Well, our day began with this sunrise over the Sea of Galilee. What a joy to wake up fully rested after such a long 2 day deal with travel. Thank you all for your prayers for rest!
After a great breakfast with lots of fish we jumped on a boat and headed across the Sea of Galilee.
We headed south and landed near Migdala. This was the town where Mary Magdalen was from. We met the man who found a boat that dates back to the time when Jesus would have been traveling along the Sea. After years of preserving the boat they were able to place it for viewing. This is the guy who found it with his brother. His name is Yuval.
We then headed to our bus and drove to Mount Beatitude.
This was the traditional site where Jesus preached the Sermon on the Mount.
This is a church that the Italians came and built upon the site which overlooks the Sea of Galilee. It is beautiful!
From there we headed off to the location on the Sea of Galilee where Jesus met the disciples after His resurrection. This was where he was preparing breakfast as they were coming back from fishing. This is the rock where it is assumed that He was sharing a meal with them.
They built a building over it and now have a small chapel there.
On to Capernaum! This is where Jesus went after leaving Nazareth. The ruins of this city are quite amazing. To be right where Jesus healed people and walked and talked with people is incredible.
This is the synagogue in Capernaum. We also went to the place where Peter lived. The foundation of the home is still intact.
Fish lunch at a kibbutz. This is a communal village where all work together and share all income to take care of the needs of the whole community. St. Peter’s Fish was on the menu – lots of bones but very tasty!
From lunch we headed on to the Golan Heights. This was the area that was rewon back from Syria in the 6 day war back in 1967. The view from the vista was incredible. Standing up on high it was very easy to see why the land is valued and fought over. From this height you can hold control of the lower regions easily. Our tour guide shared how they won this land back in a masterful fight that only took 2 days. With God on our side – who can be against us?!
Our final stop of the day was the baptism site on the Jordan River. As I mentioned last night, if the opportunity was made available, yes, I was doing it! There were quite a few of us that baptized and were baptized. Imagine being baptized right where Jesus was baptized himself and in the same area that John the Baptist called thousands to repentance! This will be a highlight of my life!
Until tomorrow – Good Night!
thoughts from Kevin Twombly 