Best Moments

Pastor Azar cooking for us

Several times over the last day or so people have asked me, “What was your favorite thing on the trip?” There are so many it is difficult to pick just one or three or even a half-dozen. The land is beautiful, the holy sites and cities are inspiring, but in the end it’s the people that I’ll remember most. I’ll never forget Max our Egyptian guide who was moved to tears as he described the centuries of oppression his Coptic Christian community has endured and yet remained faithful to the Gospel. I’ll remember our Jordanian guide’s explanation that his name Fadi means “redeemer”, and how proud he was that his name was identified with Christ. I’ll remember how moved I was at the great ministry of bringing hope to the hopeless of Pastor Mitri Raheb and Lutheran Christmas Church in Bethlehem. I’ll always cherish the feeling of Christian brotherhood I shared with Pastor Azar of the church in Nazareth. Sandy will never let me forget our Israeli guide Jaries, who is a Marionette Christian from Nazareth. Yesterday, in a “senior moment” I left our backpack with Sandy’s camera and our jackets and other odds and ends at the kibbutz in Jerusalem where we ate lunch. It wasn’t until we were at the next location on the itinerary, the Holocaust Museum, did I realize my error. When I told Jarius he immediately called a friend, also a tour guide, whom he’d seen at the kibbutz (Jarius has more friends than anyone I’ve ever met). His friend located the backpack and brought it to the museum, which happened to be the next stop on his itinerary as well. There is no way I can repay Jarius for rescuing not only the camera, but the hundreds of photos on the film rolls in the bag. So the best part for me was the people. I never imagined meeting so many people here who love God, serve Christ, and understand true hospitality. Every time news comes on my television about Israel, Palestine, Jordan, or Egypt their faces will come to my mind. It is for these brothers and their families that I will pray for. These brothers, who follow the same Jesus I follow, have changed the way I think about this majestic land.

Jeries at Masada telling us about "beautiful mosaaaics"