the majesty and wonder of our great I AM...

2,000 year-old olive tree in Garden of Gethsemane

Looking up to heaven through the branches of a 2,000 year-old olive tree

the Garden of Gethsemane on the Mount of Olives

walking down the Mount of Olives to the Garden of Gethsemane

Our Israeli tour bus stopped at the top of the Mount of Olives. As I stepped off the bus, and my foot first touched the Mount of Olives, I became so aware of the holy presence of our Lord. I remembered God's Word in Zechariah 14:4...On that day, His Feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west.

My Lord and Savior Jesus Christ walked here, prayed here, ascended to Heaven here, and one day He will return here, splitting the Mount of Olives like the veil of the temple.

As I begin to walk down the steep incline down the Mount of Olives to the Garden of Gethsemane, my eyes begin to fill with tears for the sweat drops of blood pressed from my Savior as He wept and prayed, My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet, not as I will, but as You will.

Touching this huge olive tree, estimated to be over 2,000 years old, I suddenly realize, He could have prayed here that night, beside this very tree. That night when He went further still after asking His disciples to pray with Him for just an hour...the place where Jesus was betrayed with a kiss.

Picturing the scene from John 18:4-6, Jesus knowing all that was going to happen to Him went out and asked them, Who is it you want?" When Jesus said, "I AM," they drew back and fell to the ground.

I hear my dear Lord saying, "I AM," right here where I am standing now. My God and my Savior Jesus Christ, the great "I AM."

What power knocked 600 armed soldiers to their backs? The God of all creation, El Elyon, the Sovereign and Supreme Most High God, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob stood before them in living, breathing flesh and uttered His perfect, divine, and holy name: "I AM!"

Remembering Acts 1:11-12, This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen Him go into heaven. Then they returned to Jerusalem from the hill called the Mount of Olives.

I will never be the same again...Lord Jesus, open the blocked artery that connects my head to my heart. Open my mind that I may understand the Scriptures, to have Your Feast every day until I see You Face-to-face. In the precious and holy name of Jesus Christ, I pray, amen

Take a few moments to lose yourself in the majesty and wonder of our great "I AM" in the lyrics of this song by Mark Schultz.

Was this encouraging to you? Please feel free to leave a comment in the box below. I'd love to hear from you!

Linking up with Holley Gerth's Coffee for Your Heart as an encourager.

Jesus, the One and Only

Beth Moore opened our "Jesus, the One and Only" Bible study by sharing the Scripture Luke 24:45-48, "Then He opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. He told them, "This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in His Name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high." 

Beth Moore prayed, "Open our minds, beginning at Jerusalem, to receive a fresh anointing, to receive power, to be clothed in power for the rest of our lives."

Excerpt from the book, "Meeting God in Holy Places," by F. LaGard Smith: "We will walk together in the land of Israel, rediscovering the holy places where God interacted with his chosen people in a special way. I say, "holy places," knowing that it is not the places themselves that are holy, but the recorded presence of God in those places that has made them so. We will walk up the Mount of Olives and stop to meditate in the quiet of the Garden of Gethsemane. You can almost see Jesus weeping over it, crying once again, "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, how often have I longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing." 


Jerusalem was always special to God. It was Jerusalem where God chose to have Solomon build the temple. Jerusalem, where Jesus made his triumphal entry on the foal of a donkey. Jerusalem, where the Good News would first be preached by the apostles. No wonder we look forward to the heavenly Jerusalem! Somewhere in that lowly village of Bethlehem, south of Jerusalem, God surprised us by coming into our world so that we might enter into His. 


This is the incredible impact of a visit to Israel. As you walk away from Bethlehem, or Gethsemane, or the Jordan River, your life will never again be the same. You've walked on "Holy Ground." You've touched and been touched. You've seen the face of God more clearly than ever before. This is the land where God chose to reveal Himself to us. Something deep within myself is prompted by what I see: a new thought, a different perspective; a grander vision of who I can be as a servant of God."

Garden of Gethsemane on the Mount of Olives

2000 year old olive tree on Mount of Olives

Looking up to heaven from under the 2000 year old olive tree



Garden of Gethsemane on the Mount of Olives








It was Wednesday, March 15, 2000, the tour bus stopped at the top of the Mount of Olives. As I stepped off the bus, and my foot first touched the Mount of Olives, I became so aware of the presence of the Lord, I remembered God's Word in Zechariah 14:3-9..."on that day, His Feet will stand on the Mount of Olives and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west."

Walking down the Mount of Olives

My Lord and Savior Jesus Christ walked here, prayed here, ascended to Heaven here, and one day He will return here, splitting the Mount of Olives like the veil of the temple. As I begin to walk down the steep incline down the Mount of Olives to the Garden of Gethsemane, my eyes begin to fill with tears for the sweat drops of blood pressed from my Savior as He wept and prayed, "My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet, not as I will, but as You will."


Standing beside this olive tree, estimated to be over 2,000 years old, I realize, He could have prayed here that night, beside this very tree, when He went further still, when Jesus was betrayed with a kiss.


In John 18:4-6, "Jesus knowing all that was going to happen to Him went out and asked them, "Who is it you want?" When Jesus said, "I AM," they drew back and fell to the ground." I can hear my dear Lord saying, "I AM," here where I am standing now. My God and my Savior Jesus Christ, the great "I AM"...what knocked 600 armed soldiers to their backs? The God of all creation, El Elyon, the Sovereign and Supreme Most High God, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob stood before them in living, breathing flesh and uttered His perfect, divine, and holy name: "I AM!" In Acts 1:11-12, "This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen Him go into heaven. Then they returned to Jerusalem from the hill called the Mount of Olives." I will never be the same again..."Lord Jesus, open the blocked artery that connects my head to my heart. Open my mind that I may understand the Scriptures, to have Your Feast every day until I see You Face-to-face. In the precious and holy name of Jesus Christ, I pray, amen."

View of Jerusalem from walkway down the Mount of Olives