Mom goes to Israel

What an amazing week - celebrating Mom's birthday. You've seen the stuff on the web... here's a compilation the links to share in the celebration... leave a comment if you know of more....

Ken's LeaderFOCUS

Roger's BLOG ENTRY

Mom's ISRAEL ITINERARY (Mom will be leaving this coming Sunday for 17 days in Israel. She'll travel with her close friend Gail Sheldon, stay in Haifa with Vonnie and Greg and travel and study with the School of Ministry in Mt. Carmel). Click anywhere on the image to advace the slide.

MEMORY VIDEO

Share this link with people who love Mom.

Ken

Duncans ready for Halloween

Just in case you missed it... here are some great shots. Kenny, Wil and Rebecca. Thanks for sharing them, Kris. Click on slide show for larger images at the Picassa site.

Maui - Memory Album

Carolyn and I returned from five days on Maui with our good friends, Darrol and Stephanie Johnson. Check out some of the sights. View Larger Show Picassa Page for downloads, etc Home

Aloha!

Sunday about noon, we arrived at Kahului Airport on Maui where our good friends Darrol and Stephanie (Johnson) met us with big smiles, hugs and the traditional Hawaiian lei. The orchids signalled a paradigm shift... a doorway to a new world... we'll be here relaxing here on the island for the week. God is good. Very good.

Emily's Debut

Emily serenades the family reunion with a rousing rendition of the Battle Hymn. Her accompanist is Uncle Bruce.

Enjoy! (forward a link to your friends)

Rebecca celebrates her first birthday

Carolyn and I visited the Duncans in Fontana today to celebrate our first grandaughter's first birthday. Check out the photos... they speak for themselves. SEE SLIDESHOW and download photos...

Rebecca First Birthday 07

Noah's First Birthday

Carolyn and I attended the Saturday party along with some twenty-five others here in Holly Springs, NC. Take a look!

Watch video

Greetings from Holly Springs!

We've arrived... and we're preparing for a great first birthday party. More photos to come...

See more photos of Noah.

Three Generations

Kris and Rebecca pose with Grandma Carolyn for a Mother's Day memory. Click on the photo for a full resolution copy. Great lookin' ladies, huh?

Welcome Elijah Edward Michels!

Grant and Therese are Dad and Mom! Congratulations!

Birthday: April 29, 2007
Name: Elijah Edward Michels
Weight:3180 grams (about 7 pounds)
Height: 49 CM or 18”
Hair: curly brown

Watch Video Short

Here's Grant's announcement -

"What a day! Last night our little boy decided he didn’t want to wait another month… we were visiting Therese’s parents in Stockholm for the weekend Therese’s water broke at midnight. The decision was made to make the two hour drive back to Örebro to deliver our baby. After being in the hospital in Örebro for a little less than nine hours our little Elijah Edward was born… We choose this name because God laid it on our hearts that our boy will, “Go on before the Lord in the Spirit and power of Elijah to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.” (Luke 1:17). There is so much to process, and many tears. Mother and child are recovering well… Now off I go to get some rest after quite an exhausting day."

Kenny's First T-Ball Game

Last Saturday, on a cold and windy day before Easter, we watched Kenny play his first game. Ben is assistant coach, Mom (Kristyn) and Rebecca were there along with William to cheer him on. Remember - Kenny's four. Ha! Go Giants!

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Trevi Fountain - Rome

Roma!

Today, we toured the magnificent remains of the nearly two thousand year old Coliseum. There’s a surprising (for us, anyway) link to our Jerusalem visit. When Vespasian launched the construction of the mammoth arena, it was in celebration of the suppression of the Jewish revolt. Roman soldiers transported slaves and booty from the spoils of a destroyed Jerusalem and surrounding cities. The remnants were used to build the mighty stadium. Perhaps some of the stones from the Temple in Jerusalem now support the ruins of the Coliseum… a cruel irony.
This is but one of the many discoveries jumping off the pages of history as we tour the city of Rome. We got our first look at a Michelangelo original – Moses in the Chapel of St. Peter’s Chains. Later, we wandered deep below ground level to observe ancient Christian gravesites in the Catacombs.

We’re still waiting for the delivery of two lost pieces of luggage. An annoyance for sure; but it hasn’t dampened our spirits. Scott and Terri Last have joined us, as have Steve and Lana Giacumakis. Both couples are adding a lot to our group; joining right in.

Tomorrow – Vatican City. It’s Palm Sunday week – pilgrims are pouring into the city.

Thanks for keeping up. More to come.

Late night in Tel Aviv

Greetings on our last night in Israel.

It’s been an unforgettable week… the stories are piling up. We’ve barely had time to keep a sketchy journal. After four days in Jerusalem, we learned our way around – from the Mount of Olives, down the hill to the Garden of Gethsemane then up to the Lion’s Gate. Just inside, we sang worship songs and hymns in the pitch-perfect acoustics of St. Anne’s and up the hill down narrow cobblestone streets of the Via Dolorosa. The Archeological exhibition at the ancient Herodian Wall (the South West corner) gave us a sense of the sheer enormity of the construction effort – and then the sheer horror of the crushing Roman defeat of the Jewish rebellion of 70AD. Following the Western Wall north, under the city down tunnels deep beneath ground level, we got as close as one might to the spot where the Holy of Holies was restricted to an annual visit by the High Priest. We watched as hundreds approached the Western Wall with round-the-clock fervent prayers for the restoration of God’s presence in that place.

The last two days took us out of the city to Qumran and the community of the Essenes, then north through the Jordan River Valley and the ruin at Beth Sh’an where Saul and his sons had the corpses put on display in humiliation. It opened the door for David’s reign. The kibbutz at Galilee hosted us for the night, and in the morning, we boarded a quaint replica of a first century boat. We crossed over to Capernaum on a picture perfect day; read passages from the Gospels that came alive on the spot. We followed the steps of Jesus when he found his disciples, among them fishermen from these shores. Then over to Nazareth and up to Mt Carmel where Elijah faced the prophets of Baal. There, we met with Vonnie and Greg at the Mt Carmel Assembly. We got a glimpse of their work with a gathering of Messianic believers making a profound impact on their international community. We finished the day off at Caesarea, where Paul sat in prison for nearly two years; finally appealing to Rome; where he was sent for trial.

We follow his journey to the same city in the morning. Early morning. We depart the hotel for Ben Gurion Airport at four in the morning.

Still more to come.

Ken

More Photos from Jerusalem

Check out the additional photos posted from Jerusalem.

We just finished our third day in Jerusalem. Our guide Yohanan (Hal) led us through the Old City and beyond. We've seen the Shrine of the Book (Dead Sea Scrolls), the International Christian Embassy, the Mount of Olives, the Garden of Gethsemane, Christ Church (Anglican) and the Western Wall. We visited the Holocaust Museum and then up to the Hebrew University for a panoramic view of the Old City. We traced the Via Dolorosa, the traditional walk up the cobble-stone streets of Jerusalem where Jesus is thought to have carried the cross to Calvary. We sang hymns in St Anne's Church and viewed the archaeological digs outside the city walls and then inside by the Pool of Bethesda. In the mornings, George starts our day with an orientation.

We celebrated Sabbath supper at the King Solomon Hotel. Vonnie and Greg Michels joined us - Greg shared the traditions of the Sabbath meal. We are learning and growing, and enjoying the company of fellow travelers.

More to come! (See more information on the History on the Move blog)

Greetings from Israel!

Greetings from Israel! Dale and Sue met us at LAX. About eleven hours after take off (we saw the giant Airbus on the tarmac) we landed in London… and checked into a hotel. Six of us rented a taxi and visited London – Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, Parliament and the Thames.

Then back on a British Air 767 from London to Tel Aviv.We arrived safely in Jerusalem at 7:30 AM after a Tel Aviv arrival of 5:30. You can imagine the time zone blur for our thirty adventurers.

Already today, we visited the Dead Sea Scroll Museum and the Old City model… and we are settling in at the King Solomon Hotel – Vonnie and Greg were waiting for us. We delivered a suitcase (thanks Karin) chock full of stuff for the ministry at Mt. Carmel. We’re adjusting to the time zone… wow. Two nights in the air.

We’re in Jerusalem at King Solomon for four nights. Here are some photos. We’ll share more as time and connectivity allow.

Ken

Family Shot

... from our Family Reunion. You can click on the photo... then "save copy as" by right clicking on the larger image. Save it to your desktop... make a print! Enjoy.

Kenny's Birthday Video

Saturday, January 27, Kris and Ben threw a backyard party for Kenny, who turned four that very day. "Welcome to Kenny City," the sign read. And as you will see, Kenny's friends and cousins and their parents entered right in. It was one for the memory books.

Watch video.
Purchase still photos at Costco.

Enjoy!

Ken

Great Shot of Kevin and Sonya

Here's a terrific photo, shot by Grayson, of Kevin and Sonya at the Family Reunion a few weeks ago.

Enjoy!

K