One day we woke up early and walked to the Mount of Olives (which is east of Jerusalem) to watch the sunrise on the city. It was beautiful. You can see the line of the sun and shadow of the Mount of Olives in the picture. Watching it helped me understand the passion and love the Old Testament characters had for the city and the sorrow Jesus felt. It is an amazing place. While watching, I listened to the song "All the Poor and Powerless" on repeat (it was a tip from a professor about remembering a place by listening to a song over and over). There is a bridge in the song about shouting it to the masses that He is God. This is a city that needs to know that Christ is God.
This picture is the dome in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre that is above the place were Jesus was buried and rose again. I spent about three hours alone in this church (trying to ignore the tourists) praying and reading the four passion narratives. You feel something very powerful when in this place. Being there made me want to identify more with the death and resurrection of Jesus. "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live but Christ in me."
You can see the signs of conflict all over the city and country. Most signs are in three languages, Hebrew, Arabic, and English. If you are in the right part of town (like the Jewish quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem above) then the population often covers up the particular language they do not like. Here someone has put a Hebrew sticker over the Arabic which reveals their desires for those who speak Arabic to leave. Pray for peace here.
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