Groan Inwardly. Wait Eagerly. Love Well.

Day 5 in Israel

The tears fell when we descended the steep Palm Sunday Road. Jesus did this for me, for you. The Garden of Gethsemane---no words to convey the 2,000 year old grotto of betrayal. More tears fell as our eyes fell on the Rock of Golgotha symbolizing the crucifixion. More tears fell at the Wailing Wall. To stand there with your face flat on the wall hearing the wailing of those nearby caught me so off guard.  Thousands of people come here every single day 24/7 to pray to our God.  Jesus loves Jerusalem.

 

Larry shared with us on the steps of the Psalm of Ascent as the sun set in Jerusalem this Sabbath Day. 

Here are some quotes that touched me deeply:

"You have been graced with a disaster that your soul requires to find its way back home."

"Does your thirst for God sustain you more than your experience of God?"

"You will experience God by the ways you relate."

"The richer the Spirit's work in you,

the deeper our ache will be.

The deeper our ache,

the stronger our hope,

and the more certain

our sustaining joy

which is Spirit produced

and not reliant on blessings now."

"Groan inwardly.  Waith patiently.  Demand nothing now.  And God will sustain you with joy based on hope."

"The degree to which I can love others produces Hope that has nothing to do with how others treat me."

The sun set and the words remain.

 

Back at the hotel...

I got stuck in our hotel elevator for 10 mins. on the 9th floor in Jerusalem about an hour ago.  I have claustrophobia.  It was a l-o-n-g ten minutes.  There are places where I am not free and that is one of them. 

 

Groan Inwardly.

Wait Patiently.

Love Well.