I experience a certain amount of sadness at the end of a trip. Friday would be a very fast paced day but then every day so far had been that way. We had lots to do to get ready to go. The luggage had to be down front at 9:30am for the guys to pick up and load on the bus. Several folks were trying to get final gifts and things done in the Old City. Several of us walked up to Jaffa Gate for a final coffee at Aroma. It had been our nightly rendezvous place for coffee and conversation. We would all meet at Jaffa Gate at 10am and off we would go. Everything went smoothly and all were accounted for timely.
Yad Vashem the Holocaust Museum was our first stop. This is a very sad stop and it breaks my heart every time. Man’s inhumanity to man is hard to comprehend. This level of evil is stunning.
We had lunch at the Israel Museum and then visited the Shrine of the Book and the Jerusalem model on the run. They closed at 2pm and we were hustling to get through.
The Garden Tomb was next. This is one of my favorite places in Jerusalem. The group took the tour and then we had a worship service. The Garden Tomb area is beautiful and is the perfect place to spend a few moments in worship. The tomb was empty and our hearts were blessed.
Elah Valley and the location where David and Goliath fought took us about 30 minutes to get there. Most collected a few stones. I’m amazed the place has any stones left. It was a good walk down the riverbed. Gilla plotted out the location of the Philistines, Israel and the activity. It’s a great story and the location is authentic.
Barry one of our pilgrims commented that “he had read the Bible all his life in black and white and now he would always read it in living color.” A journey through Israel brings the pages of the Bible to life. It is encouraging to take God’s Word and touch item after item as it is detailed in Scripture. A person will never be the same after they travel the land of the Bible.
We had a great dinner at Abu Nassar in Jaffa and then on to Ben Gurion Airport for our return to the US. In about 18 hours or so we would be home.
