Last day in Israel, really.

Inside nativity church in Bethlehem

I was wondering why the Lord would have me wait a couple extra days in Israel instead of taking off when I thought I would.  Maybe there is a big spiritual purpose and importance of me being in the land.  Or maybe God wants to do something even more out of the ordinary while I'm here.

Olive tree at or near the garden of
Gethsemane

But sometimes Yeshua likes to do the smallest things for his people because he loves them.  The first time I was in Jerusalem, which was about a week ago, I wasn't able to visit the Temple Mount or go to the garden of Gethsemane or to the top of the Mount of Olives.  It didn't bother me at all that I couldn't go but it was a shame for me to be so close and not have gone.

From the top of Mt. of Olives

Yesterday, I was able to go to Bethlehem and the church that is built around the supposed manger site.  Later that day I went to the Mount of Olives to another church built around the supposed garden where Yeshua came to pray with his disciples before he was betrayed by Judas. I say "supposed" because there are multiple sites where different groups claim Yeshua was.  Then I walked to the top of the mount where He ascended into heaven and will return one day.

Today I had a chance to go to the Temple mount where now a Mosque is built.  It's usually closed off to the public after 10 am for their prayer time so I started off early.  This is where the Temple of the Lord was built and destroyed and has not yet been restored.

All in all, thank you Yeshua for even orchestrating this small part so that I could see the Temple mount and Bethlehem.  It really has been a faith journey and you have been so faithful to me.