Calling Your Name...

Having an almost 3 year old little girl is an adventure! She has entered the world of Barbies (already?), singing "Let it Go", dancing in circles when there is music in the air and even (gasp!) pre-ballet classes. She is a true girly girl; shrieking at bugs, twirling in dresses and loving all things Disney Princess.

I may be biased...but she is pretty amazing almost 3 year old. (insert cheesy grin)

A few weeks ago the three of us were playing and running around the house. My husband was sitting on the couch calling for our daughter as I was chasing her down the hallway. As she ran to my husband and jumped up into his arms she shouted "SAFE!" and giggled as she leaned back into his embrace. My breathe caught in my chest as I stepped back to take in that moment. The moment where my baby girl realized that no matter what, she is safe in the arms of her Daddy.

Friends, there is so much to learn from this moment in a toddlers life.

How often are we running into the arms of our Father and shouting, SAFE!

Those who live in the shelter of the Most High
    will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
2 This I declare about the Lord:
He alone is my refuge, my place of safety;    he is my God, and I trust him.
3 For he will rescue you from every trap
    and protect you from deadly disease.
4 He will cover you with his feathers.
    He will shelter you with his wings.
    His faithful promises are your armor and protection.
Psalm 91:1-4

He is our rescuer. He is our safe place. He is our shelter, our protector and our promise keeper.

When my daughter is with her Daddy there is nothing like it. She is unafraid as she flies through the air on his shoulders. She is brave as she holds His hand. She laughs like crazy when he tells her a secret. She is loving as she is loved. She is comforted when he kisses her "ow-ies."

I absolutely love to sit back and watch their relationship. I love watching her begin to understand her value from the love and acceptance of her Father. I am often reminded, if her earthly Father loves her this much, how much MORE does her perfect Heavenly Father love her.

How much more does He love me.

How much more does He love YOU.

I recognize, some of you reading this may not have benefited from growing up with an earthly Father who loved and adored you and my heart grieves for you. However, it is time to awaken to the relationship available to you in your Heavenly Father! The Father who... makes you unafraid as you fly in life with Him and makes you brave as you hold his hand. The Father who whispers secrets to you that make your heart laugh, equips you to love others as He loves you and yes, even kisses your ow-ies when life gets the best of you.

He is a good Father. The best we could ever hope for or want. He longs to spend time with us, dreaming and planning. He longs to fulfill the deepest parts of ourselves that we never show to anyone. The hurts, pains, joys and celebrations...He is there cheering us on.

No matter our age, no matter our background, He is calling our name.
He calls us to His arms....

SAFE!

You always have a piece of home here...

How do you capture the trip of a lifetime into one blog?

Im not sure I can, because in all honesty I am still processing everything I saw, learned and experienced on this trip. I know in the months to come I will STILL be processing moments, conversations and experiences I had while in Israel.

When I first received the email invitation almost a year ago I had no idea what to expect,  I was simply excited for the opportunity. Now being on the other side of that invitation, I am a changed person in every way. I grew deeper in love with Jesus, was challenged as a leader, and I was deeply inspired by their understanding of community and respect for one another as people. Being on the other side of that invitation I can now say I have a genuine love for Israel and her people.

As we were leaving our tour guide, Yoav, at the airport he said something I will never forget.

"Remember you always have a piece of home here in Israel."

That sums up exactly how I feel. In only 9 days, Israel left such an incredible mark on my life.

I worshipped in the middle of the sea of Galilee....the place where Jesus called the unlikely to follow Him. The place where Jesus spoke to the storm and the wind and waves obeyed. The place where Peter understood the best place you can be in a storm in close to Jesus, so he took a chance and walked on water to his Savior. In the middle of this sea, God spoke to me "Peace be still" and quieted my heart, just as Jesus quieted the storm so many years ago.

I stood in the Garden of Gethsemane....the place where the fate of all human kind hung in the balance. This was the very place that Jesus settled the decision to save my life. Amongst these trees Jesus spoke the words, "Not my will, but Your will be done Father." In the last 7 years Ive prayed that verse in moments that had life changing weight to them and now here I stood in the same place they were spoken and it wrecked me....here in this garden God spoke to me "well done, good and faithful servant."

I looked over into a Bethlehem field....where Ruth met Boaz. Where David learned to sling by killing bears and lions not knowing one day he would kill Goliath in the same way. Where David practiced faithfulness by tending his sheep and the place where God knew to find David to promote him to King. In this field the angels appeared to the shepherds to tell them the good news of the arrival of Jesus. Shepherds, considered in that time as low on the society chain as prostitutes...yet God made known the arrival of His Son to them first.

I sat on the steps of what was the entrance to the temple in Jerusalem....the place where Jesus was found by his parents as a 12 year old boy "about the business of His Father." The place where Jesus spent time with His disciples and taught. The place we read about in Acts 2, the location of Peters message that brought 3,000 to know Jesus all in one day.

I stood in the tomb....I spoke the words "why do you look for the living amongst the dead?" in the very place the angel delivered that message. I got to experience what it must have been like for Mary Magdalene as, in her grief, she arrived at the tomb that morning to find her Savior and friend was no longer there. What a moment that must have been when He appeared to her. Its not lost on me that Jesus chose to appear first to a woman and gave her the opportunity to run and tell all the others of his resurrection.

I sat in the presence of an incredibly brave Arab-Christian Pastor in Bethlehem, Pastor Steven Khoury. He has purposed his life to see Arabs and Palestinians give their hearts to Jesus. He has been beaten and his church bombed 14 times, yet he stops at nothing. Bravery and Courage lived out.

I listened to a Greek Orthodox Priest, Father Gabriel Naddaf speak in Aramaic of his love for Israel. He stands for peace, unity and love in his Holy Land. His desire is to build bridges between Christians, Jews and all Islamic people. Because of that desire he sacrifices his safety and comfort daily. Such a gentle man with incredible love for Jesus and undeniable strength.

I was invited into the home of Jewish family, The Cohens, to celebrate Shabbat (Sabbath) with them. This family has astounding love for people. They graciously moved all of their furniture onto the front porch in order to host over 34 of us. They cooked one of the best meals Ive ever had and they taught us traditional Jewish Shabbat songs all amongst laughter and dancing. The complete joy that exuded from their home wasn't just for us, it was who they are as people. Genuine love and community.

I had the opportunity to hear from Military and Political analysts and Israeli soldiers. A brave journalist and an Israeli Army Commander. Human rights activist and philosophers. All incredible people that I count myself privileged to learn from.

All in 9 days.

As I began, there isn't any possible way I could sum up my experience in one blog. Because of that you will probably be reading about this trip for the next couple of posts...hope you don't mind. :)

The reoccuring theme of the trip was, "you will come again to Israel."

I can absolutely say, I will.