My Next Holy Trip

From Holy Land

In mid February of this year, I gathered in the airport with 20 or so clergy and a few of their spouses to set out on a journey of Biblical proportion. Okay – maybe it was more like a journey about Biblical things but still it was a great journey.

I was on a trip to the Holy Land with the other clergy I was ordained with back in June 2010. We all knew that we’d be offered the chance to take this trip at a reduced price and had heard from so many others that it was something we just shouldn’t pass up. I’m always up for a good clergy field trip. So whether its to Selma, Alabama or the Varsity in Atl, I’m good to go. And the Holy Land? Count me in!

As we gathered at the far end of the airport for our night-time flight to Tel-Aviv I was just excited to be excited! Things that I’d only pictured in my head were going to come alive for me in ways I couldn’t imagine. I didn’t want to miss a minute. So with journal and camera ready, I stood and waited. It takes a long time to get to the Holy Land. For me it took 12 years and 5 months (but that’s another story).

While we were waiting, the talk among us was about what we couldn’t wait to see, what our family wanted us to bring back, and what we had heard other people say about the trip. One of the main things that others said is that you can’t take it all in the first time. You have to go back a second time in order to really understand what you saw.

WHAT???? I’ve waited a lifetime for this once in a lifetime trip and I’ve got to do it twice??

At first that was a little disappointing. I wanted to take it all in and now I’m told I can’t. It’s too great a task. Don’t. Even. Bother.

Well you know me – I didn’t let that stop me. I took it all in. I walked where Jesus walked. I learned a few things that I didn’t expect to learn. And now I’m ready to blog about it.

My next 40 posts will be all about my trip. Instead of documenting each place I went, I picked 40 of my best photos and will tell you the stories that go along with each. The journey is definitely a visual and tactile one so I thought this approach would work best. As much as I like to write, I just don’t think I can do justice to some of the things I saw without the picture to go along with it. Even then you do have to go to experience, but if you do follow my one piece of advice:

“Don’t plan your next journey before you start the first one.” That’s pretty good advice for anything and it really helped me focus on the moments I’ll tell you about.

Enjoy your current journey – Until Everyone Hears,