In His Steps - Day 6

Today was a full day of traveling as we left the campgrounds of the ruins of Bethsaida for the Old City of Jerusalem. We had a few interesting stops along the way!

First we walked the ruins of Bethsaida, a city dating back to King David's time in 10th century BC. Not only did Jesus come here to do miracles, David is recorded to have stood exactly where we were standing, as well! We made a short stop at the ruins of Chorazin and saw the remains of an old synagogue. We then drove South towards Jerusalem, going east of the Sea of Galilee, through the desert of the West Bank, around Jericho (we heard there is little to nothing left of the walls), and finally made our way to the west side of Jerusalem!

Gary nailed it with getting us to stay at the Citadel Youth Hostel. It's in the heart of old city Jerusalem, has a lot of character and history being 700-900 years old, and very affordable! While today is not our main exploration day, it's hard not to soak up the liveliness of this city that is rich in history and culture!

”Then Jesus began to denounce the towns in which most of his miracles had been performed, because they did not repent.“
‭‭Matthew‬ ‭11‬:‭20‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Jesus goes on to name specifically Bethsaida, Chorazin, and Capernaum, the cities we had visited these last two days.

I bring up this verse because of our talks on the road these last few days. We've talked a lot about the hardships of life and ministry, and how we're currently trying to reconcile them with the courage and faith God continually instructs us to have. One thing became very apparent after seeing these ruins and thinking about Jesus' warning to them--I don't want to waste the mercy and miracles He's given to me. Despite the challenges of life, relationships, sufferings, or gripes with this or that, there are always things to be grateful for. There is so much to consider regarding what God has done to bring us to where we are, that the last thing I'd want to do is have a heart that gives up on him or others. I don't want to waste the miracle of salvation in my life. It drives me to be a better husband, family member, friend, disciple, and minister. I want to respond with faithfulness to work out whatever challenges I have before me.

Reflection: Ask yourself, "How does God want me to respond to the miracles of His goodness in my life?"

1-2 Capernaum and the Temple Jesus preached and drove out a demon
3-5 Bethsaida and Chorazim, the towns Jesus said “woe” to. The first is the city Gate where David (3000 years ago) was at. The other two are ancient Synagogues.
6-8 Jerusalem, the first is our hostel view of the old city where all the major biblical landmarks and the last is a picture of outside of the wall!

Bonus: Here's a video of the Miami Boys Choir singing "Yerushalayim" which is one of Jolissa's and my favorites! I played this as we entered into the city.