New

New semester, new home, new hubby, new life! This calls for a new blog:

http://stewartsoflove.blogspot.com 

Hop on over to our new blog. It's brand new and doesn't have many posts - but follow us, and I promise that will all change in time : )

Galilee 4EV

I am soooo behind on my Jerusalem Journey... Here is another snippet from a day in the land of Galilee.

Reflections

I went to the temple with a good friend this week and was overcome by feelings of peace and joy. While we were waiting to do confirmations, I looked around the room and noticed the paintings hanging on the walls; one of Jesus teaching on the Sea of Galilee, and another of Christ being baptized in the Jordan River. I couldn't help but think back to Jerusalem -- I have been to the very places that the paintings depicted. I walked in those sites, read my scriptures there, sang hymns... I felt the spirit so strongly in those places, where such special events happened. But, I can testify that the spirit is the strongest within the walls of the temple. The temple is the House of the Lord. It is one of my favorite places on earth. I did not go to Jerusalem to gain my testimony or to search for the spirit -- I feel the spirit every day and I know it is possible for everyone to feel it. Jerusalem gave me a deeper knowledge and understanding of our Savior's life and the history of the Bible and Book of Mormon - I learned things in Jerusalem that I would never have learned had I not gone. I miss Jerusalem. But I am grateful I had the opportunity to travel there and learn. I am grateful for temples today.

Sabbath in Galilee

Today we woke up bright and early for breakfast, and we left at 9 for Tiberias so that we could meet with the Galilee Branch at 10. This branch was in a cute little building, and it had  a beautiful view over the Sea and surrounding hills. 

Walking into the Branch

Panoramic View from the Branch

Church was a beautiful experience. It was the first time that I had ever heard the sacrament be blessed in a different language. The young man that blessed the bread spoke Hebrew, and it was really neat to be a part of that. All 42 students in my class and another tour group were attending the meeting, so we were pretty cramped in the tiny little branch building, but we made it work : ) The talks were beautiful. Dylan, Maddie, and a local named Ann spoke. They all centered on the topic of revelation, which was awesome to hear about since General Conference was the next week! It will be so fun to be here in the Holy Land for conference…even if we have to stay up until 2 in the morning to hear it : ) 

After church we drove to Yinadret, another one of the many baptismal sites. This was gorgeous. It really made me think of Nephite baptisms, and the Waters of Mormon. The river was much wider here than the site we visited in Jordan, and the trees were tall and green and it was just beautiful. There was a group of African Christian’s who were singing and dancing and getting baptized. I love watching them and how devout they are in their worship and their dedication. They have such an apparent love and acknowledgement for the Lord. It is beautiful to witness. 

P.S. - if you have a moment, please take this SURVEY!

4th day in Galilee

Today instead of going out and about, we stayed in the Kibbutz and had class.

After class, we relaxed on the {beach}, played soccer, threw around the frisbee . . . jugar on la playa at its finest.

Then we went on a beautiful hike!

It was a beautiful day in the neighborhood, the weather was grand, the hills were green, and the faces were jolly!
We hiked to a waterfall. We all thought it would be a good idea to jump in a cool off from the hike. And boy oh boy did we cool off. It was hands down the COLDEST water I have EVER been in. I had goosebumps while swimming! Seriously, straight from the icebergs in Antartica. Cold cold cold!

After the hike, we went back to the Kibbutz and had a bonfire. With smores. Jerusalem Style. Thats right : Strawberry marshmallows with poprocks chocolate. Can life get any better?

Galilee Dia Tres

 Galilee is a magical place.Today we hiked 5,046 magical steps through Gamla, which is a little town set up in the green hills of the Galilee. The foundation of the Gamla synagogue still stands today, and it is most likely the same stones that were there during the time of Christ.

Synagogue foundation

We frolicked in the green grass and yellow flowers through the rolling hills.

'Twas a grand day indeed.

Bliss

My favorite friend, Miss Jen Riding

Da girls enjoying a mid-afternoon hike

Do the Courtney Neves

After leaving Gamla, we enjoyed a wonderful activity - 

RIVER RAFTING DOWN THE RIVER JORDAN!
Right?!

This was an adventure and a half  . . .  We grabbed our paddles and found our rowing crew, and it was off to the races! Meg, Wes, Trav, SarahBeth, and I made a fantastic team, and together we conquered the deathly bushes and sharp tree branches which lined the banks of the river and tended to give us a poke every time we rounded the bend . . .

Just around the river bend!
Ok, sorry for the sidenote  -- but I can now check 'rafting down the jordan river' off of my bucket list.

SCHWING!

Another item which no longer remains on my bucket list is eating a fish. WHOLE.

Thats right.

Bones 'n all.

Eyeballs and fishtail. 

Ok, I'm kidding of course. That is disgusting.

But, I did enjoy some delicious, Galilee-fresh fish! Hands down the best fish I have ever eaten.

Awww . . . the perfect ending to another perfect day : )

Galilee Day 2 - 7,031 Steps

Looking back on my trip, this day was one of my favorites.




We took a boat ride across the Sea of Galilee – stopping in the middle to have a devotional and talk about the personal "storms" which occur in each of our lives and what we personally can do to exercise faith and overcome them.
Check out my professors blog for more info!

And then...

We rocked out to Christian rock music -- starting the traditional outbursts of "Our God is an Awesome God!" Such great memories!


 Then we stopped at a museum and saw a 2,000 year old boat, dating back to the first century! It was amazing to see the type of structure that existed during the time of Christ.

Next up we visited the church of the Beattitudes, where it is believed Christ gave the Sermon on the Mount. This church was in a beautiful location, set up on a hill overlooking the Galilee. We had time to do our own personal scripture study and journal writing, and I often look back on the personal study I was able to have here and wish I could go back to that moment. I loved this site.

Then we went to Capernaum. 

We saw a synagogue which still has a 1st Century foundation, but has been rebuilt.

And we were able to see Peter's house! I love Peter : )

Then we visited Kursi. And ran down the hill like demonic swine. 

Yippee!

Walking Where He Walked . . . {Galilee 2012}

{Yes, I am home from Jerusalem. Yes, I am behind on blogging. Yes, I will continue to blog about Jerusalem as if I was still there and experiencing all of these miraculous and wonderful events. Yes, I am going through withdrawals}

GALILEE was one of the most amazing weeks of my life. 

The first day I walked  8,033 steps.

We left Jerusalem Center bright and early and drove to the Galilee. On the way there we made a couple stops, the first at a tel called Bet She’an. This is an ancient Greco Roman city, with the best preserved bath house in the world. It was beautiful day and the the hills were green. 

Heating system of the bath house

Courtney Neves

Sadly, the city experienced multiple earthquakes and is now in shambles. Courtney tried to fix it.

Cinderelly Cinderelly

Overlooking Bet Shean

Then we stopped in Nazareth and went to two beautiful churches. One contained the grotto where it is traditionally believed that the angel Gabriel visited Mary and gave her the news of her pregnancy. This church was stunning. It had mosaics in the courtyard outside, and each mosaic was from a different cultural group, depicting their interpretation of this glorious event. Inside the windows were stained glass, and I was in awe at the beauty. We saw the grotto, a mass was in session, we went upstairs, and then exited and walked to the second church, where another grotto is located, and believed to have been Joseph’s work shop. It was pretty cool to see how the churches have been built right on top of, over, and around these ancient sites.

Beautiful stained glass

Courtyard of the church

Interior of the church.

Our next stop was to a lookout. But I stood all in haze, and alas could not see but 5 feet infront of me.

Then we pulled into a cute little resort/reformed Kibbutz where we spent the next 10 days. I was expecting to be on the ocean…but due to all the rain, the water was about 20 feet higher than normal, therefore there was no beach…oh well! We skipped rocks, played soccer, and then ate a delicious dinner.