 

 “God, thank you for Jesus and for the sacrifice He made for me.  Thank you that I “know” him in my heart.  Open the eyes of our guide Dror and allow him to see the sacrifice your son made was for him as well.  And thank you for giving me the opportunity to take this trip, it’s a place every believer should see and I am so grateful that I’ve been given this chance.  I’ll never forget it.  Amen.” (giving thanks)

 It’s been a wonderful day, now it’s off to get some dinner then an early bedtime, we’ve got another full day tomorrow.