The Holy Lands

I wrote this a day ago and didn't post so Im writing more at the bottom......

This week has been amazing , since leaving Rome and arriving into Athens there had been a lot of running around and barely catching trains etc but now it has just been time to enjoy the beauty of the city . After spending time with my hilarious Greek friend Krek in Athens viewing the ancient Olympic structures and the Acropolis I took a ferry down south to the amazing island of Paros . It was awesome to be on the sandy beaches all day but what also struck me was the history of this whole area . The disciples had landed on these shores and the surrounding areas for the first “missions” trip in the history of the church . What I already believed to be true is now visibly coming to life . Since Paros I got on another ferry south to the world famous Santorini which boasts the most spectacular sunset over the mediteranion sea . The island itself is a volcano with black sand beaches as well as mountainous peaks over the water . I wont be able to describe the colors I saw because Im not sure I had seen them before at the time of sunset , I have a few photos but they wont be able to do it justice . Ran into a sketchy dude that rented scooters which provided for much excitement that night as his sketchy rusty scooter key ended up breaking in the ignition and he couldn’t understand how his fine machine could ever ever possibly break down . He reminded me of a really crooked car salesman , I learned abit of a lesson that night ….. ask me more about this later Im leaving out a lot of details on that one .

 

That night took the 3am ferry to Crete and Im just baffled by the history , things I learned in a crusty old 8^th grade history book came alive like never before and I started remembering things that Mr Crook said about the ancient Greeks and the structures at Knossos etc . I spent the rest of the day on the beach and late tonight I fly into Cyprus before making my final stop in Israel . Another fun fact , someone cross check me on this one but remember about the family (man and wife) that held back some of the profits on there sale of land and claimed to give it all to the lord – well tomorrow Im going to be in that same area . That’s just wild to me , I praise God for this opportunity daily . Israel is still what this trip is all about and I think the things I have witnessed are leading up to a big crescendo as I very shortly will see where Jesus walked and preached . This is extremely important to me and if I could ask for your prayers for this final stretch of the journey as growth takes place and new things are revealed to me . Ecstatic .

 His ,

 David  

Update:

I have since spent the day on Cyprus camping underneath the stars and viewing the ancient seaside castles . I got into an amazing conversation with an ex-drunk from Denmark that went through AA and got sober/found God . Awesome . 

That night I flew into Israel after a being screened 3 times for security never so excited in my life . As we touched down in Tel Aviv my heart raced with excitement and I honestly felt for some reason that I was coming home , or that I belonged there - Im not sure why . 

Today I attended a birthday party for my friends friend in Tel Aviv , tomorrow I will be swimming in the River Jordan and Sunday I leave for Jerusalem to see what I came for . Ecstatic . Its amazing to talk with Jewish people listening to there perspective of God and politics and how a nation with enemies on all sides can survive . I've learned more in my first day here about Israel than I have in my life . Please continue to pray for me in this incredible time . 

My trip ends so quickly and I wish I would have been here longer . See yall in Seattle at 1:05 pm Wednesday the 17th..... : )