Christ Only

“The only way that we may overcome the world is by coming unto Christ. And coming unto

Christ means walking away from the world. It means placing Christ and Christ only at the center

of our lives so that the vanities and philosophies of men lose their addictive appeal.” ~Sheri L.

Dew, “We Are Women of God

Field Trips

"The Bus"

The Dead Sea was our last field trip on the bus. I've spent more time on a bus the past semester than probably all my time on a bus previously combined.

 Yes, our field trips are for a field trip class. I get credit for this (well, one credit).

 My class at the Sea of Galilee.

My class at Jerash.

Love Nuts

I would like to introduce you to my new-found favorite little snack:

We affectionately termed them "love nuts." In arabic they are called kabooki. They are peanuts coated in something and then baked, I think. I really don't know what the peanuts are hidden in. They are just super crunchy, peanutty, interesting little balls of goodness that whisper to you to eat more and then go buy 5 more shekels worth tomorrow.

I just had to post something today because the rest of the week we have class and final exams, and as much as I want to get as many posts in before I leave in 10 days (ahhhh!!!!), this week is going to be a huge determining factor in my GPA....maybe I should find some love nuts to get me through. Or else I might go nuts.

Lowest Place on Earth

Today's field trip probably made top five. We boarded the bus as a class for the very last time. Que triste. We first went to Qumran, where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found. Then we went to Masada. We took a cable car to the top of the cliff where the palace was (I wanted to hike up, but we weren't allowed to). Masada is one of Herod's great palaces where Jewish zealots gathered under the attack of the Romans in 73 AD.  They were there under seige and...well, I'll let you research the story if you don't know it because it is pretty sad.

Then we went to Ein Gedi which is a beautiful nature reserve where we hiked to some water falls. This is Brittnie, Jessica and I--we were all in the same freshman ward and now we're in Jerusalem. Are we not so lucky?

And then.....we went to the DEAD SEA.

I've always heard you float like a cork, but then I went in and really floated like a cork! It is unbelievably buoyant! You can't keep yourself down if you tried. You get a little water in your eye and it burns, you get some in your mouth and it's the worst taste ever. 

Can I just say that effortlessly floating on the dead sea in heavenly sunshine with wonderful friends at the tail end of  a semester of once-in-a-lifetime opportunities is a beautiful thing?

Mud bliss.

Pieces of Jordan

We got to spend a few days in Jordan this week as our last excursion! We first went to Mount Nebo where Moses looked out over the promised land. Then we went to Medaba, Macheras, then to Petra where we stayed the night in a really nice hotel. Centurions greeted us at the door and did a little welcoming show for us. Centurions. Yep.

The next morning our tour guide Muhammad led us through Petra. We walked through the Siq, which is just like the Narrows at Zions National Park if you've been there, and at the end saw the Treasury peeking between the rocks.

We hiked to a monastery after that, ate lunch at a nice restaurant at the base of the mountains, and explored on our own for a couple more hours looking at the tombs carved into the mountains and excavations of temples and palaces of the Nabateans (it's ok, I hadn't heard of them before this trip, either).

Other highlights of Jordan were the Jabbok river where Jacob wrestled with a messenger of God (see Genesis 32), a huge, old Roman city called Jerash, the Shobak castle, Ajnun castle, and staying in a super duper nice hotel in Amman, the capital of Jordan. We also visited the baptismal site of Jesus on the Jordan river, and ate KFC in the middle of the desert (in Jordan it is actually Kentucky Fried Camel, did you know that?). Another highlight was going to the Mecca Mall one night and having a 10-minute argument with our taxi driver about how much we should really pay him.

This is me getting beheaded by my friend Sarah....or, at least I thought we were friends. What an  honor to be beheaded at Macheras, where John the Baptist was imprisoned and beheaded.

 The Treasury at Petra! Featured in the one and only Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. We got to ride horses out of Petra just like Indy....only I don't think he had a horse guide who asked him to be his boyfriend like I did.

 Who knew I would feel like a celebrity at Jerash? There were hundreds of school kids there that day and Americans were more of an attraction than the ancient Roman city. I am on the cell phones and cameras of tons of Jordanian kids.

 Susie and I overlooking part of Petra and the Monastery, which is just another tomb.

We got to go in the King Abdullah Mosque in the Amman! We had to cover our heads and take our shoes off. It was really interesting. They pray five times a day and make it such an ordeal. I'm listening to the call to prayer here in Jerusalem as I type this, and I realize I'm going to kind of miss the endearing call that I hear five times a day that reminds me to pray as it does the Muslims.

Ein Karem and more

My bishop from Sedona and his wife were in Jerusalem and we spent the day together today! It was a blast and I'm so thankful to have them as friends and a blessing in my life; they are really good examples to me. They were really good to me and my friends and we all had a really enjoyable, solid day in what has become one of my favorite cities.

We went to Ein Karem, a town west of Jerusalem where John the Baptist was born and lived. We went to the church of his birthplace and the Church of the Visitation where Mary met Elizabeth. We talked with a Fransiscan monk there who was pretty interesting. Then we went to Ben Yehuda street in West Jerusalem and had lunch and ice cream. Then we went on Rampart's walk which is a walk on the walls of the Old City and saw some beautiful views. It was a perfect day.

General Conference is this week and we watched the first session at 7 p.m. last night. The second session was from 11 p.m. to 1 a.m. and I didn't stay up for that. Speaking of John the Baptist though, there is a scripture where John's apostles ask him about how Christ is gaining more followers than John the Baptist. John says that this is what was suppossed to happen, he said, "He must increase and I must decrease." His job was to prepare the people for Christ, and then step out of the limelight. While listening to General Conference, I think this is a good question to consider: What should decrease in my life to let Christ increase?

Jerusalem is my classroom

My favorite picture of yesterday: finding these little Jewish boys eating popsicles in the Old City. Does a scene get much cuter?

This is us and Hashem (in the middle) on the roof of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. In this church is where many believe the stone of Golgatha is that the cross was on, and the stone of unction where they anointed Christ's body. I've been wanting to get on the roof of the Church, so yesterday we ran into a shopkeeper and were just talking to him about Utah (he loves BYU students and is so sweet to us). I asked him if he knew how to get on the roof (it isn't really permitted to go up there) and he made it his mission to take us there. We didn't get to go all the way up, but we got part way and got some wonderful views. It was exciting!

Today we went to the Israel Museum as a research assignment. We spent three hours just doing the exhibits that are required and could have spent several more hours there. Seeing the Dead Sea Scrolls was just the beginning.

My homework list right now entails writing a 7-page paper about this, making a map of Israel, and New Testament reading. It's such enjoyable, interesting homework! We only have 21 days left and I'm cherishing every moment.