The Charltons

          Pray for the peace of Jerusalem!
              “May they be secure who love you!
          Peace be within your walls
              and security within your towers!”
          For my brothers and companions' sake
              I will say, “Peace be within you!”

          For the sake of the house of the Lord our God,
              I will seek your good.

                                                                       Psalm 122:6-9

 

 

 

 

In July I went on my first missions trip in a long time: to Israel! In our trip to the Holy Land my team served at the Elav youth conference in Jerusalem, travelled to various landmark locations in the land, and visited/ministered at two Houses of Prayer (in Jerusalem and Nazareth). It was an unforgettable experience!

 

THE ELAV CONFERENCE

For 10 years Succat Hallel (a 24/7 House of Prayer in Jerusalem) has held the largest annual event in Israel specifically for indigenous young adult believers in Jesus, both Jewish AND Arab together! The gathering is unprecendented in Israel and in the history of the world, with upwards of a thousand young people gathering every year for three days of worship and ministry in Hebrew, Arabic, and English, to contend for the fulfillment of God's purposes in Israel and the Middle East. It is a true sign and wonder in this hour, and there I witnessed firsthand Ephesians 2:15-18, which says, "For He Himself is our peace, who made both groups into one and broke down the barrier of the dividing wall, by abolishing in His flesh the enmity, which is the Law of commandments contained in ordinances, so that in Himself He might make the two into one new man, thus establishing peace, and might reconcile them both in one body to God through the cross, by it having put to death the enmity." I saw and participated with Jews and Arabs in overcoming centuries of hate and prejudice and becoming one new man through the power of the Holy Spirit!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SITES OF THE HOLY LAND

Along with the amazing experiences at the conference, I was blessed to visit a lot of different Biblical and historical sites around the country - the Mount of Olives, the Garden of Gethsemane, the ancient gates of the Old CIty Jerusalem, the Western or "Wailing" Wall, the Ben Hinnom valley, the Garden Tomb, Masada, the Dead Sea, Hezekiah's Tunnel, Mt. Carmel, the Jezreel Valley, Megiddo, Capernaum, Magdala, the Jordan River, Caesarea Philippi, the Banias Falls, Nazareth, and even a few more places. And truthfully, I believe that I could wax for hours about all of these places, but out of these the most impactful for me were our visits to the Garden of Gethsemane and the Garden Tomb.

The Garden of Gethsemane sits at the bottom of the Mount of Olives, looking up at the now sealed Eastern Gate. While we were there, one of my team members had a revelation that blew my mind: what if when in that garden, while Jesus was asking the Lord to take the cup from Him and yet surrendering to the will of His Father, Jesus looked up and saw the Eastern Gate and thought of the prophecies and promises of Ezekiel 43-44 and Isaiah 61 and realized that part of the reward of His suffering on the cross would be His soon-and-coming triumphant entry through that Eastern Gate to sit on the throne in Jerusalem!

The Garden Tomb is the site that many Evangelical Christians believe to be the site where Jesus was crucified, buried, and resurrected. For centuries the Catholic and Orthodox churches have believed the Church of the Holy Sepulchre (inside the Old City of Jerusalem) to be the site, and the difference in opinion has been a point of controversy for a number of years. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre has stood for hundreds of years as the purported location of the passion of the Christ, but evidence and arguments of the past 50 years point to the strong possibility for the Garden Tomb being the actual site. But in addition to all of that, there is also a serenity filled power and a sweetness that emanate from the Garden Tomb. And having visited both sites, if I was going by a combination of my convictions concerning the evidence presented and what I sensed in my spirit, I believe the Garden Tomb is the true location. But I'll leave you to visit there and decide for yourself :-)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

HOUSES OF PRAYER

We also got to spend a number of hours in the Prayer Room at Succat Hallel, which is on a hill looking out upon both the Temple Mount and the Mount of Olives through large, beautiful windows. One day, the people sitting in that room and ministering to the Lord day and night will see Jesus return, splitting the Mount of Olives in half and entering into the Old City Jerusalem through the sealed up Eastern Gate. How great and terrible will that day be! And they'll see it all, eyewitnesses to the return of the Messiah, the final fulfillment for the cries of the Spirit and the Bride - "Come!" When that hit me all I could do for near an hour was stare out those huge windows in awe and wonder at the glorious revelation I had just received.

Towards the end of our trip we spent time at the House Of Prayer and Exploits (HOPE), a prayer ministry in Nazareth that is seeing signs and wonders bring many to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ! We spent many hours one night hearing the many testimonies of God moving through HOPE and the young people of Nazareth, followed by a time ministry to those young people through worship and prayer. That evening the Holy Spirit fell in power, and many in the room received prophetic words and touches from the Lord that I believe will impact them for years to come.

 

I have more tales to share, and would love to do so in person if we have the chance :-)

In the meantime, please enjoy more pictures from my time in the Holy Land.

Blessings!

Mike