So we’re down in
Swaziland and the internet connection is dodgy at best, who knew? Now I don’t usually like to post
multiple blogs at once, but in order to get a few stories out from Israel and
keep you updated on what we’re doing here, I’m afraid I may have to make an
exception. So the next couple of
times I blog, I will more than likely be posting two stories, so grab your
coffee and reading glasses and I’ll see if I can entertain.
First, for a
story from Israel. I think I
learned more in this month in Israel than I have in 20 plus years in Sunday
School classes (not a knock on Sunday School teachers, you guys are great,
especially those with middle schoolers).
Since Tiffany and I became squad leaders, we’ve formed our own team and
instead of splitting up among the groups, we have decided to travel between
teams together to start. So we
started with two teams that were staying in Arad, which is one of the desert
areas in Israel. I was able to
watch pretty much every sunrise while out there and I was blown away each
morning at what God could do daily.
We were staying
with one of the smartest men I have ever met (he actually help translate the
Dead Sea Scrolls for a littl
e resume booster) and I caught my head spinning
more often than not. Our first
weekend there, he took us on a 3 day tour around to many of the biblical sites
and we camped at a fishing village that was home to two of the disciples, Peter
and Andrew.
The first day was
our Old Testament day and it started out bright and early with one of the most
grueling hikes up Mount Masada.
This mountain was a summer hideout, as well as a strong military base,
and after our whole group passing out at the top, I could see why. The good news is that this hike was
followed by a trip to En Gedi, which is a desert oasis as well as the place
where David wrote many of the Psalms and hid out from Saul. We visited a few more sites that day
but spent most of our time at the first two.
The next morning
started our New Testament day where we went chronologically through the book of
Mark. We went to many of the
places Jesus walked including Capernaum, the Mount of the Beautitudes, and many
sites of the various parables and miracles. My favorite sight of the day was part of the Sea of Galilee
called the Sea of Parables. Many
times throughout the Gospels, there is talk of how Jesus would climb onto the
fishing boat, put out to the middle of the lake, and teach. I always wondered how this was
possible, but when I saw this area I understood. This part of the sea is surrounded by mountains and has
formed a natural amphitheater and you barely need to raise your voice to be
heard hundreds of feet away by the people on the shore. I like to think God set that up for His
son thousands of years before because He knew the impact He would have. God’s plan for me is so much bigger and
more intricate than I can even imagine…
This tour was
draining mentally but absolutely incredible. It was so cool to actually travel from place to place and
read the scriptures that talked about the place I was standing. It takes reading the Bible to a whole
new level, and even just reading it with an atlas was a new experience. I’m fairly certain that weekend was
equivalent to a few semesters of seminary classes. More stories will come from Israel…
…
