We finally arrived at Bethlehem yesterday afternoon after a morning of travelling and border crossing. We had relatively few problems crossing the Jordanian/Israeli border at the Allenby bridge, and then we were on our way! We passed by the southern side of Jericho before heading up into the Judean hills, past Jerusalem, and into the West Bank and Bethlehem.
Our guide took us on a tour of the Old City of Bethlehem and the Church of the Nativity...the birthplace of Jesus. It is a remarkable church, the foundations and pillars of which remain from the original Justinian construction in the 6th century. It is one of the only churches remaining in it's original condition, having been spared by the Persian destruction.
We then got acqainted with the Holy Land Christian Ecumenical Foundation (HCEF) and got a glimpse into our activities for the next few days. It was such an eye opening experience to hear the stories of the people and their lives inside the West Bank. We as a team are looking forward to getting back this evening after our first day of work and processing our experiences.
We'll be visiting Bethlehem University, working in hospitals, orphanages, retirement communities, and doing construction on homes.
It is such a blessing to be staying in a place with such wonderful people and a astounding heritage. Please pray that the Lord would speak to us and give us a heart for these wonderful people that we'll be working with.
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So glad you are settled in Bethlehem & ready to begin your work activities. Will be anxious to hear reflections on how things go in that regard. Rateb & Amani sent me pictures of you all yesterday at the orientation - along with the group from Pittsburgh (seminary students and some from Presby church there as I recall?).
ReplyDeleteYou remain in all of our prayers daily. You are a blessing to the Palestinians, just as they are, undoubtedly, to you.
I love following the blog because: 1) We all care deeply about all of you and the successes of your trip and 2) from a full-on selfish standpoint, your observations trigger immensely beautiful memories of our trip there. Thanks for taking the time to post each day.
ReplyDeleteSteve Hawkins