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CHRIS ADAMS-Trumpet

“The main reason I wanted to come was for these kids.  The way they acted and the way they responded to us was truly amazing to me.  God also strengthened my relationships within the group from my church.  I realized how much I have taken them for granted.  These are some really amazing people with so much more to offer than just what I’ve been able to see on the surface.  God reveals things in the most unexpected ways!” 

BECKY GEORGIADES-Flute

DAVID SCHIESSEL-Bass Guitar

“This is my first trip out of the country.   It has really brought to a realization how big our harvest fields are… to actually see in a physical way and to grasp the magnitude of our role as Christians in the world.” 

GREAT NEWS! Everyone made it to Israel with luggage AND instruments...even the Tuba!

TEAM 1 - Arrived around 4:00pm local time after more than 25 hours in the air from Los Angeles. After the their arrival we packed the van and headed towards our hotel in Bethlehem. First we stopped by Mt. Scopus/Mt. of Olives to behold the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock. What an amazing sight for everyone to see Jerusalem for the first time and to have the oppurtunity to pray over the city and country as we begin our time here.

TEAM 2 - Arrived from Cairo, Eygpt later in the night ready for cooler temperatures as the weather in Eygpt was 120 degrees!!!! Having arrived late we drove straight to our hotel in Bethlehem for a good nights rest before tomorrow.

TEAM 3 - We look forward to seeing you in Jordan on Saturday!

PRAYER REQUEST FOR THURSDAY
That God would open our hearts and minds as we walk where Jesus walked and that our relationship with Him becomes more personal because of what we will experience.

What an incredible day! We packed so much into today. We started out with a visit to the Western Wall...also known to most as the Wailing Wall. Today was a Jewish holy day commemorating the destruction of the first and second temples believed to lie beneath the present day Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock. We saw many orthodox Jews praying and reading scriptures at the wall. Following the Wailing Wall, we actually got to go into the Temple Mount area. The area is sacred to Jews, Muslims, and Christians but is currently governed by the Muslims. The Muslims believe it to be the site where Muhammad made his journey to heaven.

Next we wound our way through the narrow streets of Jerusalem as we followed the Via Dolorosa and visited the traditional 14 stations of the cross. We made our way past street vendors and shops with owners pressuring us to buy their goods and jostled through croweded streets as we pondered the suffering of our Lord as he spent his those final hours before His death in this same city.

After a quick lunch of falafals, we made our way to Gordon's Tomb. This is one of the 2 places traditionally believed to be the area where Jesus was crucified, buried and resurrected. The area is a beautiful garden surrounded by a wall that blocks out the sights and sounds of the busy city. What a place of peace and rest. After seeing and hearing the evidence, we too believe strongly this could have been the very place where Joseph of Arimathea had an unused tomb to bury the body Jesus. We had a special time of communion led by Tom McClellan after visiting the empty tomb. We prayed and sang some hymns and felt the presence of God more strongly than any other place today.

What a great foundation to what will be a life-changing mission project.

PRAYER REQUEST FOR FRIDAY
As we move through the Negev desert towards the outpost of Masada, the last hold out of the 2nd Jewish rebellion against the Romans, may God speak to us and prepare us for connecting to those we have come to minister to.

OUR LIVES WERE CHANGED TODAY!!

We started this morning with about an hour and a half journey from Bethlehem to Masada. Masada is the ruins of ancient palaces fortified by Herod the Great between 37 and 31 BC. It sits atop a rock plateau on the eastern edge of the Judean Desert overlooking the Dead Sea. Enroute to Masada, we saw the place where the Good Samaritan rescued the man who was robbed and beaten between Jerusalem and Jericho. We saw the city of Jericho where Joshua and his men marched around the city 7 times and the walls fell. It is amazing to really experience how close everything is in Israel and to literally see the Bible come to life. Reading the Word will never be the same!

After Masada, we visited Qumran, where the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered in caves in the desert cliffs in 1947. The scrolls were hidden in caves by the Essenes around 68 AD. There are also ruins of Jewish ritual baths, a cistern, and an assembly room.

After Qumran, we got a chance to take a swim in the Dead Sea...the lowest place on Earth and the saltiest body of water. We had a lot of fun floating around on our backs. It was impossible to sink!

We finished our fabulous day at a traditional Palestinian restaurant. We ate olives and hummous and an array of salads followed by the most delicious chicken and mutton. For dessert we had Baklava.

PRAYER REQUEST FOR SATURDAY
Safe travel for all our other teams into Jordan. Once arriving in Jordan we need to understand quickly our role in reaching out to those we have come to serve. Pray that all of us let down the veils and concentrate on developing relationship...which is the key to what we have to offer.

SATURDAY, August 1

We started off this morning with a morning walk from our hotel up to the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem. This church is built over the 'cave' where tradition says the Jesus Christ was born over 2000 years ago. We also got a glimpse of the field where the angels appeared to the shepherds to announce our Lord's birth.

We made our way to the airport and hopped on our 25 minute flight to Amman where we were greeted by Barbara Johnson. It was amazing flying over Israel heading East towards Amman looking down and seeing the Jordan river coming down from the Sea of Galilee into the Dead Sea and knowing how much of the Bible happened from our airplane window! We had a quick tour of the Amman Baptist School where Barbara presides over the music department. The school is elementary all the way up to high school.

After a brief orientation, we made our way to Tony Roma's for dinner (ribs baby!). It was a long day and we wanted to get some rest as we prepare to minister the rest of this week.

PRAYER REQUEST FOR SUNDAY
As we will be visiting Mt. Nebo and the traditional baptismal site of our Lord Jesus, pray that our hearts will soften and the worries and stresses of our lives will ebb away as we prepare for our important role this week. Also pray that He will prepare the hearts and minds of those to whom we have come to minister,

SUNDAY, August 2

What an amazing day we will never forget! We boarded the bus this morning and headed for the Baptismal Site of Jesus. We had to walk some to get to the actual site....actually walked through a wilderness that was likely the very same wilderness where John the Baptist lived and prepared the way for the ministry of Jesus Christ. Artifacts and historians and excavations have actually been able to prove that the place we saw was the actual area where Christ was baptized by John the Baptist! Down by the Jordan River we worshiped through song...click on a link below and see a video!

We drove on from the Jordan River up to Mt. Nebo...the very place where God stood Moses and showed him the promised land. How moving to stand in that place and see that very same land. We had a moving time of worship where we read scriptures and sang hymns together before getting on the road again. We stopped in the town of Madaba, which is famous for its mosaics.

This evening we had a time of worship at the International Baptist Church. They sang and worshiped in Arabic and allowed them to minister to us. Then we played our music for them and they allowed us to minister to them. What a sweet time!

We finished off the evening with a fabulous authentic Arabic dinner. Delicious food and fabulous fellowship! As the days ebb on, we find ourselves allowing the Holy Spirit to speak to us...changing our lives and opening our eyes to people beyond the worlds we have created for ourselves...dying to self!

PRAYER REQUEST FOR MONDAY
On Monday we have a handbell workshop with some of our team members with an excited group of Jordanians ready to start a handbell choir...pray for our connection to them. We then leave for Aqaba to ready ourselves for the 50 band students coming down for the camp. Pray specifically for safety and that the hearts of those students coming will be prepared!