Israel Trip 2018

Our trip was during early November for two weeks of traveling in order to support those in Israel in friendship and to make new friends also as this was the theme we felt to follow on this outreach. We stayed in three main areas with three main families or couples and explored from these areas usually following the same flavour of each group and what they do. We spent time with many other new and old friends each day. We were five international group.

Jerusalem
Our first area we stayed was in Jerusalem with Paul and MS who prayer walk various areas in Israel. We prayer walked around 30 minutes to an hour each day for around 3 days including and various strong spiritual areas. In the walks we saw the areas become more open and were aware that our presence brought a significant choice to people to accept us or to reject us. We received strong acceptance with all the people, some who were happy to see obvious tourists enjoying and being welcomed in their area. Some younger groups who loved K-pop or Korean dramas who jumped up and down and got very excited at the knowledge of half our group being Korean. We were careful in conversation but also carrying a friendship not just of us but of Jesus and we respectively opened conversations in the flavour of the love of Jesus. I may add that all through the trip through Israel. We did sing allot. We sang in many areas over the spiritual strongholds and over all the people (usually from a high place with not many people). We also went to the dome of the rock and prayed there internally as you are not allowed prayer out loud there as Christians. It was far bigger an area than I thought.

Myself and my wife went through Hezekiah’s tunnel underneath Jerusalem which was an incredible experience. It took us around 45 minutes to walk through and although it was long, narrow and dark it was not unpleasant. The floor has a stream that flows on it that covered our bare feet. We sang and prayed inside the depths of the foundation of Jerusalem.

At one point in the trip we visited the dead sea and swam there which the whole team enjoyed very much. Even sister JH could not swim normally but she could there. I tried to sink but it was impossible which is amazing.

Galilee
We did branch out allot from each area to different places around Israel including various important mountains and then we travelled to Galilee to stay there in an accommodation where we met D and M. Although we had not met them before they were very familiar and they knew and visited many of our friends in Wales. M had also lived in Wales for a long time. We were very blessed to get to know them and spend time with them.

In Galilee we met allot of people and prayed and supported many. There were strong worship groups there who we enjoyed to pray and spend time with. We spent time with British Christians, and H and M our dear friends who encouraged me to follow a more artistic branch which I will use.

We went on the boat on Galilee for a few minutes until we had to go back because of a storm. The waves were around 2 foot high but because of the boat designs we had to go in as they were designed for Galilee which is a big lake.

We ate St Davids fish (expensive!) and saw Peters house which is the starting place of Christianity in Capernaum as this seems to be a symbol of where the Hebrews rejected Yeshua so they built a church next door to the Synagog. Peter then went on too witness to the gentiles which probably resulted in me finding Yeshua from this branch of the tree. My wife also met a professor from her university at Galilee and another new friend. Also I met a kind dog on the same shore which looked depressed but actually was quite happy.

During the trip through Israel the team we had was brilliant, each one in their own strengths and the whole team embracing each character even though we are an international team and very different we worked very well together and with the people we visited. I can understand in some way that the lighter and sometimes less challenging outreaches such as this one can bring in just as much fruit if not more than a challenging outreach. God truly uses all things to the greater good including the good things not just the bad. The outreach achieved its theme of friendship very well and a lot of fruit was produced in friendships.

Tel Aviv
After Galilee we travelled to Tel Aviv to spend time with a family there. Although they came to serve Korean congregations, have started to move into a more international youth group. We went with them to areas such as The gate sculpture in Yafo which symbolises the foundational tribes of Israel. We prayed there and my prayer went towards looking at Tel Aviv and claiming it as mine. QD also played guitar and sang there in amongst the visitors to Tel Aviv.

One day I and my wife travelled to see our friend who works in Google. We visited the google building and enjoyed seeing the way they treat their staff with freedom. We encouraged our friend there and he blessed us. I felt there a revealing further into my journey into play in work and exploring more and more into what play really means and how it should apply to a daily life of a person. As a group we travelled to a university in Tel Aviv and prayed and sang there. I also slightly danced with my wife there.

We played pingpong as a group there and also we had meetings with the family meditating our once a day verse of the Bible. The family seemed something quite close to forge as a community and were very open and free. They were a blessing to meet.

I have probably left out the more spiritual or miraculous parts of this trip in this report. It is probably because this trip was just so easy. This time we had enough money or faith to bless others even though normally we have to be provided for miraculously. We went to areas that can be considered as very dangerous or no go areas however they were very easy areas to walk through in friendship.

We met amazing people and shared about Jesus Easily. For me the hardest part was all the singing! Man Alive! But this was technically quite easy. I am quite aware that Israel can be a very Dark or Heavy Spiritual area but I think this trip was far more powerful than most heavily armoured, spiritually focused trips that I have followed in the past. I think Yeshua could walk into a place in such a way that no darkness or spiritual dynamic could overpower him just by being naturally who he is meant to be, he could through his very character and presence bring good to everywhere he went. An easy Yoke that is easily shared for us to follow Yeshua in relationship.

Written by Owen L.