Zion Lippe UCC Worship

Here's some information about our very successful "Walk to Jerusalem" program held in 2008. We had lots of members participate as well as some folks from our partner church in Exter Germany.

What would you say if we asked you to join us in walking from Zion Lippe UCC all the way to Jerusalem by Pentecost? After checking on the internet, we found that it is approximately 6400 miles from Zion to Jerusalem. That’s a lot of walking, and we're sure an individual is not up to doing it by themselves or even if we were walking together; and, of course, there is the Atlantic Ocean in between Zion and Jerusalem.

Let us explain. We're not talking about one or two people making a literal journey from Zion to Jerusalem. We're talking about as many people as are willing to collectively begin on February 24th to walk/run/skip or by whatever physical means possible to take enough “steps” to equal walking the approximately 6400 miles from Zion to Jerusalem and “arrive” by Pentecost on May 11th.

The purpose of “Walking to Jerusalem” is to help us become more physically and spiritually active. You’d say, “O.K., I understand the physically active part of walking 6400 miles; but where does the spiritually active part come in?” As we begin our walk, each participant/family will receive a walking packet explaining the program and containing devotions to be used during the trip as well as weekly “walking with God” cards. We’ll also get to know a little about the cities, the countries and the people we’ll be visiting along our route.

Sixty-four hundred miles means to a lot of steps, and we’ll need a lot of participants to make the trip in just twelve weeks. Participation will not be limited to members of Zion but will be open to anyone who would like to make the trip with us. We would especially like to invite our members and friends who are away from home attending school, working out of town, or enjoying the snowbird life to join us on this virtual and spiritual journey.

How are we going to keep track of all these “steps” by all these people? For those who don’t already have one, we’re working on getting pedometers for every participant so they can record their steps. Each week the participants will write their steps on a chart posted in the foyer. Those who are away from home can send in their steps by phone or e-mail to the church office. We will have a large map posted near the “step chart” to post our collective progress. We also plan to have several special events along the way to keep us motivated and on the right path.

Donna L Hartig
For the “Walk to Jerusalem” Committee