Summer Project Volunteer in Israel
Things are going great here! I had no problems on the plane ride in, even counting the seven hour lay-over in Atlanta. “Sal”, the friend from my soccer team that came with me, and I played soccer in the airport to pass time. I couldn't believe how many people wanted to join in! I think everyone is excited for the World Cup.
Our orientation, two days in Jerusalem, was way too short. In
fact, I don't think it could have been long enough; there was just
so much to see! If I had to pick a highlight of our stay there it
would have to be Hezekiah’s tunnel. The walls of the cave were
only shoulder width apart and in places we had to double over
in order to fit through. However, in other places, though still no
wider, the ceiling was probably 20 feet. It was amazing to walk
through the sometimes knee high water, especially after having
wandered about Jerusalem in the heat of the day. It gets very
hot here!
We didn't see it all; I don't think it's possible. But the big things
we tried to hit, things like the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, The
Western Wall, King David's City, the Golden Gate (another of
my favorites), the Temple Mount, the Mount of Olives... Every
place we went had a recurring theme to me: people were
worshiping rocks. Granted they were really cool rocks, but they
were still rocks. People were kissing rocks and worshiping
graves and calling it 'Christian'. It was refreshing to me to remember that I don't need an object, or a place to connect with my God. It doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things if Christ was buried where the Church of the Holy Sepulcher says or if it was in the Garden Tomb. The point is that He lives inside me today. I pray that I will have the chance to share this with friends I may make here.
While in Israel I definitely wouldn't call myself "Christian," especially not if that word makes people think of those kinds of people I saw in the various churches here. I had a conversation with someone the very first week on the softball field and he asked if I was religious. I asked him what he meant (I have to be careful because there are so many religions here), and he explained by asking if I was a Christian. I told him that I believe in Jesus, at which point he quickly began losing interest in the conversation. Sadly, the "Christian" faith has a very bad reputation in this land.
I have also had the chance to talk in depth with a man I play soccer with named “Zere”. Please pray for God to give me wisdom as opportunities for discussion come my way, especially with “Zere” who I will be seeing weekly at this soccer gathering. Also pray that God will give me tact while speaking with people here as it can be very hard to keep dialogues from turning 'political' and I have been warned to stay away from politics by the hosts here.
Another activity I have been involved in is an outreach kitchen in downtown Tel Aviv for the needy. I have really enjoyed this opportunity to serve the people here. Sometimes it can get VERY crazy, especially for me as I am usually on crowd control. I know very little Hebrew currently so please pray that God will give me swift learning so that I can better meet the needs of the needy I'm helping.
