overwhelmed

i knew it would happen eventually......
i just didn't expect it on day three......

we walked the new testament route in the old city today.....

• the "upper room" (according to church tradition.....but due to archaeological evidence...... not the exact room)
• the house of caiaphs (or one with a similar floor plan)
• the temple mount (a good long chunk of time.....but i'll probably still go back)
  
• a muslim cemetery
  
• the pools of bethesda
• the "birthplace of the virgin mary" (second one i've seen yet)
  
• the "church of the condemnation" (again, according to tradition)
• the via dolorosa
  
• the church of the holy sepulcher (though we're coming back to this one for a much longer exposure)

there's just so much to take in....to try and understand.....

listing all these locations simply doesn't do justice to the experiences of the day. we talked about silly little things like the "fashionable" change from fresco to stucco walls......and far less silly things like the scourging of our Lord. we saw stone blocks at the base of the temple mount that were easily larger than my car.....and one of the only places in jerusalem where one can say with confidence, "Jesus Christ stood here." we discussed theology, geology, history, geography....

it's so surreal to experience jerusalem in this way. dr. mullins or dr. duke will say, "the ground level would have been here" or "the ceiling would have reached up to that point" and i can almost picture the city of the first century a.d......and it sends chills through my spine....

it's curious how time and distance has changed us.....and what has remained the same. these monuments here are enormous! and doorways or rooms in homes are so small. people were willing to dedicate their lives to working on a project (like the temple) and yet they never witnessed its completion. and this wasn't because they lacked technology.....(i repeat, their stones were bigger than my car).....but because their monument--the house of GOD--was so grand and so important to them that it was completely worth it. where does that devotion exist today?

and still....while i walk around these ancient foundations....tombs.....water pools.....arches...... the modern people continue to draw my attention. jews, muslims, armenians, christians, tourists...... they're all here....and they all have stories. i'm realizing my ignorance as i watch families of orthodox jews walk the streets for the first time....their children in full dress.... we're invited into muslim shops and given tea with mint......not because they want to guilt us into consuming their goods, but because they are genuinely hospitable. it's incredible.

things i want to adopt and take home:

1. a love for tradition
2. a gift for hospitality
3. an understanding and trust in community
4. a reverence for the Lord Almighty.
5. a chaco tan