Today is the Day

This is the day that the LORD has made. Today is the day that I begin my journey to Israel/Palestine. These past couple of days I have been drawn to the words of King David from Psalm 122:

I rejoiced with those who said to me, "Let us go to the house of the LORD." Our feet our standing in your gates, O Jerusalem. Jerusalem is built like a city that is closely compacted together. That is where the tribes go up, the tribes of the LORD, to praise the name of the LORD according to the statute given to Israel.

There the thrones for judgment stand, the thrones of the house of David.

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: "May those who love you be secure." May there be peace within your walls and security within your citadels. For the sake of my brothers and friends, I will say, "Peace be within you." For the sake of the house of the LORD our God, I will seek your prosperity.

I would be lying if I said that I did not have some anxiety prior to leaving on this trip. But there is much excitement as well. To be able to walk where Jesus walked. To think that within 24 hours I will be standing in the gates of O Jerusalem. It seems that the psalmist was quite prophetic because thousands of years later Jerusalem is built like a city closely compacted together and many different tribes have gathered together. Many of which claim the same God. Yet the psalmist cries out, "pray for peace," "may there be peace within your walls and security within your citadels," "for the sake of my brothers and friends, I will say 'peace be within you.'" I am not sure if and how much I will be able to update this blog on my trip, but as I leave today I pray for the peace of Jerusalem, I pray for all those whom I love that I leave behind, and I pray for the peace within my own heart.