Why I don't celebrate Halloween...

October 31st, 2016 - Why I don't celebrate Halloween...

As fall is finally here, many things come to mind for the season. The beauty of the falling colorful leaves, changing colors, pumpkins, warm fires, and nice smells. For a lot of people Halloween comes to mind. For my family and me Halloween will pass by today and we will have nothing to do with it. People always ask me, “Why don’t you celebrate Halloween?” You also may be thinking, “what’s the  problem with a little candy and dressing up in costumes?” So many people think this is a harmless holiday on October 31st and some people think, “Oh, I’m not doing anything bad. I’m just dressing up and getting free candy.” But there are also many people who are taking advantage of this "holiday" and dressing in skimpy outfits, having parties that are mostly filled of drinking, scaring each other etc. People also use this time to put out terrible decorations on their porches and scare the people who walk by. Why would YOU want to participate in a "holiday" like this? A "holiday" that isn't life giving and that celebrates death instead of, well, life.

 

My parents decided to stop celebrating Halloween years before I was born. They didn’t want their children participating in a dark Holiday practically celebrating the devil and death. Everywhere you walk at this time of year there are caskets in people’s front yards, large spiders, witches, Frankenstein, mummies etc. My parents started a tradition with my older siblings before I was born and we continue to do it every year. Our family picks out our own candy, spends a night in a hotel, we usually go swimming, play games, and watch a movie. We try to keep our minds focused on Yeshua (Jesus) and happiness instead of dark, death, and the devil. We look forward to our fall family get away.

I have been reading on this topic of not celebrating Halloween and I have found a TON of things that I have never known before. The information that I am about to share is from several sources. Thank you to these wise women who are wiling to speak candidly, by going against the culture…even among Christians. One writer is a stay-at-home mom, Christian blogger and from her blog, ‘Raisingsoldiers4christ.com. She writes in her blog, ‘Why we don’t participate in Halloween’ “Why is it ok one day a year to dip into the dark side? To scare small children? To be in or place a casket in your yard? If these behaviors can’t be done every other day of the year why this one day? I am sure that most people who send their children out Trick or Treating, are not trying to get in touch with their dark side. However, one cannot escape the fact of what Halloween is, it’s roots, and what it stands for. The Bible tells us to stay away from all forms of darkness. It tells us to think on what is good and pure and lovely. We can’t be on both sides of the fence. Halloween does not match up to Philippians 4:8 or 1 Thessalonians 5:22.”

 

Albert Mohler, an American theologican wrote an article last year that really sums up many thoughts that people may have on this subject “ While affirming that make-believe and imagination are part and parcel of God’s gift of imagination. Christians should still be very concerned about the focus of that imagination and creativity… Christian parents should make careful decisions based on biblically informed Christian conscience. Some Halloween practices are clearly out of bounds, others may be strategically transformed, but this takes hard work and may meet with mixed success. The coming of Halloween is a good time for Christians to remember that evil spirits are real and that the devil will size every opportunity to trumpet his own celebrity. Martin Luther commented: “ The best way to drive out the devil, if he will not yield to tests of Scripture, is to jeer and flout him for he cannot bear scorn.” Lets put the dark side on the defensive.”

 

My dad shared with me the other day when I brought this topic up with him that he heard something recently, “ We’re always telling our children not to except candy from strangers and not to walk up to people they don’t know and yet on October 31st we tell our children to go up to complete strangers and except candy from them. What is wrong with this picture?”

My other resource is from heartofwisdom.com from Robin Sampson. “God and His Word  are referred to as light. Halloween is in darkness and mischief, and false parading about under disguise, often evil and scary costumes. Halloween is not just a time for cornstalks, pumpkins, apples and cute and not-so-cute costumes. There is much, much more. Our God is a jealous God demanding exclusive devotion (Exodus 20:5.) Do you think He cares if you encourage your children to partake in a holiday that honors Satan, the god of this world?

Halloween’s History: Halloween’s roots come from the ancient Colts, a tribe living about 2,000 years ago in the areas that are now Ireland, Great Britain, and northern France. Halloween was their main holiday a festival that honored the end of the harvest. The celebration marked the season of cold, decay, and darkness. The custom of wearing costume and masks, was an attempt to copy the spirits or placate them.

Yearbook of English Festival by Dorothy Gladys Spicer says:
“ All Halloween, with its tradition of witches, ghosts, hobgoblins and spirits, its games and incantation, still is a gay time for pranks and parties in many North country homes. Fun-loving Americans have borrowed from their British ancestors many Halloween games such as apple-bobbing, nut roasting and tossing of apple parings. Transplanted to the New World soil, the old practices have become revitalized, and currently are observed with more enthusiasm than in the country of their birth…

Halloween in the United States: Because of Christianity among so many of the Puritan settlers, Halloween celebrations were not celebrated until the 1800’s when several immigrants from Ireland and Scotland introduced their Halloween customs. They brought various beliefs about ghosts and witches with them. Other groups added their own cultural influences to Halloween customs. German immigrants brought a vivid witchcraft lore, and Haitian and African peoples brought their native voodoo beliefs about black cats, fire, and witchcraft. All Saints Day, a day the seventh century church set aside for remembering early Christians who died for their beliefs, was first celebrated in the month of May. By the year 900 the date was combined with the pagan rituals to be celebrated November 1. Another name for All Saints Day was All Hallows. October 31 was known as All Hallows Eve which was shortened to Halloween. The church made a grave mistake trying to combine pagan worship with Christianity. This is not scriptural! Because of that unwise decision, Halloween remains a holiday in America today. Scriptures warn us that the sins of the fathers are visited upon the third and fourth generations. This pagan belief, even celebrated by Christian churches, celebrates the union of gods and a goddess in the universe that supposedly control the seasons, bring fertility to crops and animals, and bestow magical powers on their followers.

What does the Bible say about celebrating Halloween: Although the Bible doesn’t specifically mention Halloween by name, it makes it very clear that the origins and practices of Halloween (adapting pagan customs or borrowing the ways of those who worship a false god and using them to worship the true God) are detestable to God. Deuteronomy 12:29-32. The Bible clearly teaches us to say “no” to ungodliness and worldly passions and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age. Ephesians 5:1 tells us to be imitators of God. Our Lord Jesus would not go to a party to honor the feast of the Samhain. Moses did not come down from Mount Sinai and combine the Israelites Passover holiday with the idol worship that was going on. Allowing children to dress as witches and sorcerers or hanging evil decorations in our windows is imitating that which is evil.

Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said: I will dwell in them and walk among them. I will be their God, And they shall be My people. Therefore Come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, and I will receive you.

 

The verse says, “come out from among them, says the Lord.” Does that mean come out from among them–but don’t deprive your children from all that fun and candy — celebrate the same pagan ritual in your church building? The Bible is very clear about Christians being involved in such celebrations.

Halloween is more than childish fun. Witches have eight special holidays during the year. Halloween is their day above all days. Witchcraft is not child’s play. It is an abomination to the Lord. Johanna Michaleson, former occultist and author of The Beautiful Side of Evil said, “For a true Christian to participate in the ancient trappings of Halloween is as incongruous as for a committed Satanist coming from blood sacrifices on Christmas Eve to set up a nativity scene in his living room singing Silent Night, Holy Night with sincere devotion to baby Jesus!” One thing Halloween should not be for the Christian is a time of fear. It should be a time to rejoice in the fact that The Son of God appeared for this purpose, that He might destroy the works of the devil. (1 John 3:8). This is a time of spiritual warfare. October 31 should be spent in prayer for the community and children; a time of worship by singing praise to the Lord. This can be a good time to teach our children to sacrifice by not sharing in the rituals because you love the Lord. Whatever your family decides to do on this day, ask yourself, “Does it glorify the Lord?”

…they sacrifice to demons and not to God, and I do not want you to have fellowship with demons. You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons; you cannot partake of the Lord’s table and of the table of demons. Leviticus 17:7.

I know this is a lot of information about this ungodly holiday on October 31st, but I hope that it will open your eyes and give you a new perspective on the subject. My biggest concern is that Christians have accepted this holiday without questioning it, and asking whether they should take part, even with less scary activities (like participating in "Trunk of Treat" in your church parking lot).  Thank you for stopping by and reading my thoughts and many other people thoughts on this. Feel free to comment down below on what you think about Halloween. Please keep in mind that these are my thoughts, if you disagree with them that is totally fine. I hope you have a blessed day.

With Love, 

Kaila  

Day 3 on August 26th Jerusalem pictures

We have to stand up for Israel! 

Share what you are thankful for boards all in three different languages.

Kotel tunnel

Western/wailing wall

My family and me in front of the wall... Sorry for some of the closed eyes, it was so bright out.

Us ladies with our head coverings on. Those of you who have never been to Israel, all of the ladies are required to wear head coverings when entering to the woman section at the wall.

An elegant young woman playing the harp in Jaffa gate. My aunt and uncle, brother-in-law, older sister, lots of my friends and other people (plus a magazine) have taken pictures of this same woman. Apparently she sits here every day playing the harp. I promise this is the photo I took.

Israel has many fun looking and colored doors. Each door has a story and each person behind that door has a story.

Me posing in front of the door.

My sister in front of the door.

Jewish people don't use electricity or go on electronics during Shabbat so I wanted to respect that once the sun went down and when we were in our Shabbat of a lifetime hosts house. Sorry I didn't get any pictures of our lovely dinner and view on their roof.

October 24th , 2016- Day 3 in Jerusalem, August 26th

August 26^th, 2016- Day 3

After another wonderful breakfast, for the morning, we  went to the Western wall (the Kotel) for the Kotel tunnel tour – which is underneath the western wall. I felt very safe there especially because there are police and IDF soldiers everywhere. Our tour in the Kotel tunnel was so fascinating and our tour guide was so funny. She even made a couple of jokes about Sound of Music and not a lot of people got the joke because there were very few Americans there. She was Jewish and was originally from Wisconsin, but made Aliyah to Israel 10 years ago. This might seem silly but I never was really interested in the Western Wall before and I didn’t know why so many Jews cling to that wall. Well, on the tour I found out the western wall (especially one spot in the tunnel) is about a size of a football field about from where the Holy of Holies was located and the Jewish people want to be as close to God as possible. A majority of the tunnel is located under the Muslim quarter and we couldn’t do one part of the tour because it was Friday and that is the Muslim’s day of prayer so they had it locked off.

That trip, and even more on the third day, we had so many unfathomable moments that I don’t think I could ever express how my heart was touched. After the tour, went to pray at the Western Wall. Men and women are separated by a wall. My dad went to the men side and mom, my sister and I all headed to the ladies side for the Western Wall to pray. I wish we had more time there to pray and read our Bibles but the time that we did have was so special and meaningful. God really spoke to my heart there and many more places in Israel. Although the wall is a special place to be, I am so thankful that I can experience fellowship with God any time, any where because of my relationship to God through the blood of Yeshua.

We had lunch again in the Jewish Quarter and we went to a shop where my mom asked a lady for help with her phone. Mom also wanted to confirm directions to a meeting spot for later in the day,  that we were to meet our hosts for our Shabbat dinner at “Shabbat of a Lifetime”. The Jewish lady had made Aliyah to Israel  from New York so she spoke  English very well. She let us try to call our hosts on her phone and she told us exactly where to go because she lived only two doors down from our designated meeting spot with our hosts. She was so sweet and we were thankful for her sweetness and kindness. We later changed in our nice clothes for Shabbat and headed out on our walking adventure to the meet up place. All the Jewish people were out walking in their nice clothing to the synagogues and there were barely any cars out driving around since Jews don’t drive on Shabbat and we were at sundown. We came to the possible destination, in the dark, alone-wondering and hoping this was the spot, although we were the only tourists there. Then behold comes down the road our dear new friend that we had met in the shop to make sure we were ok and safe. She had such a thoughtful and concerned heart! We kept telling her that she was our Guardian angel. The Israeli’s we interacted with were all so kind and all of them have such a communal relationship with each other. I immediately felt like most people around me, even if I didn’t now them, were my family.

Our host eventually came and we went to their lovely home. Having Shabbat dinner with an orthodox Jewish couple was very unique and  special. I’ve never done that before so it was a memorable experience. The food was amazing, and the company was great. One of the Jewish ladies was asking us a lot of our beliefs, how we do Shabbat, celebrate the feasts etc.  Yet she knew we are Christians because we believe in Yeshua—yet we were sensitive in how and how much we spoke of  this. We are trying to build bridges with people who are Jewish and hopefully put a new face of Christianity before them. We shared  our many beliefs and observances of the Torah—so much that she said, “Are you sure you’re not Jewish?” She was confused but I hope we started a little flame of curiosity  within her. In Romans, it talks about provoking the Jews to jealousy. I think this happens, when there are Believers in Yeshua following  the commandments, even more faithfully than many Jews do, and showing great love and acceptance of our Jewish brethren. There are many secular Jews who  are 2x a year synagogue-goer Jews who observe Passover and Yom Kippur just like there are 2x a year church goers that only go on Easter and Christmas.  Our hosts however, were very observant, Orthodox Jews though not the ultra –orthodox with black coats, hats, and curls.  At the dinner, even though we have a different belief system than them, different view on politics we could all still talk with love. Sharing our believes freely and even though there’s the sad history of destruction of Jews in the name of Christianity  during the Crusades and Holocaust they had so much acceptance and love towards us. It was so nice. After dinner they took us up on their roof top and we had an amazing view of Jerusalem. We saw everything up there… it was incredible and breath taking. What a lovely night it was and a great experience. We headed back to our hotel at 2:30am… Jews sure do love to fellowship on Shabbat. It was great!

Pictures from the second day in Jerusalem

Our first breakfast in Jerusalem! 

This was the rude bird that stole my food 

Beautiful walk ways in the heights quarter

A bar-mitzvah

Over looking the City of David

Some of the ruins... Possibly King David's palace

Hezikah's tunnel

Beautiful flowers

A cute wild cat

Artsy photo of my sis and me

The streets are always alive in Israel

A wealthy mall in Jerusalem

This bread was so good! And they had such amazing spices

Fountains in the park that tons of children were playing in. It was a blast listening to all the children laughing and having a good time. 

Day 2 of Israel trip, October 20th, 2016

August 25^th, 2016 – Day 2 in Israel

I’m deciding that I’m going to be blogging very loosely about this trip. It takes a lot of time to give play by play but also I’m just wanting to get through the Israel travels and start a new kind of “series” of blog posts.

What a big day it was! At the end of the day our feet were burning, our bodies were so tired but we had a great day. A funny thing happened at breakfast that day. I selected a croissant and eggs for breakfast, set it outside and headed back inside for my tea. I came back onto the patio and there was this huge crow that had eaten almost all of my eggs and there was a table of little birds around. It was so funny and I for sure learned my lesson! At breakfast we would watch other people do the same thing and come back to their plate with parts of  their breakfast gone… it was so funny! J The breakfast was so elegant and huge. It was the nicest breakfast I’ve ever had at a hotel. While reading in my Bible that morning I kept reading verses about the mountain of Israel and Jerusalem and I was so excited. The Bible came so alive during this trip. It was incredibly special.

That day we walked pretty much everywhere. If you’ve been to Israel before you probably know how much walking there is, ha ha! Oh, and there are so many cats on the road. Someone told us that when the British came they brought cats to take care of the mice problem. Now that they have taken care of that problem, they have all these cats wondering around. At the City of David we met up with a group and toured around the city. We learned so much during this tour and the Bible really came alive. The ruins were incredible.  I just kept imagining David walking the roads. Looking over on the valleys I kept imagining King David, King Hezekiah, etc. walking the roads and hills. We then hiked down to this area where archaeologist think they might of found King David’s palace’s It had an amazing view of the city and valleys. Plus the original walls were still there, pillars and a stone with a design on it that is on the 5 shekel piece of money. It was really cool to be standing over a palace from 2,000 years ago and it was KING DAVID’S! It was great walking past places that are mentioned in the Bible. After a lot of hiking around we eventually entered Hezekiah’s tunnel where, we had been warned, could have water up to 2 ½ feet high.  The water was SO cold when we first entered! Then, it felt like nice mountain water which was actually refreshing after hiking in the hot sun. It was amazing to be walking through the same tunnel that people from the Bible walked in; the same walls and writings that were from the time of the Bible. It was such a cool feeling. It was so great to be there with my family and to need flashlights as we walked through the dark cold tunnel.

 That morning when we had been walking to the City of David, we passed two Bar-mitzvah parades and a wedding that were all happening at the same time near the Western wall which was so cool and joyful! We had lunch in the Old City of the Jewish Quarter with wonderfully tasting Israeli food. The smells, sounds, people and tastes there are incredible! I always had so much joy walking the stone streets there. Our family then visited the Temple Institute where we took a tour. This was such a cool experience and amazing to think that the things in the cases that have been created according to His word are being saved for the next temple. These were the actual things… not demonstrations. Afterwards we visited a shopping area  below the main streets of the Jewish Quarter in  Jerusalem. There were pillars from the time of the Bible and beautiful murals. It’s inspiring to think that the original pillars, walls, roads, bricks etc. were right below our feet. Because Jerusalem has been attacked/destroyed many times they have had to keep building up the walls and the city.

After dinner and adventuring around we visited a shop that HaYovel usually visits. The owners name is Moshe and he was such a kind, loving Jewish man. Boy was he so wise! He talked with us for about an hour and I learned so much from him. He was so interesting to listen to  and we enjoying supporting his shop. We’ve been asking what the Israeli’s would like us to tell people  back to America and all they have said is, “Please tell people to come and see for themselves what a wonderful country this is. The news is not reported accurately. Let people know there that all we want is peace. We welcome everyone. ”

Pictures from our travel day and the first day in Israel!

Heading off! 

Our food on the plane. 

Arriving in Tel Aviv 

Welcome to Israel! ❤️🇮🇱❤️

Me and my family in Tel Aviv! 

Archway at our hotel 

This is honestly the fanciest YMCA I have ever been in. 

Aroma coffee

About to enter the Jewish quarter 

In the Jewish quarter 

Everyone celebrating finishing another Torah scroll at the Wall.

The sign at the YMCA. 

Beautiful Israel flowers 

Septemeber 14th- Israel travel diary Day 1

September 14^th, 2016 Shalom y’all! It feels so good to be back. The last two ½ weeks has been so crazy but wonderful. August 20^th-22^nd was my brother and now sister-in-laws wedding at a ranch close to the border of Utah and Colorado. They had their ceremony at Rifle Falls, Colorado. It was a beautiful (but quick) ceremony/wedding. I had a blast staying at the ranch, goofing off with my siblings and niece and enjoying the beautiful scenery with my wonderful family. I will possibly be giving a blog post about the wedding or at least show the pictures. But I first want to share about my and my family’s two week incredible adventure to… ISRAEL!!! God’s Holy Land! Wow! All I can say is… wow. Our family experienced and did so much in just a two week period. We met so many wonderful new friends, saw amazing beautiful places that major events took place at, ate really tasty food and more. I will be sharing more thoughts on the trip itself after I give you a little taste into our days while being over there. So, lets get started.  

 On August 23^rd at 3:00am our family headed out to go to the airport. The day before leaving for Israel, we left the wedding celebrations, drove 5 ½ hours back home, cleaned, packed last minute things and slept for a few hours. Basically, it was all crazy! When we got up, though it was early, we had smiles on our faces with ready hearts for our much anticipated trip. We first drove to my sister and brother-in-laws house so that my older sister could take the car back after dropping us off at the airport. In the car my mom shared with us that she wants us to come back to America and be like Joshua and Caleb, sharing the truth and good report about Israel. Psalm 48:12-14. The news here in American doesn’t tell the truth at all about Israel. There aren’t bombings exploding everywhere you walk, or people betting stabbed every where you turned. No, most of the people were so friendly. Jews, Muslims and Christians are all walking on the same street into the same stores. The Jewish people, as a nation, are being mistreated by the extremist Muslims of the world because most of the Muslim world just hates them. In Israel, the Jewish people still live their lives. They don’t live their lives in fear, yet with caution. They try to live as normally as possible. It was so beautiful to see how life actually is there.

Anyway, 10 spies in the Bible came back with a false report saying that there were giants filling the land etc. but after Joshua and Caleb saw the land, they came back with a good true report. That’s what we feel called to do now that we are back. We are called to spread the truth about Jerusalem and Israel and show the people in America how 1. important the Land of Israel is and 2. how much the Jewish people need our support. America has begun to turn her back on Israel, which makes me so sad and they don’t deserve any of the hate they get. I just want you all to know that America is dangerous too. We aren’t safe anywhere. There are shootings happening in Chicago, Orlando etc. etc. I was telling a friend the other day that I felt safer sometimes in Israel then I do in Denver. You do want to use common sense in Israel, just like you do any where else. For instance, you don’t go to the Muslim places that have signs for Jews and Christians that say “go at your own risk, for you may be killed” but it’s the same with Denver and any other major city. Obviously, I wouldn’t go down a dark alleyway in the middle of the night in a city. Part of the reason I felt so safe in most parts of Israel was because 1. the people are so friendly and 2. there is literally IDF (Israeli Defense Force)  or city police soldiers everywhere you go. If something happens, there is most likely a soldier nearby to help you.

My little sister also shared in the car a verse that she read that morning in Exodus 33:14, “And He said, ‘My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”” My sister shared how this really touched her because all of us were tired that morning but His presence goes before us. He gave us the strength and rest that we needed. We said our goodbyes to my older sister, checked in, bought breakfast, went through security rather quickly, ate our breakfast and boarded our plane to Newark, NJ. On the plane I slept, ate, had a little “dance party” with my sister, listened to music, journal led and read. The flight went by really quickly which was nice. Our plane landed safely in Newark and we bought some really tasty New York pizza for lunch. It was crazy to see New York from the plane and then eat their pizza in New Jersey. Our family arrived to our gate 2 ½ hours early. At our gate, security guards came and told everyone to move somewhere else. They shifted our Tel Aviv gate - which was a little concerning. Once it got closer to time to board, we went through a small international security area. We had to set our bags on a table. They scanned the bags, scanned us and we gave them our passports. Everyone was able to sit down at the original gate again. I’m glad they had the extra security.

It really hit me that we were going to Israel when we were standing in line to board the plane, seeing all different kind of Jews, a few Muslims, and hearing the Hebrew language all around us. I could pick up some words here and there which was encouraging. It was so interesting seeing the different kind of Jews boarding. There were the ultra orthodox  Jews with the kippah, tzit tzit’s, black tall hats, long beards, and for the ladies long skirts, long shirts, and head coverings. Then there was the traditional, modern orthodox Jews who wore skirts and modest shirts but the men only wore a Kippah and tzit tzit’s. It was sweet that some of the children matched too.  Most of the ladies and girl children were wearing modest clothing with long skirts and longer shirts.  For my mom, sister and I it was really encouraging to see young ladies wearing modest clothing. Since we wear skirts the majority of the time, it was comforting to not be the only women wearing a skirt. I have never seen that many ladies and children on a plane all wearing skirts. Seeing the children run around wearing Kippah’s and tzit tzit’s or skirts was so sweet and it melted my heart. Also, hearing children call “Ima” or “Abba” was so sweet. We boarded the plane, had a kosher meal of chicken, rice, vegetables, bread and chocolate pudding. It was so nice in Israel that all of the restaurants we went to were Kosher so I didn’t have to worry about the pork or shellfish issue.

On the plane I did the same things that I did on the Denver to Newark flight and I also read a couple of verses that a very dear friend of mine gave to me before the trip. She had made this packet full of verses that really encouraged me so much. It was really sweet of her to think of me and do that. On the plane I got about 3 ½ hours of sleep and it was great waking up that morning seeing the sun rise and seeing Jews praying on the plane. Many of the men were covered in their prayer shawl and using their prayer books and many women were praying using their prayer books as well.  I felt very safe and comforted on the flight because so many people were praying, ha ha!

Alright, so now we are going into the 1^st day of the Israel adventures. Yay! When we landed into Israel many people was clapping, which was so fun! I was SO excited that we landed! I couldn’t keep the excitement in any longer. When we got off the plane everything was in Hebrew, even the exit sign! The Tel Aviv airport was so nice and clean. We found our way to where we needed to go very easily, thanks to the help of some English signs, praise God. It REALLY started to hit me that we were finally in Israel when we were driving and seeing all of the Hebrew and Arabic signs. My dad was very brave to drive on that trip. He did such a wonderful job, and we were all proud of him. If you ever go to Jerusalem, just a warning, people love to honk their horns there… even if you are doing nothing wrong. It was so funny to hear the horns honking everywhere you go. I will say I witnessed lots of impatience! As we drove up the hill we started to see “The city on a Hill” a.k.a. Jerusalem! It was amazing coming over the peak and seeing houses, lots of construction going on, tall business like buildings, brick walls etc. I can’t explain the sight but it was beautiful seeing so much life in the city. Our family had a lot of confusion driving around trying to find our hotel but we all stayed calm and finally found our way around. We checked in, met up with a friend of several of our Colorado friends, talked a little bit, and headed out. Our friend took us through a park called Teddy Park. Teddy saved over 3,000 Jews during the Holocaust time through an under ground tunnel. They made this park in remembrance of him. Fountains were on in the park and there was at least 100 children (and some parents) laughing and having a blast in the fountains. I noticed in Israel that so many of the Jewish families are so family oriented. It is really nice for a change. Everyone was having a great time. Our friend told us that it was the last week of summer so everyone was out enjoying fun activities before school starts. I have never seen so many Jewish families at one place and enjoying life together. It truly warmed my heart!

 We then walked through a fancy mall that has the best coffee I have ever tasted. For the Starbucks lovers out there, it was so much better then Starbucks. The coffee shop was called Aroma and I can’t tell you how many times our family got coffee there while in Jerusalem. It’s kind of embarrassing how often we went, ha ha! We soon had the joke: “when tired in the morning-afternoon-or evening, drink Aroma. When it’s hot outside, get Aroma. Need a small treat, get Aroma.”  This first time, we all got regular iced coffee, and chocolate croissants for a little snack. Everything was so good! With coffee in our hands we headed through the Jewish quarter. How beautiful it was through there. Everything was so clean and there were beautiful flowers growing. Also, seeing the Israeli flag is so nice and comforting. On our way down to the Western Wall, we passed a lot of Jews trying to hand red strings out. A friend of mine suggested that we don’t take anything that is handed out, especially the red strings that were being handed out in Jerusalem. When we arrived down to the wall, there were at least 2,000-3,000 Jews celebrating with singing, dancing and waving of flags and a gigantic video screen displaying the key people. We asked someone what was going on and they said that for about three years they have been working on a new Torah scroll and they had just finished it. Every letter and detail on a Torah scroll has to be perfect and there was about 30,000 shekels ($7,500 dollars) poured into this. How exciting it was to see many people rejoicing and celebrating God’s Word. It was really inspiring to me seeing that many people rejoicing for God and His Word. If only we all rejoiced and celebrated like that too. We overlooked where the City of David was and where David would’ve come up singing the Psalms of Ascents. That was a cool image in my mind and another goose bumps moment (I had many of those on the trip J). Our friend then pointed out to us the Mount of Olives which has a pretty amazing significance to it too.

Our family had a lot of tears on the first day just seeing the Bible come alive in such an amazing way that I could never put into words.

 We then hiked back up through the Jewish quarter. There are a ton of stairs and hills. Some days we got very sore and tired. We found our way by ourselves and I think we did a good job for our first time. For dinner my sister and dad had Israeli pizza and my mom and I had the best chicken schwarma and humus sandwich that I have ever had! The humus in Colorado is so fake now that I have tasted the real stuff.  We arrived back to the hotel safely and a crazy thing happened while we were walking up in the Jewish quarter. We passed a HaYovel group. This is a ministry we are fond of and where many friends serve. By the time it all registered, we wondered if one of my friends siblings were in that group and we didn’t realize it until it was too late to go say hi. We considered running down, but the streets are hilly and sometimes slick. I was so bummed, but it was so fun to see/pass people we know from the USA in Israel already. On a transparent side, I did have some thoughts and some fears back home knowing that we were going to be seeing and be around Arabs. But when I came into the land all of my fears went away and I felt so joyful and brave. It was a really great comforting feeling.

 I hope you all enjoyed the travel days + the first day in Jerusalem. I hope to be posting a lot these next couple of weeks of our adventures in Israel. I will also be showing some photos on here of our trip. Hope y’all will come back for more.

 Shalom and Blessings to you,

Kaila