Nazareth

After visiting Megiddo, the site of the final battle led by Jesus Himself, we stopped at the town where he spent most of His childhood -- Nazareth. It's a busy city now with a mix of the old and the modern. The city streets were crowded; we saw both mosques and churches.

Our stop was at the Greek Orthodox Church of the Annunciation built over the well where many believe the angel Gabriel appeared to Mary announcing that she would be the mother of Jesus.

Lon reminded us that NOTHING is impossible with God and challenged us to think about how we might be limiting Him. Do we fail to pray with boldness and faith? Do we stop praying when a situation looks hopeless -- when that could be the exact time God is waiting to act -- when all human hope is gone?

We were all challenged to pray big, to pray with right motives, to pray without giving up, and to pray with expectation. That was personally challenging to me. I have several people I've spent years praying for. Sometimes I'm tempted to give up. But standing in the holy land and reflecting on the God who continually did the "impossible" I found renewed hope and perseverance to continue. How about you?