Thirty years ago I journeyed to the Holy Land with a group from my church.  I was on the church staff at the time with not a thought of entering the ministry.  But that trip in the summer along with a mission trip to Haiti in the fall changed my life forever.

Some day I will write a series here on the blog about moments in the Holy Land.  One thing was a certainty…you could never predict where or when a special “God moment” might pop up!  All you could do was expect that to happen and expect to be surprised.  One of those moments happened in Bethlehem.

This illustration is by Elisa Klenen from the book “B Is for Bethlehem” by Isabel  Wilner.  I love the colors, patterns, rhythm and overall feeling of the village of Bethlehem.  I do have to smile at how prim and proper Mary appears on the donkey.  And side saddle to boot!  And she is not even holding on!  She has that balance thing going really well by now!  Joseph might even be sleep walking.

When I visited Bethlehem, there was a town square, and a church built over the spot that is thought to be the birthplace of baby Jesus. You had to stoop low, I remember. And I found myself kneeling there.  It was certainly a moment, but there was a long line single file, so we were pretty much herded through and it felt a little “programmed” to me.  As I have said before, you could never predict when a moment would be meaningful.  But then the moment came…

Upon leaving the church we crossed the square which was packed with people.  All of a sudden a man who lived in Bethlehem was beside me.  He had worked his way through the crowd to hand me this gift

He put the cross in my hand and said, ” My wife saw you from a distance and wanted me to give you this cross.”  I thanked him and stood there stunned, looking at the cross in my hand.  How did I get this?….why ME? I then realized that I am quite tall and the truth is I almost always stand out in any crowd.  Plus I am blond amidst mostly dark haired people in Israel.  But still, out of all this crowd in the middle of Bethlehem square, why ME?

I have saved and treasured this cross all these years because of its message to me.  We can go to Bethlehem, visit the place of Jesus’ birth, kneel at the manger, but unless we leave with the essence of the cross, did we really get it?  Do we truly understand who this baby is?….Savior of the world!

We hear the song again….”Come thou long expected Jesus, born to set thy people free.”

Questions to ponder…

Is there a cross that stands out in your mind as being special?  Or perhaps more than one.  What is it about them? Recall the memory, and experience God’s grace again.

nk