Dwelling

“One thing have I asked of the Lord, 

that I will seek after:

that I may dwell in the house of the Lord

all the days of my life,

to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord

and to inquire in His temple.”

Psalm 27:4

It’s proving to be harder to write these blogs than I thought! I’m getting into a rhythm here with classes, friends, and going on little adventures. The day-to-day is so fun that I forget sometimes to document it! A little over 3 weeks in now, I feel less like a tourist. I’m not scrambling to take pictures all the time, and my friends and I always laugh a little when we see tour groups with cheesy matching hats. Jerusalem is starting to feel like home – like a dwelling place.

Psalm 27 (specifically verse 4) has been important to me in the last year of my life. Senior year of college was full of big questions, hard lessons, cool God moments, and heartache. I prayed this verse often with longing in my heart for something to be different – for God’s presence to dissolve the pain or confusion that I felt so that I could just dwell. But I really didn’t know how to dwell.

Yashav ( יָשַׁב ) Is the Hebrew word in this Psalm for the world “dwell” – It was actually on my vocabulary quiz this past week! How cool is that? As I’m learning what it means to dwell here, let me show you some of what that looks like.

Student Activity Day: A much needed break from classes and studying – we got to go to Gan Hashlosha National Park, and spend the day swimming in a literal Oasis. Just an hour and a half north of Jerusalem, you can find these spring-fed pools connected by waterfalls. A beautiful place, and some really cool people to enjoy it with. Plus, I just really have a thing for waterfalls. Pretty much the ideal “dwelling” situation.

I’m also extremely grateful for the chance to return to a lot of places that I went to on my previous trip to Israel. This past weekend we visited Bethlehem and the Mount of Olives – both of which had very special and significant memories attached to them from the first time I came here. It was so cool to feel a sense of familiarity with these places, but still learn a ton all while treasuring the memories from last time. Let me share some more specifics:

We hiked to the top of a tower in Jerusalem called the Herodian. This huge palace is just one of many that King Herod built all over this land, and it overlooks Bethlehem and Jerusalem. Back in May of 2018 when I came here with GVSU, I got to recite the story of Jesus’ birth while standing on the ledge looking over the city. I couldn’t help thinking about how this memorization challenge sparked in me a love for and desire to memorize scripture. It was hard to believe that I was really back in that place, and that it’s only a bus ride away from where I sleep every night.

A very specific place I was excited to go back to on the Mount of Olives is the Garden of Gethsemane. For some reason, this was a place where God really met me the first time I came to Israel. I remember so vividly praying for people I loved in that place, and being overwhelmed by the thought that Jesus once prayed for all of us in that place. In fact, the Garden of Gethsemane was likely a pretty regular prayer spot for Jesus. There are tons of clues in the gospels that lead us to believe that he came here a lot to talk to God. There are a couple different churches and sites that are dedicated to remembering this sacred spot – this place where Jesus prayed fervently before His arrest. But the place that holds the memories for me, and the place we returned to again this past Sunday is called the Church of All Nations.

At the base of Mount Zion, surrounded by centuries-old Olive trees, this breathtaking church invites you to remember the story of Jesus’ famous prayer: “Nevertheless, not my will, but yours be done” (See Matthew 26 for the story). It was surreal to be back in this place where I had been moved to tears by the beauty of Christ’s sacrifice, and by my own tendency to forget it. I couldn’t wrap my head around the fact that 1. God met me here in this place in a significant way, and 2. He allowed me the opportunity to come back and remember it. I didn’t sob the same way I did last time, but a couple tears did sting in my eyes as I sat again in these pews:

This is when a sense of dwelling really hit me again. As we walked away from the church, I was overwhelmed with gratitude. I couldn’t help thinking about the fact that most followers of Jesus come here once in their lives – if that. And I get to come back? For three months? Absolutely crazy. I thought again about the short bus ride (or hour walk) it would take to come back to this place while I’m living in Jerusalem. Because I am actually living in JERUSALEM.

Yashav. It actually means to sit down, to stay, remain, and to dwell. I love that this is the word the Psalmist uses when He talks about dwelling in the house of the Lord. The temple that would have come to mind for the Psalmist when he wrote “house of the Lord” no longer stands in Jerusalem, but there’s no doubt that it’s still a special place. For three months, I get to sit down, remain, and stay here. I get to dwell in the house of the Lord. I think back to how I prayed this prayer in Psalm 27:4 a year ago, and I definitely did not think that God would answer it in such a literal way.

Dwelling looks like investing in the people I’m surrounded by, and hearing their stories. One of the reasons it has taken me so long to write another post is because I’ve been spending most of my free time talking to these people. I love hearing where they’re from, what they’re learning, and asking them what their dreams are. And I really love taking selfies inside old ruins with them! They’re as goofy and fun as they are deep and full of life. We’re all coming from different places, but I’m really pumped about all the things God is going to do here, and the things I’ll get to witness.

Another aspect of dwelling that I’m really loving is getting to know the land. Our Physical Settings of the Bible class focuses a lot on Geology, Archaeology, and Weather patterns in the land of Israel. If I’m being honest, it was not really a part that I expected to connect with much. I thought it would be interesting, but I didn’t expect that it would make me feel so connected to this place. I really can’t stress this enough – the Bible makes SO MUCH more sense when you understand this kind of stuff!!

A lot of Christians – especially in the western world – approach reading the Bible in a way that just assumes there will be a lack of understanding. It’s almost like somewhere along the way, someone told us “The Bible is confusing, and you’re just gonna have to deal with it.” But I’m not really a fan of this mindset! I’m learning that there are no “extra” words in the Bible – everything in it is intentional, and helps us learn something about who God is. Take weather patterns, for example. God put His people in a land that has very specific seasons of rainfall, which meant that they were extremely dependent on the Lord’s provision for water as a life source. Understanding the weather cycle hear in Israel makes the biblical metaphors about “a dry and weary land” contrasted with “living water” so powerful.

We stood on the top of the Mount of Olives with our backs to Jerusalem, facing east. Looking out over the Judean wilderness, we saw what the prophet Jeremiah was talking about when he talked about drought in chapter 14. Often a lack of rain is used to symbolize or emphasize Israel’s desperation for God, especially when they have strayed from Him. All of the darker brown stuff in the picture above is dead, dried up foliage. It hasn’t rained at all in this part of Israel in at least four months – which is pretty typical for the dry season. Reading Jeremiah 14 as I looked out over this valley made this passage so much more real and tangible. I feel like I can picture Jeremiah climbing the Mount of Olives, and using this dry and desolate land as a metaphor to help the people understand just how badly they need to be made right with God.

It’s little things like this. Moments where suddenly the details make sense, and I have a picture in my head to go with a passage. It’s something that I would have trouble doing if I wasn’t here, walking around and experiencing Israel in a tangible way. I’m not saying that its necessary to come to Israel in order to understand the Bible – that’s definitely not true. But I am incredibly grateful for the way that being here brings the word of God to life!

I truly feel like I am dwelling in the House of the Lord, gazing upon His beauty, and inquiring in His temple during this really special season of life. (Most of the inquiry happens during Hebrew class.) But any of us can do those things anywhere – not just in Jerusalem! So think about what dwelling with the Lord means for your life right now. How can you Yashav – sit down, stay, remain, and dwell in his presence? Psalm 27:4 is a prayer you can pray that I’m 100% sure God would love to answer “YES” to.

Speaking of Prayer! Here are my prayer requests:

• Praise point – I’m really starting to see God at work among the students here! Pray that He would move and open our hearts to what He’s doing in us individually and as a group
• Academic focus and motivation. It’s getting a little tough! But so so good.
• That I would make it a priority to sit with the Lord, and just listen.
• Continued prayer for the political state of Israel!

Shalom,

Hannah Marie ❤