This is not true.

As a tourist, travelling across the Israel-Jordan border is pretty straightforward and it’s easy to visit Petra and Wadi Rum as independent travellers. However, it’s hard to track down all the information you need online.

This post aims to give you the information you need to make a trip to Petra from Israel.

Borders and Visas

The easiest border-crossing for visiting Petra is the Yitzhak Rabin/Wadi Araba Border Crossing between Eilat and Aqaba in the south.

• The Tourist Israel site gives the opening hours, though keep an eye on holidays like Ramadan. Note that early mornings can be busy with tour groups – later in the afternoon/early evening is usually quieter.
• You will need to pay an exit fee for leaving Israel – currently 105NIS (approx £20).
• IGNORE the official advice on the web about not being able to get single-entry visas for Jordan at the border. You can still buy these as independent travellers at the border (true as of June 2019 and no sign that this will change).
• You cannot drive a rental car across the border.
• There is a large free car park on the Israeli side of the border where you can leave a rental car.
• You can walk the flat, shaded 50-100m between the two borders.
• Taxis from the Jordanian side into Aqaba were 15JD in June 2019.
• There are currency exchange offices on both the Israeli and Jordanian side of the border, but the Jordanian side is cash-only. Make sure you withdraw some money for a taxi.
• You can pay fees by card on the Israeli side of the border, although cash is likely to be safer.
• Your passport will be stamped on the Jordanian side of the crossing and will therefore show that you have visited Israel. If you wish to travel further in the Middle East and have a second passport you may wish to use it for entry into Jordan. If you do not have a second passport you may wish to avoid entry into Jordan by a land crossing. [Note that Israel will not stamp your passport but will supply entry / exit tickets to be kept in your passport.]

Notes about Jordan visas

• Despite the official advice online, you will be able to acquire a single-entry visa at the border-crossing. [True from at least June 2016]
• You pay the visa fee on exiting the country – the price depends on how long you stay: 60JD for 0 nights; 40JD for 1 night; 10 JOD for 2 nights; free for 3 nights or more. [Fees shown on visa paperwork in June 2019]
• You will need cash (JD) to pay for your visa.
• You will need to show the visa paperwork to get the reduced entry fee at Petra.

Travelling to Petra

A few useful tips:

• Aqaba is a much cheaper place to stay (and eat) than Eilat. You will also reduce your visa fee by staying an additional night in Jordan. Clean and comfortable air-conditioned budget hotels in Aqaba can be found for just £20 per room.
• Renting a car is a cost-effective and straightforward way to get around Jordan. Roads are easy to drive on and traffic light. There are car rental places in Aqaba.
• Petra entrance fees are 90JD unless you stay in Jordan for at least one night – then they are 50JD. You must demonstrate you have stayed one night with the date stamped on your entry visa (i.e. the previous night). If you are planning to stay over the night after visiting Petra you can return the next day for a refund (but keep in mind that this may complicate your itinerary).
• Petra is approximately 2 hours drive from Aqaba. Wadi Rum is approximately 2 hours drive south from Petra and 45 minutes from Aqaba.
• There is an ATM at Petra and you can also pay your Petra entrance fees by card.
• Parking is free at Petra.
• 2 litre bottles of water were .35-.5JD in Aqaba and Wadi Musa, though you will pay more in Petra.
• A horse ride to the Siq is included with your Petra entrance ticket, but does not include a tip – make sure you agree this before the ride to ensure you are not surprised.

Staying in Wadi Rum

A few things to note:

• Wadi Rum is definitely worth a stay – a unique opportunity to camp in the desert with nothing but red sand and rocks around.
• It is easy to find inexpensive accommodation in Bedouin-style camps in Wadi Rum. This can best be described as ‘glamping’ (e.g. beds, lights and power in ‘tents’, toilet blocks, hot showers etc), though you should make sure that bed linen is provided (or can be rented).
• Even if very hot during the day, evenings in the desert were cool enough without worrying about air-conditioning.
• Wadi Rum entrance fees (5JD) must be paid in cash. There is no ATM in Wadi Rum or close by.
• You will need to have enough cash to pay for your accommodation and food in Wadi Rum.
• You cannot drive a rental car to the Bedouin camps in Wadi Rum. Park in the village car park and your chosen camp will pick you up in a 4×4 jeep and bring you back the next morning.
• Wadi Rum is a small village and you may want to ensure that your chosen campsite includes dinner and breakfast.
• Your campsite will be hopeful that you will purchase a jeep trip with them to travel deeper into Wadi Rum. However, this is not required (and I cannot speak to their enjoy-ability!).

So, this is what we did:

• Travelled from Tel Aviv, left our rental car at the border car park and passed through the Yitzhak Rabin/Wadi Araba crossing in the early evening. Easy.
• Enjoyed the warm welcome from Jordanian border officials.
• Took a taxi to a small and comfortable budget hotel in Aqaba, near the beach and the souk. (Serenity Hotel)
• Took an evening dip in the Red Sea – lovely.
• Ate dinner at the recommended Khubza and Seneya (busy and very tasty).
• In the early morning, picked up a pre-booked rental car 5 minutes walk away.
• Drove to Petra, with a brief stop in the nearby town of Wadi Musa for a packed-lunch, water and snacks.
• After exploring Petra, drove back south to Wadi Rum.
• Left the car in the village and travelled by jeep into the desert to our camp.
• Had dinner at the camp and enjoyed a beautiful and comfortable night staying in the desert.
• Travelled from Wadi Rum the next morning, picking up our rental car and travelling back to the border crossing. (Our rental car company dropped us back at the border for the same 15JD fee so we didn’t need to find another taxi.)
• Paid our 10JD visa fee. Passed through multiple Israeli passport-checks.
• Passed through the border by lunchtime, picked up our Israeli rental car and, after a brief stop in the uninteresting Eilat, were on our way north to the Dead Sea in the afternoon.

It’s hard to give a non-spoilery review of The Last Jedi, because I have so many thoughts and feelings about it that I almost have too much to say! It’s complex and multi-layered and tragic – and there’s so much going on beyond the surface level action. Watching it a second time was really useful in helping to untangle some of my thoughts and identify some key thematic beats that I’d missed the first time. I recommend a second viewing! The more I ponder the themes and characterisation in this movie the more I love it.

This is certainly a sad movie in many ways, but I found the darker, tragic themes compelling and moving. Kylo Ren is the most complex, interesting movie villain in a long time. All the characters experience significant challenges and heartbreak. When a favourite character explains that “failure is the greatest teacher” (paraphrasing) it’s clear that this is key to the whole story. How will we respond to failure? And how will we deal with the past? This story is about expectation, betrayal and loss – but also hope. The theme of hope occurs repeatedly throughout, in the mouths of different characters. Where is hope to be found? With a nod back to IV, who is “our only hope”? And will our hopes prove true? Or is hope lost? Some of the bigger questions are left to be answered in the next episode but, like these characters, the audience needs to have faith. “Hope is like the sun. If you only believe it when you see it you’ll never make it through the night.”

I love that Rian Johnson took such a fresh look at our favourite SW tropes – from heroism to mythology to battles to romance: “It’s not going to go the way you think!” He clearly loves these characters and loves this universe, but he’s not afraid to subvert our expectations and make us look at things in a new way. He throws things away and burns them up – but nothing is truly lost. It’s all still there – ready to be rediscovered by a new generation. All our young characters have lot of growing up to do in this movie – heroics, temper tantrums, running away, naïve expectations, slavish obedience, useless rebellion… Each one has something important to learn, some heartbreak to respond to. Like his characters, Rian forces us to question what it really means to be a hero. What – or who – should we fight for? And I love that there’s so much wisdom and strength in his female characters.

I loved all the characters in this – and some grew on me in the second watching. And the acting is superb. Adam Driver, Mark Hamill and Daisy Ridley in particular are all fantastic. And of course the visuals and effects are stunning. Not only the classic SW ship interiors and battles, but Ahch-To and Crait are stunning and memorable.

So, anyway, a few of my favourite or most memorable things (in no particular order):

• The chemistry between x and y
• The humour (Hux, tickling, Chewie and the porgs…)
• The tragic backstory
• The cave
• Hands hands hands
• The anti-war theme
• An old friend’s laughter and wise words
• Forcetiming
• Near-perfect examples of mansplaining from a certain hotshot pilot
• THE FIGHT (woohoo!)
• Rey’s compassion and courage
• Rose’s joy while on the run
• “You’re not alone.”
• “Please.”
• “…that piece of junk…” (about you know what!)
• R2D2’s emotional manipulation
• “Yes, say that.”
• Twin suns
• The angst and heartbreak
• RED
• “Save what you love…”
• When one character shows us what it really means to let go of the past
• The Millennium Falcon being awesome
• Rey’s emotional parentage reveal
• More than one amazing lightsaber moment
• DJ’s parting line
• “No one’s from nowhere
• ”The spark(s)
• “We have everything we need”

Perhaps my favourite critical review: Slashfilm: ‘The Last Jedi’ Doesn’t Care What You Think About ‘Star Wars’ – And That’s Why It’s Great

Also, check out the helpful post on prophetic activation exercises.

The Lord said that he had come ‘not to be served but to serve’. Many people think of this as a temporary interruption of Jesus’ normal experience, which would be to receive service. In fact, serving is God’s business. …

Hawthorne writes that [reading Philippians 2:6 as ‘although he was God’] is to miss the essential point … In other words:

Your attitude should be same as that of Christ Jesus, who – precisely because he was in very nature God – did not consider equality with God to be grounds for grasping, but poured himself out, taking the very nature of a servant.

…

Jesus did not take on the ‘outward form’ of a servant. Paul uses the same term to describe both Jesus’ servanthood and his Godhood … When Jesus came in the form of a servant, he was not disguising who God is. He was revealing who God is.

I remember hearing a Christian speaker say once that pride is forbidden to human beings, but is okay in God because, after all, he is God. This is wrong. God is the Infinite Servant. God is the most humble being in all the universe. Jesus did not come as a servant in spite of the fact that he is God; he came precisely because of the fact that he is God.

From ‘The Life You’ve Always Wanted’ by John Ortberg (p.115) – italics original, bold mine.

This passage is from his chapter on pride and humility in which he helpfully describes humility as ‘healthy self-forgetfulness’.

We will know that we have begun to make progress in humility when we find that we get so enabled by the Holy Spirit to live in the moment that we cease to be preoccupied with ourselves, one way or the other. … humility involves a Copernican revolution of the soul, the realisation that the universe does not revolve around us.

He points out that pride is a ‘persistent problem for people who strive for spiritual growth … When I try to do something good, I am intensely aware of it. And I tend to think of other people who aren’t putting forth the same effort…’

One of the hardest things in the world is to stop being the prodigal son without turning into the elder brother.

He goes on to describe how the practice of Servanthood, as demonstrated by Jesus, is the only way to find true humility.

“But Christianity has a very different answer.

“Christians believe the logic – the logos, or word – at the heart of the universe is not about survival. It’s about death and resurrection. The ultimate future doesn’t belong to those who have fought and prevailed, it belongs to those who have laid down their lives for others.

Samuel Wells, in Learning to Dream Again

Man’s maker was made man,
That He, Ruler of the stars,
Might nurse at His mother’s breast;
That the Bread might hunger,
The Fountain thirst,
The Light sleep,
The Way be tired on its journey;
That the Truth might be accused of false witness,
The Teacher be beaten with whips,
The Foundation be suspended on wood;
That Strength might grow weak;
That the Healer might be wounded;
That Life might die.

Adapted from Sermons 191.1 by Augustine of Hippo, author unknown.

And I like how this blogger continues:

…That the hungry may have bread,
The thirsty a fountain,
Those asleep, a light;
That the lost may find The Way,
The false may live in Truth,
The fools may astound the wise,
The worthless may find their worth;
That the weak may be strong;
That the wounded may be healed;
That the dead may live again.

He came down to earth from heaven,
Who is God and Lord of all,
Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ
To be our sweet Saviour.
Word of the Father, now in flesh appearing,
God with man is now residing,
Yonder shines the infant light
Born that man no more may die.

Joy! Joy! Jesus Christ was born for this
He hath ope’d the heav’nly door
Our spirits by Thine advent here
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night
And death’s dark shadows put to flight
Guide us to Thy perfect light.

The stars in the bright sky
Looked down where he lay
The world in solemn stillness lay
To hear the angels sing.
The angel of the Lord came down:
“Now to the Lord sing praises,
All you within this place,
Let steeple bells be swungen,
Heavenly hosts sing Alleluia!
Ye who now will bless the poor
Shall yourselves find blessing.”

And all the souls on earth shall sing,
On Christmas Day, on Christmas Day,
The glories of his righteousness,
And wonders of His love.
Good tidings we bring to you and your kin;
Born is the King of Israel!

Printable version

In the 19th century Russian tale ‘The Way of the Pilgrim‘ a pilgrim journeys across Russia, seeking to practise Paul’s command to “pray without ceasing” (1 Thess 5:17) by constantly repeating the ‘Jesus Prayer‘,”Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner“, an ancient confessional long-revered in Eastern churches. More recently, evangelicals became enthusiastic about repeating daily the prayer of Jabez, “Oh that you would bless me indeed and enlarge my territory! Let your hand be with me, and keep me from the evil one.” (1 Chronicles 4:9-10).

Inspired by the pilgrim’s tale*, I pondered my own choices: if I had to choose a simple prayer to repeat constantly, what would it be? Not that I disliked the ‘Jesus Prayer’, but curiosity left me wondering if there was an even simpler option. Perhaps “Help me, God!” or “Come, Holy Spirit“? “Abba, father” or “Jesus, let your kingdom come“? What was the most basic, most fundamental prayer of my life? Certainly I would have rated all of these as fundamental at various times. But in musing on this question again recently, I came to a even simpler answer.

I want every prayer that I pray to acknowledge who God is and who I am. For I have authority and agency: what I do and say matters. Yet it is God who loves me, calls to me, rescues me, sets me on my feet, and sends me. It is his Spirit that gives me new life, his kingdom which compels me. How could a single prayer encompass so much? Was there a prayer that would reflect the most fundamental desires of my life: to live in agreement with how God has made me, and what he says about me, to be filled with the Spirit, and to submit my life to his purposes and kingdom rule? When I put it that way the answer seemed obvious: agreement and submission can be summed up in a single word.

I believe that the simplest, and most fundamental, prayer that I can pray is “Yes.”

“Yes” encompasses acceptance and invitation, agreement and obedience, triumph and celebration. It’s agreeing to try something new, and confirming a request. It’s answering the door, and accepting seconds of dessert. It’s admitting blame, and conceding defeat. It’s agreeing to marry! It’s the shout of victory, and the exclamation of an overflowing heart.

With a single word I can say so much. I want to say “Yes” to everything that God says about me; “Yes” to his love and his saving grace; “Yes” to the life of the Spirit and crucifying the old self; “Yes” when he calls my name and asks me to leave everything and follow him; “Yes” to everything he asks from me. I will declare “Yes” to Jesus as Lord and King, and a wholehearted “Yes” to every good thing he has for others. And along the way I want to celebrate everything that he has made and done and purposed with a resounding “Yes!”

Praying “Yes” acknowledges my authority and agency: God asks -not compels – me in all things. And yet by itself the word is meaningless – it is simply a response. In order to respond, there must be first a question or command. Thus with this simple prayer I can profess the reality of God as ultimate source and final question: all of creation must answer. My answer is “Yes.”

I am made to freely respond to God’s love. I am a free agent who finds peace only in surrender. I am an individual made for relationship. I have authority only in agreement. He loves me; I love him. He calls me; I answer. He sets me on my feet; I walk beside him. He gives me identity and purpose. Everything he says about me is true, everything he commands is because he loves me. I can only say “Yes” to him, because he first said “Yes” to me.

So, I was convinced. Simple, yet profound, “Yes” seemed a worthwhile prayer to spend time with – and the nervousness I sensed within me made me confident that it held plenty of potential for wrestling with deeper things. So, how would I go about using this simple prayer?

In a nod to the Russian pilgrim it’s my intention to use the prayer as a meditation during a pilgrimage of sorts. I am planning for this pilgrimage, which I expect to take some time, to take me on a journey through the various questions, statements and commands put before me in the Bible. As I consider each “Yes”, and I expect there to be many different kinds, it will be with the intention of understanding what God is saying or asking in a deeper way than before. As with the practice of the Jesus Prayer, my hope is to hear God’s voice. And I am certain that along the way I shall find many ways to say “Yes”.

Despite the simplicity of the words, and the familiarity of much of the territory I expect to cover, I don’t expect an easy journey – in fact I am sure it will be adventurous, challenging and occasionally scary. Though I remain confident of the value of an intentional journey with God, and in his capacity to surprise me.

Though on the face of it ‘Yes’ is an easy word, it’s often very hard to say. Submitting to authority can be hard; acknowledging responsibility is tough; following Jesus means leaving things behind. Part of me is deeply scared of this word. What parts of my heart are not in agreement with God? And what about all of the ways in which I’m not fully obedient to him? There’s no doubt about it: saying “Yes” to God requires trust. It’s not meant to be easy, but it requires a decision.

“Will you trust me?” he asks. It’s the first question. I take a deep breath. “Yes.”

“It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there’s no knowing where you might be swept off to.” JRR Tolkien, in the Lord of the Rings.

*I first came across this story – I think – in Philip Yancey’s ‘Prayer’.

He presented his five convictions of viral leadership:

1. The size of the harvest depends on how many harvesters you have (Matt 9.37-38).

These harvesters are leaders who need raising up. Jesus didn’t leap into the field and spend all his energy harvesting – his strategy was to invest his time in 12 disciples. The first thing he did was find his leaders and grow them. ‘Who will continue your work?’ he asked us. If you want to measure the impact of your life, ask yourself this: how many young leaders are you growing? A wise question and a challenging one  – am I investing in younger leaders?

2. Live for the next generation (Ps 71.18).

His challenge to us was to pour out our lives for the next generation, not our own, and by this he meant those 20 years our junior. This is certainly seek-first-my-kingdom stuff, and the challenge to selflessly live for a time to come was one of the most difficult of the conference.

3. Find your 70. (Num 11.10-17.18)

His point from Moses’ story was that the 70 leaders were already there, because he appointed them all in one day. He challenged us to find the budding leaders who are right under our noses, to recognise potential and train it.

4. Instil the ‘five loves’ (Mark 12.30-33).

Remember these? Heart, soul, mind, strength, neighbour… Love God, love your neighbour – everything is summed up in this! He pointed to these five loves as a model for teaching young leaders: (a) Heart – character; (b) Soul – conviction; (c) Mind – comprehension; (d) Strength – competence; (e) Neighbour – compassion.  Nothing revolutionary here, but a excellent framework!

5. Never do ministry alone (Acts 4.13).

His challenge was to always have budding leaders around, in every part of ministry, at every opportunity. If you’re doing ministry alone, he suggested, it’s a wasted opportunity for teaching. This was the advice I thought most leaders would find the hardest to implement. It’s such a wise idea, but I can see plenty of concerns being raised about privacy and so on. However, people are happy to accept this same approach in a teaching hospital: younger doctors always around, listening and learning, offering suggestions, trying things out. What is so different about spiritual ministry?

Bill Hybels opened up the conference with a call for leaders to have courage.

Be strong and courageous. Don’t be fearful or discouraged, because the LORD your God is with you wherever you go. Joshua 1.9

Courage to pursue the vision that God has given you; courage to face reality; courage to build a healthy culture in an organisation; courage to establish values; courage in the face of pressures; courage to finish strong. Be strong and courageous!

How many visions never make it off the starting block because of a leader’s fear? Our cowardice adds to the world’s suffering.

How many organisations suffer because the leader cannot face reality? Or let fear keep them from apologising, from modelling humility, repentance and forgiveness? How many leaders let caution and fear hold them back in championing values? And how many hurt their own organisations by not facing up to the succession question, or fearing reinvention? Be strong and courageous!

Typically excellent stuff from Bill Hybels, with plenty of practical encouragement (although his personal examples are always on a totally different scale!). This was a powerful reminder that courage is not an optional extra for a leader. As he says, courage correlates to every component of leadership. ‘Pastor Bill’ talked a lot about his need to declare the ‘Joshua prayer’ to himself – and to keep doing so – at many points during his years in ministry. Bill is a favourite speaker of mine, not least for his passion and total commitment to the significance of the local church. This is a man who loves Jesus and loves his church, and in listening to him I never fail to be encouraged and emboldened – both as a leader and a disciple. Be strong and courageous! Don’t be fearful or discouraged, because the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.